Lucia sat in stunned silence, her mind spinning with the revelation that Miranda had just laid before her. The truth, a jagged edge she hadn’t anticipated, cut through her with a sharpness that left her feeling hollow. Everything she thought she knew about herself, about Luke, and about her life at the palace was a fabrication—a delicate web of lies that had finally unraveled.
For a moment, the world seemed to narrow, the vibrant colors of the palace gardens fading into a dull, lifeless gray. She wanted to scream, to demand why this had been done to her, but her throat was tight with the weight of betrayal. Tears pricked at her eyes, and she fought to keep them at bay.
Miranda watched her with a somber expression, understanding that the truth had delivered a blow from which Lucia might n
