Enchanted Bloodlines

Chapter 30: Exile

Roseanne's POV

I awake from my slumber, the sharp chill of the air rushing into my lungs, forcing me to gasp for breath. Pain follows immediately—deep, throbbing, and all-consuming. It's everywhere, pulsing through my battered body, radiating out from the core of my being. Every muscle aches, and every bone feels like it might crack under the strain. Tender and bruised skin burns with the memory of the brutal competition that left me broken but victorious. Still, beneath the haze of agony, a glimmer of triumph flickers, fragile but unmistakable.

"I won," I whisper, the words barely making it past my parched lips.

"You are an heir now, Esmeray." Father's voice from the announcement echoes through my mind like a lullaby, and despite the pain, I manage a small smile. I did it. I won against all odds, against every obstacle thrown at me by my flesh and blood.

But my moment of quiet celebration is brutally short-lived. Before I can fully savour the taste of victory, the door to my chamber bursts open with a crash so loud it feels like the walls shudder in fear. My heart leaps in my chest, the sudden shock sending waves of adrenaline through my aching limbs.

I barely have time to react before Adira is on me. Her face is the first thing I see, twisted in a snarl of fury so intense it makes my blood run cold. Her eyes—usually so calm and calculating—are blazing with hatred, a hatred so deep it seems to consume her entirely. I try to push myself up, but my body refuses to cooperate. I'm too weak and battered, and Adira takes advantage of that.

She lunges at me, her hands grabbing my shoulders and slamming me back against the bed with a force that knocks the breath from my lungs. My vision goes white for a moment and then black as her fist connects with my jaw. Pain explodes across my face, and I can barely think through the haze.

"What the fuck is happening?" My thoughts scramble for answers, but none come.

Adira's voice tears through the fog, shrill and seething with barely contained rage. "What the fuck have you done?!"

I can't even respond—her weight is crushing me, and the force of her assault has left me disoriented. My jaw throbs where she struck me, and I feel the hot, coppery taste of blood on my tongue. I try to move and speak, but my body is frozen under her fury.

"Adira, stop!" Ruby's voice slices through the chaos, desperate, as she grabs Adira's arm and tries to yank her off me. Ruby's always been the mediator and the peacekeeper, but even her voice can't seem to pierce the storm of rage that is Adira.

"Get off her!" Ruby pleads, pulling harder, but Adira is relentless, her grip tightening as she leans down, her breath hot and furious against my face.

"What the fuck have you done?!" she spits again, her voice trembling with barely restrained anger. Her eyes, wild and unhinged, bore into mine. "You betrayed us! You fucking betrayed us!"

My heart sinks. She knows. How does she already know? I can barely process the words, my mind spinning and reeling. I want to say something—anything—but the terror, the shock, roots me in place. I can't move. I can't speak.

I'm paralyzed by her hatred and the suffocating realization of what's coming next.

I hear Ruby grunt as she continues to struggle, her attempts to pull Adira off me becoming more frantic. I want to tell her to stop, to leave me here because I know nothing will change. Adira is beyond reason.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoes in the hallway—heavy, purposeful footsteps. The rest of my siblings. The Celestial Lord. The Stellar Regent. They're all coming. And I know why.