Seraphina's POV
I can't move. Can't breathe. Can't think.
Emperor Cassian Draegor stands in the middle of the road, silver eyes locked on mine, and the whole world stops.
He's exactly like I remember from my death—devastatingly handsome with sharp features and black hair. But he's also different. Younger somehow. Less cold.
And he's looking at me like he knows me.
"Your Majesty!" Commander Aldric drops to one knee immediately. "Forgive me, I didn't know you would—"
"Leave us." The Emperor's voice cuts through the air like a blade.
"But Your Majesty, the lady's safety—"
"I said leave." His silver eyes flash dangerously. "Take your men and wait at the edge of the forest. No one comes near this carriage until I say so."
Commander Aldric hesitates, glancing at me with worry. But you don't argue with an emperor.
"Yes, Your Majesty." He bows and signals to his men. Within seconds, all the guards ride away, leaving me completely alone with the man who's supposed to kill me.
My hands shake as the Emperor walks toward the carriage. Each step feels like thunder in my chest.
He stops right outside the window, so close I could touch him if I wanted to. Which I definitely don't.
"Lady Seraphina Ashford." He studies my face carefully. "You look terrified."
I am terrified. But I refuse to show it more than I already have.
"You're the Emperor," I say, trying to keep my voice steady. "Most people would be terrified."
His lips twitch slightly. Almost a smile. "Most people, yes. But you're not most people, are you?"
My heart stops. "What do you mean?"
"You know exactly what I mean." He opens the carriage door and climbs in, sitting directly across from me. The space suddenly feels way too small.
I press myself against the wall, putting as much distance between us as possible. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Liar." But he doesn't sound angry. Just... tired. "I've been dreaming of you for seven years, Seraphina. Every night, I watch you die. Different ways, different places. But always the same silver hair. Always the same violet eyes."
I stop breathing.
He knows. Oh god, he knows about the time loop.
"That's impossible," I whisper.
"I thought so too. Until three days ago, when I had a different dream." He leans forward, his silver eyes intense. "I dreamed you died on our wedding night. Poisoned. Alone. And when you died, you whispered 'just like the novel said.'"
The blood drains from my face.
"What novel, Seraphina? What story are you living in?"
I want to lie. To deny everything. But what's the point? He already knows too much.
"You won't believe me," I say quietly.
"Try me."
So I do. I tell him about the book I found in my first life. About reading "The Emperor's Crimson Bride" and laughing at how dramatic it was. About realizing too late that I was living inside that story.
I tell him about dying on our wedding night, poison burning through my veins while celebrations echoed outside.
And I tell him about waking up three months in the past with a chance to change everything.
When I finish, silence fills the carriage. The Emperor stares at me like he's trying to solve an impossible puzzle.
"You came back from the dead," he says slowly. "You traveled through time."
"I know it sounds crazy—"
"It doesn't sound crazy." He runs a hand through his hair, and for the first time, he looks almost human. Vulnerable. "It sounds like the answer I've been searching for my entire life."
"Answer to what?"
"Why I dream of your death. Why I recognized you the moment I saw your name on the selection list. Why every oracle I've consulted says the same thing—my bride will die, and her death will destroy me."
He leans back, his eyes never leaving mine. "We're trapped in a story, Seraphina. Both of us. And I've been trying to break free for years."
"That's why you summoned me early," I realize. "You wanted to meet me before the selection. Before the story really starts."
"I wanted to see if you were real." He reaches into his cloak and pulls out a letter—the same cream paper, the same black seal. "I sent you this."
My jaw drops. "You sent the mysterious letter? But how did you know I remembered—"
"Because three days ago, I had one more dream. A different one." His voice drops. "I dreamed of you waking up in your childhood bed, crying and screaming that you didn't want to die again. I saw you realize you'd traveled back in time. I watched you plan to avoid the selection."
He leans forward again, close enough that I can see silver flecks in his gray eyes. "And I knew if you didn't come to the palace, the story would find another way to kill you. The prophecy always gets what it wants."
"What prophecy?"
"The curse on my family." His jaw tightens. "Every Draegor emperor destroys what he loves most. My father loved my mother—she died giving birth to me. My grandfather loved power—it consumed him. The oracles say I will love my bride, and I will kill her on our wedding night."
The words hang in the air between us like poison.
"So you see," he continues quietly, "you're not the only one trying to survive this story. I've been fighting it my whole life."
I stare at him, my mind racing. In the novel, the Emperor was cold and cruel, a man who felt nothing. But this man in front of me is different. Desperate. Haunted.
Human.
"Why are you telling me all this?" I ask.
"Because we're on the same side." He pulls out another letter from his cloak. "I didn't just send you one letter. I sent two. The second one I gave to Commander Aldric this morning with orders to give it to you after we met."
He hands it to me. The seal is already broken.
"But I'm giving it to you now because you need to understand something very important." His eyes bore into mine. "The story has already changed, Seraphina. The moment you came back in time, you broke the first rule—the bride isn't supposed to remember. And the moment I dreamed of your memories, I broke the second rule—the emperor isn't supposed to know."
"What does that mean?"
"It means we've gone off-script. The story is trying to fix itself, trying to force us back into our roles." He stands abruptly, and the carriage feels even smaller. "Open that letter when you get to the palace. Read it carefully. Trust no one except Commander Aldric and yourself."
He moves toward the door, then pauses. "Oh, and Seraphina? That tea party your stepmother is planning for tomorrow afternoon?"
I freeze. "How do you know about that?"
"Because it happened in my dreams too. You were supposed to embarrass yourself in front of noble ladies. Make yourself look unworthy so I wouldn't choose you at the selection." His eyes meet mine, sharp and knowing. "It won't work. I've already chosen you. The announcement went out this morning."
"But the selection is three months away—"
"Not anymore." He opens the carriage door. "I moved it up. The selection ceremony happens tonight at the palace. You have four hours to prepare."
My heart stops. "Tonight? But that's impossible! I can't—"
"You can. You must." He steps down from the carriage, then turns back one last time. "The story wants us dead, Seraphina. Both of us. So we're going to rewrite it together, starting tonight."
"Wait!" I lean out the window as panic floods through me. "What happens tonight? What am I supposed to do?"
Emperor Cassian's expression is grim. "You're supposed to meet the other brides. Twenty daughters from the most powerful families in the empire, all competing for my hand."
"But you said you already chose me—"
"I did. But they don't know that yet." He whistles sharply, and Commander Aldric appears with the guards. "And one of them is planning to kill you before the night ends."
My blood turns to ice. "What? Who?"
"That's what you need to figure out." He mounts his black horse in one smooth motion. "The letter will tell you everything I know. Read it. Trust no one. And whatever you do..."
He locks eyes with me one final time, and the intensity in his gaze makes my skin prickle.
"Don't drink anything anyone gives you. Not even water. Especially not water."
Then he rides away, disappearing into the forest like a ghost.
I sit frozen in the carriage, my whole body shaking.
Commander Aldric appears at the window. "My lady? Are you alright?"
No. I'm not alright. I'm being taken to a palace where someone wants me dead. Tonight. At a selection ceremony that's been moved up by three months.
With trembling hands, I tear open the second letter.
The handwriting is rushed, almost panicked:
Seraphina,
If you're reading this, you've met me and survived. Good.
Now listen carefully. Tonight's ceremony is a trap. Not for you—for me. Someone in the palace wants to weaken my power by ensuring my bride dies before we can marry. They've already tried three times with previous selections. All three women died of "mysterious illnesses."
But they don't know you're different. They don't know you've lived this before.
Use that advantage.
The poison will be in the ceremonial wine. All twenty brides will drink it as part of the selection ritual. Nineteen will be fine. One will die within the hour.
You.
Don't drink the wine. Find a way to fake it. And when the real killer reveals themselves—and they will—you'll finally understand who's really pulling the strings.
Trust Commander Aldric. Trust yourself.
And remember: the story wants us enemies. So let's be allies instead.
—C
I read the letter three times, each word sinking deeper into my bones.
Someone in the palace is trying to kill the Emperor's brides. And tonight, I'm supposed to be their next victim.
The carriage starts moving again, taking me toward the palace. Toward danger. Toward a ceremony where I might die for the second time.
But this time, I know it's coming.
This time, I have a chance to fight back.
I clutch the letter tightly and stare out the window as the forest gives way to open fields. In the distance, I can see it—the imperial palace rising against the sky like a beautiful nightmare.
Somewhere in those towers, a killer is waiting.
And I have four hours to figure out who they are before they strike.