Everything happened in slow motion. Kade staggered backwards, stumbling over his steps. He clutched his chest in disbelief. He felt a small piece of him had gone missing. He touched the spot, expecting there to be a gaping hole. The rug was yanked from underneath his feet.

  Suddenly, Kade began to remember their last encounters. No.

  What did Kade say to the Eighth Princess? Why didn't he bid her goodbye? Why did he have to tell her to attend the lecture? Why couldn't he have held her for a final moment?

  Disbelief coursed through Kade's system. He had witnessed many deaths, but none hit him as hard as this one. The only memory of this pain was his mother's death, many, many years ago. It was why he had taken up swordfighting. He had sworn to his mother he'd take care of himself.

  "Kade…" Lina trailed off, her eyes wide with tears.

  Lina pushed her emotions back. The Eighth Princess meant much more to Kade than she did to Lina. Thus, she quickly approached her husband. She placed a hand on his upper back, to tell him that she was there for him.

  "She was only eight years old."

  Lina's heart fell.

  Kade's voice sounded detached. He was already beginning to shut down his emotions. He didn't have the luxury to deal with his pain right now. Word of this was going to spread like wildfire in the palace. If he showed any more moments of weakness, who knew what was going to happen to him?

  Kade had to remain strong. He must. If not, he'd lose the people closest to him again. It was precisely when everything could start disappearing. His hope. His joy. His light. He was going to tuck away his emotions. One more slip of his weakness and he'd lose everyone.

  "Sebastian," Kade coldly said.

  Kade wiped the emotion off of his face. He shrugged off Lina's hands. Like a soulless man, he turned to his wife. He was going to react to this situation the best that he could—detachment.

  "Lina," Kade called.

  "I'm here for you, talk to me," Lina rushed out, grabbing his hands.

  Lina was scared. She was frightened that she was going to lose him. They were standing side by side, but he had never felt so far away. They were physically close, but his mind was elsewhere. She was terrified by the lack of light in his eyes.

  The darkness that lurked within was beginning to crawl out. His eyes were wild. He was wrestling with many feelings all at once. Anger. Anguish. Agony. There was far too much going on for her to recognize an exact point.

  Then, it all went away.

  Aloofness.

  "Kade—"

  "You will stay put," Kade commanded his wife. "Do not open the door for anyone. Not for a servant of Ritan. Not for a maiden of Teran. Even if there's someone dying outside the door, you will NOT leave."

  Lina was stunned. She opened her mouth, but he didn't give her the opportunity to speak.

  Kade grabbed her upper arms. He clenched them tightly, pulling his wife close.

  "You. Will. Not. Leave!" Kade demanded, his voice so loud, it blew a wind past her face.

  Lina was shaken by his booming voice. He had never screamed at her. He wasn't this kind of man. He wasn't the kind to yell or be violent. He always kept a reign on his emotions. She knew this was a special time and moment.

  Lina rapidly nodded her head. She presented him with a smile, but it never reached her eyes. Her heart was skipping a thousand beats per second. She was scared of what he'd do. Not to her. But to her people.

  "Okay," Lina readily agreed. "I'll stay put and wait for your return."

  Kade seemed relieved by her words. His taut expression loosened for a split moment. Then, he slowly nodded his head, deeming it a satisfactory response.

  Suddenly, he grabbed his sword. In a blink of an eye, he threw it. No one had time to react.

  Lina screamed, the sword flying right past her ears. It nearly grazed the sensitive skin. She spun in time to see the sword had gone through a bush. There wasn't a single sound.

  What was going on?

  Kade narrowed his eyes in the direction of the bush. He had thrown his weapon quickly enough for people not to be able to dodge it. Good. There was no one there. It was just a figment of his imagination.

  "My guards will escort you back," Kade instructed.

  At his words, two of his men stepped out of the shadows.

  Lina was surprised by their presence, but realized there were so few. She was usually accompanied by many more people.

  "The rest are waiting for you inside the bedroom," Kade informed her.

  Kade rarely brought guards out with him. When Lina had grabbed Priscilla by the throat, he was in a rush to separate them. They had abruptly left for the gardens, thus, he didn't give a command to his soldiers. Only these two were wise enough to follow him out.

  "Do not wait for me to return tonight," Kade concluded.

  Without another word, he spun on his heels and stormed off.

  Lina watched in pain as Kade hurried with Sebastian. She couldn't imagine how her husband was feeling. He had just lost his younger sister, the only relative he seemed to care for.

  Now, he was all alone in this world. Now, he only had her. She believed she wasn't good enough.

  "Let's return," Lina mumbled to the guards.

  WHOOSH!

  Unfortunately, Lina barely took a single step. The guard sprang into action, grabbing her out of the way. But the arrow wasn't meant for her. It was a mere decoy. The second the guard pulled at her, more arrows came from the bushes.

  Lina tried to scream, but then, something splattered onto her face. She froze. Her voice was stuck in her lungs. Her eyes shook in disbelief. An arrow had pierced one of the guards right through his chest.

  It was warm. Freshly spilled blood was frighteningly hot. Then, it began to cool down.

  "Princess—argh!"

  An arrow flew right into the other guard's throat.

  Lina tripped on her long dress. She walked backwards, pressing a hand to her mouth. She wanted to yell for Kade. The two guards dropped like flies. She quickly turned to run off, but froze.

  Lina saw the emblem on the tip of the arrow feathers. She stared at it, her eyes wide with disbelief. Impossible.

  "No…"

  Lina breathed out in shock. She was unable to process the information. She was unable to understand what was going on. Not even when soldiers in black advanced from out of the bushes.

  Lina spun on her heels, quickly looking at her surroundings. From all corners of the gardens, whether it was the corner of the bushes, people were stepping out of the darkness. She counted at least ten soldiers.

  "Princess," one of them quietly said, the leader of the pack.

  Lina thought it could be Atlan. It wasn't.

  "Ritan has waged war against Teran. You must come with us, Princess. Ritan is no longer safe for you," the leader spoke……

  "What?" Lina breathed out.

  Lina knew the possibility was high. It'd be impossible to not believe him. Now that the Eighth Princess was dead, war would be inevitable. Teran had killed one of Ritan's Princesses. Who's to say Ritan wouldn't kill one of Teran's? Her.

  "Please, Princess, we'll explain later—"

  "I must speak to my husband," Lina murmured.

  "Princess—"

  "He won't allow for this," Lina whispered.

  "Princess—"

  Lina turned and dashed off. She ran as fast as she could, despite the loud cry from behind her. She was surprised by the lack of footsteps following her. When she turned her head, the soldiers were gone. There wasn't even a dead body on the ground. She realized they had cleaned up the scene.

  By then, it was far too late.

  Lina was already sprinting down the hallways. She ran past every servant, turned every corner she could, until finally, she reached Kade's private study. She was out of breath, her hair wild, and her face messy.

  The guards stationed outside were horrified by the sight of dried blood on her face and clothes. They didn't even have time to react.

  "Is my husband inside?" Lina rushed out.

  "Y-yes, the Commander is in a meeting with—"

  Lina didn't wait for him to respond. Lina threw the doors of his private study open. They slammed against the walls and she ran down the small hallway leading to the actual study. With a thud, she flung the doors open. It was in time for her to hear it.

  "Ritan will declare war on Teran."