Chapter 14 The Thread between Us
The days that followed the rooftop kiss were quieter… but not calm.
Something had shifted.
Hatim, usually impatient and burning like a blade in sunlight, was softer. Sharper too—but only when Sana wasn’t around. In her presence, he became a tide gently brushing the shore. Restless, but never violent.
For Sana… that kiss lingered like warmth in winter.
Not because he had kissed her lips—but because he had done it without demanding to see her.
> “He waited… in the dark.”
“And in that darkness, I saw him clearer than ever.”
---
One morning, Meher burst into Sana’s room holding a pale blue ribbon.
> “The prince sent this.”
“He said, tie it around your wrist today. That’s all.”
Sana looked at the silk—soft, expensive, royal.
> “He’s marking you,” Meher whispered, eyes wide. “He’s telling the court… you’re his.”
Sana hesitated, but tied it anyway.
She didn’t know that Hatim wore the matching one around his sword hilt that day.
---
In the sparring arena, nobles whispered behind fans.
> “Why is the prince smiling?”
“He hasn’t broken anyone’s nose in three days.”
“It’s her. The veiled one.”
“She must be a witch.”
Roshni heard it all.
And it made her blood boil.
That evening, she summoned Sana to her chamber.
Candles flickered low. Incense burned sharp. There was no throne here—just silence.
> “Remove the ribbon,” she ordered.
Sana bowed. “Your Majesty—”
> “REMOVE. IT.”
Sana hesitated.
> “With respect… the prince gave it to me.”
Roshni’s eyes flashed. “He is my son.”
Sana looked up—only for a second.
> “And yet he chose me.”
SLAP.
This time, harder than the garden.
But Sana didn’t cry.
> “You’re strong now,” Roshni said bitterly. “You think love will protect you?”
“When I’m done… not even the stars will remember your name.”
---
Hatim was in the stables when he heard.
He arrived at Roshni’s private court seconds later.
> “Mother,” he said coldly. “We need to talk.”
Queen Roshni looked up, unbothered. “If this is about the servant girl—”
> “Her name is Sana,” Hatim snapped. “And she is not a servant to me.”
The courtiers nearby fell dead silent.
Roshni’s smile thinned. “You’ve lost your mind. Letting her wear royal colors? Bringing her to the west wing?”
> “I will do worse,” he said. “I will marry her.”
Gasps exploded in the room.
Roshni stood, her voice sharp like shattered glass. “You would stain your bloodline for a cursed girl?”
Hatim stepped forward, eyes blazing.
> “No. I would honor it—by loving someone brave, selfless, and powerful.”
He glanced at the nobles. “All of you who whisper about her—let me remind you: I don’t need permission to protect what is mine.”
And then he looked his mother in the eye.
> “Hit her again… and I won’t be your son anymore.”
Roshni’s face fell.
She had always thought Hatim loved his crown more than anything.
But tonight, for the first time… she realized something terrifying:
> He loved her more.
---
Later that night, when Sana returned to her new chambers, she found something resting on her pillow.
A velvet box.
Inside was a ring—dark sapphire, with silver filigree shaped like a flame.
And a note in Hatim’s hand:
> "You never needed protection.
But I’ll stand between you and the world anyway."
She held the ring to her heart.
And finally—she cried.
But this time, not from pain.
---
But the peace was short-lived.
Because the prophecy had begun to wake others too.
A scroll arrived from the highlands.
Blood on the paper. One word in red:
> “Akhira.”
Roshni paled. Hatim held the scroll tightly. Sana... felt cold.
> “They know,” the palace priest whispered. “The old ones. They’ve seen the signs.”
---
That night, in her sleep, Sana saw a dream.
Not of Hatim.
Not of the palace.
But of a shadow with no face, standing in fire.
> “You must leave soon,” it said.
“When the moon turns red, she will strike. And you must be gone.”
Sana tried to reach out—but the shadow vanished.
When she awoke, the moon outside her window was already darkening.
---
?? Author’s Note:
Y’ALL. THE WAY HATIM STOOD UP FOR HIS WOMAN ???? This chapter said “My prince will throw hands AND renounce the throne for love” and I’m crying about it. This is the energy we deserve!!
Also that line?? “Hit her again and I won’t be your son anymore.” Mic DROP ????
The flames are rising. The prophecy is stirring. The moon is changing color... Chapter 15 is going to BURN.