Chapter 3

On the morning of the fourth day, Neil came. He was holding a whip. His face was a thundercloud.

"Evelyn. Have you come to your senses?" he snarled from the doorway.

I shook my head, letting out a raw whisper. "No."

With a roar of fury, he kicked the door open and stormed in with the whip raised.

"Then you have chosen to learn this lesson the hard way!"

The leather cracked against my back, a line of fire searing my skin. I cried out, collapsing to the floor.

"My lord, stop! Don't damage her!" Ruth cried, rushing in to grab his arm. "The sacrifice is tomorrow! How will we explain it to the Queen Dowager if she is bruised and broken?"

Panting, Neil threw the whip to the ground.

"Fine. But if she still refuses in the morning, I will break her legs and have her carried to the pyre!"

He glared down at me, the venom in his eyes threatening to swallow me whole.

Ruth knelt beside me, resting a hand on my back. It was a perfect performance of motherly concern as she began to speak.

"Oh, Evelyn, why do you do this to yourself? Just agree. I promise, after you are gone, we will send you so many offerings. You will live like a queen in the afterlife."

I lay on the filthy floor, my back on fire, tears mixing with dust in my mouth. The taste was bitter.

"You will... all pay for this," I rasped, my voice trembling with hate.

Charlotte appeared in the doorway, a smirk playing on her lips.

"Oh, Evelyn, do stop being so stubborn. Look at you. If you agree, you can have a hot meal and a new dress before you go."

She paused, her eyes glittering.

"Oh, and Mother said you could wear that gold hairpin of your mother's, the one she loved so much. So you can look beautiful for the Prince."

I snapped my head up, my eyes blazing.

That hairpin was a family gift my mother received for her wedding. It was her favorite, and she wore it constantly.

After she died, I had assumed it would be mine. I never imagined Ruth would give it to Charlotte.

"That was my mother's," I snarled. "How dare you!"

I tried to push myself up, but Ruth held me down.

"Everything in this house belongs to your sister now," she said coldly. "We are letting you take it to your grave for your mother's sake. Consider it a final mercy."

Neil waved a dismissive hand.

He demanded, "Enough of this nonsense. Watch her. In the morning, dress her and bind her. Take her to the site."

They left. As she went, Charlotte turned and made a childish face at me.

The bolt clicked shut, leaving me alone. A fire of pain spread across my back, but it couldn't touch the tomb of ice my heart had become.

I thought back to when my mother was here. We were never a peaceful family, but at least then, Neil would still smile at me. He cared about my lessons.

Now, he only had eyes for the family's honor and for Charlotte.

I remained sprawled on the floor as the hours bled away into night.

My stomach was cramping with hunger, and the sharp pain in my back was enough to make me black out.

I knew tomorrow was my last day. They would not ask again. They would drag me to that pile of dry wood, and they would light the fire.

I touched the embroidered handkerchief in my dress, and the tears came again.

"Mother, I don't want to die. I want to live," I murmured.

But what could I do? No one was coming to save me. I was utterly and completely alone.