Chapter 4

DIANA

Father was the first to recover. He quickly grabbed mother’s arm and forced her down in a deep bow. Lisa scrambled to do the same, and within seconds, my entire family was bowing toward the shadow on the white horse.

The silence stretched before his voice cut through the freezing air again.

"Would it have been more respectful if I had attended the ceremony beside your daughter and killed her at the altar?" Draven asked, his tone flat and chillingly calm.

Mother completely froze. Her head snapped up as her eyes widened with shock.

Father quickly forced Mother back down, his voice shaking as he spoke. "Forgive us, Commander. Please accept my deepest apologies for my wife's outburst. She speaks only out of a mother's anxiety."

From the distance, the hooded figure didn't move. "Your daughter will be taken care of," Draven said, completely ignoring Father's apology. "But now, you have fulfilled your part of pact. You will return to your kingdom."

He didn't wait for a response.

"Vladimir," Draven called out, turned his white horse and began to ride away, his long fur cape swaying behind him before he vanished into the falling snow.

"Yes, Commander," one of the four warriors replied. He turned to me and said. "Enter the carriage, Princess."

I hesitated, but before I could move, the warrior spoke again. "The Prince has been gracious enough to allow you to take two of your handmaidens with you to the North."

A sudden wave of relief washed over my family. Mother gasped, her hands flying to her chest and even Father released a breath he had been holding.

In the brutal world of the Dragons, letting a human bride keep a piece of her home was an incredible mercy.

“Oh thank the Creator. Go, Lisa! Quickly!" Mother ordered, nudging my sister. "Go fetch Sarah and Mina!"

Lisa didn't need to be told twice. She turned on her heel and rushed back into the palace as fast as her skirts would allow.

A few minutes later, Lisa came running back out, panting with the girls trailing closely behind her, both carrying small bags with panicked expressions on their faces.

“They’re here,” Lisa breathed.

Mother immediately hugged me tightly, she couldn’t stop crying.

“You must write to us,” she whispered shakily. “Do you understand me? Constantly.”

I nodded quickly, blinking hard so the tears in my eyes wouldn't drop. “I will.”

Father pulled me into his arms next. His embrace was tight and protective.

“Survive,” he whispered against my hair.

The word nearly shattered me. Then Lisa threw herself at me. “I hate this. I hate all of this.”

I laughed weakly through the tightness in my throat. “I know.”

Vladimir stepped toward the carriage. “It is time.”

He opened the carriage door for us. Sarah and Mina climbed in first, their bodies shaking from the cold and I followed right behind them. Thankfully, inside of the carriage was made with thick furs, though it offered little comfort to the dread I felt in my chest.

The door slammed shut with a thud.

I pushed the curtain aside as tears finally slipped down my cheeks.

Outside, the courtyard was moving away fast. Mother was sobbing openly against Father's chest as he held her tightly with one arm, using the other to wave at me. Lisa was running behind the carriage, her face red from crying.

"We love you, Diana!" Mother’s broken voice echoed over the sound of the horses. "Write to us! Please, write to us!"

"I will!" I shouted back, though the glass muffled my voice. "Send my love to Derrick! Tell him I love him and he'll make a perfect king!"

I watched them until the stone gates of the Lycan palace closed behind us, cutting off the view of my family completely.

The carriage plunged into the dark mountain forest. I sank back into the fur seats as my journey into the dark officially began.

..................

The journey lasted through the entire night.

At some point, exhaustion should have dragged me to sleep, but every time my eyes started to close, the cold pulled me awake again.

The further we traveled from the Palace, the worse it became. Sarah and Mina wrapped themselves tightly in thick furs opposite me, their faces pale from the freezing air slipping endlessly through the carriage walls.

Far ahead, I never saw Draven’s face. Only the dark fur cloak moving with the wind as he rode further ahead of everyone else.

As dawn slowly began creeping in the sky, the carriage finally slowed and I straightened immediately.

“We are approaching Volkar,” Vladimir’s voice called from outside.

Massive gates appeared and my breath seized. The iron gates were designed with silver carvings of dragons and ancient symbols I didn’t recognize.

As the gates opened and we entered the estate, it looked less like a palace and more like a fortress. Sarah sucked in a breath and hugged herself tighter with the furs.

“Creator." Mina whispered shakily.

Inside the gates, the estate stretched endlessly. First came trees covered in frost and not a single bird in view.

Then the carriage continued forward and suddenly we started hearing groanings.

Hundreds of warriors were training so violently on open fields. It was almost like they were at war. Some fought with swords, others with bare hands and some had shifted, fighting in their forms and breathing out fire. It was crazy.

Mina looked horrified as she whispered, “It’s barely morning."

As we continued, servants crossed the grounds quickly, carrying weapons and supplies.

The carriage finally stopped in front of the main building. The palace was enormous. It was beautiful and yet terrifying.

A moment later, the carriage door opened and Vladimir stood outside waiting. He bowed slightly when I stepped down. Sarah and Mina came out after me, staying close to my sides like frightened birds.

I looked up at the building looming over us.

Vladimir followed my gaze before speaking calmly. "Welcome to Volkar, Princess Diana."

He removed his helmet, revealing a stern and battle hardened face with sharp wolf features and piercing grey eyes. "The home of Prince Draven."