LOGINAURELIA'S POV We left the wedding hall to towards the reception Hall.. "Did you see how Janet and Silea was looking at me? I really thought they were about to pounce on me... " I whispered to Theo who tried to mask his smile.. "You should have looked at Owen too... He saw what he lost and
THIRD PERSON’S POV The silence didn’t last. It never did. Because Aurelia didn’t come to blend in. She came to be seen. Another step echoed through the hall—slow, deliberate, unhurried. Theodore’s hand remained firmly intertwined with hers, his thumb brushing lightly against her skin in a gestu
THIRD PERSON’S POV The air inside the Ashford estate shifted after that conversation. Subtle. But unmistakably heavier. By evening, the house that had been filled with laughter and celebration began to feel… structured. Controlled. Directed. And at the center of it all— Janet. “Mov
THIRD PERSON’S POV The air inside the Ashford estate shifted after that conversation. Subtle. But unmistakably heavier. By evening, the house that had been filled with laughter and celebration began to feel… structured. Controlled. Directed. And at the center of it all— Janet. “Mov
THIRD PERSON’S POV For a moment… Theodore said nothing. He simply stared at her. Not shocked. Not confused. Just… staring. Then— A slow, dangerous smile spread across his face. “Oh,” he breathed, almost impressed. “That’s evil.” Aurelia’s lips curved, pleased. “Thank you.” He let
THIRD PERSON’S POV The word storm barely covered it. It was more like walking straight into a battlefield… unarmed. Theodore stood frozen for a solid second, the color draining from his face as reality slammed into him. Aurelia’s father. The man who had built an empire from nothing. The man wh
THE NEXT MORNING Aurelia didn't come down.. Theo and his parents are supposed to leave early, before noon. Though she wanted to say goodbye, she couldn't do it without crying her eyes out again.. Herman had checked up on her in the morning, offering her to come down with him but she refused.. Sh
A FEW MONTHS LATER Winter had begun its grip, but the air still carried a chill that crept into bones and lingered. In those months since Theo’s departure, Aurelia had fallen into a fragile rhythm — school, afternoons in the garden when the weather allowed, evenings spent reading by the fireplac
As they set off across the fields, the tension began to fade—at least from Aurelia. The wind in her hair, the rhythm of Meadow’s hooves against the ground—it was freedom. And in that freedom, she began to laugh again. Theo rode beside her, smiling but watchful. Always watchful. Silea followed a
“Let’s begin.” ----- The afternoon sun had mellowed, casting long golden shadows across the estate grounds. Aurelia sat cross-legged in the gazebo, a book in her lap, but she hadn’t turned a page in ten minutes. Theo leaned against the post beside her, his arms folded, eyes scanning the horizon







