Kaia's POV
I'm not your dead mate.
The words burst out of me before I can stop them. Daemon flinches like I slapped him, but I keep going because this is insane.
I'm Kaia Ashborne. I grew up with the Ashborne family. I'm nobody special—just a Mixedblood orphan who got rejected and thrown away. I'm not a princess. I'm not her.
Then explain the mate bond, Daemon growls, stepping closer. His power wraps around me, and my wolf whines, desperate to submit. Explain why my bond—which died ten years ago—is alive and screaming for you.
I can't! Tears burn my eyes. I don't understand any of this!
The birthmark. He grabs my wrist again, his thumb brushing the silver crescent. Kalista had this exact mark. Same wrist. Same shape. Same silver color that only appears in Moonborn royalty.
I yank my arm back. Lots of people have birthmarks.
Not like this. His voice turns desperate. Not silver. Not crescent-shaped. The Moonborn family carried this mark for generations—proof of their ancient bloodline. And you have it.
My head spins. The mysterious woman calling me Kalista. The name feeling right even though I've never heard it before. The dreams of silver hair and gentle singing.
What if he's telling the truth?
No. That's impossible.
If I'm this princess, I force out, why don't I remember? Why was I raised by the Ashbornes? Why
Someone hid you. Daemon's hands clench into fists. Someone made sure you'd never know what you were. But I'm going to find out who, and I'm going to destroy them.
The rage in his voice makes me step back.
A knock echoes on the throne room doors.
Your Majesty, Ryker calls. The candidates are getting restless. We need to continue the ceremony.
Daemon closes his eyes, visibly fighting for control. When he opens them again, the vulnerable man is gone. The cold Alpha King is back.
This conversation isn't over, he tells me. But we can't let the others suspect what's between us. Not yet. It would put you in danger.
More danger than the trials themselves?
Yes. His expression turns grim. If the council discovers who you might be, they'll kill you before the trials even begin. The Moonborn family had enemies—powerful ones who orchestrated their deaths. Those enemies are still alive.
Terror floods my chest. Then maybe I should leave. Run
You can't. His voice softens. Refusing the trials means execution, remember? You're trapped here until we find answers. But I swear to you—I will keep you alive.
Before I can respond, he strides to the doors and throws them open.
Bring the candidates back in.
The nine women file back into the throne room, their eyes darting between Daemon and me with barely concealed curiosity.
Daemon returns to his throne, his face a mask of cold authority. The Luna Trials begin tomorrow at dawn. You will face challenges designed to test your strength, intelligence, and worthiness to rule beside me.
The blonde candidate from earlier—I catch her name whispered by another: Seraphine—stands straighter, confidence radiating from her.
The trials are deadly, Daemon continues. Not all of you will survive. But those who do will prove themselves exceptional.
What's the first trial, Your Majesty? Seraphine asks, her voice smooth.
You'll discover that tomorrow. His silver eyes sweep across us. Tonight, you'll be taken to the Luna Wing where you'll have rooms and supplies. Use the time to prepare.
His gaze lands on me for just a second—a warning, a promise, something I can't quite read.
Then guards appear to escort us out.
The Luna Wing is beautiful in a way that makes me feel dirty by comparison. Crystal chandeliers, marble floors, doors carved with silver wolves.
Each candidate's name is engraved on a door. Mine is at the very end of the hallway—the smallest, farthest from everything.
Of course it is.
Well, well, a voice purrs behind me. The criminal gets the servant's quarters. How fitting.
I turn to find Seraphine blocking my path, flanked by two other candidates. Up close, she's even more intimidating—tall, muscular, with eyes like chips of ice.
I don't want trouble, I say quietly.
Too bad. She steps closer. Because you're already in it. We all saw what happened in the throne room. The King's reaction to you was... interesting.
My stomach drops. I don't know what you're talking about.
Don't play stupid. Another candidate—a dark-haired woman with cruel eyes—moves to Seraphine's side. His power exploded the second he saw you. Everyone felt it.
That doesn't mean anything.
It means, Seraphine says coldly, that you're a threat. And threats get eliminated.
Before I can react, she shoves me hard. I stumble backward, slamming into the wall.
Stay away from the King, she hisses. Or the trials won't be what kills you.
They walk away laughing, leaving me shaking against the wall.
A door opens down the hall. A girl peers out—petite, with glasses and kind eyes. Mira, the quiet scholar candidate.
Are you okay? she whispers.
Fine, I lie, pushing off the wall.
They're scared of you, Mira says softly. That's why they're acting like that. The King's never reacted to anyone the way he reacted to you.
Great. So I'm a target because of a bond I didn't ask for and don't understand.
I retreat to my room and lock the door.
Inside, it's plain but clean. A bed, a small bathroom, a window overlooking the mountains. No servants. No luxury like the others probably have.
I sink onto the bed, my whole body trembling.
This morning I was in a shelter, hopeless and broken. Now I'm in a palace, supposedly the Alpha King's dead mate, competing in deadly trials while powerful enemies want me dead.
How did my life become this insane?
A soft knock makes me jump.
I crack the door open.
Luna stands there in servant clothes, grinning. Surprise! I got hired as a palace maid. Told them I had experience serving Pureblood families. She pushes past me into the room. Now tell me everything. Why were you alone with the King? What did he say? Are you in trouble?
I want to tell her. I want to pour out everything—the mate bond, Daemon's claims about me being a dead princess, the birthmark, the danger.
But Daemon's warning echoes: If the council discovers who you might be, they'll kill you.
It was nothing, I lie. Just standard questioning about why I ignored the summons.
Luna's eyes narrow. You're lying.
I'm not—
Kaia. She grabs my shoulders. I've known you for two months. I know when you're hiding something. What's going on?
Before I can answer, screaming erupts from the hallway.
We rush to the door.
Candidates pour out of their rooms, panicking. Smoke fills the corridor, thick and black.
Fire! someone shouts.
My heart stops.
The smoke is coming from my room.
No, not my room. The room I was supposed to be in. The one with my name on the door.
Flames pour out, spreading fast.
Guards rush in with water, but it's too late. The room is destroyed.
If I'd been inside...
That was meant for you, Luna breathes, her face pale.
I stare at the burning room, my blood turning to ice.
Someone just tried to kill me.
On my first night in the palace.
Before the trials even began.
Daemon appears, pushing through the crowd. His eyes find mine, and I see fury there—volcanic, barely controlled.
Then Ryker leans in, whispers something in Daemon's ear.
Daemon's face goes white.
What? I mouth.
He strides toward me, grabs my arm, and pulls me away from the others.
The fire wasn't an accident, he says quietly, his voice deadly. And we found something in the ashes.
What?
His silver eyes bore into mine. A message. Burned into the floor before the fire started.
What did it say?
Daemon's jaw clenches. It said: 'The dead princess should stay dead.'