Chapter 3
Aurora woke with a violent gasp, her lungs desperately pulling in air.
For a moment, she couldn't breathe. Cold water. Shattered glass. Blinding headlights.
The terrifying sensation of sinking beneath the river's surface flooded her mind. Her heart pounded wildly as she sat upright in bed.
"I'm alive..." she whispered.
Her trembling hands gripped the blankets beneath her. She expected to feel the crushing weight of water around her, expected the burning pain in her chest from her final moments.
Instead, she felt soft sheets. Warm sunlight and silence. Slowly, Aurora looked around the room. The elegant furniture. The embroidered curtains. The familiar paintings hanging on the walls.
Her breath caught in her throat, "No..."
She threw back the blankets and stumbled to her feet. This wasn't her apartment. This wasn't the twenty-first century. This was her bedroom, her bedroom in the Duchy. A cold shiver ran down her spine.
Had she survived? Was this a dream? Or had fate played another cruel trick on her?
Just then, a knock sounded at the door.
Knock. Knock.
"My Lady, may I enter?"
Aurora froze, that voice. Her eyes widened.
Emily.
It was Emily, her lady-in-waiting. The same Emily who had remained loyal to her until the very end. For a moment, Aurora couldn't speak. The sound of Emily's voice brought back memories she had long buried. The day of her execution. Emily's tear-stained face, the helplessness in her eyes.
Aurora swallowed hard before finally finding her voice, "Enter."
The door opened, and Emily stepped inside. She bowed gracefully before lifting her head. Aurora stared at her.
Alive...Young......Unharmed. A lump formed in Aurora's throat. She hadn't realized how much she had missed seeing familiar faces from her first life.
"My Lady?" Emily asked cautiously.
Aurora quickly looked away, hiding the emotion threatening to spill from her eyes.
"Can I draw you a bath, My Lady?"
"No," Aurora replied softly. "Please bring me a cup of tea. I feel a little under the weather."
"Of course, My Lady.", Emily hesitated. Something seemed different about her mistress today.
Usually, Lady Aurora would have already been discussing her afternoon tea with the Crown Prince. Instead, she looked pale and distant, as though she had seen a ghost.
Emily quietly excused herself.
Outside the room, she immediately warned the servants, "Lady Aurora doesn't seem to be feeling well. Clean quietly and avoid disturbing her."
The maids nodded nervously. Meanwhile, Emily hurried to the kitchen and prepared a tray with fresh jasmine tea and biscuits. She also instructed the cook to prepare a light breakfast.
Back in her room, Aurora sat motionless. Her mind raced. She remembered everything, her first life, her execution, her second life. Her loving parents. The accident. The river. Her death and now...She was here, back in the Duchy. Back in the life she thought she had left behind forever.
Aurora closed her eyes; the memory of the collision made her shudder. Even now, her body seemed to remember the pain. The fear.... The helplessness. She wrapped her arms around herself, trying to calm the storm raging inside her.
Why had she returned?
Why had fate brought her back?
Before she could dwell on the question, another knock interrupted her thoughts.
"My Lady, may I enter?"
"Enter."
Emily returned carrying a silver tray. She carefully placed it on the table before pouring a cup of steaming jasmine tea. Aurora accepted the cup, savouring the warmth against her cold fingers. For several moments, neither woman spoke.
Then Aurora broke the silence, "Emily, tell me what has been happening."
Emily blinked in surprise, "My Lady?"
"Humour me."
Emily nodded," The duke remains at the border, My Lady. There seems to be no end to the war."
Aurora's grip tightened around her teacup.
"The Duchess is expected to return from Port Haven in two days. And your grandmother has recovered remarkably well."
The words struck Aurora like lightning. Her father was alive. Her mother was alive.
Her grandmother was alive. Relief crashed over her so suddenly that she nearly dropped her cup. Tears burned behind her eyes.
In her previous life, she had lost them all. One by one. And now fate had given them back to her.
Aurora lowered her head, hiding her expression, "Thank you.", she whispered. She didn't know who she was thanking.
God... Fate... The universe...Anyone, For this chance.
As Emily continued speaking, Aurora pieced together the timeline. She was fifteen years old. Her coming-of-age celebration was six months away. And in one week's time, her father would return from the battlefield gravely wounded and unconscious.
She remembered it clearly. Her mother would be devastated.
The Duchy's affairs would be neglected. Corrupt managers and tax collectors would begin stealing from the estate while everyone focused on the duke's recovery. The slow downfall of her family would begin.
Not this time.
Aurora took a slow sip of tea; a fierce determination settled within her. This time she knew the future, this time she knew who could be trusted. And this time she would protect the people she loved.
"Emily."
"Yes, My Lady?"
"Send a message to His Highness, Crown Prince Lucian du Maurier."
Emily brightened immediately. Everyone in the palace knew how much Lady Aurora adored the Crown Prince.
"What would you like me to write, My Lady?"
"Inform His Highness that I will be unable to join him for tea this afternoon."
Emily froze. For a moment, she thought she had misheard, "My Lady... are you certain?"
"Yes.", Aurora's voice was calm. Cold. Certain.
The Crown Prince had once been the centre of her world. She had sacrificed everything for him.
Her family...Her happiness...Her future...
And in the end, he had sentenced her to death. The memory no longer filled her with love.
Only clarity, this time, she would put herself and her family first. This time, she would save the Duchy. This time, she would never allow her heart to blind her.
"As you wish, My Lady," Emily replied, though confusion still lingered in her eyes.
After Emily left, Aurora walked to the balcony overlooking the vast lands of the Duchy.
The wind brushed against her face. For the first time since waking, she smiled. A genuine smile. Her family was alive. The Duchy could still be saved. The future had not yet been written.
Little did anyone know that this day marked the beginning of a new era.
Just as Aurora had been given a second chance, so too had the Duchy.
And this time, she intended to change everything.
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