Selene didn't know how to comfort Miranda. The girl's sobs soaked through her dress, fragile and trembling in her arms. All Selene could do was keep patting her back gently, steady and slow, as if her hand could anchor her to something safe.
I'll have to help heal her wounds, Selene thought to herself. Not just the ones on her skin, but the ones buried deep inside. Slowly… little by little.
But the fragile mood shattered like glass.
"Stop crying," Lucien snapped, his voice sharp, cutting through the silence. "Clear my name already!"
Selene's eyes narrowed. "Can't you see she's not well? When the time comes, she'll clear your name."
"I want it cleared now!" Lucien shouted. He jabbed a finger toward someone who had been quietly standing off to the side. "Look.... she's waiting!"
Selene blinked, momentarily confused. Her gaze followed the direction of his finger then froze.
A delicate girl with soft curls and a patient expression. It was Lady Seraphina.
Lucien grabbed Miranda's arm roughly. "Hurry and clear me, Miranda! If we explain everything, I can still fix this..."
A sharp smack! Selene slapped his hand away, her glare cold. "Forget it. Even though you are not to be blamed for the scar on her cheek, it doesn't erase the fact that you pushed Miranda that day. Plus, Lady Seraphina already has a new fiancé."
"I already know that!" Lucien roared, his face twisting red with shame and fury. "I don't care! If the misunderstanding is cleared, she'll like me again. She'll break off the engagement with that other boy..."
Selene's voice cut him like steel. "If you already know, then you must also know her fiancé is the third prince of Vanchaster."
Lucien's entire face went crimson, a mix of anger, embarrassment, and desperation.
"I know!" he screamed back, voice hoarse. "But Seraphina loves me! If the misunderstanding is gone, she'll break the engagement with that useless prince and come back to me!"
Selene's mouth fell slightly open. The game had mentioned his engagement to Lady Seraphina, yes but not this… obsession. Was he always this delusional?
Even Miranda, through her swollen eyes, stared at him as if he'd lost his mind.
Lucien lurched forward again, his hand reaching for Miranda's arm.
Smack!
Selene swatted it away once more, this time with enough force to sting.
His composure cracked. Snarling, Lucien grabbed Selene by the collar, jerking her forward. "Stop meddling, commoner or I'll hit you!" He raised his fist.
But before he could swing...
His body jerked violently upward, feet dangling in the air. A strong hand had clamped around the scruff of his neck, lifting him as though he weighed nothing.
Lucien twisted in panic to see who dared touch him...
... and froze.
Ink-black hair. Scarlet-red eyes burning like fresh blood.
His father's warning echoed in his head. There is a man you must never disrespect. If you value your life, show him utmost respect. You'll know him when you see him: the Duke of Ravencroft.
And worse still his father had insisted Lucien befriend his son.
The same father who, before Victoria's tea party, had warned him that even if Duke Magnus's daughter awakened as a dark priestess, the Ravencrofts are peculiar people and were not to be slighted. Ever.
Lucien's gaze flickered from Selene, still pinned by his grip, to the furious crimson eyes of Magnus.
His face drained to the color of chalk.
Lucien's legs kicked uselessly in the air. Magnus's grip on the back of his neck was iron, unyielding. The boy's breath came in frantic gasps, his earlier bravado crumbling to ash, as he let go of Selene.
"Duke... Duke... M-Magnus... your grace... I-I..." he stammered, eyes wide with terror.
Magnus's scarlet gaze bore into him, cold and sharp. "You dare raise your hand against her?" His voice was calm, almost too calm, the kind of calm that made the skin crawl.
Selene tilted her head slightly, watching the scene with narrowed eyes. The anger radiating off Magnus was suffocating; it had been a long time since she had seen him this angry. However the last time he was this angry, the poor lad walked away unrecognizable. She wanted to stop him, but she didn't want to get hit in the crossfire, so she stayed put.
Lucien gasped. "It...it was a misunderstanding, I...I didn't mean..."
Magnus squeezed just enough to make Lucien choke. "Didn't mean? I saw you. Everyone saw you. A worm who thinks he can threaten my daughter."
Around them, whispers rippled like wildfire. Miranda stared with wide eyes, her earlier grief momentarily forgotten, while Leo hovered uncertainly, torn between helping his twin or keeping his own head attached to his body.
"Do you know what my father told me, boy?" Magnus leaned closer, his lips brushing Lucien's ear like a death sentence. "He said vermin will always crawl into the light, thinking themselves wolves. But vermin are crushed under boots."
Lucien's trembling grew worse. He remembered... he knew... if he pushed further, Magnus might actually kill him here, in front of everyone.
Magnus dropped him suddenly. Lucien crashed onto his knees, coughing and clutching his throat, but before relief could set in, Magnus's boot pressed lightly against his shoulder, pinning him down without effort.
"You should thank me," Magnus said icily. "If my temper were worse, I'd end your petty bloodline today." His crimson eyes flicked toward Leo, who flinched. "Tell your father: his sons are liabilities. I don't take kindly to rabid dogs snapping at my family."
Magnus finally stepped back, withdrawing his boot as if Lucien wasn't worth dirtying it on.
Lucien scrambled to his feet, pale and humiliated, the hatred in his eyes barely masked by fear. He opened his mouth as if to argue... but one glare from Magnus silenced him instantly.
"Get. Lost."
The authority in Magnus's tone sent chills down everyone's spine. Even Leo tugged at his brother's sleeve, muttering something about leaving. Together, the brothers stumbled back, retreating toward the edge of the gathering like beaten dogs.
The air felt lighter the moment they were gone.
Miranda, still leaning on Selene, whispered shakily, "He… he's scary."
Selene glanced at Magnus. He hadn't moved, still looming, his scarlet gaze fixed where Lucien had fled. But when he finally turned toward her, something unspoken passed in his eyes... something fierce, possessive, and terrifyingly steady.