My steps echo in the empty hallway, and though I keep my chin high, I’m shaking as I walk toward the throne room. It’s never a good sign when my father calls me to this room. If Father found out I was once again nearby as an incident occurred in the castle, the consequences would be dire, especially because Serena was with me this time. She could’ve gotten hurt.Nausea takes hold of me as my breaths become more shallow the closer I get to the wide wooden doors. The fact that there are no guards to let me in makes me even more anxious. I inhale deeply and push the doors open with trembling hands, surprised to find my father sitting in the seat he was in this afternoon, instead of on his throne. He lifts his head to look at me, and I stop in my tracks. I’ve never seen him look at me this way before, like he really sees me.I’ve always been the daughter he despises, the one he wishes was never born. He has told me so on more than one occasion. All I am to him is a constant reminder of my mother, the sorceress he claims enchanted him. Father has ordered for her name to be stricken from our records, but he doesn’t know about the archives kept hidden in a forgotten tower. If those records are to be believed, he fell in love with her at first sight, and the two were married within a year. Every portrait that he’s hidden away and every record kept about them indicates they were happy—until the night I was born, six weeks sooner than anticipated. My mother used her healing magic to ensure I’d live, and she paid for my life with her own.Father had her executed, certain she’d bewitched not only him but his court, too. He feared she had him under her spell, that her ultimate aim was to gain power in order to aid those just like her—magical beings who sought refuge. He was convinced she’d been funding a rebellion with his coin, and the magical attacks on our kingdom following her death only further fueled his beliefs.To my father, I’m nothing but a shameful cursed being with cursed blood, one that is to blame for my stepmother’s illness and subsequent death. He won’t acknowledge the fact that she died of a failing liver, or that I was never alone with her and couldn’t possibly have caused her harm.Perhaps it would’ve been easier if I’d possessed my mother’s magic, but I don’t. The only thing I was born with was a penchant for misfortune, a curse that my father continuously reminds me befalls those of magical lineages. I’ve always been taught that the endless prosecution and eventual death that follows is a fair price to pay for the harm done by those who came before me, especially since our mere existence still brings illness and misfortune to our loved ones. But how could that be? I didn’t choose to be born this way, and unlike the many sorceresses that have been burned all over the world, I don’t have powers of any kind.“Arabella,” Father says as I curtsy, his voice soft. My heart starts to race nervously as I look at my father. He looks pained and tired. Weak. My father has never once looked regretful or anguished. According to the recordkeepers, he was impassive when he executed my mother for possessing magic, and I’m still haunted by the expressionless look on his face when I was pulled out of the lake I nearly drowned in a year ago. He’d looked at me like he’d been disappointed I survived at all. So why does he look so troubled now?“Sit,” he tells me, pointing to the seat opposite him. I do as he asks, barely able to keep from shaking. Every fiber of my being is telling me to be terrified, and my intuition has never failed me before. Most nights I’m haunted by the memory of each form of punishment I have suffered through due to my curse. What will it be today? Will he succeed in breaking my spirit at last?Father inhales deeply, as though he’s bracing himself. I’ve never once seen him look conflicted, but he does now. “The Shadow Emperor asked for your hand in marriage.” I stare at him, the words not quite registering. “He requested a swift ceremony. It will take place tomorrow.”Marriage? It can’t be. Father knows. He knows Nathaniel is only a few days away from asking for my hand. Serena has been teasing me about it incessantly.“You will do your duty as Crown Princess of Althea. This is the last we’ll speak of this matter. Your hand in marriage in return for leniency for our kingdom.”I look up, my eyes filling with tears. “Father,” I whisper, my voice breaking. “It can’t be me he asked for. It can’t be me he wants.”noveldramaThroughout the years, this kingdom has taken everything from me. My mother. My happiness. My voice. Nathaniel is the only light in a world that’s rapidly descending into darkness. I’ve never fought for anything. I’ve performed my duties, never asking for anything in return. I endured the rumors, the whispers, the pain.“It’s that curse of yours,” my father says, sneering. “Why else would the Shadow Emperor’s attention fall to our small kingdom?”My eyes close as I inhale deeply. I’m well aware that the kingdom is better off without me. I am misfortune personified—yet I can’t help but try to reach for happiness. I’ve never been this close. “Please.” My voice breaks, and I know that this moment of weakness has cost me any chance I had of getting out of this engagement. My father has always punished weakness in his children and his court, and this is the ultimate punishment.His head snaps up, and I cower in fear when he rises to his feet. “You will marry him,” he warns, his eyes filling with malice. “So help me Fates.”I lower my head, terror and despair battling for dominance, each adding to my mounting distress. Words elude me, yet I can’t help but wonder if he’s glad to be rid of me. I’m a thorn in his side, a relic of the sorceress who deceived him. The only thing that’s keeping me alive is the fact that his blood, too, runs through my veins.For a moment, I wonder if Serena was ever considered for this match, but then I smile wryly. Not even the power that comes from an allegiance like this is worth sacrificing a beloved daughter to a monster. They would never ask this of her. I inhale deeply as I rise to my feet and bow to my father before stepping away, well aware that changing his mind is impossible.I’m resigned as I walk back to my room, my steps loud on the stone floor. I should’ve known better than to expect kindness and understanding from a man who has always wished I didn’t exist. I should’ve known that there would come a time when he would sacrifice me.“Arabella.” I pause when I hear Nathaniel’s voice, my heart constricting painfully. I can’t face him. Not now. “Is it true?”My eyes fall closed when he places his hand on my shoulder and turns me toward him. I swallow hard and look up into his golden-brown eyes. The hurt I see in them breaks what’s left of my heart. “Yes,” I whisper.He tenses and takes a step back, his hand falling away. His expression mirrors my every feeling. Shock. Disbelief. Heartbreak. My throat burns with unshed tears, but I do my best to hold on. I can’t break down now.“When?”I open my mouth, but the words won’t come out. It’s almost like I can’t get myself to acknowledge it, like part of me hopes that not speaking of it will make the issue disappear. If only it were so simple.“Tomorrow,” a soft voice behind me sounds. I turn around to find Serena standing in the corner. I instantly take a step away from Nathaniel, knowing that we’re too close for propriety.“Serena,” I murmur.“I just heard the news.” She pushes away from the wall and takes a step toward us, her eyes filled with the same emotions I just saw in Nathaniel’s eyes. It oddly brings me a small amount of relief to know that there are people who will miss me, people who will mourn me.“You don’t have to do this,” she says. I smile at my naïve little sister. She’s never had to do anything she didn’t want to do, so there’s no way she could possibly understand.“It’s okay, Serena,” I tell her, knowing in my heart that it’s true. If I don’t do this, it’s the only other Princess of Althea he’ll take. I could never watch my little sister marry a beast—not when I can take her place. I’d do anything for Serena. I just wish someone would do the same for me. Just once.“She’s right,” Nathaniel says. “You don’t have to do this.”He looks at me, a calculative glint in his eyes. Growing up, that look has always meant trouble, and I can’t help but smile. “You can’t save me,” I tell him, knowing that it’s true. “Not this time.”He and I have gotten into incessant trouble throughout the years, and marriage was meant to be our greatest adventure of all. Instead our story will come to an end before it even had a chance to truly begin.Nathaniel straightens his shoulders and starts to speak, but I shake my head and take a step away. I can’t do this today. I can’t humor anyone else. I can’t provide the consolation he’s looking for—not when I need it so badly myself.