Sefina Hale wants one thing and one thing only - to save her parents' dying sugar plantation. She doesn't care about her friend Elia's plight to win the king's heart, she doesn't care about the healing tensions of the war between Mavacuria and its n...
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Sefina was left alone in the cabin for about a minute before commotion sounded outside. At first, she thought Taehyung was up to his old tricks and was inciting some insurrection against the very rebellion he fought for. But she didn't hear his deep voice. Through the wooden logs, the steady murmur of the campsite's inhabitants spiked into surprised tones, quickening as a tremor of anticipation rushed towards the cabin.
A horse whinnied, hooves pounding against crisp snow before stomping to an abrupt halt. Shouts and questions slipped between sharp, crunching footsteps. She was halfway out of bed – body aches be damned – before the door to the cabin burst open.
A snow-laden Jungkook stood in the doorway. Snowflakes crusted the edges of his eyebrows and coated his hair, shifting as he sucked in ragged breaths.
"Jungkook –"
Within a second, he kicked the door shut and strode across the room. He wrapped Sefina in a tight, strong embrace, lifting her from the bed completely. He nuzzled his head into the crook of her neck.
"Are you okay?" His lips, cold and yet still silk-soft, tickled her jawline.
She tried to pull away. "What are you doing here –"
"Are you okay?" Though muffled by her hair and blankets, his voice carried powerfully. It resonated through her spine, but that could've been because Jungkook was shaking. She didn't think it was from the cold.
"Yes, I'm fine."
He set her down on the mattress and narrowed his eyes. "Your shoulder is dislocated."
So that's why she couldn't move her arm properly. "And I think my wrist might be fractured, but that doesn't matter." She gripped his sleeves. "You can't be here. You need to leave. If Tae or anyone else realizes you're here, you're dead."
"They can try to kill me, but it'll only cause them more trouble," Jungkook said.
Sefina gingerly crawled out of bed. "C'mon, if we go now, we might make it out –"
"Go?" Jungkook grabbed her good arm and gently spun her around, so she was once again amongst the blankets. "We're not going anywhere, Sef."
"But you're a naval officer, and this is the resistance, Jungkook. They'll know who you are, and I don't even know how you got in here, but let's just leave –" She stopped short as her frenzied gaze landed on a familiar pair of all-black boots. A midnight-dark coat lay haphazardly against the back of the desk chair, roughly sized to match a muscular male body.
And finally, she noticed the collection of beads atop the dresser. They matched the ones embedded in her necklace.
Understanding clicked in her with an audible gasp. "You're with them."
"Who do you think sent the messenger hawk to Taehyung about getting you off that train?"
"You...you knew he was alive?" Sefina breathed, the room spinning in the same dizzying circles her mind ran.
