After a tragic death in a lab explosion, a modern pathologist wakes up in a new life as a hated bodyguard to a cold prince. Amidst betrayal and danger, the cold prince becomes unexpectedly obsessed with them. How will the pathologist navigate this new life filled with intrigue, power struggles, and the prince's obsessive love?
#Reincarnation #BodyguardRomance #ColdPrince #PathologistLife #LabExplosion #RomanticIntrigue #ObsessedLove #PowerStruggles #FullStory #LoveAndBetrayal
#Reincarnation #BodyguardRomance #ColdPrince #PathologistLife #LabExplosion #RomanticIntrigue #ObsessedLove #PowerStruggles #FullStory #LoveAndBetrayal
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00:00:00My name is Ethan. For 10 years, I was the guy you didn't want to meet at work.
00:00:05Not because I was mean, but because if you were meeting me, you were probably already dead on a stainless
00:00:10steel table.
00:00:12I was a senior forensic pathologist in London.
00:00:15While other guys my age were out at pubs, I was busy measuring the entry angle of a bullet
00:00:20or explaining to detectives why a suicide was actually a very clumsy murder.
00:00:25My life was logic, caffeine, and the smell of formaldehyde.
00:00:30People called me the raccoon.
00:00:33My only escape was my younger sister, who had a pathological obsession with historical romance novels.
00:00:39She'd shove these books at me, usually about some ice prince and a tragic lover.
00:00:45I distinctly remember tossing her latest book onto my desk, something about a traitorous bodyguard,
00:00:50and muttering, if this guy had half a brain and a basic understanding of blood spatter,
00:00:56he wouldn't be in this mess.
00:00:57What a waste of paper.
00:01:00Irony is a cruel mistress.
00:01:02An hour later, a pressurized gas canister in the lab leaked.
00:01:06No sound.
00:01:07Just a faint shimmer in the air, a spark from a centrifuge, and then...
00:01:12white heat.
00:01:14Pain bloomed like a supernova across my chest, and then...
00:01:18total heavy darkness.
00:01:19When I opened my eyes, I expected a hospital ceiling.
00:01:23Instead, I saw gray, vaulted stone.
00:01:27The air didn't smell like antiseptic.
00:01:30It smelled like old wax, damp moss, and...
00:01:34copper.
00:01:35Lots of copper.
00:01:37I tried to move, but my hand felt heavy.
00:01:40I looked down.
00:01:41My fingers were wrapped around the hilt of a heavy, ornate silver sword,
00:01:46and the blade was dripping.
00:01:48No, I rasped.
00:01:50My voice sounded different, deeper, younger.
00:01:54I wasn't in my lab coat.
00:01:56I was wearing a stiff midnight blue tunic with gold embroidery on the shoulders.
00:02:01My hands were different too, calloused from a sword, not stained by ink.
00:02:06I looked at the floor.
00:02:08A man in rich, emerald robes lay there.
00:02:12Lord Sterling, the king's chief advisor.
00:02:15His throat had been opened, and the pool of blood was still spreading across the white marble.
00:02:21Then, the heavy oak doors crashed open.
00:02:25Sebastian Vail, drop the weapon!
00:02:27Then, I froze.
00:02:30Sebastian Vail.
00:02:32That was the name of the idiot bodyguard from my sister's book.
00:02:36The one who was framed for murder and executed in the very first chapter.
00:02:40My stomach dropped into my boots.
00:02:42Oh, you've got to be kidding me, I muttered.
00:02:46A group of guards flooded the room, their spears leveled at my chest.
00:02:51And then, the crowd parted.
00:02:54He walked in like a winter storm made flesh.
00:02:58Prince Rowan Ashford.
00:02:59In the book, he was described as the Ice of the North.
00:03:05A man who valued the law more than his own life.
00:03:09He was tall, unnecessarily tall, with eyes the color of a frozen lake and hair like spun
00:03:15silver tied back at his neck.
00:03:18He looked at the body of Lord Sterling, and then his gaze moved to me.
00:03:22It wasn't a look of anger.
00:03:24It was pure, freezing disgust.
00:03:28Sebastian, he said, his voice low enough to vibrate in the stones beneath my feet.
00:03:34I gave you my trust.
00:03:36I gave you a place at my side.
00:03:38And you pay the crown with regicide?
00:03:41The guards moved to seize me.
00:03:43In the original story, this is where Sebastian would fall to his knees,
00:03:48cry, and beg for a mercy that never came.
00:03:51He would die three hours later on the gallows.
00:03:54Logic snapped into place.
00:03:56The Ethan in me, the CSI who had seen a thousand crime scenes, took over.
00:04:02I didn't drop the sword.
00:04:04I stepped back, away from the body, keeping my hands visible but firm.
00:04:09Stand back, I commanded.
00:04:12The guards hesitated, shocked by the sudden authority in a voice that used to be timid.
00:04:17I looked Rowan straight in those icy eyes.
00:04:21Highness, if you arrest me now, you're letting Sterling's real killer escape.
00:04:25And frankly, your investigation skills are embarrassing.
00:04:29The room went dead silent.
00:04:32You could hear the torches flickering.
00:04:35Rowan's eyes narrowed until they were like shards of glass.
00:04:38He walked toward me, his hand on the hilt of his own gold-leafed rapier.
00:04:43You dare mock the crown while standing in the blood of its advisor?
00:04:48I'm not mocking the crown, I said, my heart hammering but my brain clear.
00:04:53I'm mocking the physics of this room.
00:04:55Look at his neck, Rowan.
00:04:57Rowan stopped.
00:04:59No one called him Rowan.
00:05:00It was always Your Highness or Prince.
00:05:04Look at the entry wound, I continued, pointing with my free hand.
00:05:08The cut starts behind the left ear and shallowly moves toward the chin.
00:05:12The killer was left-handed.
00:05:14I am right-handed.
00:05:16Furthermore, look at the spatter on the wall behind him.
00:05:19It's a fine mist, six feet high.
00:05:22That's arterial spray.
00:05:24If I had cut him, I'd be covered from head to toe.
00:05:27But look at my tunic.
00:05:29I held my arms out.
00:05:32There are only three drops on my right sleeve.
00:05:35These are transfer stains, not velocity stains.
00:05:39I didn't kill him.
00:05:41I found him, and someone splashed blood on my sword to make it look like I did.
00:05:46If you have any sense, you'll check the shoes of every servant who left this hall in the last ten
00:05:51minutes.
00:05:52They'll have the mist on their boots.
00:05:54I, however, am clean.
00:05:56Rowan stared at me.
00:05:58For a long, agonizing minute, he didn't speak.
00:06:01He looked at the body.
00:06:03He looked at the wall.
00:06:05He looked at my clean tunic.
00:06:07He was a man who prided himself on being a brilliant tactician.
00:06:11And I had just dismantled his entire reality using words he didn't fully understand.
00:06:16But logic he couldn't deny.
00:06:19Who taught you to see blood like that?
00:06:21He asked, his voice losing a fraction of its frost.
00:06:25I'm a bodyguard, highness.
00:06:27I see how people get hurt for a living.
00:06:30I lied smoothly.
00:06:32Now, are you going to hang a genius?
00:06:34Or are you going to let me find the man who actually did this?
00:06:37Because the transfer blood on my sword is already drying,
00:06:41which means the killer is currently washing his hands in the east wing.
00:06:44Rowan stepped closer.
00:06:46He was so close I could smell the sandalwood and cold rain on his cloak.
00:06:51He leaned down, his face inches from mine.
00:06:55You were a gambler, Sebastian.
00:06:58A coward who couldn't look me in the eye yesterday.
00:07:01Now you stand here lecturing me on the physics of death?
00:07:06You've changed.
00:07:08I didn't flinch.
00:07:10Death has a way of sharpening the mind, highness.
00:07:14So, do we have a deal?
00:07:16Rowan straightened up and looked at his captain of the guard.
00:07:20Lock him in the north tower.
00:07:22Not the dungeon.
00:07:23The tower.
00:07:24And bring me the list of every servant on duty.
00:07:28He turned back to me, his gaze heavy and...
00:07:32Searching.
00:07:33You have twenty-four hours, Sebastian Vale.
00:07:35If you cannot find a name to replace yours on that noose, I will pull the lever myself.
00:07:42I'd expect nothing less, I said, giving him a sharp, disrespectful nod.
00:07:48And, highness?
00:07:49Bring me some charcoal and a magnifying glass.
00:07:52We have some prints to lift.
00:07:55They marched me to the north tower.
00:07:57It was a luxury compared to what the book described.
00:08:00I had a bed, a desk, and a window overlooking the London-esque city of Aethelgard.
00:08:07I sat on the edge of the bed and let out a breath I'd been holding for an eternity.
00:08:13Sebastian, you idiot!
00:08:15I whispered to the empty room.
00:08:17What kind of mess did you leave me?
00:08:20I spent the next few hours sorting through Sebastian's memories.
00:08:25They were fuzzy, like a dream.
00:08:27But the facts were clear.
00:08:29The original Sebastian was a puppet.
00:08:32He had been bribed by someone to leave the advisor's door unguarded.
00:08:36He was supposed to be the fall guy.
00:08:39But the person who transmigrated into this body wasn't a puppet.
00:08:43I was a man who had spent his life proving the dead don't lie.
00:08:48A knock sounded at the door.
00:08:50I expected a guard with bread and water.
00:08:53Instead, the heavy bolt slid back, and Rowan entered alone.
00:08:57He wasn't wearing his formal cape anymore.
00:09:00Just a white silk shirt, unbuttoned at the collar, and black breeches.
00:09:05He looked less like a prince, and more like a predator.
00:09:09He threw a small velvet bag on the table.
00:09:12Your charcoal, and the glass lens you requested.
00:09:16Explain to me again.
00:09:17What exactly are we lifting?
00:09:20I stood up, ignoring the way my heart did a weird little skip at the sight of him.
00:09:26Fingerprints, Highness.
00:09:27Every person has unique ridges on their skin.
00:09:30When you touch a smooth surface, like Lord Sterling's wine decanter, the oils on your skin leave a ghost of
00:09:37your identity behind.
00:09:38I'm going to make those ghosts visible.
00:09:41Rowan leaned against the wall, crossing his arms.
00:09:44The candlelight caught the sharp line of his jaw.
00:09:48Unique ridges?
00:09:49That sounds like sorcery, Sebastian.
00:09:53It's not sorcery.
00:09:55It's science, I said, already moving to the table.
00:09:59But in this century, I suppose they're the same thing.
00:10:02Now, if you want to be useful, tell me about Lord Sterling's assistant.
00:10:06The one with the shaky hands and the left-handed holster.
00:10:10Rowan's eyes sharpened.
00:10:11Lord Thomas?
00:10:13He has been Sterling's protege for years.
00:10:16He was devastated by the murder.
00:10:18Why him?
00:10:20Because, I said, crushed charcoal in hand,
00:10:24he was the only person who didn't look at the body when he walked in.
00:10:28He only looked at me.
00:10:30A witness looks at the victim.
00:10:32A killer looks at the evidence they planted.
00:10:35I began to demonstrate.
00:10:37I took a glass cup from the table and pressed my thumb against it.
00:10:41Then I lightly dusted the charcoal over it and blew the excess away.
00:10:46My thumbprint appeared in stark black detail.
00:10:49Rowan walked over, his curiosity finally overriding his dignity.
00:10:54He grabbed my wrist, pulling my hand closer to the light to see the print.
00:10:59His fingers were warm, his grip firm.
00:11:03Incredible.
00:11:04He breathed.
00:11:05He didn't let go of my wrist.
00:11:07His thumb brushed against my pulse point and he paused,
00:11:10his eyes flicking up to mine.
00:11:13Your heart is racing, Sebastian.
00:11:15Are you afraid?
00:11:16I'm in a tower with a man who has the legal right to kill me in twenty hours,
00:11:20I said, my voice only slightly shaky.
00:11:23I'd be an idiot if my heart wasn't racing.
00:11:27Rowan smirked.
00:11:28It was the first time I'd seen him look human.
00:11:31You're no idiot.
00:11:33I'm beginning to think you're the most dangerous man in this palace.
00:11:36A gambler who suddenly knows the secrets of the skin and the soul.
00:11:39He finally let go of my hand, but the heat of his touch stayed.
00:11:44Thomas is in the library.
00:11:46He is preparing the funeral arrangements.
00:11:48If I bring you to him, can you prove it?
00:11:51I can, I said.
00:11:53But I need you to play a part.
00:11:56You need to be the cold prince again.
00:11:59Act like you're taking me to the gallows.
00:12:02Let him feel safe.
00:12:03Let him think the traitor is already caught.
00:12:07Rowan straightened his shoulders,
00:12:09the ice returning to his expression instantly.
00:12:12I have played that role my entire life, Sebastian.
00:12:15Come, let's see if your science can catch a snake.
00:12:19We walked through the palace corridors.
00:12:22Every guard we passed bowed, their eyes full of pity for me.
00:12:26They thought they were looking at a dead man walking.
00:12:30Rowan stayed a step behind me,
00:12:32his hand resting on the hilt of his sword,
00:12:34playing the role of the warden to perfection.
00:12:38We reached the library.
00:12:40Lord Thomas, the assistant, was there, surrounded by scrolls.
00:12:44He looked pale, his eyes red-rimmed from crying.
00:12:49Your Highness, Thomas said, bowing deeply.
00:12:52Has the execution been carried out?
00:12:56Not yet, Rowan said, his voice like a guillotine.
00:13:00Vale claims he has a final confession.
00:13:02He insists on seeing you first.
00:13:05Thomas looked at me,
00:13:07a flash of triumph hidden behind his mask of grief.
00:13:11A confession?
00:13:13Very well.
00:13:14Speak, Sebastian.
00:13:16Clear your soul before the end.
00:13:18I walked toward him,
00:13:19my boots clicking on the marble.
00:13:21I didn't look like a prisoner.
00:13:23I looked like a hunter.
00:13:25My soul is fine, Thomas.
00:13:28But I noticed something in Sterling's office.
00:13:30A small vial of medicine on his desk.
00:13:33It had a very interesting smudge on it.
00:13:37I pulled a piece of parchment from my tunic.
00:13:39It was a lift I had made earlier from a glass Lord Sterling used.
00:13:44I found this print on the vial.
00:13:46I lied.
00:13:47I hadn't actually found it yet, but I knew he'd break.
00:13:50It's a very specific pattern.
00:13:52A loop with a scar across the center.
00:13:54Just like the one on your left index finger.
00:13:58Thomas' hand instinctively went to his pocket.
00:14:01He was left-handed.
00:14:02He had been the one to poison the wine before stabbing the body to ensure Sterling couldn't fight back.
00:14:08You're mad, Thomas hissed.
00:14:11A smudge?
00:14:12You expect the prince to believe a smudge over my years of loyalty?
00:14:17I don't expect him to believe the smudge, I said, stepping into his personal space.
00:14:23I expect him to believe the lye burns on your left wrist.
00:14:27You were so careful to wash the blood off, weren't you?
00:14:30But lye is a harsh chemical.
00:14:33It leaves a very specific rash.
00:14:35I grabbed Thomas' left hand and yanked back his silk sleeve.
00:14:40There it was.
00:14:41Red, irritated skin.
00:14:44The mark of someone who had used high-strength cleaning agent to scrub blood off their skin in a hurry.
00:14:49The green tea act vanished.
00:14:53Thomas' face distorted with rage.
00:14:55He pulled a hidden dagger from his belt and lunged at me.
00:14:59You should have died in that lab, you freak.
00:15:02I wasn't a fighter.
00:15:04I was a doctor.
00:15:06My reflexes were slow.
00:15:08But Rowan wasn't.
00:15:10Before the blade could reach my throat, a blur of white and steel moved between us.
00:15:16Rowan caught Thomas' wrist with one hand and slammed him against a bookshelf with the other.
00:15:21The sound of Thomas' head hitting the wood echoed through the library.
00:15:26The dagger clattered to the floor.
00:15:28Rowan didn't draw his sword.
00:15:30He just held Thomas there, his grip so tight I heard the man's bones groan.
00:15:36Rowan's face was terrifying.
00:15:38The ice prince had turned into a tyrant.
00:15:41You tried to kill him, Rowan whispered, his voice trembling with a rage I didn't understand.
00:15:48In my presence.
00:15:50On my floor.
00:15:53He's a traitor, Thomas screamed.
00:15:56He's a gambling addict.
00:15:58Why are you listening to him?
00:16:00Because he speaks the truth, Rowan said.
00:16:03He turned his head toward the guards at the door.
00:16:07Take him, to the deepest cell, and call the royal physician to examine the lie burns on his wrist.
00:16:13The library was cleared.
00:16:15Thomas was dragged away, screaming curses at me.
00:16:19I stood there, my legs finally starting to shake.
00:16:22The adrenaline was wearing off, and the reality of almost being stabbed, again, was sinking in.
00:16:30You're bleeding, Rowan said.
00:16:32I looked down.
00:16:34Thomas' dagger had grazed my forearm before Rowan caught him.
00:16:38A thin line of red was staining my blue sleeve.
00:16:42It's a scratch, I said, trying to sound tough.
00:16:46I've had worse from paper cuts.
00:16:49Rowan didn't listen.
00:16:50He walked over, took my arm, and forced me to sit in one of the leather armchairs.
00:16:55He produced a clean linen handkerchief and began to wrap the wound.
00:16:58He did it with surprising gentleness, his large hands careful not to hurt me.
00:17:04You lied, he said, not looking up.
00:17:09I...
00:17:09Excuse me?
00:17:11The print on the parchment, Rowan said, his eyes meeting mine.
00:17:16It was blank.
00:17:17I saw it when you pulled it out.
00:17:19You bluffed him.
00:17:21I let out a weak laugh.
00:17:24Yeah, forensic psychology.
00:17:26Most criminals are arrogant.
00:17:28They think they're the only ones who can see the details.
00:17:31If you tell them you found their mark, they usually panic.
00:17:34It's more effective than a magnifying glass.
00:17:38Rowan finished tying the bandage.
00:17:40He didn't let go of my arm.
00:17:42He stayed kneeling in front of me, his gaze intense.
00:17:46Sebastian Vail would never have thought of that.
00:17:49He would have been halfway to the border by now.
00:17:52I told you, Highness, I've changed.
00:17:56No, Rowan said, standing up and looming over me.
00:18:00You haven't changed.
00:18:01You've been replaced.
00:18:03There's a fire in your eyes I've never seen.
00:18:06A sharp clinical coldness that matches my own.
00:18:09He reached out, his gloved hand tilting my chin up.
00:18:13I find myself intrigued.
00:18:17And that is a very dangerous thing for you.
00:18:21Why?
00:18:21I asked, my breath hitching.
00:18:25Because, Rowan whispered, leaning in until his forehead touched mine.
00:18:29I don't let go of things that intrigue me.
00:18:32You are no longer my bodyguard, Sebastian.
00:18:34You are my shadow inquisitor.
00:18:37And your life now belongs to me.
00:18:39An hour later, I was moved.
00:18:41Not to the barracks, and not to the tower.
00:18:44I was given a suite of rooms in the royal wing, directly across from the prince's own chambers.
00:18:50A maid brought me a tray of real food.
00:18:53Roast beef, fresh bread, and a pot of what smelled like high-end coffee.
00:18:58The prince ordered this specifically for you, Master Vail.
00:19:01She said, bowing low.
00:19:03He said you were to eat every bite.
00:19:05He's coming back in an hour to check.
00:19:08I sat at the window, sipping the coffee.
00:19:11It was better than the stuff I had in modern London.
00:19:14I looked out at the city of Aethelgard.
00:19:17I had survived the first chapter.
00:19:19I had subverted the script.
00:19:21But as I looked at the prince's shadow mark on my new uniform,
00:19:25I realized I had traded one noose for another.
00:19:29Rowan Ashford wasn't just a character in a book anymore.
00:19:32He was a real, breathing, obsessive man who was currently watching me from the courtyard below.
00:19:38I saw him standing near the fountain, his silver hair glowing in the moonlight.
00:19:43He was looking up at my window.
00:19:45When our eyes met, he didn't turn away.
00:19:48He raised his wine glass in a silent toast.
00:19:52A shiver ran down my spine.
00:19:55This wasn't just a mystery story anymore.
00:19:58This was a trap.
00:20:00And I had walked right into the center of it.
00:20:03Well, Ethan, I whispered to my reflection.
00:20:06You wanted a challenge.
00:20:09Looks like you got one.
00:20:11I lay in the massive four-poster bed,
00:20:14the silk sheets feeling like clouds against my skin.
00:20:18I was exhausted, but my mind wouldn't stop.
00:20:22I thought about the green tea assistant,
00:20:25the blood spatter,
00:20:26and the way Rowan's hand felt on my wrist.
00:20:29Tomorrow, the real work would begin.
00:20:32The palace was full of Sterling's friends,
00:20:35and none of them would be happy that a traitorous bodyguard
00:20:38had been promoted to the prince's right hand.
00:20:40Just as I was drifting off,
00:20:42the door to my suite creaked open.
00:20:44I sat up,
00:20:45reaching for the heavy brass candle holder.
00:20:48Relax,
00:20:50a voice whispered from the shadows.
00:20:52Rowan stepped into the moonlight.
00:20:54He wasn't wearing his shirt anymore,
00:20:57just loose black trousers,
00:20:59his chest broad and scarred from a dozen battles.
00:21:02He walked to the foot of my bed and stared at me.
00:21:06I couldn't sleep,
00:21:07he said simply.
00:21:09I wanted to make sure you hadn't vanished back into whatever world you came from.
00:21:14He sat at the edge of the bed,
00:21:16his weight sinking the mattress.
00:21:18Go to sleep, Sebastian.
00:21:20I'll be here.
00:21:22No one will touch you while I'm watching.
00:21:24I wanted to argue.
00:21:26I wanted to tell him it was improper,
00:21:29but my eyes were already closing.
00:21:32Don't go anywhere,
00:21:33I mumbled,
00:21:34my voice thick with sleep.
00:21:36I told you,
00:21:38Rowan whispered,
00:21:39his hand brushing a stray hair from my forehead.
00:21:42You're mine now.
00:21:44I'm not going anywhere.
00:21:46Waking up in the royal wing felt like a fever dream.
00:21:50The sunlight in Ethelgard was too bright,
00:21:52the tea was too expensive,
00:21:55and the prince was...
00:21:57Well, he was still there.
00:21:59When I opened my eyes,
00:22:01Rowan was gone from the foot of my bed,
00:22:04but a new set of clothes waited for me.
00:22:07Midnight black silk,
00:22:09trimmed with silver.
00:22:10No longer a servant's uniform.
00:22:12This was the attire of a high-ranking official.
00:22:15A note lay on the tray.
00:22:17Your lab is prepared.
00:22:19Don't make me regret this.
00:22:22R.
00:22:23Short,
00:22:24blunt,
00:22:24possessive.
00:22:25I liked it.
00:22:26I spent the morning exploring my new office,
00:22:29the old palace apothecary.
00:22:32It was a mess of dried herbs,
00:22:34superstitious jars of leech water and rusted saws.
00:22:37My modern soul shivered.
00:22:40Right, I muttered,
00:22:42rolling up my sleeves.
00:22:44Step one.
00:22:45Hygiene.
00:22:46Step two.
00:22:48Science.
00:22:49By noon, I had cleared half the junk.
00:22:52I was busy boiling glass jars to sterilize them when the door slammed open.
00:22:56Enter Lord Byron, the royal physician.
00:22:59In the book, he was the hero's best friend.
00:23:03Handsome, arrogant, and convinced that a bodyguard had no business touching case files.
00:23:09What is this smell?
00:23:11Byron demanded, covering his nose with a lace handkerchief.
00:23:15Are you trying to cook the palace's medicine, or just pretending to be a scholar again, Vale?
00:23:22I didn't look up from my glass jars.
00:23:25It's called sterilization, Byron.
00:23:27It prevents the tiny monsters you call bad air from killing your patients.
00:23:32Though looking at your dirty fingernails, I'm surprised anyone survives your care.
00:23:38Byron turned a magnificent shade of purple.
00:23:40You insolent.
00:23:43You were a common guard.
00:23:45You spent your nights in gambling dens.
00:23:47Now you speak of tiny monsters.
00:23:50I finally turned, resting a hip against the wooden table.
00:23:54I've changed, Lord Byron.
00:23:56While you were busy bleeding patients for fever, I was studying the real causes of death.
00:24:02For example, I pointed to a tray of surgical tools on his belt.
00:24:07If you use that scalpel on the duke's leg without boiling it first, he'll be dead of sepsis by Tuesday.
00:24:13But please feel free to ignore me.
00:24:16I'm just the insolent bodyguard.
00:24:18Rowan walked in at that exact moment, his presence immediately dropping the room's temperature.
00:24:24Is there a problem, Lord Byron?
00:24:27Highness, Byron sputtered.
00:24:30Vale is desecrating the medical wing.
00:24:32He claims he has science that supersedes my twenty years of training.
00:24:37Rowan looked at me, then at the sparkling clean jars.
00:24:41Prove it, Rowan said to me.
00:24:44There is a cold case from the south docks.
00:24:47A nobleman's son found dead in a locked room.
00:24:50Byron says it was a visitation of a ghost.
00:24:53I say it was murder.
00:24:55You have ten minutes to give me a better answer.
00:24:58Challenge accepted.
00:24:59I looked at the file they brought me.
00:25:02The description was classic.
00:25:04Blue lips, no struggle, a faint scent of almonds.
00:25:09In this world, they thought it was a curse.
00:25:12In my world, we called it Cyanide 101.
00:25:16I looked at the victim's personal effects.
00:25:19A small jar of snuff.
00:25:21Lord Byron, I said.
00:25:23Did you test this powder?
00:25:25Byron scoffed.
00:25:27It is high-grade tobacco.
00:25:29The boy was a gentleman.
00:25:31It's high-grade poison, I corrected.
00:25:34I took a piece of silver wire from the shelf and dipped it into the powder,
00:25:38then added a drop of a reactive acid I'd distilled earlier.
00:25:42The silver turned a dark, sickly green.
00:25:45A ghost didn't kill him, I said, showing the green wire to Rowan.
00:25:50His business partner did.
00:25:52He knew the boy took three pinches of snuff every hour.
00:25:55It's a delayed-release poisoning.
00:25:57Precise, clinical, and entirely invisible to anyone who still believes in bad air.
00:26:03The silence in the room was delicious.
00:26:06Byron was gaping like a fish.
00:26:08Rowan, however, took the silver wire from my hand,
00:26:11his fingers lingering on mine for a second too long.
00:26:15Seize the partner, Rowan ordered his guards.
00:26:18He then turned to Byron.
00:26:20It seems your twenty years of training are worth less than Sebastian's single morning of work.
00:26:26You are dismissed.
00:26:28Byron fled the room, his face burning with humiliation.
00:26:32Rowan stepped closer, pinning me against the lab table.
00:26:36He didn't look cold anymore.
00:26:38He looked hungry.
00:26:40Where did you learn this, Sebastian?
00:26:42Every time I think I've reached the end of your secrets, you open a new door.
00:26:47I told you, Highness.
00:26:48I'm a quick learner.
00:26:51Liar, Rowan whispered.
00:26:53He reached out and brushed a smudge of charcoal from my cheek.
00:26:57But I don't care where the knowledge came from.
00:27:00As long as you stay here.
00:27:02Under my protection.
00:27:04Under my eyes.
00:27:06The news of my scientific miracles spread through the palace like wildfire.
00:27:11Suddenly, I wasn't the traitor bodyguard anymore.
00:27:15I was the prince's oracle.
00:27:18But success brings new complications.
00:27:21A week later, Lord Julian, the second male lead from the original summary, arrived at the palace.
00:27:28He was a duke from the neighboring province, famously charming and extremely interested in new intelligence.
00:27:35I was in the courtyard, checking the soil patterns for a new case, when Julian approached.
00:27:41He was the opposite of Rowan.
00:27:43Warm, smiling, and dangerously flirtatious.
00:27:47So, you're the famous Sebastian Vail, Julian said, leaning against a tree.
00:27:52I expected a stoic scholar.
00:27:54Not someone with such a sharp tongue and an even sharper face.
00:27:59I wiped my hands on a cloth.
00:28:02And I expected a duke to be busy with his own borders, not bothering a humble investigator.
00:28:08Julian laughed, stepping closer.
00:28:11Humble?
00:28:12There's nothing humble about you, Sebastian.
00:28:14I've been looking for a private consultant for my estate.
00:28:18The pay is three times what Rowan gives you, and...
00:28:21He leaned in, his voice dropping.
00:28:24The company is much warmer.
00:28:26He reached out to tuck a stray hair behind my ear.
00:28:29What do you say?
00:28:31Come to the south with me.
00:28:33A shadow fell over us before I could respond.
00:28:37He isn't going anywhere, a voice snarled.
00:28:40Rowan was standing five feet away, his hand white-knuckled on his sword hilt.
00:28:45I'd never seen the ice prince look so unhinged.
00:28:48He walked between us, physically shoving Julian back.
00:28:51Lord Julian, Rowan said, his voice vibrating with suppressed rage.
00:28:58I believe your carriage is waiting.
00:29:00If you touch my shadow inquisitor again, I will consider it an act of war.
00:29:05Julian raised his hands in a mock surrender, a smirk still on his face.
00:29:10My apologies, Rowan.
00:29:12I didn't realize you were so...
00:29:15Attached.
00:29:16I'll see you at the masquerade ball, Sebastian.
00:29:19Save a dance for a man who knows how to appreciate a genius.
00:29:23As Julian walked away, Rowan turned to me.
00:29:27His eyes were dark, his breathing heavy.
00:29:30What did he say to you?
00:29:31Rowan demanded.
00:29:33He offered me a job, I said, enjoying the way Rowan's jaw ticked.
00:29:38He's very polite.
00:29:40And rich.
00:29:41Rowan grabbed my shoulders, pulling me flush against his chest.
00:29:46I am the crown prince of Aethelgard.
00:29:48I can give you anything you want.
00:29:50Gold.
00:29:51Titles.
00:29:52This entire palace, if you ask for it.
00:29:55But you will never smile at that man again.
00:29:58Do you understand?
00:30:00Highness, I whispered.
00:30:02You're being very dramatic for a man who used to hate me.
00:30:06I never hated you.
00:30:08Rowan groaned, burying his face in the crook of my neck.
00:30:12I was terrified of how much I wanted to lock you away where no one else could see you.
00:30:16And now that you've shown the world how brilliant you are, the fear is a thousand times worse.
00:30:24He bit my neck.
00:30:25Not enough to break the skin, but enough to leave a mark.
00:30:29You are mine, Sebastian.
00:30:31By law, by blood.
00:30:34And by my own hand.
00:30:36The next few days were a blur of preparation for the royal masquerade.
00:30:40It wasn't just a party.
00:30:42It was the trap.
00:30:44A new series of murders had begun.
00:30:46The White Rose Killer was targeting young noblemen.
00:30:50Rowan insisted I attend, but not as a guard.
00:30:54You will wear the Ashford colors, Rowan said, tossing a box onto my desk.
00:30:59Inside was a mask of pure silver and a suit of white velvet.
00:31:03I'm an investigator, Rowan.
00:31:05I should be in the shadows, not on the dance floor.
00:31:08You will be at my side, Rowan countered.
00:31:11The killer targets those who appear vulnerable.
00:31:14If you are with me, you are the bait.
00:31:16And I will be the one holding the leash.
00:31:20Possessive much, I muttered.
00:31:22But I couldn't stop the grin from forming.
00:31:25This was the script of a romance novel.
00:31:28And I was finally starting to like the lead actor.
00:31:31The night of the ball arrived.
00:31:33I stood in front of the full-length mirror.
00:31:36And for a moment, I didn't see Sebastian the bodyguard or Ethan the doctor.
00:31:41I saw a man of power.
00:31:43The white velvet suit fit me like a second skin.
00:31:46And the silver mask highlighted the Sebastian eyes that were now full of Ethan's clinical confidence.
00:31:52I walked into the ballroom, and the music seemed to stumble.
00:31:56Whispers filled the hall.
00:31:58Is that the veil boy?
00:32:01He looks like a prince himself.
00:32:03I heard he solved the Sterling murder in ten minutes.
00:32:07The face slap was complete.
00:32:09The people who used to spit on Sebastian were now bowing as I passed.
00:32:13I felt a hand slide around my waist.
00:32:16Rowan was there, dressed in midnight blue.
00:32:19His own mask making him look like a terrifying god of death.
00:32:23You look distracting, Rowan whispered into my ear.
00:32:29Good, I said, scanning the room with a doctor's eye.
00:32:33I'm looking for the killer, Rowan.
00:32:35Look at the guests.
00:32:37See the man in the corner with the twitch in his left hand?
00:32:40He's been adjusting his gloves every thirty seconds.
00:32:43And the woman near the buffet.
00:32:46Her pupils are dilated despite the bright light.
00:32:49Someone is on drugs, and someone is hiding a weapon.
00:32:53We had to dance to keep up the appearance.
00:32:57Rowan led me to the center of the floor.
00:32:59He was a master of the waltz, but his eyes never left my face.
00:33:04Sebastian, he said softly as we spun.
00:33:08When this case is over, I want to make a public declaration.
00:33:13A declaration of what?
00:33:15That your inquisitor is a nerd?
00:33:17A declaration that I intend to marry you, Rowan said.
00:33:21I tripped.
00:33:23Rowan caught me effortlessly, pulling me close so our chests touched.
00:33:27You're a prince, I stammered.
00:33:29You need an heir.
00:33:31You need a political alliance.
00:33:33I need you, Rowan said, his voice absolute.
00:33:37I've spent my life following scripts and laws.
00:33:40But you fell from the sky and rewrote my world.
00:33:43I don't care about the succession.
00:33:45I care about the man who bluffs with blank parchment and saves me from my own blindness.
00:33:50Before I could answer, a servant passed by, offering two glasses of champagne.
00:33:55My instinct screamed.
00:33:57The dilated pupils.
00:33:59The left hand twitch.
00:34:01I looked at the servant's tray.
00:34:03There was a microscopic residue of white powder on the rim of the glass meant for Rowan.
00:34:09Don't drink it, I shouted, yanking the glass from Rowan's hand.
00:34:13The ballroom went silent.
00:34:15I turned to the servant, but he was already running toward the terrace.
00:34:20Rowan didn't hesitate.
00:34:21He vaulted over a table, his sword drawn.
00:34:24I followed, my heart pounding.
00:34:27We reached the terrace just as the servant climbed the railing.
00:34:31He turned, his eyes wild.
00:34:35You think you think you can change fate?
00:34:37The man laughed.
00:34:39The white rose will bloom on your grave, prince.
00:34:43He jumped.
00:34:44By the time we looked over the edge, he was gone into the darkness of the palace gardens.
00:34:50Are you hurt?
00:34:51Rowan demanded, grabbing me.
00:34:54I'm fine, I said, but then I felt it.
00:34:57A sharp sting on my hand.
00:34:59I looked down.
00:35:01The champagne glass I'd grabbed had shattered when I yanked it, and a small shard had cut my palm.
00:35:07The white powder.
00:35:08The poison.
00:35:10It was already in my bloodstream.
00:35:13My vision began to blur.
00:35:15The lights of the ballroom turned into spinning galaxies.
00:35:19Sebastian.
00:35:21Rowan's voice sounded like it was coming from underwater.
00:35:24I felt myself falling, but I didn't hit the stone.
00:35:28Strong, shaking arms caught me.
00:35:30Stay with me, Rowan begged.
00:35:33Sebastian, doctor, someone call a doctor.
00:35:37I am the doctor, I rasped, trying to stay conscious.
00:35:42Rowan, it's belladonna derivative.
00:35:44I need charcoal and salt.
00:35:47I passed out, but as the darkness took me, I felt something warm on my face.
00:35:54Tears.
00:35:55The ice prince was crying for a traitorous bodyguard.
00:35:59If he dies, I heard Rowan's voice roar as I drifted away.
00:36:04I will burn this entire city to find the man who did this.
00:36:08Do you hear me?
00:36:10I will be the monster you all fear.
00:36:13I woke up two days later.
00:36:15I wasn't in my suite.
00:36:17I was in Rowan's bed.
00:36:19The prince was sitting in a chair beside me, his eyes red and his silver hair a mess.
00:36:26He looked like he hadn't slept since I collapsed.
00:36:29When he saw me move, he let out a sound that was half sob, half laugh.
00:36:35He didn't speak.
00:36:37He just lunged forward and pulled me into a hug so tight I thought my ribs would crack.
00:36:42If you ever do that again, Rowan whispered, his voice broken.
00:36:48I will chain you to this bed.
00:36:50I will never let you leave this room.
00:36:53I thought, I thought the world was ending.
00:36:58I'm too stubborn to die, Rowan, I said, my voice weak but snarky.
00:37:04Besides, you still haven't taught me how to use that gold-leafed rapier.
00:37:09Rowan pulled back, his hands cupping my face.
00:37:12I don't want you fighting.
00:37:14I want you safe.
00:37:16I've doubled the guards at your door.
00:37:18No one enters without my personal seal, not even Lord Byron.
00:37:22Rowan, Rowan, you're being obsessive.
00:37:25I'm being a man who almost lost his soul, he countered.
00:37:29He leaned in and kissed my forehead, then my nose, then my lips.
00:37:34It was a soft, desperate kiss.
00:37:37Stay, he whispered, just for today.
00:37:41Let me remind myself that you're still breathing.
00:37:44I sighed, leaning into him.
00:37:47The shadow of the crown was growing darker.
00:37:49But here, in the prince's arms, the light was finally starting to show.
00:37:55Later that evening, while Rowan was in a council meeting, I looked at the broken glass from the ball.
00:38:01My hands were still shaky, but my brain was already working.
00:38:06The poison wasn't just Belladonna.
00:38:09There was a trace of something else.
00:38:11I realized then that the White Rose Killer wasn't a random madman.
00:38:16It was a coup, and Rowan was the target.
00:38:20I looked at the silver mask on the table.
00:38:22The original Sebastian would have been dead by now.
00:38:26But I was Ethan, and I had ten years of solving murders in London behind me.
00:38:31You want a war?
00:38:33I whispered to the empty room.
00:38:36Fine.
00:38:36But you're not just fighting a prince.
00:38:39You're fighting a man who knows exactly where to cut to make you bleed.
00:38:43The door creaked open.
00:38:45Rowan was back.
00:38:47He looked exhausted, but his eyes lit up the moment he saw me sitting up.
00:38:52You should be resting, he scolded, though he was already walking over to tuck the blankets around me.
00:38:59They say old habits die hard.
00:39:01For me, it was the habit of needing a clean workspace.
00:39:06Two weeks after the White Rose attempt on Rowan's life,
00:39:09I had successfully turned the palace's dusty apothecary into a proto-modern forensic lab.
00:39:15I'd replaced the spirit jars with organized chemical reagents
00:39:19and the blood-letting bowls with calibrated measuring tools.
00:39:22Prince Rowan had become a permanent fixture in my lab.
00:39:25He didn't just visit.
00:39:27He hovered.
00:39:29He would sit by the window, ostensibly reading state papers.
00:39:33But every time I moved a beaker or sighed in frustration,
00:39:36I could feel those icy blue eyes tracking me.
00:39:40You're doing it again, I said,
00:39:42not looking up from my microscope,
00:39:44which I'd made by stacking three high-quality reading lenses.
00:39:49Doing what?
00:39:51Rowan's voice was smooth, like velvet over steel.
00:39:55Protecting me from the air, I replied.
00:39:58I have four guards at the door, two at the window, and you sitting three feet away.
00:40:04I'm an investigator, Rowan, not a delicate piece of porcelain.
00:40:08Rowan stood up, the floorboards creaking under his boots.
00:40:12He walked over and stood directly behind me, his chest almost touching my back.
00:40:17The man who tried to poison you is still at large, Sebastian.
00:40:20Until I see his head on a pike, you are porcelain.
00:40:24Specifically, my porcelain.
00:40:27Your porcelain?
00:40:28I spun around on my stool, my face inches from his.
00:40:32I thought I was your shadow inquisitor.
00:40:34If you want a doll, go find a debutante.
00:40:37If you want this case solved,
00:40:39let me go to the south docks to check the mineral warehouse.
00:40:43Rowan's jaw tightened.
00:40:45No, the docks are full of filth and criminals.
00:40:49And I'm a former bodyguard who knows how to handle a sword, remember?
00:40:53Rowan reached out, his hand sliding into my hair and pulling my head back slightly.
00:40:59It wasn't aggressive.
00:41:00It was a claim.
00:41:03You were a bodyguard who couldn't look me in the eye.
00:41:06Now you're a man who argues with a future king.
00:41:09I won't lose you to a dockside brawl because you're too stubborn to admit you're in danger.
00:41:14I'm not stubborn, I whispered, my heart doing that annoying thud.
00:41:19I'm efficient.
00:41:21You're mine, he corrected, then leaned in and kissed the corner of my mouth.
00:41:26And you're staying in the palace.
00:41:29My house arrest was interrupted the next day by the arrival of Lord Julian, the Duke of the South.
00:41:34In the original book, Julian was a minor character,
00:41:38but here he had become a major problem for Rowan's blood pressure.
00:41:42Julian didn't care about palace protocol.
00:41:44He walked into my lab without an escort, carrying a bouquet of rare blue lilies.
00:41:50For the man who sees through ghosts, Julian said, his smile bright enough to be annoying.
00:41:57Lily pollen is highly allergenic, Julian, I said, though I took the flowers anyway to be polite.
00:42:04But they are beautiful, thank you.
00:42:07Julian leaned over my desk, looking at my notes.
00:42:11Rowan tells me you've identified the poison as a mineral from the northern mines.
00:42:15My mines.
00:42:16I've brought the registry of every man who worked there in the last six months.
00:42:21He didn't move away.
00:42:23Instead, he placed his hand over mine on the desk.
00:42:27You know, Sebastian, the South is much more appreciative of men with your specific gifts.
00:42:34The door didn't just open.
00:42:36It slammed.
00:42:38Rowan stood there, his silver hair practically glowing with fury.
00:42:43He didn't even acknowledge the Duke.
00:42:45He walked straight to the desk, grabbed the lilies, and threw them out the open window.
00:42:51The pollen, Rowan said coldly, is bad for the Inquisitor's health.
00:42:56Julian laughed, entirely unfazed.
00:43:00Still as possessive as a dragon, I see, Rowan.
00:43:03Leave, Rowan commanded.
00:43:05I was just showing him the registries.
00:43:07I can read, Rowan snapped.
00:43:10Give them to me and get out of this wing.
00:43:13Now.
00:43:14When Julian finally left, throwing a wink my way that made me want to laugh, Rowan turned on me.
00:43:21He was breathing like he'd just run a mile.
00:43:24He touched your hand, Rowan whispered.
00:43:27It was a gesture of professional courtesy, Rowan.
00:43:31Relax.
00:43:33Professional?
00:43:34Rowan lunged forward, pinning me against the desk.
00:43:38Beakers rattled behind me.
00:43:40I see the way he looks at you.
00:43:42Like you're a treasure he can steal.
00:43:45I should have executed him the moment he stepped onto my borders.
00:43:48You're being a child, I said, even as my hands went to his shoulders.
00:43:53I'm being a man who knows his own heart, Rowan roared.
00:43:57He buried his face in my shoulder, his grip so tight it almost hurt.
00:44:01Everyone wants a piece of you now.
00:44:03The court, the duke, the scholars.
00:44:06But I was the one who saw you first.
00:44:08Even when I thought I hated you, I was the one watching you.
00:44:12He pulled back, his eyes searching mine.
00:44:15Tell me you don't want him.
00:44:17Tell me you only want to be in my shadow.
00:44:20The Ethan in me, the cynical doctor, wanted to make a joke.
00:44:24But looking at Rowan's raw, vulnerable expression, I couldn't.
00:44:29He's a duke, Rowan, I said softly.
00:44:32But he isn't the one who sat at the foot of my bed for two nights while I was dying.
00:44:37He's not the one I'm thinking about when I'm analyzing mineral samples at 3 a.m.
00:44:42Rowan's expression softened into something almost worshipful.
00:44:45He leaned in, his lips hovering over mine.
00:44:49Say it.
00:44:51I'm your inquisitor, Rowan.
00:44:53No one else's.
00:44:54He kissed me then.
00:44:56It wasn't the desperate, scared kiss from the ball.
00:45:00It was slow, deep, and tasted like the dark chocolate he'd brought me earlier.
00:45:05It was the kind of kiss that made the original script of the book feel like a distant, irrelevant
00:45:10memory.
00:45:11Work was my only salvation from Rowan's mounting obsession.
00:45:15I spent the next few days analyzing the mineral samples Julian had brought.
00:45:20Under my microscope, I found a microscopic trace of blue copper, a rare byproduct only
00:45:25created when the mineral is processed using a specific heat.
00:45:29Rowan, I called out, not looking away from the lens.
00:45:32He was there in a second.
00:45:35What did you find?
00:45:37The White Rose Killer isn't just a miner.
00:45:39He's a refiner.
00:45:41Someone who has access to a blast furnace.
00:45:44And there's only one person in Aethelgard who owns a private refinery besides you and Julian.
00:45:49Rowan's face turned into stone.
00:45:52My brother.
00:45:54Prince Cedric.
00:45:56The king's shadow.
00:45:58I whispered.
00:45:59The man who was never supposed to take the throne.
00:46:03Rowan looked out the window toward the royal palace.
00:46:06If it's Cedric, the guards won't be enough.
00:46:10He has his own private army.
00:46:12Sebastian, you have to stay here.
00:46:14If he knows you've found this, he'll target you directly.
00:46:18But I was already part of the target.
00:46:21That evening, while Rowan was meeting with the king, a message was delivered to my lab.
00:46:26It was written in a perfect imitation of Rowan's handwriting.
00:46:30Found a lead in the rose garden.
00:46:33Come quickly.
00:46:34Bring your tools.
00:46:36R.
00:46:37Any other person would have fallen for it.
00:46:40But I was a forensics expert.
00:46:42I looked at the ink under my lens.
00:46:45It was fresh.
00:46:46Too fresh.
00:46:47And the R had a slight upward flick that Rowan's signature didn't have.
00:46:53Nice try, Cedric.
00:46:54I muttered.
00:46:55I didn't stay in the lab.
00:46:57I grabbed a small vial of concentrated ammonia, my version of pepper spray, and a hidden dagger.
00:47:04I wanted to see who was waiting for me.
00:47:06I crept into the garden, moving like the bodyguard I was supposed to be.
00:47:11In the center of the hedge maze, I saw a figure in a white cloak.
00:47:16The mark of the white rose.
00:47:18I was careful, but they were better.
00:47:22As I prepared to throw the ammonia, a heavy cloth was thrown over my head from behind.
00:47:27It smelled of ether, a primitive but effective anesthetic.
00:47:32The prince's little pet is smarter than he looks, a voice hissed in my ear.
00:47:38I struggled, trying to reach for my dagger, but the world was already turning into a blur
00:47:43of gray and black.
00:47:45Don't kill him yet, the voice said.
00:47:48Cedric wants to watch the prince crawl before we end the Inquisitor.
00:47:52When I came to, I was tied to a wooden chair.
00:47:56My wrists were raw from the rope.
00:47:58The room was dark, smelling of oil and old metal.
00:48:03A refinery.
00:48:04A man stepped into the light.
00:48:06He looked like an older, meaner version of Rowan.
00:48:10Prince Cedric.
00:48:12So, Cedric said, pacing around me.
00:48:15The man who solved the impossible murder.
00:48:18Tell me, doctor.
00:48:19Can your science calculate how long it takes for a prince to lose his mind when his heart
00:48:24is being cut out?
00:48:25I didn't scream.
00:48:27I didn't beg.
00:48:28I looked at the ropes, then at Cedric's boots.
00:48:32You have a stain on your left boot, Cedric.
00:48:35Red clay from the northern mines.
00:48:38You were at the site where the poison was refined.
00:48:41You're messy.
00:48:42You leave a trail of evidence like a wounded animal.
00:48:46Cedric stopped, his face contorting with rage.
00:48:49He backhanded me, my head snapping to the side.
00:48:53I tasted blood.
00:48:55I don't care about your evidence, Cedric hissed.
00:48:59By morning, Rowan will be dead, and I will be the only Ashford left.
00:49:04I wouldn't count on that, I rasped, spitting blood at his feet.
00:49:09Suddenly, the heavy iron doors of the refinery exploded.
00:49:13Not a knock.
00:49:14An explosion.
00:49:15Rowan Ashford walked through the smoke, and for the first time, I understood why they called
00:49:21him the Ice of the North.
00:49:23He wasn't wearing his royal silk.
00:49:25He was in full black armor, his silver hair wild, his sword dripping with the blood of the
00:49:31guards outside.
00:49:33He didn't look at his brother.
00:49:35He only looked at me.
00:49:37If you touch him again, Rowan said, his voice so quiet it was more terrifying than a scream.
00:49:43I will not just kill you, Cedric.
00:49:46I will erase your name from every stone in this kingdom.
00:49:49I will make sure history forgets you ever breathed.
00:49:53Cedric laughed, pulling a sword to my throat.
00:49:57One step closer, brother, and he dies.
00:50:00Rowan didn't stop.
00:50:01He walked forward, his eyes fixed on me.
00:50:05Sebastian, do you trust me?
00:50:07With my life, I said.
00:50:09Then duck.
00:50:11I threw my weight forward, the chair toppling over.
00:50:15At the same moment, Rowan threw his gold-leafed rapier.
00:50:19It whistled through the air, grazing my ear, and buried itself in Cedric's shoulder.
00:50:24The sword at my throat vanished as Cedric collapsed.
00:50:28The refinery became a battlefield.
00:50:31Rowan's elite guards flooded the room, but Rowan didn't join the fight.
00:50:36He was on his knees beside me, his hands shaking as he cut the ropes from my wrists.
00:50:42You're bleeding, he choked out, seeing the mark on my face.
00:50:46I was too late.
00:50:48I was too late.
00:50:50I'm fine, Rowan, I said, leaning my head against his armored shoulder.
00:50:56I'm a doctor, remember?
00:50:58I've seen worse in a Tuesday morning autopsy.
00:51:01Rowan didn't care about my snark.
00:51:04He picked me up, literally carried me like a bride, and walked out of the burning refinery.
00:51:10I'm never letting you out of my sight again, he whispered into my hair.
00:51:14If I have to build a cage of gold around you, I will.
00:51:18You are the only truth I have left.
00:51:20The coop was over.
00:51:23Cedric was in the dungeon, and the white rose conspiracy was dismantled.
00:51:27I was back in Rowan's bed, my face bandaged.
00:51:31The room was quiet, filled with the scent of the blue lilies Rowan had bought to replace
00:51:37the ones he'd thrown out the window.
00:51:39Rowan was sitting on the edge of the bed, holding a bowl of warm soup.
00:51:44Eat, he said, holding a spoon to my lips.
00:51:48I can feed myself, Rowan.
00:51:51No, you've spent your energy saving my kingdom.
00:51:55Now let me save you from hunger.
00:51:57I sighed and took the bite.
00:52:00You know, the court is already talking.
00:52:02They're saying the prince has been tamed by his inquisitor.
00:52:07Rowan smirked, a dangerous, beautiful look.
00:52:10They're wrong.
00:52:12I haven't been tamed.
00:52:13I've just found the only thing worth protecting.
00:52:16He set the bowl down and crawled onto the bed, looming over me.
00:52:20He took my hands, the hands that had used charcoal to catch a killer, and kissed each knuckle.
00:52:27Sebastian, he said, his voice heavy with emotion.
00:52:31I know you're from somewhere else.
00:52:33I see it in your eyes, in the words you use, in the way you look at the world.
00:52:39I froze.
00:52:40He knew?
00:52:42I don't care who you were before, Rowan continued.
00:52:46Or what Ethan did in that other world.
00:52:48I only care about the man who is here now.
00:52:51The man who rewrote my laws and saved my life.
00:52:55He leaned down, his forehead resting against mine.
00:52:58If you ever try to go back.
00:53:01If you ever try to leave me.
00:53:03I will find a way to follow you.
00:53:05I will bridge the worlds just to bring you back to my side.
00:53:10I'm not going anywhere, Rowan.
00:53:12I whispered, pulling him down into a real kiss.
00:53:16But as we lay there, the shadows of the palace seemed to linger.
00:53:21I thought about the last thing Cedric had said before he was dragged away.
00:53:25The rose was just the beginning, brother.
00:53:28The king has his own secrets.
00:53:31Secrets that even a doctor can't handle.
00:53:34I looked at Rowan, his silver hair spread across the pillow.
00:53:38His eyes finally closed in sleep.
00:53:41I was Ethan, a man of science.
00:53:44And I knew that every mystery had a solution.
00:53:47But as I felt Rowan's arm tighten around my waist in his sleep.
00:53:51A protective, obsessive grip that never let go.
00:53:54I realized that the greatest mystery was how I had fallen in love with the very script I had mocked.
00:54:01The next morning, the palace was different.
00:54:04The green tea physician, Lord Byron, had resigned in shame.
00:54:09The guards at my door didn't look at me with pity.
00:54:12They looked at me with awe.
00:54:14I walked to my lab, Rowan following two paces behind, his hand resting on the small of my back.
00:54:21Ready for work, Shadow Inquisitor?
00:54:23He asked.
00:54:24I looked at the new case file on my desk.
00:54:28Ready, Highness, I said, putting on my silver mask.
00:54:31And Sebastian?
00:54:33Yes?
00:54:34Rowan leaned in, whispering in my ear so the guards couldn't hear.
00:54:37Don't forget.
00:54:39You still owe me that dance from the ball.
00:54:41A private one.
00:54:42In my chambers.
00:54:43Tonight.
00:54:43I flushed, the heat rising to my ears.
00:54:48We have a murder to solve, Rowan.
00:54:51The dead can wait, the prince said, his eyes dark with obsession.
00:54:56I've waited my whole life for you.
00:54:58I'm not waiting another hour.
00:55:01I laughed, grabbing my magnifying glass.
00:55:04Fine.
00:55:05But if the handwriting on this case file is messy, I'm docking your reward points.
00:55:10I'll practice my calligraphy, Rowan promised, if it means I get to keep you.
00:55:15The air in the king's bedchamber was thick with the smell of incense and impending death.
00:55:21King Ethelred, Rowan's father, lay pale against the gold-threaded pillows.
00:55:27The royal physicians, including a very nervous Lord Byron, who had been reinstated just for
00:55:33this impossible task, were whispering in the corner about unbalanced humors.
00:55:39I stepped through the heavy velvet curtains, my silver inquisitor's mask glinting.
00:55:45Rowan was at the bedside, his face a mask of grief and iron.
00:55:49He hasn't woken in three days, Rowan said, his voice sandpaper rough.
00:55:55Byron says it's a natural decline.
00:55:58But the king is only fifty.
00:56:00My logic says otherwise.
00:56:03Your logic is correct, Rowan, I said, snapping on a pair of thin
00:56:08leather gloves I'd treated with wax to act as surgical barriers.
00:56:12Move aside.
00:56:14Let a professional look at the evidence.
00:56:16The court erupted in gasps.
00:56:19You would touch the king's person?
00:56:21A high-ranking duke shouted.
00:56:23You are a commoner, a former criminal.
00:56:27I didn't even look at him.
00:56:29I am the man currently standing between your king and a coffin.
00:56:33Silence or leave.
00:56:35I began my examination.
00:56:38I didn't look at humors.
00:56:40I looked at the king's eyes.
00:56:42Pinpoint pupils.
00:56:44I looked at his fingernails.
00:56:46A slight blue tint.
00:56:48Then I leaned in and smelled his breath.
00:56:51Lord Byron, I said, my voice echoing in the silent room.
00:56:56What did you feed the king for his heart tonic?
00:56:59Digitalis and honey, Byron stammered.
00:57:02As is tradition.
00:57:04Then you've been murdering him, I said flatly.
00:57:08I picked up the tonic bottle and poured a drop into a clear vial of my own chemical reagent.
00:57:13The liquid turned a violent, bruised purple.
00:57:17This isn't just digitalis.
00:57:19It's been concentrated with lead acetate, a slow-acting heavy metal poison that mimics old age.
00:57:25I turned to the duke who had shouted earlier.
00:57:28Duke Halloway, the head of the king's council.
00:57:31And you, Duke Halloway, have a very interesting habit.
00:57:35You've been bringing the king his nightly tea for months.
00:57:38Yet I notice that the sleeve of your robe is stained with the same bruised purple color.
00:57:44Halloway turned white.
00:57:46That's, that's ink.
00:57:49Is it?
00:57:50I walked toward him, my presence so clinical and cold that the guards instinctively backed away.
00:57:56Let's test it.
00:57:58If it's ink, it will wash away with water.
00:58:01If it's lead acetate reacting with my reagent, it will burn.
00:58:05I grabbed the duke's arm.
00:58:07He tried to pull away, but a heavy hand landed on his shoulder.
00:58:11Rowan was there, his eyes glowing with a lethal light.
00:58:16Hold still, duke, Rowan whispered.
00:58:19Let the inquisitor finish his work.
00:58:21I applied a drop of the reagent to the duke's sleeve.
00:58:25The fabric sizzled and turned black.
00:58:28The king isn't dying of old age, I announced to the room.
00:58:31He's being executed by his own council.
00:58:35Halloway was dragged out, screaming that Cedric had promised him the throne.
00:58:40Rowan turned to the royal physicians.
00:58:42From this day forward, no medicine enters the king's body without Sebastian Vail's seal.
00:58:48If the king dies, you all follow him.
00:58:52Do I make myself clear?
00:58:54They scrambled out like frightened rabbits.
00:58:57Three days later, the king woke up.
00:59:00The lead had been flushed from his system using a modern detox recipe I'd improvised.
00:59:05The kingdom was safe.
00:59:07The original script of the book, where the king dies and Rowan is forced into a brutal civil war, was
00:59:14deleted.
00:59:15I was in my lab, packing my things.
00:59:18I had saved enough rewards and gold from Rowan to live comfortably in a small cottage by the sea.
00:59:24I was ready to leave the drama behind.
00:59:27The door to the lab didn't just open.
00:59:29It was kicked.
00:59:31Rowan stood there, his hair disheveled, his eyes wild.
00:59:35He saw the packed crates and the empty shelves.
00:59:39What is this?
00:59:40He asked, his voice trembling with a rage he couldn't hide.
00:59:45My contract is fulfilled, Rowan, I said, keeping my voice neutral.
00:59:50The king is alive.
00:59:52The traitors are caught.
00:59:53You don't need a shadow inquisitor anymore.
00:59:56Rowan moved so fast I didn't see him.
00:59:59In a second, he had me pinned against the stone wall of the lab.
01:00:03Beakers shattered on the floor, but he didn't care.
01:00:07You're leaving, he hissed, his face inches from mine.
01:00:11After you made me love you?
01:00:13After you rewrote my entire life?
01:00:15You think you can just... go?
01:00:19I'm a doctor, Rowan.
01:00:20I belong in a quiet place, not a palace of mirrors and knives.
01:00:25You belong to me, Rowan roared.
01:00:28He grabbed my wrists and held them above my head against the cold stone.
01:00:32I gave you my bed, my trust, and my heart.
01:00:36I let you see the man behind the crown.
01:00:38And you want to go to a cottage by the sea?
01:00:42It's my choice, Rowan.
01:00:45No, Rowan whispered, his forehead dropping against mine.
01:00:50I won't let you.
01:00:52I will burn that cottage.
01:00:54I will blockade the sea.
01:00:55I will declare a national emergency just to keep your carriage from leaving the gates.
01:01:01He looked up, and I was shocked to see his eyes were wet.
01:01:05The ice prince was completely broken.
01:01:08Ethan.
01:01:10Sebastian.
01:01:11Whatever your name is.
01:01:13I can't go back to being the man I was before you.
01:01:16The silence of this palace will kill me.
01:01:19Please.
01:01:21My heart, the cynical, modern heart I thought was bulletproof, finally cracked.
01:01:27You're a tyrant, I whispered, reaching up to touch his silver hair.
01:01:32Only for you, Rowan groaned, catching my lips in a kiss that tasted like a final, desperate
01:01:38surrender.
01:01:39I felt his heart hammering against mine.
01:01:42A wild, frantic rhythm that matched my own.
01:01:46In that moment, I realized that I didn't want the sea.
01:01:49I didn't want the quiet.
01:01:51I wanted the man who was currently holding me like I was his only anchor in a storm.
01:01:56A month later, the great hall of Aethelgard was packed with every noble in the kingdom.
01:02:02The king sat on his throne, looking healthy and sharp.
01:02:06Rowan stood at the center, but he wasn't alone.
01:02:09I was standing beside him, wearing a suit of midnight blue and gold, the Ashford consort
01:02:15colors.
01:02:16The king rose.
01:02:18For services to the crown that defy logic and save lives, I appoint Sebastian Vail as
01:02:25the grand inquisitor and lord protector of the Ashford line.
01:02:30Rowan stepped forward, taking my hand in front of everyone.
01:02:34He didn't just hold it.
01:02:35He interlaced our fingers, showing the court that we were equals.
01:02:41And, Rowan added, his voice projecting to the rafters, he is my betrothed.
01:02:47Any insult to him is an insult to the future king.
01:02:50Any gaze that lingers too long on him will be answered by my sword.
01:02:55I heard Lord Julian in the front row let out a soft laugh.
01:02:59I caught his eye and gave him a wink.
01:03:02Rowan's grip on my hand tightened instantly.
01:03:04He leaned into my ear.
01:03:07Stop flirting with the Duke of the South, Sebastian.
01:03:11I'm currently trying to be a dignified prince.
01:03:14I wasn't flirting, I whispered back, enjoying the way his jaw ticked.
01:03:19I was just saying goodbye to my backup plan.
01:03:23You don't have a backup plan, Rowan growled, pulling me closer so our shoulders brushed.
01:03:29You only have me.
01:03:32Forever.
01:03:33One year later, the city of Ethelgard was at peace.
01:03:38A new medical school had been built next to the palace, where I taught natural logic, forensics, to a new
01:03:44generation of students.
01:03:46I was sitting in the royal garden, a stack of case files on my lap.
01:03:49The sun was setting over the river, and the air smelled of jasmine and expensive cologne.
01:03:57A pair of strong arms wrapped around my waist from behind.
01:04:01You're late for dinner, Rowan murmured, his lips pressing against the mark he'd left on my neck months ago.
01:04:08There's a mysterious death in the textile district, Rowan.
01:04:12The body was found in a vat of indigo dye.
01:04:15It's fascinating.
01:04:17Rowan sighed, taking the file from my hand and tossing it into the grass.
01:04:22The body isn't going anywhere, Sebastian.
01:04:24But I am.
01:04:26And I require your immediate attention.
01:04:29He picked me up and sat me on the edge of the stone fountain.
01:04:33He looked at me with that same obsessive, protective gaze that had once terrified me.
01:04:38Now, it just felt like home.
01:04:41Do you ever regret it?
01:04:43Rowan asked softly.
01:04:45Dropping into this script?
01:04:48I looked at the silver ring on my finger.
01:04:51Then at the man who had bridged the gap between my logic and my heart.
01:04:55I used to think this book was a waste of ink, I said, pulling him into a kiss.
01:05:01But I think I like this ending much better.
01:05:04Rowan smiled.
01:05:05A real bright smile that could melt the north.
01:05:09It's not an ending, Sebastian.
01:05:11It's just the first case.
01:05:13And we have an eternity to solve it.
01:05:15He leaned in, his silver hair brushing my cheeks.
01:05:19And the world of London, the gas leak, and the old Ethan felt like a shadow of a past life.
01:05:26Here, in the arms of my prince, the science was simple.
01:05:29I was loved.
01:05:31And for the first time in two lives, that was the only evidence I needed.
01:05:35And for the first time in two lives, that was the only evidence I needed.
01:05:36And for the first time in two lives, that was the only evidence I needed.
01:05:36And for the first time in two lives, that was the only evidence I needed.
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