The frozen heart

Chapter 26: Return to the Story

Chapter 26: Return to the Story

Anne opened her eyes, expecting to find the familiar cold stone of the castle kitchen or the rough, drafty halls she had come to know so well. But instead, she was greeted by a scene so far removed from her expectations that it took her several moments to fully comprehend it.

She was standing in the center of a grand room, its walls lined with rich velvet drapes in deep hues of royal blue and gold. Elaborate tapestries hung from the ceiling, depicting scenes of great battles, celebrations, and royal family crests. The floor beneath her feet was polished marble, smooth and cold, reflecting the glow of the many candelabras that lit the room with a warm, flickering light.

Around her, several women bustled about, all dressed in fine gowns, their hands busy with measuring tapes, bolts of fabric, and pins. They moved with hurried precision, each one focused entirely on the task at hand: taking Anne's measurements. One of them tugged gently at her waist, adjusting the ribbon that cinched her dress while another carefully inspected the length of her sleeves. The air buzzed with quiet chatter and the soft rustle of silk.

Anne blinked, her heart racing as confusion flooded her mind. Where am I?

This wasn't the kitchen. It wasn't even the castle she remembered. The room, the atmosphere, the opulence—it was completely different. And most unsettling of all: she wasn't in her maid's clothes anymore. Instead, she wore a stunning gown, deep burgundy trimmed with delicate gold embroidery, the kind of dress reserved for royalty.

Her body stiffened as she glanced down at herself. The dress was fitted perfectly to her figure, the bodice snug and the skirts flowing out in luxurious waves. She could feel the heavy weight of jewels hanging from her neck, and when she lifted her hands, she saw delicate rings glittering on her fingers.

Panic gripped her as she tried to understand what had happened. She had been prepared to return to the world of the kitchen maid—back to where Kaiden had last seen her, back to a time when she was just another servant in a nobleman's house. But this...this was something else entirely.

Suddenly, one of the women leaned in closer, a smile on her face as she adjusted the neckline of Anne's gown. "You'll look absolutely radiant on your wedding day, Your Highness," the woman said warmly, her tone light and filled with admiration. "The groom is a lucky man."

Wedding day? Anne's heart skipped a beat, her mind struggling to catch up. Her throat went dry, and she found it hard to speak, the weight of the realization sinking in. Your Highness? They were talking to her. Addressing her like she was someone of royal blood—like she was a princess.

The woman measuring her waist nodded approvingly. "The King will be so proud. The entire kingdom is talking about the upcoming wedding."

Anne's breath quickened. The King? That was when it hit her. She wasn't just in a different location. She wasn't just dressed differently. She wasn't a kitchen maid anymore.

She was the daughter of a ruling monarch—a princess.

The weight of that revelation pressed heavily on her chest. Her surroundings, her role, everything had shifted without her understanding how or why. The urgency in the air, the attention to detail, the fine clothes—all of it pointed to something monumental. Her wedding? To whom?

The noise around her blurred as Anne tried to make sense of it. It was all wrong. This wasn't where she was supposed to be. This wasn't the life she had left behind when she woke up in her apartment. And if this was a part of the book, it was a part she had never read or experienced before.

The story's changed.

It wasn't just the minor differences she had noticed in the book. The entire narrative had shifted. What was happening to her? Was this still a continuation of the same story, or had she fallen into a different one altogether?