Dawn crept through unfamiliar curtains like a hesitant visitor, casting soft golden light across a room that definitely wasn't mine. The realization struck before full consciousness returned—the bed too large, the linens too fine, the ceiling too high for the servants' quarters I'd grown accustomed to calling home.

My entire body felt as though I'd been trampled by carriage horses. A persistent, throbbing ache pulsed through my left arm where something had torn flesh, while my head felt ...