All Chapters of THE RAVEN KING’S BRIDE : Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

57 Chapters

CHAPTER TWENTY--ONE: SHOCKING REVELATION

CHAPTER TWENTY ONEELARA’S POV“Elara?”The voice felt distant at first. Soft. Echoing through the fog inside my head.“Elara?”This time it was sharper, closer, and pulled me back into reality.My eyes flew open. I blinked and found Alaric standing over me. His face was carved with confusion and something that looked suspiciously like worry.I sat up quickly, heart pounding.Oh God. I had been imagining things.The kiss. The soft, warm kiss.The way he held me like he never wanted to let go.The heat flooding my chest and the way my heart trembled.All of it… a hallucination.Silly me.I scrubbed a hand over my face, embarrassed. “I was lost. Sorry.”He stared at me longer than necessary, as if searching my eyes for an explanation. Then he stepped back.“I said a lot and it seems you did not hear a word,” he murmured. “I will head out.”“Are you okay though?”I nodded slowly He turned and walked out before I could breathe or stop him.I sank into the bed, letting out a frustrated gr

CHAPTER TWENTY TWO: TRUTHS THAT BURNS

CHAPTER TWENTY TWOELARA'S POVThe walls felt too quiet. Too still. Like they were holding their breath with me.“Did you hear anything?” I asked Valerie, my voice barely above a whisper.She nodded slowly.My heart sank. “Why did you not tell me about it?”“You knew already,” she said gently. “And it was too grievous to say.”I looked away, my chest tightening. “Is there any more outrageous thing Elara has done… that I have done?”Valerie hesitated. “Apart from the killings… no my queen.”I nodded, even though everything inside me felt like it was trembling. I might as well die today. Maybe it is what I deserve for wearing a life I do not own. But before any blade touches me, before the world comes crashing down, I need to confront Alaric. I need to tell him the truth, even if he looks at me with disgust.Or maybe… maybe I need to deal with Anna first.As I lifted my head, I caught Valerie staring at me, completely engrossed in my thoughts like she could hear them whispering out lo

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE: A HUG IN THE CHAOS

CHAPTER TWENTY THREEELARA’S POVMy footsteps echoed softly as I hurried down the hallway, my heartbeat racing ahead of me. I felt like the walls were closing in, like the palace itself knew Anna was ready to tear my life apart with one sentence. I needed a plan. Something smart. Something sharp. Something that would silence her before she silenced me.I turned the corner, still thinking a little too fast, when a strong hand grabbed my arm and yanked me sideways.I gasped and almost screamed.Then I saw who it was.“Rowland?” My voice shot up in anger. “Are you mad?”What exactly was the universe’s problem with me? First Anna. Then the king. Now bald headed Rowland dragging me into corners like some villain in a cheap story.“Let me go,” I snapped, pulling my arm, but he held tighter.“Why should I?” he asked, frustration twisting his face. “Elara, what is wrong with you? You have refused to spare me a single look. You avoid me. You pretend like nothing ever existed between us. What i

CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR: THE WINE MEANT FOR ELARA

CHAPTER TWENTY FOURELARA’S POVI pushed the door open without knocking. It slammed against the wall so loud that the maids doing Anna’s makeup froze midair. Powder puff in one hand. Lip tint in the other. Needles for her fitting dangling uselessly beside her gown.Anna turned toward me with a startled look that quickly twisted into anger.“Elara what do you think you are doing?”“All of you. Out.”My voice cut through the room like a blade.The maids did not wait. They scattered immediately, skirts rustling as they hurried past me. The door shut behind them and silence filled the room like smoke.Anna faced me with her chin raised. “If you are here to beg me or to plead for mercy, then you should know I have nothing to say to you.”I stepped closer and smiled. A slow mocking smile that even surprised me.“Shut the fuck up, you fake princess.”She blinked once. Then again. “What… what are you saying?”“I know the truth,” I said. “I know you are not the king’s daughter. Your mother had

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE: THE KING IS POISONED

CHAPTER TWENTY FIVEELARA’S POVChaos never announces itself. It just explodes.One moment Alaric was standing beside me, steady and warm, and the next… his entire face shifted into something I had never seen before. His skin turned a terrifying shade of blue, like life itself was draining out of him. His eyes bulged. His lips trembled. His fingers clawed at the air like he was fighting for breath that refused to enter his lungs.“The king is dying!” someone screamed.The palace erupted instantly. Guards rushed forward. Guests stumbled over their expensive clothes as panic swept through the hall. The music stopped mid–note. Someone dropped a golden chalice. It hit the floor like a warning bell.But my body wasn't in that moment. My mind had left everything behind.“Alaric… Alaric… can you hear me?” I grabbed his face with trembling hands. His eyes rolled back for a moment and then flickered open, unfocused.He tried to say something. A sound escaped him, maybe my name, maybe a plea, b

CHAPTER TWENTY SIX: LET'S GIVE US A CHANCE

CHAPTER TWENTY SIXElara’s POVI didn’t feel my legs for a moment.Valerie’s words sank into me like ice water.“The maid is dead.”Dead.My ears rang. My heart stopped. My breath froze halfway in my chest.“They claimed she committed suicide with a drug” Valerie whispered, her voice trembling as if the words themselves were poisonous.“Who visited her last?”My throat was too tight to answer.She leaned closer.“Princess Anna. She even demanded a moment alone with her. But no one would dare question or accuse the princess.”The world tilted.My fingers curled slowly, nails digging into my palms.The maid. The only girl who knew the truth. The only one who could expose Anna.Gone. The girl who knew the antidote…goneWtf!!What should I doI swallowed hard and turned around.And there she was.Anna stood near the corridor like she had been waiting for me, her gown too bright for someone with blood on her hands. Her chin lifted in that spoiled way that always grated my nerves.Before I

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN: SHE OPENED UP

ELARA’S POVThe moment the words left his mouth, my heart exploded like fireworks. My eyes widened on their own. My breath caught. I pulled back a little, almost afraid I had imagined it.You say what?I barely whispered, but the question trembled out of me like a secret begging for light.“My King.” The physician stepped in immediately. “Forgive me for interrupting the moment, but I need to confirm you are fully rid of the poison.”If looks could kill, he would have dropped dead right there. He ruined it. He ruined that moment I had been waiting for since the first time Alaric stopped looking at me like his enemy. But I was still in shock. He said he wanted to give us a chance… right? He said that. You read it correctly, right? Or was my brain messing with me? I needed someone to scream it back at me. Tell me I heard him correctly because my heart was doing the most right now.Every disappointment is a blessing. Maybe it was true. Because Alaric loved me. Maybe he had always loved

CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT: A QUEEN MARKED FOR DEATH

CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHTALARIC’S POV“Elara killed the maid that almost murdered you,” he said.For a full second I did not react. I just stared at him. My face felt empty, like it refused to understand the meaning of the words he had thrown at me.I knew Elara had a dark past. I knew she had killed before. But the woman I had seen these past days… I could not place her beside the image of someone who would quietly end a life without second thought.“Wow,” I muttered, my voice small.Rowland nodded. “Yeah. She poisoned her after a visit.”“For hurting me, right?”“Alaric, that is not the point,” he replied. “She still has that murderous intent inside her. That killer spirit. And she knew the maid was the only one who understood the antidote you needed. She killed her, Alaric. And that means something.”I felt my chest tighten. My breathing changed. “Rowland,” I whispered. “Are you sure about this?”He didn’t blink. “It was Anna that looked for the antidote in spite of her plans. She fou

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE: A KING PROTECTS HIS QUEEN

CHAPTER TWENTY NINEELARA’S POVI waited for the pain.For the crushing blow. For the final breath to be ripped from my lungs.It never came.Instead, steel sang through the air. A sharp, violent sound that split the night apart. I sucked in a breath and forced my eyes open, my vision blurring as firelight and shadows collided before me. Alaric stood there, moving like fury given flesh. His sword cut through the attackers with ruthless precision, every strike sure, every movement deadly. There was no hesitation in him. No mercy.One man fell. Then another. The last staggered back, fear flashing across his face before Alaric drove the blade into his stomach. The sound that left the man was wet and final.Then silence.Guards poured into the courtyard as if summoned by blood itself, boots thundering against stone, voices shouting orders far too late to matter.Where were they when I was screaming.My knees gave out.Alaric turned at once, his expression changing the moment his eyes foun

CHAPTER THIRTY: TRAPPED

ELARA’S POV “My queen,” she said, her voice barely steady as she stepped into my chambers. “What happened?” I asked. “Are you hurt?” She tried to smile, tried to straighten her shoulders the way she always did when she wanted to look strong for me. It failed. “How are you?” she asked instead. “How are your wounds?” “I’m fine,” I said, moving closer to her. “But you were hurt. I saw the blood earlier. Valerie, look at me.” “I’m fineee,” she insisted, waving it off too quickly. “It is my duty to protect you, my queen. I can lay down my life for you if I must.” “You don’t have to,” I said softly. “I never asked for that.” She opened her mouth again, then closed it, as if weighing her words. Her eyes darted to the door. “Something happened,” she finally said. My heart thudded. “What is it?” “His Majesty wants us to start packing. We are leaving.” I exhaled slowly. “Yes. I know.” “Speak freely Valerie, you're like a friend to me” Her brows pulled together in confusion. “Not t

1 2 3 4 5 6

SCAN CODE TO READ ON APP