Ultimatum

Marlena eyed the bridge.

"Don't even think about it," warned Hades as he tried to intercept her. It didn't take a genius to guess what the young woman was thinking of doing. 

She glanced at him and then back at the bridge, her lips pursing. She thought back to the castle and the chaos that was probably going to arise if she disappeared. 

The kingdom would soon not have an heir. Her disappearance would not deter the queen from killing her unborn child and pinning the blame on her. In fact, Loretta might do it just to make sure Marlena would never be accepted if she were to return to the kingdom. 

However, that didn't mean the kingdom would fall. There were laws in place to help choose a successor if there was no one left in the royal bloodline.