Beneath the Rouge, A Sword

Two baby girls are born at the same hour in the kingdom of Narethia. A high monk prophesies that one carries the phoenix destiny, the future mother of all under heaven, a truth sealed until the marriage alliance eighteen years later. The King is convinced the chosen is Joselyn Osborne and pours wealth into her, while Lainey Osborne is coldly ignored. As Narethia weakens, a marriage pact becomes urgent. The King and Ashtyn Harper plot to wed Joselyn into Myrraveth and exile Lainey to the so-called barbaric wasteland. With her mother imprisoned, Lainey leaves in tears. After a thousand-mile journey to the Outlands she discovers a shock: the barbarian host is actually the King of Zuyenne, and the land is overflowing with gold and jewels, turning betrayal into an unexpected gamble for fate.