The ride to Shadowmere Castle took three hours. We traveled in silence, surrounded by guards. Kael kept me close, his horse right beside mine, his hand occasionally reaching out to steady me when I swayed in the saddle.
I'd never ridden a horse before. Princesses in Eldoria didn't ride, it wasn't considered ladylike. Now I was learning the hard way, every jolt sending fresh waves of pain through my bruised body.
"Hold on," Kael murmured during a particularly rough stretch of road. "We're almost there."
"How can you tell? Everything looks the same."
"No, it doesn't. Look." He pointed ahead.
I looked, and my breath caught.
The forest around us had been growing darker for the last hour, the trees taller and more twisted. Now I understood why. We were entering Shadowmere proper, and the land itself was different here.
The trees were massive, their bark almost black, their leaves a deep green that was nearly purple. Mist clung to the ground, thick and cold. And everywhere, there were shadows. Not normal shadows, but shadows that seemed to move on their own, that whispered and shifted even when nothing cast them.
"Welcome to my home," Kael said quietly.
The castle appeared suddenly, rising out of the mist like a mountain. It was enormous, easily three times the size of my father's palace. Built from dark stone that seemed to absorb light rather than reflect it, with towers that pierced the sky like spears.
It was beautiful and terrifying.
"It's..." I struggled for words. "It's incredible."
"It's a prison," Kael said. "Just a very large, very impressive one."
We crossed a bridge over a deep ravine, so deep I couldn't see the bottom, and passed through gates that looked like they could withstand a siege. Guards were everywhere, watching us with hard eyes.
In the courtyard, servants waited. They bowed as we dismounted, their faces carefully neutral. But I saw them glance at Kael's torn clothes, at my bare feet and borrowed cloak. Saw them whisper to each other.
"Prince Kael." A woman stepped forward, older, elegant, with gray hair and sharp features. "Prince Darian. Prince Theron. Welcome home." Her eyes fixed on me. "And this must be Princess Elara."
"Lady Morgana," Kael said, and there was warmth in his voice I hadn't heard before. "Thank you for meeting us."
"Of course. Though I wish it were under better circumstances." She approached me, ignoring the guards' presence. "My dear, you look exhausted. Come, let me take you to"
"She stays with me," Kael interrupted.
"Yes, I heard. Very well." Lady Morgana didn't seem offended. "Then I'll prepare your chambers for two. You'll want to clean up before meeting with His Majesty."
"Father's waiting?" Theron asked.
"In the throne room. He's been waiting since dawn." Lady Morgana's expression was carefully blank. "He's not pleased."
"He never is," Kael muttered. To me, he said, "Can you walk?"
Honestly, I wasn't sure. But I nodded anyway. "Yes."
"Liar." But he offered me his arm, and together we followed Lady Morgana into the castle.
The interior was as impressive as the exterior. High ceilings, dark wood, tapestries that depicted battles and magic and creatures I didn't recognize. Servants moved through the halls like ghosts, silent and efficient.
"Lady Morgana was my mother's closest friend," Kael murmured as we walked. "She's one of the few people in this castle I trust completely."
"Your Highness, you flatter me," Lady Morgana said without turning around. "Though it's true, I loved Queen Arianna dearly. And I've watched over her son as best I could since her death."
"Why didn't you stop Father from arranging this marriage?" Kael asked. "You must have known what he was planning."
"I did. But I'm not powerful enough to stop a king, curse or no curse." She glanced back at us. "Besides, I thought perhaps a wife might be good for you. Someone to fight for. Someone to care about."
"Or someone to be used against me."
"That too," she admitted. "But the princess doesn't strike me as the type to be used easily. Am I right, my dear?"
All eyes turned to me. I thought about everything that had happened. Being forced into marriage, attacked by shadow beasts, thrown out a window, threatened by Kael's brothers. I thought about how I'd felt my entire life: powerless, voiceless, invisible.
"No," I said firmly. "I'm not that type. Not anymore."
Lady Morgana smiled. "Good. Then you might survive here after all."
We reached a set of ornate doors. Lady Morgana pushed them open, revealing chambers that were larger than my entire bedroom back in Eldoria. Rich fabrics, carved furniture, a bed that could fit five people.
"Your rooms," Lady Morgana said. "I'll have servants bring food and water for bathing. Take your time. The King can wait a bit longer, it might improve his mood."
"Nothing improves his mood," Kael said, but he managed a small smile. "Thank you, Morgana."
She left, and suddenly Kael and I were alone for the first time since the inn. The silence stretched between us.
"You should rest," Kael said finally. "Eat something. Bathe. I need to" He gestured vaguely at his torn, bloodstained clothes.
"Will you tell me what to expect? When we meet your father?"
He was quiet for a long moment.
"Expect him to be cruel. To say things designed to hurt you, to test you, to find your weaknesses. Expect him to ignore me completely or treat me like a dangerous animal that needs to be controlled." He met my eyes.
"And expect him to try to separate us. He'll offer you protection from me, safety, comfort, anything to make you doubt me and trust him instead."
"I won't"
"You might," Kael interrupted. "He's very good at manipulation. Very convincing. And you barely know me, Elara. I'm a stranger with a curse who's dragged you into danger. Why wouldn't you trust a king over me?"
"Because that king is your father, and you're terrified of him," I said quietly. "Because everything you've told me about him suggests he's a monster.
And because..." I hesitated. "Because in one day, you've been more honest with me than my own father was in eighteen years. You've protected me, partnered with me, treated me like a person instead of a tool. So yes, I barely know you. But I know enough."
Kael stared at me, something unreadable in his expression. "You're either the bravest person I've ever met or the most foolish."
"You said that before. I'm still both."
He laughed, surprising both of us. "Fair enough. All right then, partner. Let's go meet the monster."
An hour later, cleaned and dressed in proper clothes, though still barefoot, as there were no shoes in my size. I stood beside Kael outside the throne room.
"Remember," he said quietly. "Don't show fear. Don't show weakness. And don't believe anything he says about me without asking me first."
"I understand."
"And if things go badly, if he tries to separate us"
"I'll fight it."
"Elara, I'm serious. If he orders the guards to take you away, you can't physically fight them. You'll lose."
"Then what do I do?"
"You scream. You make noise. You make it impossible for him to do this quietly." His gray eyes were intense. "In Shadowmere, appearance matters. Image matters. If Father wants to be seen as a just and honorable king, he can't afford to have his new daughter-in-law dragged screaming from the throne room. Use that."
I nodded, committing it to memory. Be loud. Be visible. Make it a scene.
"Ready?" Kael asked.
"No. But let's go anyway."
The doors opened.
The throne room was massiveeasily a hundred feet long, with columns that soared to a ceiling lost in shadow.