Melody's Ballad

"Of course, she wasn't really our new sister, but 'sister' sounded better than 'hostage.'" Princess Melody spent a happy childhood tucked away in the north. Her world is upended with the arrival of Allia, a hostage in a gilded cage. As Melody reaches womanhood she finds life very different than what she had pictured, full of dangers, death, and disappointments.

Melody awaits her grand wedding with the Emperor's son, but there's one problem: she's already married to the elven prince. Danger and temptation steep Torrin, the Empire's capital. Melody finds herself completely unprepared for the lavish, lewd lifestyle there. Unable to find a way out of her marriage to the dauphin, she finds herself utterly trapped until she's uncertain herself if she wants her past to hunt her down or not.

Melody's sins have come to haunt her. As she works to find her place in the elven court, she is discovered by a group of assassins who know how she failed her kingdom. They hunt a bloody revenge. The Empire does not rest and looms threatening to the south, bringing more danger to the young queen and the new family she worked so hard to get.

War must be waged. Empress Diana looms a bloody, venomous threat with the greatest army under her. King Haidar must keep the family he's worked so hard to build safe. Queen Melody worries that it will be what destroys them. Their probings take them into the heart of danger and the enemy- insidious Torrin, capital of the Empire. They must gather allies and intel on the Imperial Family before the first battle. They must keep their family, and the future of their kingdom safe.