Evelyn's POV
My lungs burned as I tore through the woods, branches clawing at my skin, my bare feet sinking into the damp earth. My gown was nothing but rags now, shredded by roots and thorns, the cold air biting against my bruised flesh. Behind me, I could hear them, my uncle and his friends, their drunken laughter twisting into something more terrifying than wolves howling in the dead of night.
I didn't dare look back. I couldn't. If I slowed, if I stumbled, they would catch me. And if they caught me….
My chest heaved, vision blurred with tears, but I kept running. Running because that was all I had ever known, running from pain, from hands that hurt, from voices that mocked, from a life that seemed more curse than blessing.
Then, suddenly, I crashed into something. No,not something. Someone.
The impact knocked me back, my breath stolen from my lungs as if I had slammed into a wall of stone. My trembling hands pressed against him instinctively, against the unyielding chest that felt more beast than man.
And then I looked up.
Lucian Draegor. The Demon Wolf himself.
His eyes burned like hellfire, his lips curved into that smirk I hated so much, the kind that said he owned me without a single word. My stomach dropped, and a scream tore itself from my throat.
The woods vanished.
I jerked awake, heart pounding so violently I thought it might burst from my chest. My throat was raw, sweat dripping down my temples, my dress clinging damply to my skin. My breaths came in ragged gasps, sharp and painful, as I realized, just a dream. Just another nightmare.
But it didn't feel like just a dream. It felt like the past chasing me, sinking claws into my present, dragging me back into a pit I couldn't escape.
"Evelyn," a soft voice whispered.
I flinched before turning, my eyes landing on Lisa. She was already awake, her brows furrowed with worry as she scooted closer to me on the hard stone floor of the servants' quarters.
"Are you…. are you alright?" she asked, voice tentative, as though afraid I might shatter if she pressed too hard.
I nodded quickly, too quickly, wiping the sweat from my brow. "It's nothing. Just… a dream."
But Lisa wasn't convinced. Her hand pressed against my forehead, and I saw her lips tighten in alarm. "You're burning up," she whispered. "Are you sure you're fine? You don't look fine, Evelyn."
Her concern almost undid me. Almost made me want to crumble into her arms, to admit that my body ached, my throat felt like sandpaper, and I could barely gather the strength to sit up. But I couldn't. Not here. Not in this place where weakness was blood in the water, and sharks circled eagerly.
"I'm fine," I forced out, pushing myself up from the cold stone floor. My knees wobbled beneath me, but I steadied myself with sheer will. "I can't… I can't be anyone's burden. Not here. I'll be alright."
Lisa's lips parted as though she wanted to argue, but she didn't. She only watched me with those worried eyes, as though she could see straight through my lies.
The servants' quarters were already stirring, the air thick with exhaustion and resignation. The night had ended, and another brutal day had begun. My body screamed for rest, but I refused to give in.
Last night had nearly broken me, the horrific scenes, the blood, the shame, the way my hands had trembled scrubbing myself raw just to feel clean again. Rose had lent me one of her dresses, simple and worn but good enough. I had curled on the stone floor afterward, too tired to cry, too angry to dream of escape.
But this morning, as the cold air bit into my burning skin, I made a choice.
No more shrinking into the shadows. No more letting everyone step over me as if I were dirt beneath their boots.
If this cursed place wanted to devour me, then I would make it choke on me first.
"Let's go," I said, my voice rough but steady. "Before Madam Nora slits our throats with that sharp tongue of hers for being late."
Lisa blinked, then gave a small nod. Together, we shook Chloe and Rose awake, the four of us gathering ourselves for another day in hell.
As I followed them out, every step burned with fever, but I clenched my teeth and pushed forward.
The kitchen smelled of smoke and stale oil when we slipped inside.
Madam Nora's voice found us immediately, sharp as a blade.
"Well, look who crawled out of the stone this morning, few more minutes and I would have come to drag you girls out with my whip" she sneered, eyes skimming us like she was sorting trash. "Move, move, breakfast won't make itself!"
We fell into the rhythm immediately, ladles clanging, loaves being wrapped, porridge steaming into the cold air. I gripped a heavy platter of porridge with both hands and began to walk to the dining hall.
But my body felt wrong, frail and hot at once. Every step from the kitchen to the hall felt heavier than the last. I told myself to breathe, to plant one foot in front of the other, but dizziness nipped at my heels and my arms trembled with the weight.
By the time I crossed the threshold into the dining hall, my balance had become a bargaining act. Then the world lurched. I collided with a figure standing perfectly still and the platter tipped.
Hot porridge and stew slashed across polished boots and the front of a dress. Bowls skittered. My heart dropped into my mouth.
I looked up to apologize and froze.
It was the Luna.
She stood there immaculate and pale, her silk dress glittering in the light. My eyes went to the ruined hem of her dress, to the dark stain spreading like a shame I'd made happen. Words scraped useless in my throat, an apology already forming, when her hand connected with my cheek.
The slap landed harder than any I had known, fire blooming across my skin. My cheek stung, my ears rang.
"How dare you ruin my clean dress this morning, you dirty little piece of disgusting shit," she spat, venom tracking each syllable. "You are going tto die for this."
There was no hesitation. She lifted her chin and called, sharp, sure, a command that left no room for mercy.
"Guards!" the Luna ordered. "Whip her twenty lashes. Then tie her to the punishment pole."