"The pitcher of ice water smashed into Mara before she could even raise her hands.

Night fell over the fortress, bringing with it a blanket of heavy, unnatural fog. The air inside the Sun Tower was thick with tension. Tomorrow was the night of the Blood Ritual, and the entire fate of the kingdom hung in the balance.

Inside her room, Mara sat at a wooden table while Captain Vance stood guard near the closed doors. Outside, a storm raged, lightning flashes briefly illuminating the dark room.

A soft knock came at the door. One of the King’s personal pageboys entered, carrying a silver tray with a steaming porcelain teapot and two cups.

“Compliments of His Majesty,” the boy bowed nervously. “The King thought the Lady Aurelia might need warm chamomile tea to soothe her nerves before tomorrow.”

Vance stepped forward immediately, halting the boy with a hand on his sword. “Leave the tray on the table and step back.”

The boy set down the tray with trembling hands and quickly hurried out of the room.

Mara reached for the teapot, exhausted and thirsty, but Vance held up a hand. “Wait.”

He pulled a small silver pin from his belt—a standard guard’s tool used to test for common poisons. He dipped the tip of the pin into the hot tea. For a few seconds, nothing happened. Then, the silver tip turned a deep, oily black.

Mara gasped, pulling her hands back. “Another poison?”

“Not just any poison,” Vance said grimly, smelling the faint scent rising from the steam. “Draught of the Sleeping Dead. It doesn't kill immediately; it causes a deep, comatose paralysis that makes the victim appear dead within hours. If you drank this tonight, you would never wake up for tomorrow’s ritual. They would bury you alive.”

Mara dropped into her chair, her hands shaking violently. “They won't stop, Vance. No matter how many guards you put at my door, Malakor and Celeste control the servants, the physicians, the entire palace. I’ll never make it to tomorrow night.”

Vance stared at the black-tipped pin, his jaw tightly clenched. He looked at Mara—at her fierce resilience, her intelligence, and the unmistakable fire in her eyes.

“You’re right,” Vance said softly. “If we stay on the defensive, they will eventually find a way to kill you. So, we give them what they want.”