Cassian's POV
The alarm bells stopped ringing just as guards appeared in Seraphina's doorway. They grabbed Elias first, pulling him away before he could say anything else. Cassian tried to move toward his guard but strong hands seized his arms. He was dragged through the castle hallways, his feet barely touching the ground.
They brought him to their father's private study.
King Alaric sat behind his massive desk like he was waiting for this. Like he'd known exactly when Cassian would be dragged in. His face was calm. Cold. Everything about him looked settled, prepared. He gestured for the guards to leave and they obeyed without question.
When they were alone, Cassian found his voice.
"The rebellion," he said. The words came out hoarse. His throat was raw from shouting. "The soldiers don't believe you. They think you killed her. They think this is a trick."
Alaric leaned back in his chair. He folded his hands across his chest and smiled that same terrible smile from before.
"Sit down," he said.
Cassian didn't move.
His father's expression didn't change, but something flickered in his eyes. Something dangerous. Alaric stood up slowly and walked around the desk. He was moving like a hunter approaches wounded prey. Cassian's heart started beating so fast he thought his ribs would crack.
"I said sit down," Alaric repeated, his voice softer now. That was worse somehow. Worse than shouting.
Cassian took a step back. Then another. His father kept coming.
"The soldiers are wrong," Alaric said. He was only a few feet away now. "The soldiers are confused. And confused soldiers cause problems. But you're going to fix this, boy. You're going to fix everything."
"I won't," Cassian breathed. "I won't marry him. I won't pretend to be Seraphina. I won't do it."
For a moment, nothing happened. Cassian thought maybe he'd actually stood up to his father. Thought maybe Alaric would just accept it and—
His father moved.
One hand shot out and grabbed Cassian's throat. The grip was absolutely brutal, squeezing hard enough to hurt. Alaric slammed him backward against the stone wall so hard the breath exploded from his lungs. Stars exploded across Cassian's vision. His hands flew up, clawing at his father's wrist, but it was like trying to move a mountain. His father was so much stronger. So much more Alpha.
Cassian had always known this. Had always felt it in every interaction. But feeling it in the abstract and feeling it when your father's fingers were cutting off your air were two completely different things.
"Listen to me," Alaric hissed, his face inches from Cassian's. "And listen carefully because I'm only going to say this once."
Cassian couldn't do anything but listen. Couldn't do anything but choke for breath and feel the pressure building in his head.
"Your sister disappeared," his father continued. "That's a fact. A fact that looks like betrayal. A fact that makes the North look weak. The Southern Kingdom could use this as an excuse to break the treaty. The kingdom could fall into civil war. Do you understand what that means?"
Cassian couldn't answer. Couldn't breathe.
Alaric released him just enough so he could gasp for air. Just enough so he could speak.
"It means thousands of soldiers die," their father said. "It means families get destroyed. It means the North burns. And every single one of those deaths will be because your sister abandoned her people."
He pressed Cassian harder against the wall. Cassian's vision blurred.
"But you can stop it," Alaric whispered. "You can save all those lives. All you have to do is put on a dress. All you have to do is smile and say some words to the Southern prince. All you have to do is the one thing you were actually born useful for."
Cassian's eyes were starting to water. His chest burned. His father's hand felt like it was going to break his neck.
"Do you refuse?" Alaric asked. "Do you want to be responsible for thousands of deaths? Do you want your sister's name to be remembered as a traitor? Because that's what happens if you refuse, boy. I will make sure everyone from here to the southern ocean knows that the princess of the North was so selfish, so weak, that she destroyed two kingdoms."
Cassian shook his head. He couldn't speak. Couldn't breathe. Couldn't do anything but desperately want the pain to stop.
"Or," his father continued, and now he was actually smiling, "you go south. You marry the prince. You secure the treaty. And Seraphina's name stays honored. Your people stay safe. Everything works out perfectly."
Alaric's hand was cutting off more and more of his air. Black edges crept into Cassian's vision.
"What's your answer?" his father asked softly.
Cassian nodded. He nodded because he couldn't do anything else. Because the pain was unbearable. Because thousands of soldiers shouldn't die because he was too weak to fight back.
Because his father was right.
Alaric released him and Cassian crumpled to the floor like a puppet with cut strings. He gasped for air, great heaving breaths that made his whole body shake. His throat felt like it had been crushed. When he touched it, his fingers came away bloody.
His father stepped over him like he was garbage.
"Servants," Alaric called out, his voice suddenly cheerful. Like he hadn't just tried to kill his own son. "Servants, come prepare the princess's things. Bring whatever clothes fit our youngest daughter. Bring her jewelry. Bring her perfumes. Everything she wore."
Servants appeared from nowhere, already moving. Already collecting things. They must have been waiting outside the door the whole time. Must have known exactly what was going to happen.
Cassian pulled himself up against the wall. His legs didn't want to work right. Everything hurt. His throat screamed with every breath. He watched his father sit back at his desk like nothing had happened, like he hadn't just beaten his son into submission.
"You leave at dawn," Alaric said, not even looking at him. "The carriage is being prepared. The guards have already been selected. You'll travel south and you'll marry Crown Prince Damian Vale."
Cassian couldn't speak. Couldn't do anything but stare.
"Oh, and Cassian," his father added, finally looking up at him with those cold, empty eyes. "If you fail at this, if the marriage doesn't hold or if you somehow manage to expose this deception, I will burn your sister's name across both kingdoms. I will make sure she's remembered as the worst traitor the North has ever produced. Do you understand?"
Cassian nodded. He understood. He understood that his father had probably already known where Seraphina was. Had probably already planned this whole thing. And Cassian had just agreed to play his part perfectly.
He was a puppet now. Had always been a puppet. His father was just finally holding the strings openly.
Alaric dismissed him with a wave of his hand. Cassian turned and stumbled toward the door on shaking legs. The guards outside let him pass without comment. He made it back to his chambers on instinct alone, his body moving while his mind was somewhere else entirely.
The next few hours passed like a nightmare. Servants came and went. They brought clothes and jewelry and perfumes that belonged to his sister. They left him alone in his room to stare at all of it. To understand what was about to happen.
He was going to become Seraphina.
He was going to marry a stranger.
He was going to spend the rest of his life pretending to be someone he wasn't, just like he'd been pretending for his whole life. Just like everyone in this castle pretended. Just like the whole entire world pretended that designations meant something. That strength mattered. That weak Alphas like him deserved to exist.
Cassian sat on his bed in the darkness and didn't cry. He was too numb to cry. He was beyond tears.
There was a soft knock at his door.
Elias slipped inside before Cassian could even respond. His guard looked like he'd been through a fight. His lip was split. One eye was starting to swell. But he moved toward Cassian without hesitation, kneeling in front of him with complete disregard for the guards standing outside.
"I'm coming with you," Elias said immediately, his voice low and urgent. "I don't care what they say. I'm disguising myself as a servant and I'm coming with you south. You won't be alone in this, Cassian. You won't face it by yourself."
Cassian looked at his oldest friend and felt something crack open inside him. Elias was the only person in this castle who'd ever looked at him like he was worth something. The only person who'd never made him feel like a disappointment.
"We have six hours," Elias continued, gripping Cassian's hands hard. "Six hours to turn you into your sister."