Their Hidden Princess (Zora) novel Chapter 163

**Where Sleeping Rivers Dream We Follow Trails Toward Tomorrow by Evan Milesa Cade**

Two weeks had passed, and the weight of my return to campus settled heavily on my shoulders. I slammed the car door shut with a force that echoed in the stillness of the parking lot. A deep sigh escaped my lips as I watched the driver move past me, heading towards the trunk to retrieve my bags. To my right, a towering figure emerged from the front seat—a large wolf clad in an impeccably tailored jet-black suit. Our eyes met briefly, and he offered me a curt nod, a gesture that felt oddly formal for the situation. I turned my gaze forward again, exhaling another heavy breath, the kind that seemed to release all the tension coiling within me.

This was my life now, a reality I had to grapple with daily.

After the harrowing attempt on my life, I had been whisked away back to the castle for the winter solstice. For what felt like an eternity, I had seen little of anyone except for my maids and the imposing wolf who had accompanied me back to school. He was my new bodyguard, a precautionary measure put in place by my mother after the vampire incident.

His name was Bubba, and he was no ordinary protector; he was a grizzled ex-warrior from a pack in the Northeast United States. With a physique that could rival Hollywood’s portrayal of a Marine, he exuded an aura of strength and intimidation. Communication with him was minimal—he preferred grunts and nods over words, which left me feeling both relieved and frustrated.

But here I was, stuck with him, an unwelcome shadow in my life.

As Bubba moved to the trunk to collect my suitcases, I stood there, grappling with the absurdity of my situation. How was I supposed to navigate life at Alpha Academy with a bodyguard trailing me? Everyone on campus viewed me as a nobody, an invisible girl lost in the crowd. Why would a nobody need protection? Yet, the truth was far more complicated. Beneath the layers of normalcy I had constructed, I was the Luna Princess, destined to play a pivotal role in a prophecy that spoke of my power to eradicate the remnants of vampires from the Great War.

Before the holiday, I had been skeptical about the prophecy’s validity. But then, my mother, Queen Victoria Luna, had taken me to the prophecy room, a place steeped in history and mystery. There, inscribed in shimmering gold ink on a piece of ancient parchment, lay my life story—a revelation that sent shivers down my spine. The words burned into my mind, each line resonating with a weight I could barely comprehend.

“Born of royalty, bound to five,
The collision of dark and light,
Remaker of olden times,
Night to his knees,
Light to rise,
Balance is once again in sight.”

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