Chapter 810: The Plan

Violet’s heart hammered in her chest.

In all her years of living, this kind of tension had always been reserved for bad news. Her instincts had never failed her before.

And right now they were screaming.

The queen spoke slowly. "Trust me, daughter, I never intended to burden you with this. I would have found a solution on my own, but there’s no more time."

"No more time for what?" Violet’s voice shook.

She knew it. She felt it deep in her bones that something was terribly wrong. But she refused to accept it.

Seraphira held her gaze.

"I’m dying, Violet."

For a moment, Violet didn’t speak. It was as if her tongue had suddenly turned to stone.

Her body felt strange. Heavy. Her head swam with confusion. She felt like she should sit... or stand... or do something, anything, but her limbs refused to cooperate.

The words simply echoed in her head.

I’m dying.

Then, before she knew it, tears filled her eyes.

"No," she croaked.

She was supposed to be brave. Strong.

But how did anyone respond to something like this?

"No," Violet said again, shaking her head. "You can’t die."

She had only just found her. They had barely spent any real time together as mother and daughter. Barely begun to know each other.

What did she mean dying?

That couldn’t be true.

"Violet, calm down," Alaric tried to wrap his arms around her, but Violet shoved him away.

"What do you mean calm down?" she demanded, her voice rising. "Didn’t you hear her? My mother is dying. I just barely met her!" Her chest rose and fell unevenly.

Asher dark eyes locked with hers.

"There’s a solution, baby girl."

"What?" Violet blinked at him, her thoughts scattered. "What did you say?"

"We won’t let her die," Roman said firmly.

Griffin nodded beside him.

"And Alaric won’t let that happen."

Only then did Violet’s eyes swing back to Alaric.

He was smiling at her in a calm and confident way.

Her voice softened into something almost fragile.

"You’re sure?"

"Yes, little minx."

He stepped closer this time, lifting a hand to gently brush away the tears sliding down her cheeks.

"I’ll save your mother. Nothing will happen to her."

For a moment, Violet could only stare into those bright blue eyes filled with certainty.

The conviction in them steadied her racing heart.

Slowly, she wiped her face with the back of her hand, embarrassed by her outburst.

Goddess above.

What the hell had just happened?

One moment everything had been normal, and the next her entire world had felt like it was collapsing beneath her feet.

All her life, Violet had never had much. It had always just been her and Nancy. She had accepted that fate and the loneliness that came with it.

But then the Cardinal Alphas had crashed into her life like a storm and suddenly she wasn’t alone anymore. Just like that, her family had grown from her friends to the pack and others. Her hope had grown with it.

And then the gods had given her something she had never expected. Her biological mother. Her identity. Her roots. She finally belonged somewhere.

And now fate wanted to take that away from her too. So yes, the news had shattered something inside her.

No one rushed her. The room remained quiet while Violet struggled to gather herself. The Cardinal Alphas stayed where they were, giving her space. Even Roman, who was rarely silent, kept his mouth shut.

Violet drew in a shaky breath and slowly, the storm inside her chest settled. She wiped the last traces of tears from her face and straightened, forcing her spine to stiffen.

When she finally spoke, her voice no longer cracked.

"How did this happen?"

And that was how Seraphira dived into the story, telling her how Baron siphoning her powers left her with side effects that led to the disease.

Violet swallowed.

"The disease is called Thalvo—" She stopped, stumbling over the unfamiliar word. "Thalvo... something."

"Thal’voryn Shai," Lila corrected smoothly.

The name alone sounded ancient and terrible.

Violet tried again. "So how do you intend to cure her of... that?"

Alaric answered. "We intend to move Queen Seraphira’s soul into another body."

Violet blinked.

"Excuse me?"

"The flesh is nothing but a shell," Alaric explained. "Unfortunately, that shell is failing. Worse, the queen shares a life force with Baron. But if she can inhabit a compatible body, she’ll survive."

Violet frowned, suspicion prickling at the edges of her mind.

"That doesn’t sound easy."

Alaric’s tone was careful.

"It isn’t. But it’s worth trying."

She rubbed her temples. "Oh gods." She might as well prepare for the worse.

Violet trusted Alaric but this was magic, not science. And magic had a tendency to go very, very wrong.

Roman reminded them. "Let’s not forget we have three days until the trial." He scratched the side of his face. "Do we even have a compatible body?"

Silence fell. All eyes turned to the queen.

"We’re searching," Lila said. "Zuru is working on a spell that should help identify a compatible vessel."

Her voice tried to sound hopeful.

"Everything will work out."

But no one in the room said what they were all thinking. They were gambling on luck here.

"That leads to one conclusion," Asher said.

Everyone looked at him.

"Baron is going to try to kill Violet during the trial."

The words hung heavy in the air.

"For the queen," Asher continued, "he doesn’t need to do anything dramatic. Since he already has the advantage through their bond, he’ll simply keep draining her until she dies."

"So," he finished. "What’s the plan?"

Lila folded her arms, clearly having expected the question.

"For starters, we will replace the priestess who is meant to officiate the ceremony. But only at the last minute. That way, if she is in league with Baron, she will have no time to warn him or adjust whatever scheme they have planned."

Roman looked impressed. "You’re planning to blindside them."

"Exactly," Lila replied.

She continued, "In addition to that, we will increase the number of guards stationed at the trial grounds. Not visibly enough to alarm the public, but enough that nothing will slip through unnoticed."

Her tone grew more serious. "The guards will have one priority and that is ensuring nothing happens to the princess’s body during the ceremony."