Chapter 1

Scarlett’s POV

What? I’m not marrying him!”

My voice cracked through the dining hall, bouncing off the marble walls. My palms slammed against the long mahogany table so hard the teacup trembled.

Arya, my mother, barely blinked. She just lifted her cup and took another slow sip, staying as calm as ice water.

“You will,” Matthew said with a tone of finality.

My chest tightened. They were serious. They were actually serious.

I turned to my mother, waiting for her to say something, to defend me, to tell him to stop but she didn’t. She just kept her gaze fixed on her tea, pretending I wasn’t falling apart two feet away.

“Mom, please,” I begged, my voice shaking. “I can’t marry that old man.”

“You can,” she said flatly. “And you will. Not many are lucky enough to marry a king.”

Her words sliced through me. Lucky? That’s what she called this? Being sold to an old man like some political pawn? How can she even think of calling that lucky when she has been married to two men? Two men that she was in love with?!

“Timber North is the King of the North Walls,” Matthew added, as if that was supposed to impress me. “This alliance guarantees protection and power for our family.”

I stared at him as disgust clawed at my throat. “You mean it guarantees something for you.”“Watch your tone, Scarlett,” he snapped. “You’ll do as you’re told.”

I laughed although it was short, bitter, and hopeless. “You can’t make decisions for me like you’re my father.”

“I’m not,” he said, voice low and hard. “But I’ll make decisions that keep this family alive. One day you’ll thank me for it.”

“I’ll thank you when hell freezes over.”

“Scarlett.” Arya snapped gently. “You’ll marry Timber. End of discussion.”

I looked at her, really looked at her, trying to find any trace of the woman she used to be, the one who used to braid my hair, who used to smile. All I saw now was someone who’d buried herself so deep under Matthew’s shadow that I wasn’t even sure she was still there.

My throat burned, but I forced the words out anyway. “I hate you.”

She didn’t even flinch. Just one side glance, a shrug, and then she returned to her tea.

The silence that followed was unbearable. Even the guards looked away.

She literally became a ghost after my father died, and that light she once had only comes out when Matthew is with her. She stopped speaking with me unless it was a very necessary interaction, and even when she did, she'd barely look at me or pay attention to me.

She only seemed like her old self when Matthew was being cute with her.

“Earlier That Day

I was sprawled across Michelle’s bed, half-asleep, watching reels on my phone when it started vibrating violently.

“Mom?” I muttered, frowning as her name flashed on the screen.

Before I could even say hello, she started firing instructions with a cold, clipped, and final tone. While she spoke, Michelle walked in, humming, balancing two giant take-out bags. Her grin dropped the moment she saw my face.

“She wants me home,” I said, hanging up.

Michelle blinked. “Wait, now? Why?”

I shrugged, still processing. “She said it’s important. But Mom doesn’t do ‘important’. She does orders.”

“That’s not good,” she said, setting the food down.

“No shit.” I leaned back against the headboard. “She hasn’t called in months, and now she suddenly wants to see me? Something’s off.”

Michelle tried to stay calm for my sake. “Don’t overthink it, baby. Maybe it’s good news.”

“Right. Maybe she’s giving me a new car. Or sending me off to war.” I tried to joke, but my chest felt tight. “My fuck-ass stepfather’s probably behind it. He’s always scheming something.”

“Your mom wouldn’t just go along with him,” Michelle said, even though she sounded like she didn’t believe her own words.

I scoffed. “You don’t know her anymore. After Dad died, she stopped being… her. Matthew says jump, and she’s already in the air.”

Michelle sighed and pulled me into a hug. “Just breathe, okay? It’s probably nothing.”

But I knew it wasn’t nothing.

PRESENT TIME.

The conversation ended with me storming off with tears in my eyes as I slammed my bedroom door shut.

I sat on the floor, shaking. My life wasn’t mine anymore. I wasn’t even a person to them. I was just a deal.

I wiped my face and grabbed my phone with trembling hands.

“Hello ooh, my latest car owner!” Michelle’s voice chirped through the speaker. Then she heard me sniff. “Scarlett? What’s wrong?”

“They’re forcing me to get married,” I whispered.

“What?”

“Timber North. The King of the North Walls.”

There was silence, then a low growl that made my phone vibrate. “What the fuck?”

“I can’t do this, Michelle. I can’t marry him. I can’t…”

“Scarlett, listen to me.” Her tone changed into a steady and commanding one. “You won’t marry him. Not if I can help it.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Find a way to leave that house tonight. Just get here. I’ll handle the rest.”

“Michelle, that’s insane. There are guards everywhere, and if I get caught, I'll not see the light of the day again until I'm married to that thing.”

“Then outsmart them. You’re your mother’s daughter, aren’t you?”

I let out a shaky laugh through my tears. “Yeah… maybe I am.” I rolled my eyes, wiping a tear off.

“Good. Don't pack anything! And Scarlett?”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t get caught.”

“I won't!” I assured her.

The line went dead immediately, and I stood by the window, staring at the long driveway that led out of the estate. The gates weren't properly lit, but they were guarded at both ends. It looked impossible.

But impossible was starting to sound like my only option.

I took a deep breath, wiping the last of my tears.

“If they want to cage me,” I muttered, “they’ll have to catch me first.”