Hearts heartbreak:The Crown's Bitter blood [1]

The ace of hearts and fay the fairy

As Lovely remained held by the Crimson Guards, one of them turned to the fake Lovely. "What do you want us to do with this imposter?"

The fake Lovely smiled sweetly. "I want to speak with her alone, to understand why she would do this and to see if I can offer any assistance or compensation.

"The princess is so generous and merciful. She is the perfect princess the guards said."

The other guards nodded and carried Lovely to her room, setting her down roughly before the fake Lovely followed them in. The guards remained outside, ready to intervene if necessary.

As soon as the door closed behind them, Lovely turned to the fake Lovely with a fierce determination. "Who are you, and why are you pretending to be me? Why do they think you're me?"

The fake Lovely's voice changed, becoming eerily familiar to Lovely. "Do you recognize me now?"

The voice belonged to Ace, Deuce's twin sister. "Ace? What are you doing? Why do you look and sound like me?"

Ace smirked. "It was simple. I poisoned your mother bit by bit. When she finally started dying, I used magic to transform into you. The spell wasn't perfect, but it was convincing enough for everyone to believe I am you. Now your mother has to choose between you or your sister for the throne, and she'll obviously choose you. Since I'm masquerading as you, I'll end up as the Queen of Hearts."

Lovely was in shock. "But Deuce will know you're not me!" she protested, her voice trembling.

Ace's smirk widened. "Deuce knew all along. He was part of my plan from the start. The moment I saw you, I crafted a plan, and my brother helped me by convincing you he was in love with you."

Tears streamed down Lovely's face as she crumpled to the floor. "You're lying! You're lying! You're lying!" she cried, her voice breaking with each repetition.

Ace watched with cold detachment. "What if you get married?" Lovely said desperately. "You would have to have children. There has to be another way!"

Ace laughed, a cruel edge to her voice. "I'm an enchantress. I can create a child with magic, or we could find someone else to help. But anyway, I'm going to execute you now." She grinned menacingly. "But first, let's have a little fun."

Ace began to scream in a voice that mimicked Lovely's. "The imposter is going mad, and not in a good way! Help! She's crazy!"

The guards burst into the room, their expressions turning grim as they saw Lovely on the floor. Ace feigned tears, "She attacked me! Execute her! She's gone mad!"

The guards, anger evident on their faces, seized Lovely roughly, dragging her by her hair towards the dungeons. "Please, stop! I'm the real princess!" Lovely cried out, but her pleas were ignored.

They threw her into a cell, informing her that she would be beheaded the following morning. "You'll get what's coming to you, imposter," one of the guards spit, slamming the cell door shut.

Alone in the dark, damp cell, Lovely cried herself to sleep. In the middle of the night, she awoke to find herself lying on someone's lap. She looked up to see a girl, a little older than her but around the same age, with brown hair styled in a bun. The girl wore a cotton candy blue hood with a large pink bow and had a wand tucked into her hair.

"Um, hi," the girl said nervously. "I'm Fayira, but you can call me Fay. I'm your fairy godmother—or, rather, a fairy godmother in training. This is my test mission, but I guess I shouldn't make it all about me. Long story short, I'm here to help."