the lost princess

Previously

…"My mother?" Aurelia whispered, her voice thick with disbelief and a burgeoning sense of wonder. She looked at the locket, then back at Lord Valerius, her mind reeling. The pieces, so long scattered, were beginning to fall into place, forming a picture that was both terrifying and exhilarating. She was not just Aurelia, the orphan girl living in a secluded cottage. She was more. She was a princess. And the shadows from her dreams, the threat that had forced her into hiding, were still out there, waiting. The whispers of destiny had grown louder, and the time for listening was drawing to a close. The echoes in her dreams were no longer just whispers; they were a clarion call.