SERA'S POV
Hours crawl by like years. I sit in my cell, thinking about tonight's ritual. About my memories locked away behind a divine seal. About the way Caspian looked at me before he left.
I think I'm falling in love with my keeper.
The thought should terrify me. Maybe it does. But it also feels inevitable, like dawn following night.
When the door finally opens, I expect Caspian to tell me it's time. Instead, he's holding a key—the key to my chains.
"What's happening?" I ask.
"You've been locked in this cell for days," he says quietly. "Before tonight's ritual, I thought... you should see more of the manor. Walk somewhere that isn't four stone walls."
Hope flares in my chest. "You're letting me out?"
"For a few hours. Under my supervision." He unlocks my wrist chains, and the relief is immediate and overwhelming. I rub the bandaged skin, wincing. "The library. I'll take you to the library."
"Why?"
Caspian meets my eyes. "Because if the ritual goes wrong tonight, I want you to have at least one good memory before..."
He doesn't finish. He doesn't need to.
Before I die.
"Thank you," I whisper.
He helps me stand. My legs are shaky from days of sitting, and I stumble. Caspian catches my elbow, steadying me.
"Slow," he says. "Take your time."
We walk through corridors I've never seen. The manor is massive—dark wood walls, high ceilings, windows that show endless forest outside. It's beautiful in a lonely, forgotten way.
Like Caspian himself.
"How long have you lived here alone?" I ask.
"Sixteen years."
"No family? No friends?"
"My aunt visits sometimes. But mostly it's just me and Elena." He pauses at a large wooden door. "And now you."
He opens the door and I gasp.
The library is enormous. Shelves stretch from floor to ceiling, packed with thousands of books. Sunlight streams through tall windows, making dust motes dance in the air. There are comfortable chairs, a fireplace, tables covered in open books and papers.
"This is incredible," I breathe.
"You can read anything you want," Caspian says. "Well, almost anything. The restricted section—" he gestures to a locked case "—contains dangerous magical texts. But the rest is yours to explore."
I move toward the nearest shelf like it's magnetic. My fingers trail over book spines, reading titles. History. Magic theory. Poetry. Stories about mortals and gods.
"I don't even know if I could read before," I say. "Before I fell."
"Try one and find out."
I pull down a book at random and open it. The words make perfect sense. I can read—the knowledge is still there, even if the memories aren't.
I devour three pages before remembering Caspian is watching. I look up to find him leaning against a shelf, a small smile on his face.
"What?" I ask.
"Nothing. You just... you look happy."
"I am happy." I clutch the book to my chest. "This is the first time I've felt almost normal since I woke up."
Something soft crosses his expression. "Good. You deserve moments of normal."
I move deeper into the library, pulling books off shelves, reading passages, putting them back. Caspian follows at a distance, not hovering but always present.
Then I spot it—a book on the highest shelf, just out of reach. The title catches my eye: Divine Hierarchies and the Fall of the Corrupt.
"That one," I say, pointing. "Can you get it for me?"
"Sera, that's—" Caspian hesitates. "That's not a good idea."
"Why not?"
"Because it talks about fallen gods. About divine punishment. It might upset you before the ritual."
"I want to read it anyway."
He sighs but doesn't argue. "Fine. But be careful. The ladder is—"
I'm already climbing the rolling ladder before he can finish. I reach for the book, stretching on my toes. My fingers just brush the spine when the ladder suddenly shifts.
I yelp, losing my balance.
Strong hands catch me around the waist. Caspian pulls me back against his chest, steadying the ladder with his other hand.
"I said be careful," he mutters.
But he doesn't let go.
I turn in his arms, and suddenly we're face to face. His hands are still on my waist. Mine are braced against his chest, where I can feel his heart pounding as fast as mine.
We're so close I can see the exact moment his breathing changes. Can see his eyes drop to my lips then snap back up to my eyes.
"Sera," he says, voice rough. "We shouldn't—"
"Shouldn't what?"
"This. Whatever this is between us." But his hands tighten on my waist slightly. "You're my prisoner. It's wrong."
"You said I'd be free after the trial."
"If you survive the ritual. If you survive the trial. If—" He stops, jaw clenching. "There are too many ifs."
"Then maybe," I whisper, "we should stop worrying about later and focus on right now."
I lean forward, just slightly. An invitation. A question.
Caspian's breath catches. For a heartbeat, I think he's going to kiss me. His face dips closer, his eyes half-closing—
The library door slams open.
We jump apart like we've been burned. Caspian's hand goes to his chest where his brand is glowing faintly, like it's warning him.
Elena stands in the doorway, face pale and panicked.
"Mr. Thorne," she gasps. "You need to come quickly. There's someone here. Someone from Celestia."
My blood runs cold. "Luminara?"
"No. Someone worse." Elena's voice shakes. "It's Thalia. Caspian's aunt. And she's brought divine guards with her. They're searching the manor."
"Searching for what?" Caspian demands.
Elena looks at me, then back at Caspian. "For evidence that you've been helping the prisoner. Lord Aldric sent them. They're going through everything—your study, your research, all your papers."
Caspian goes white. "My research. The texts I've been studying. If they find those—"
"They'll know you've been trying to break Sera's seal," I finish. "They'll execute you for treason."
"Not just him," Elena says. "All of us. Anyone who helped you. The law is clear—aiding a condemned prisoner is punishable by death."
Footsteps echo in the hallway outside. Getting closer.
"We need to hide you," Caspian says urgently, grabbing my hand. "Now."
"Where? They'll search everywhere!"
"The restricted section." He pulls me toward the locked bookcase. "There's a hidden room behind it. They won't think to look there because only I have the key."
He's unlocking the case when a voice rings out from the doorway.
"That won't be necessary, nephew."
An older woman stands there—sharp-eyed, gray-haired, radiating authority. Behind her are two divine guards in gleaming armor.
This must be Thalia. Caspian's aunt.
"Aunt Thalia," Caspian says carefully, stepping in front of me. "What's the meaning of this?"
Thalia's eyes fix on me with laser focus. "So this is the famous Seraphina. The fallen goddess who's caused so much trouble."
She walks closer, studying me like I'm an interesting specimen. The guards follow, hands on their weapons.
"Aunt, please," Caspian says. "Whatever you've been told—"
"I've been told you're in love with your prisoner," Thalia says bluntly. "I've been told you're planning to break her seal tonight. I've been told you're committing treason."
My heart stops. She knows everything.
"And I've come to tell you," Thalia continues, her voice dropping low, "that you're absolutely right to do it."
Silence crashes down.
Caspian stares at his aunt like she's grown a second head. "What?"
Thalia reaches into her coat and pulls out a thick file. "I've spent thirty years documenting the Council's crimes. Every mortal death. Every abuse of power. Every lie." She holds it up. "And I have proof that Seraphina was telling the truth. The Council is harvesting souls. They have been for centuries."
She tosses the file to Caspian. He catches it, stunned.
"The question is," Thalia says, turning to me with sharp, calculating eyes, "are you brave enough to finish what you started three years ago? Are you ready to expose them, even if it means war with the gods themselves?"
I open my mouth to answer—
When every window in the library explodes inward in a shower of glass and divine light.