Chapter 1
Layla
My knees ache against the cold stone floor, but I don't dare move because Princess Clarice hasn't given me permission to stand yet.
The tears on my face have already dried but new ones threaten to fall as she paces in front of me, her silk dress swishing with every angry step she takes.
"You stupid girl!" She barks, her voice cutting through the air like a knife. "How many times do I have to tell you not to touch my jewelry without permission?"
"I was only cleaning it, Your Highness." I whisper, keeping my eyes on the floor because looking at her directly will only make things worse.
"You asked me to polish everything before the ceremony tonight."
The slap comes so fast I don't see it coming, and my cheek burns as my head snaps to the side.
The King and Queen watch from their thrones but they don't say anything because to them I am nothing more than a servant who deserves whatever punishment their daughter wants to give me.
"Don't talk back to me," Clarice hisses, grabbing my chin and forcing me to look at her. "You're lucky I don't have you thrown in the dungeons for your insolence."
Before I can apologize the heavy doors of the throne room burst open and a guard rushes in with his face pale and sweat dripping down his forehead.
He drops to one knee before the King and his whole body shakes as he tries to catch his breath.
"Your Majesty," He gasps. "Urgent news from Darkbane."
The temperature in the room seems to drop and even Clarice stops pacing to listen. Everyone knows about Darkbane and the monsters who live there.
The Northern Kingdom is ten times bigger than ours and their Alpha King is said to be the most vicious ruler who has ever lived.
Some say he bathes in the blood of his enemies and others whisper that he can transform into a beast so terrifying that grown men wet themselves at the sight of him.
"Speak." The King commands though I notice his knuckles turn white as he grips the arms of his throne.
"They have rejected our annual tribute Your Majesty," The guard says, his voice cracking. "The envoy from Darkbane says the Alpha King will no longer accept gold or jewels or land."
"Then what does he want?" The Queen asks and for the first time since I've known her, I hear fear in her voice.
The guard swallows hard and looks like he would rather be anywhere else but here. "He wants Princess Clarice as his bride, Your Majesty or he will declare war on Evendor."
The silence that follows is so complete I can hear my own heartbeat pounding in my ears. Clarice's face turns whiter than fresh snow and she stumbles backward until she hits the wall.
The Queen gasps and covers her mouth with her hand while the King jumps to his feet so fast his crown nearly falls off.
"No!" Clarice screams and the sound echoes off the walls. "I won't marry that monster. I won't go to that horrible place!"
"We have to think," The King says and starts pacing just like his daughter was doing moments ago. "There must be another way."
"What other way Father?!" Clarice yells with tears streaming down her face, ruining her perfect makeup.
"You know what they say about him and how he kills for sport. How he enjoys watching people suffer."
"Maybe we can offer them more gold." The Queen suggests, but even she doesn't sound convinced. "Or perhaps some of our best warriors."
"They don't want gold, Mother!" Clarice yells, her face white as a sheet. "They want me and I would rather die than marry that beast!"
I stay on my knees watching this all unfold and part of me feels sorry for the princess even though she has made my life miserable for years.
Nobody deserves to be forced into marriage with someone like the Alpha King of Darkbane.
The stories about him are enough to give anyone nightmares and I shudder thinking about what he might do to whoever becomes his bride.
"If we refuse, they will destroy us," The King says, slumping back into his throne. "Our army is no match for theirs and you know it."
"So you're just going to sacrifice me," Clarice asks, her voice breaking. "Your own daughter."
The Queen starts crying too and the King looks like he has aged ten years in the last few minutes.
They all know there is no real choice here because Darkbane could wipe out our entire kingdom without breaking a sweat and we all know it.
Then Clarice stops crying and turns to look at me still kneeling on the floor.
Something changes in her eyes and a slow smile spreads across her face but it's not a nice smile at all. It's the kind of smile that makes my stomach twist into knots.
"Wait," She says, walking toward me. "I have an idea."
"What kind of idea?" The King asks.
Clarice circles around me like a predator stalking its prey, and I feel her eyes studying every inch of my face. "Look at her, Father. Really look at her."
The King and Queen both turn their attention to me and I want to shrink into the floor and disappear, but I can't move.
"She looks just like me," Clarice continues, her voice getting excited. "Same hair color, same eye color, same height and build. The people of Darkbane have never seen me before, have they?"
"Clarice, what are you suggesting?" the Queen asks though I think she already knows.
"I'm suggesting we send her instead," Clarice says excitedly, pointing at me. "We tell them she's the princess and nobody will know the difference."
My heart instantly sinks in my chest as my eyes grow wide as saucers.
"No, please." I finally find my voice and it comes out as barely a whisper. "Your Highness, please don't do this to me."
"Silence," the King commands and I bite my lip to stop myself from begging. "This could actually work."
"My mother," I say and tears fall freely now. "I have to take care of my mother. She's old and sick. She needs me."
"Your mother will be fine," Clarice says with a wave of her hand like my concerns mean nothing. "This is perfect and she already knows how to act like a proper lady because she's been serving me for years."
The King stands up and walks over to me, lifting my chin with his finger to examine my face more closely. "The resemblance is remarkable and it's true that Darkbane has never sent anyone here to meet Clarice."
"Then it's settled," Clarice says, clasping her hands together. "She goes in my place."
"Please, Your Majesty," I beg, desperately grabbing the hem of the King's robe. "I'll do anything else. Just don't send me there."
The King kicks me away and I fall backward onto the cold floor. "You will go to Darkbane as Princess Clarice or I will have you executed for treason."
"Treason," I gasp, my entire body trembling. "But I haven't done anything wrong."
"Refusing a direct order from your King is treason," He says coldly. "So what will it be, girl? Death or Darkbane?"
I look at their faces and know I have no choice at all because either way my life as I know it is over.
At least if I go to Darkbane my mother might still have a chance to survive even if I don't.
"I'll go." I whisper, the words tasting like ash in my mouth.
"Good," Clarice says, looking happier than I've ever seen her. "The envoy from Darkbane is still here so we'll tell them the princess accepts the proposal."
As they discuss the details of my fate I stay on the floor and wonder how my life went from bad to worse in just a few minutes.
Tomorrow I will leave everything I know behind and travel to a kingdom full of monsters to marry a man who might kill me the moment he sees me.
The door opens again and the guard returns, his face pale as a sheet.
“Your Majesty, the envoy from Darkbane is here.”
The King shoots up from his seat just as the Queen and Clarice let out horrified gasps.
“So quickly?!” The King exclaims with terror in his voice.
“Quick, Clarice! Go hide!” The Queen whisper-yells and I simply watch with my heart sinking in my chest as Clarice flees through the backdoor.
“Let him in.” The King commands, sweat trickling down his brow as he takes his seat one more time.
The guard disappears and re-enters after a few minutes.
This time, he's not alone because behind him stands the tallest man I've ever seen dressed all in black with scars covering his arms.
"The envoy from Darkbane wishes to see the princess before he leaves." The guard announces.
The scarred man's dark eyes scan the room and when they land on me still crumpled on the floor, something flickers across his face.
"Is this her?" He asks in a voice rough as gravel and I realize with growing horror that he's looking directly at me.
