The Million-Dollar Heart

Hunter ended the call, his movements swift as he approached the bookshelf in his dimly lit study. With a practiced ease, he slid open a secret compartment, retrieving a half-mask that he promptly secured over his face. His other hand found the familiar weight of a black cloak, which he draped over his shoulders before stepping out into the night.

The Castle, the dungeon.

Alyssa felt as though she had spent an entire century beneath the earth. Her wounds, neglected and festering, itched and burned with a ferocity that matched her fever, which came and went in relentless waves. Hope of the door opening had long since faded; the last morsels of food and medicine her brother had brought were consumed on the very first day.

Desperation drove her to consume the scraps left by rodents and drink the murky water seeping through the cracks in the corner of her cell. Time had lost all meaning to her, save for the recurring bouts of fever every four hours, though she dared not consume more medicine than her brother had advised-unless she wished to lose her grip on reality entirely.

Amidst her delirium, visions of Arthur's wedding haunted her. She couldn't accept it. After waiting for him for so many years, loving only him, it was inconceivable that he would marry another. Sasha, that wretched woman, must have used some vile trickery to ensnare him. That was the only explanation for their hastened union and the child they now shared.

"Alyssa!"

Arthur's voice cut through her haze, a sign her mind was once again slipping from her grasp. He would never know of her years of waiting, of her love that had twisted into an obsession.

As Alyssa lay delirious, Robbie frowned at her pallor, prying open her mouth to administer the medicine.

Twenty minutes later, Alyssa's eyes fluttered open to the sight of her brother and the sliver of light from the outside world. Clarity returned to her eyes as she grasped Robbie's hand with a desperation akin to a drowning person clinging to a lifeline. "Bro, you finally came! What did Grandpa say? Has he forgiven me? When can I leave..."

Robbie's lips pressed into a thin line. "Grandpa said you cannot leave until the seven days are up."

"Seven days..." The light in Alyssa's eyes extinguished. "No, Grandpa wouldn't let me die here. Bro, please, plead with him for me. I am the Wright family's heiress; I can't die like this..."

"You are my only sister. Even if he

moved against your

his head, Robbie replied, "Grandpa relented. He said you could return if you

her

of their grandfather's ruthlessness. Failing to meet his demand would only result in harsher punishment. Yet, this was the only

ask Grandpa to arrange a better match for you. Leave the Linklater family be. The second

food, Alyssa momentarily forgot years of decorum,

and I'll take you out

be met with concerned glances from the household staff, noting the redness in someone's eyes and an overall air of gloom. Vivienne couldn't

time Arthur heard such concern from his daughter, and while touched,

rolled her

today for a post-wedding family dinner. Even though

"What's for breakfast?"

impatience, replied, "Darling, you still

right on

managed to earn the title of War God. Watching from the staircase, Sasha couldn't suppress a smile at the sight of her excited husband and their

The Perez family.

car, was immediately greeted by her cousins Natalia and Yasmine, who clamored for her attention. Sasha, feigning