The cost of living in Merovia was far higher than Rosalind expected, and little by little, they were running out of money. There were too many things to buy, especially her mother’s medicine, which consumed almost everything they had left. Sometimes, they skipped meals entirely just so they could manage what remained of their coins.

Just days ago, Rosalind had been in the palace where she could eat whatever she wanted without worry, but now, even though she finally had freedom, they were barely surviving.

Perhaps no one could truly have everything at once, she thought bitterly to herself.

She had gone around the city searching for work, but most places turned her away because she had no real skills. The few jobs available were exhausting labour for miserable pay, and even those employers doubted she could do the work properly.

With the last of the money she had, Rosalind bought food before returning home.

She pulled the shawl off her head as she stepped into the house and found Mallory feeding Beth her medicine.

"How did it go?" Mallory asked immediately. "You said you were going to look for work."

Rosalind let out a tired breath and sank down onto the floor. "It isn’t easy at all. Most of them said they weren’t looking for assistants, and the others claimed I didn’t have the skills they needed." She rolled her eyes weakly.

"I only needed to help them with small things and get paid for it. I don’t understand why that is so difficult."

Mallory rose slowly to her feet. "You do realize we cannot continue like this if we have no proper way to feed ourselves," she said seriously.

"I know," Rosalind answered quietly.

"It still isn’t too late to return," Mallory continued. "I’m sure the king will forgive you somehow, and maybe he’ll spare the rest of us."

Rosalind almost scoffed at that suggestion. Her brows drew together immediately. "You do not know him the way I do. The moment I return, he’ll imprison all of us." Her voice lowered. "And Alaric does not forgive easily."

If anything, she feared he would torture them until she agreed to marry him.

"Then what exactly are we supposed to do now?" Mallory asked, her voice becoming sharper.

Rosalind took a slow breath. "I’ll continue searching," she said firmly. "I’ll find something eventually."

Mallory only gave her a doubtful look.

Beth turned weakly toward Mallory. "You have to trust Rosalind," she said softly. "If she says she’ll handle it, then she will."

"I still think all of this was a terrible decision," Mallory muttered with a frown.

Meanwhile, Rosalind had already disappeared further into the room to rest for a while.

Mallory narrowed her eyes thoughtfully as she watched her leave. Something had to change soon because she could not continue living like this. Only days ago, she had been living comfortably, but now she was suffering in a place she never even wanted to come to in the first place.

If Rosalind could not solve this problem quickly, then perhaps she would have to take matters into her own hands.

****

Far away in Eryndor, Rowan could barely breathe.

His body was drenched as unbearable heat rose beneath him. Chains restrained both his hands and legs, suspending him high in the air with his arms stretched painfully apart while a massive pot of boiling water sat directly below him.

Every inch of his body burned.

His face was flushed red as another groan escaped him against his will.

Not far from him, Alaric calmly watched every moment of his suffering.

When one of the candles beside the mechanism burned lower, the chains shifted, lowering Rowan slightly closer toward the boiling water beneath him. Rowan groaned louder as the heat slammed into him again.

"You are quite stubborn, aren’t you?" Alaric finally spoke.

Rowan heard him, but the pain barely allowed him to think clearly anymore.

"All this suffering for a woman..." Alaric mused coldly. "I am certain there is more to this."

His gaze remained fixed on Rowan struggling helplessly against the chains.

"Imagine sacrificing your life for her only for her to escape and eventually build another life with another man somewhere else." A faint smirk tugged at his lips. "How devastating that must be."

Rowan clenched his jaw tightly as another wave of heat rose against him.

"If she possesses even the smallest bit of conscience," Alaric continued, "then perhaps she’ll eventually return to save you from this."

He lifted his cup calmly to his lips and drank his wine as though the torture before him was the most ordinary thing in the world.

A servant suddenly approached him and bowed quickly. "Your Majesty... someone claims to have information about the missing lady."

Alaric’s eyes narrowed immediately. "Bring them to me at once."

The servant bowed again before hurrying away.

After some time, a man was escorted into the chamber.

"Long live the king," he said nervously while bowing deeply.

"You may rise," Alaric replied.

The man slowly stood, and Alaric carefully studied him for a moment before speaking again.

"Are you absolutely certain the information you intend to give me is correct?" His voice turned colder. "A lot of you have given the wrong information in hopes that you can take my reward. If you lie to me, you will not survive what follows."

"I would never dare lie to Your Majesty," the man answered quickly.

Alaric leaned back slightly into his seat. "Then speak. What information do you have?"

The man cleared his throat nervously before beginning. "It was either the night before yesterday or perhaps earlier. I was travelling back to Eryndor from another kingdom, and during the journey our boat crossed paths with another one. We stopped because we heard strange sounds coming from their side and—"

"Get to the point," Alaric cut in sharply at once.

"Yes... yes, Your Majesty," the man answered quickly while Alaric’s irritation only deepened.

"I saw the posters of the missing lady spread across the kingdom, and she resembled the woman I saw on that boat that night," the man explained hurriedly.

He had been the same traveller who questioned them during Rosalind’s escape. That night, he had briefly caught sight of part of her face before she completely hid herself again beneath the shawl. At the time, he thought little of it, but the moment he saw Rosalind’s face on the posters across Eryndor and heard about the reward being offered by the king, he quickly connected everything and came straight to report it.

Alaric’s brows lifted slightly. "Tell me everything."

"There were other people on the boat," the man continued nervously. "Two men, an older sickly woman, another woman who appeared to be asleep most of the time, and the lady from the posters." He swallowed before adding, "I am certain the woman you are searching for was with them."

Alaric’s eyes narrowed thoughtfully.

It could indeed be Rosalind, along with Calder’s missing wife.

"And which route was the boat taking?" Alaric asked sharply.

The man immediately answered, "If I am correct, Your Majesty, the next place that boat would most likely stop at is Merovia."

Merovia.

Alaric repeated the name silently in his mind while his gaze slowly shifted toward Rowan.

The footman had stopped struggling despite the pain consuming him as he hung above the boiling water. Still, Alaric noticed the way Rowan’s jaw tightened violently at the mention of Merovia, and a dark smirk slowly appeared on the king’s lips.

Got you.

"Summon the elite guards immediately," Alaric ordered without hesitation. "They are to leave for Merovia at once and bring the traitor back to me."

The guards quickly bowed. "Yes, Your Majesty."

Alaric then turned back toward the man who had brought the information. His mood had visibly improved now that he finally had a possible lead on Rosalind’s whereabouts.

"And you," he said smoothly, "shall be rewarded generously for your loyalty."

Relief instantly flooded the man’s face as he bowed deeply again. "Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty."

At that same moment, Rowan groaned loudly in pain as the chains lowered him another inch toward the steaming water beneath him, the heat striking his body so fiercely that his entire frame trembled against the restraints.