Chapter 3

The Palace of Aurelion was infamous for its cruel ways. They had this secret salve that burned like hell when smeared on your skin, but it would heal up any wound without leaving a trace.

So nobody in the palace could ever show any proof of the abuse.

So, in those endless days of getting beaten, hurt, smearing on that burning salve, and then getting beaten again and again, I finally learned to behave.

I forgot I was a princess and started referring to myself as a handmaid, becoming Jonathan's foot-washer.

Jonathan's moods swung wildly. Whenever he was upset, he'd just kick me in the chest without warning.

To avoid getting hit so much, I learned to slap myself first whenever Jonathan got angry, and figured out how to grovel and please him before he even asked.

Jonathan was pretty pleased with how I'd changed.

He even called me his obedient little puppy.

I had given up hope that Matthew would ever come for me.

But out of the blue, three years later, he sent someone to take me back to Valencrest.

I bowed my head and stared at my hands.

Beneath the perfect skin, everything inside was ruined and festering.

My fingers had been broken before and never healed right, so I couldn't even hold things properly anymore.

I had no clue why Matthew would bother bringing back someone like me, half-alive, half-dead. Maybe I was just a princess to be traded off as a present.

Or maybe he just wanted to see for himself how obedient I'd become after Jonathan had me so thoroughly tamed.

But honestly, none of it mattered anymore.

It was not that it mattered. This body wouldn't last much longer anyway.

I slept without dreams that night, and the next morning, a maid came in and opened my wardrobe.

"There's a welcome party tonight, Your Highness. Which dress would you like to wear?" she asked.

All the dresses inside were in the colors I used to wear all the time.

I pointed at a pale green one. "This one."

But the maid just stood there, not moving an inch.

"Your Highness, you might not know," she said with a little laugh, "but Miss Barnes is known for loving green. You wouldn't want to get on her bad side."

Whenever I reached for a bright-colored dress, the maids would say it was Jennifer's favorite.

It was clear that I wasn't allowed to wear any of them.

I knew all these maids answered to Jennifer.

Even though she wasn't a member of the House of Ravenshield, she lived in the palace just like Matthew did.

Since the emperor hadn't married yet, Matthew let her handle everything in the palace.

Just like that slap accusation on my first day, and her petty tricks today. Guess I'd better get used to it.

Valencrest palace gowns were ridiculously complicated. No way I could get into one of those without the maids helping out.

After a moment of silence, I dug out a simple gray dress from the chest.

The maids just glanced at me, then headed outside together to snack on sunflower seeds and chat.

I got myself dressed and headed out.

As soon as I walked into the great hall, Matthew's face twisted into a frown.

"Didn't I send you four or five new dresses?" he said, clearly annoyed. "It's a special day. What are you wearing? Are you making a fuss or something?"

"Matthew, don't blame the princess," Jennifer said with a quick smile from her seat. "That fabric looks like it's from the Aurelion. Guess the princess is feeling nostalgic for her old home."

Matthew hesitated, then shot me a cold, hard look.

"But..." Jennifer suddenly pointed at the ribbon on my dress. "Your Highness, that ribbon is so loosely tied. That's really not how we do things in Valencrest..."

The society girls in the hall started whispering behind their hands.

"Isn't that the Aurelion style?" one of them murmured.

"Even the working girls in our red-light district wouldn't dress like that..." another one snickered.

Matthew's expression turned even more grim.

My hands were too weak to tie it tight.

But if I said that, Matthew would just say I was making excuses or just whining.

He never believed me anyway.

After all those years in the Aurelion, I'd gotten used to just taking the blame. I knelt down right away and said quietly, "It's my fault. Sorry for ruining everyone's mood. I'll go back now."

As soon as I said that, the whole hall went dead silent.

I knew what had them all so surprised.

If I were still the princess my brother cherished, there's no way I would've put up with this kind of insult.

But I wasn't that girl anymore.

And no one cherished me now.

The people at the head table fell silent for a long moment. The young emperor cast a nervous look at Matthew, not daring to say a word.

Since no one said anything, I took it as permission and quietly got up, slowly making my way toward the door.

Suddenly, a cold voice snapped from behind me. "Stop right there!"

I was about to drop to my knees again, but Matthew stormed over and hauled me to my feet.

He grabbed the loose ribbon at my waist and pulled it tight.

He said, "Who told you to leave? This is your welcome party. Go sit down!"

Honestly, I used to love lively crowds and banquets were always my favorite thing.