CHAPTER 15 — SERAPHINA'S POV
The corridors of the fortress were quiet now, the echoes of the day's bustle fading into the night. Seraphina's feet dragged along the polished stone floors, her shoulders heavy, her muscles aching from hours of bending, scrubbing, and serving. The physical labor was taxing, yes, but it was the perfect cover. The real work—quiet, deliberate, calculated—was far more exhausting.
Being a maid in the Alpha's fortress was tiresome, repetitive, and at times infuriating. The nobles and even the councilers barely noticed her presence, yet every misstep, every small mistake, could draw suspicion. A spilled tray, a crooked fold, an offhand glance—they had eyes everywhere, and she had to stay invisible. Patient. Polite. Perfect.
She stepped into the maids' quarters with a soft sigh, letting the door click shut behind her. The room smelled faintly of lavender and clean linens. It should have been comforting, but it wasn't. Comfort was a luxury she could not afford. She dropped onto the edge of a cot, letting her limbs loosen, though the tension in her mind remained taut.
Earlier, she had done what had to be done. A small obstacle, careless and too bold, had stood in her way. Seraphina's spells had been precise, final. Necessary. She closed her eyes briefly at the memory—the subtle thrill of power, the satisfaction of removing a threat efficiently, cleanly. No one could know. No one must ever know.
Now, she wore the perfect mask of obedience. No one suspected the witch beneath the guise of a maid. Every polite word, every measured gesture, every careful step was part of the plan. Appear harmless, appear devoted, appear ordinary—until the moment came.
And the moment would come soon.
Aria. The princess. Fragile in appearance, yes, but dangerous in ways most could not comprehend. Seraphina's lips curved into a faint, cold smile. The girl was clever, cautious, a human among predators, and that made her unpredictable—and irresistible as a target.
She studied Aria in her mind, recalling the subtle movements, the quiet hesitations, the way the girl carried herself in the fortress. Every glance at her surroundings, every careful word she spoke—it was all a map, a pattern waiting to be read. And Seraphina would read it. She would memorize it. She would learn it so well that Aria would never sense the danger inching closer.
She flexed her sore fingers, feeling the faint ache from the day's work, and let her thoughts drift further. The princess's routine, the predictable moments after training, the times she lingered in her room… all of these were pieces of a puzzle Seraphina intended to solve. The kindness she had once shown her maids, the way she hesitated when speaking to strangers, the soft scent of jasmine she left in her wake—all of it was a key.
Seraphina let herself lie back on the cot, letting the moonlight brush across her face, illuminating the mask of the obedient maid she wore so well. Beneath that mask, however, her mind was alive with darker thoughts. Every spell she had learned, every secret kept, every calculated step had brought her closer to this fortress, to this moment, to Aria.
The silence of the room pressed against her like a tangible thing, yet it energized her. The shadows along the walls seemed to dance in rhythm with her plotting. The faint rustle of the linens, the distant murmur of guards in the halls—it all fed the careful patience she had cultivated over years. She would wait. She would watch. And when the time came, she would strike.
For now, she would rest. For now, she would endure the tedium of service, the minor frustrations of being a maid, the endless hours of scrubbing and polishing and bending to orders. All of it was temporary, a necessary disguise to get closer to her true goal.
A faint smile ghosted over her lips. One day soon, Aria would not see her coming. And when that day arrived, Seraphina would be ready. Every careful step, every hidden thought, every dark secret would converge in the moment of reckoning.
Because in this fortress, appearances were everything—and beneath the perfect mask of a maid, Seraphina was more dangerous than anyone could imagine.