The light from the cell phone screen was the only thing illuminating Jana’s face in the dimness of her room. Her eyes, blue and weary, devoured every line of the yellowed pages of an ancient book she had recently found. The touch of the rough paper and the scent of old leather enveloped her as she immersed herself in the story of Prince Alexander—a man whose cruelty was matched only by his tragic loneliness. To the rest of the world, he was a beast; to Jana, he was an enigma she longed to decipher.

The sound of a chat notification interrupted her reading.

"Hey, Mary," Jana typed, seeking an anchor to reality.

"Hey Jana, how are you?" her best friend replied almost instantly.

"Good, thanks. I was reading a romance story... it’s got me so emotional I can't stop."

"It’s definitely about that Alexander guy, right?" Mary sent a weary emoji. "I don’t know what you find so interesting about that crazy old murderer."

"I don’t know..." Jana sighed, feeling a knot in her chest. "I just know that, for some reason, I feel compassion for him."

Mary said goodbye with a joke, wishing her dreams of her prince and warning her not to go crazy. Jana set the phone aside, closed her eyes, and whispered into the air: "I wish I could be there... and never come back."

Sleep enveloped her quickly, but it was not a peaceful rest. She felt a sudden cold seeping into her bones, and the smell of wet earth and ancient stone replaced the scent of vanilla from her sheets.

"Miss! Wake up!" A gruff, authoritative voice jolted her from her lethargy. "You are not allowed to sleep here!"

Jana groaned, trying to cover herself with a blanket that no longer existed. Her fingers touched damp grass and cold cobblestones.

"What’s wrong? I’m sleepy, let me sleep..." she mumbled, thinking her mother was trying to wake her for school.

"What is going on here?" A second voice, deeper and more dominant, approached.

Jana’s eyes snapped open. She wasn't in her pastel-walled bedroom. In front of her, a man in gleaming armor and a dark cloak observed her with a furrowed brow. It was Commander Felix. Behind him, the walls of a colossal palace rose toward a sky she didn't recognize.

"This lady was asleep outside the palace in strange clothes," the guard explained. "She won't react, my lord."

Felix leaned in, his gloved hand tightening on the hilt of his sword.

"Miss! Wake up right now and tell me: who the hell are you?"

Jana scrambled to her feet, her heart hammering against her ribs. She looked at her clothes: her pajama shorts and oversized t-shirt stood out like a neon beacon against the sobriety of the 16th century.

"Where am I? Where is my bed?" she shouted, backing away. "Was I robbed? Is this a social media prank? Ha, ha! Very well done, guys! You can come out with the cameras now."

Felix and the guard exchanged a bewildered look.

"Cameras? Media?" the guard muttered. "She’s mad, Commander. Or a spy sent to distract us."

"Lock her in a dungeon!" Felix ordered without hesitation. "I will inform His Highness."

"Dungeon? Hey, you’re crazy!" Jana struggled as the guard grabbed her arm. "Let me go, you animal! That’s enough! Mary! Mom! Help!"

As Jana was dragged toward the depths of the fortress, Commander Felix headed to the private chambers of the palace. There, shrouded in an elegant and dangerous gloom, stood *him*.

Prince Alexander stood by a large window. His black hair fell over his shoulders, and his eyes—an intense, unnatural red—seemed to burn with an internal fire. His mere presence radiated a bloodlust that kept the entire kingdom under a yoke of terror.

"Commander..." Alexander's voice was a lethal whisper. "What brings you here?"

"Prince, we have captured a suspicious woman outside the gates."

"And now you occupy yourself with picking up vagrants?" Alexander let out a dry laugh. "Kill her. Don’t waste my time."

"My lord, with your permission... the lady wears clothes we have never seen. Her language is incomprehensible and... she is of extraordinary beauty."

Alexander arched an eyebrow. Curiosity—a feeling he thought long dead—stirred in his chest.

"Beauty?" he mocked. "Fine, I will go. Only because I am bored of watching common heads roll. Let us see your 'beauty'."

In the corridors leading to the cells, chaos had broken out. Driven by adrenaline and panic, Jana had not stayed still. Taking advantage of the guard's carelessness, she had delivered a knee strike that left him breathless.

"You deserve that for not letting me go!" she shouted, sprinting down the stone hallway. "Goodbye, you jerk!"

She rounded a corner at full speed, but her escape ended abruptly as she crashed into a wall of muscle and fine fabric. Strong hands gripped her shoulders to keep her from falling.

Jana looked up. The air fled her lungs. The man in front of her was tall, with an aristocratic paleness and features so perfect they seemed carved from marble. But it was his eyes that paralyzed her: red as rubies, deep and threatening.

"What do we have here?" Alexander’s voice vibrated in Jana’s chest. "The little chick escaped the coop."

Jana stammered, feeling the world spin.

"A-Alex? Alexander?" she managed to utter before the darkness reclaimed her. The emotional shock of seeing her literary character made flesh and bone was too much. She fainted in his arms.

Alexander held her, surprised by the softness of her skin and the strange fragrance she emanated. He observed her legs, exposed by the pajamas, and the shimmer of her blonde hair.

"Take her to the dungeon," Felix suggested.

"No," Alexander interrupted, his gaze fixed on the girl's serene face. "I will take her to my quarters."

"But she is a stranger! We must interrogate her."

"I will interrogate her myself," the prince declared, carrying her with staggering ease. "Do you think such a fragile girl can harm me? Send Liz to help her wash up. And woe to anyone who approaches my door without permission."

Jana woke up on a feather mattress, surrounded by silk canopies and the crackle of a fireplace. The luxury was overwhelming.

"Am I dreaming?" she whispered to herself. "Yes, this has to be a dream."

"You are finally awake, fair lady," a voice said from the shadows.

Alexander was sitting in an armchair, watching her intently. Jana, convinced her mind was playing a wonderful trick on her, smiled.

"Well, since it’s a dream, I might as well take the chance to kiss my prince," she said, lunging toward him with the impulsiveness of youth.

Alexander stopped her in her tracks, gripping her wrists with a firm but not painful strength.

"You are not dreaming!" he growled.

"What?"

He took Jana’s hands and forced them to touch his face, letting her feel the warmth of his skin and the hardness of his jaw.

"See? I am real. I am flesh and blood."

Jana pulled her hands back as if she had been burned. The panic returned.

"Where are you from? What is your name? Why are you dressed like a low-life courtesan?" he asked, regaining his authoritative tone.

"My name is Jana and I’m from... from a small town! I’m lost," she lied desperately.

Alexander let out a laugh that didn't reach his eyes. He drew his sword in a fluid motion and placed the cold tip against Jana’s delicate neck.

"Lost? Do not lie to me. If you do not wish to return to the dungeon, tell me the truth: Who are you?"

Jana swallowed hard, feeling the edge of the steel. Her blue eyes filled with tears of frustration.

"I’m Jana!" she exclaimed. "And I come from a future time! From 2023! I don't know how I got here, I was sleeping and suddenly I appeared in this place of madmen!"

Alexander watched her closely. In her eyes, there was no shimmer of deceit, only the pure terror of the truth. He lowered the sword.

"The future..." he whispered to himself. "Listen well, Jana. Do not tell that to anyone or they will burn you as a witch. I will say you are my guest."

After a brief interruption by Liz, the servant tasked with bathing and dressing Jana in heavy velvet gowns, Alexander went down to meet Felix.

"Prince, what shall we do with her?" the commander asked.

"She will remain under my protection," Alexander replied with a coldness that chilled the blood. "And listen well, Felix: no one touches her. Not you, not the guards, not my father the King. If anyone lays a finger on her, they will deal with me. The girl is mine."

Later, when the moon reigned in the sky, Alexander returned to his room. Jana was there, wearing a blue dress that highlighted her eyes, though she looked uncomfortable in the corset.

"You look very well," he admitted. "But it is late. You must sleep."

"I’m not sleepy," she retorted, though her eyes said otherwise.

"I am. And you will sleep here, in my bed."

Jana turned as red as a tomato.

"What? Don’t you even think about touching me! Go to another room!"

"This is my room," he said, approaching with a predatory step. "If you do not want to sleep here, the dogs outside are hungry and the dungeon is cold. You choose."

Jana looked at the massive bed and then at the prince’s challenging gaze.

"I’ll sleep here because it’s big, but stay on your side. And if you try anything..."

"If you keep talking, I’ll throw you to the dogs," he interrupted with a mocking smile. "And don’t try to escape; my men will hunt you like a deer in the forest."

Jana lay down on the opposite edge, feeling the warmth of Alexander’s body a few feet away. "I can't believe it," she thought, as sleep began to overcome her. "I'm with the prince of my dreams... and he's a jerk." But as she glanced at him from the corner of her eye, Jana knew her mission had changed. It was no longer just about surviving; she had to find a way to tame the beast that inhabited that heart of red eyes.

The next morning would bring new challenges, but for that night, time stood still between two worlds.

The sun filtered through the heavy velvet curtains, bathing the room in a golden hue that pulled Jana from her lethargy. For a moment, feeling the softness of the silk sheets, she thought the previous day had been a hallucination caused by a literary fever. But as she turned her head and saw the magnitude of the bedroom, the decorative armor, and the Gothic architecture, reality hit her head-on: she was still in 1540.

"It’s daylight!" she whispered, jumping up. "I thought it was a dream, but I really woke up in Alexander's bed."

A soft knock on the door preceded the entrance of Liz, who brought a washbasin of water and a set of clothes that seemed to weigh more than Jana herself.

"Miss, you must get up for breakfast and put on these clothes," Liz said with a tone of urgency. "His Majesty has been very clear: you are forbidden to wander the palace alone and, under no circumstances, should you speak to strangers."

Jana sighed, her shoulders dropping.

"What? I’d forgotten how bossy that man is. I have to learn to control myself if I want to survive here." She looked at the complicated dress with confusion. "Alright, help me change, please; I haven't the slightest idea how all these clothes go together."

"Yes, Miss."

"You can call me Jana, Liz. I feel like 'Miss' puts an unnecessary distance between us."

The servant paled visibly, clutching the fabrics against her chest.

"His Majesty might get angry and... and cut my throat. I'd rather not, if you don't mind."

Jana felt a chill. Alexander’s brutality wasn’t just a description in her book; it was a living law that dictated everyone's life in that place.

"You're right," Jana conceded gently. "But he doesn't have to know. Just call me Jana when we’re alone, deal?"

Liz nodded timidly. As she helped her with the tight corset, Jana couldn’t help but ask:

"By the way, where is Alex?"

"The Prince left with Commander Felix on an emergency," the young woman explained. "He had to overthrow some thugs who were raiding caravans on the northern border."

"He went to fight?" Jana felt a strange pang of unease. She knew the protagonist's combat skills, but knowing he was in a real battle made her nervous.

Once ready, Jana looked at herself in the polished silver mirror. The dress enhanced her figure, and her blonde hair, now delicately styled, made her look like a true noblewoman of the era.

"Thank you, Liz. Can you show me what places I can visit? I’m going to go crazy locked in here."

"Alright, I’ll take you to the garden. You can eat there without trouble and get some fresh air."

They walked through the stone corridors, where the echo of their footsteps seemed to tell stories of centuries past. However, the peace was broken as they rounded a corner. A woman of imposing presence with hair as red as fire blocked their path. Her eyes were sharp, and her expression denoted excessive pride.

"Who is this woman?" the redhead asked, ignoring Jana and speaking directly to Liz.

"The lady is a guest of His Highness, Prince Alexander... my lady Leticia," Liz replied with her head bowed, trembling slightly.

Leticia scanned Jana from head to toe with evident contempt.

"A guest? Where are you from, woman?" she asked in a cold voice.

Jana, remembering that in novels the best defense against a "villainess" was exaggerated diplomacy, forced a charming smile.

"I am from... the capital," she lied quickly. "If I may say in passing, you are beautiful! I have never seen a hair color so vibrant and elegant."

Leticia was taken aback. The insult she had prepared dissolved in the face of the unexpected compliment. She tucked a red strand behind her ear with an air of self-satisfaction.

"Well... I have things to do. I shall see you again later, girl."

As soon as Leticia walked away with a firm step, Jana let out a sigh of relief.

"Liz, if you want to silence a wicked woman, just praise her. It works in every era."

The day in the garden was strangely peaceful. Jana sat on the grass, marveling at the purity of the air. Without the pollution of 2023, the sky seemed a deeper blue and the scent of the flowers was intoxicating. She ate artisanal bread and fruit, trying to process her situation. But as the shadows lengthened, her worry grew.

Night arrived and Alexander did not appear. Jana was back in the quarters, pacing back and forth.

*Did something happen to him? Is he in danger?* she thought with anguish. *Calm down, Jana, he’s the protagonist, no one can touch him, he’s strong... but he’s still human.*

Liz entered to offer her a bath. Jana, preferring solitude to calm her nerves, declined her help and bathed alone. Just as she finished dressing in a light nightgown, the heavy wooden door burst open.

Alexander entered. His armor was dented and his face stained with soot and blood. Upon seeing her, he stopped dead, and a slight flush crossed his features, though he quickly hid it behind a mask of coldness.

"You're back!" Jana ran toward him without thinking, forgetting protocol. "Are you okay?"

Alexander tensed. He wasn't used to anyone running toward him; normally, people fled or knelt trembling.

"You’re covered in blood... were you hurt? Why aren't you saying anything?" she asked, trying to look for wounds beneath the metal.

The prince turned sharply, giving her his back.

"I will take a bath," he declared in a husky voice.

"Is that all you're going to say to me? I was worried, you know!" Jana exclaimed, indignant at his coldness.

"Do not be noisy," he replied without looking at her.

"Fine! I won't worry again, Your Highness!" Jana crossed her arms, furious.

"Do as you wish."

After his bath, Alexander emerged wearing a black tunic, his still-damp hair dripping onto his broad shoulders. He looked imposing and lethal. Jana, despite her anger, decided to try to negotiate.

"Your Highness?" she called. He looked at her seriously but didn't answer. "Your Highness?"

"SPEAK!" he roared, losing patience with her hesitation.

"Tomorrow... could I go out and wander the palace? I'm bored being locked in here."

"No!" was the blunt response.

"But why? There are guards on every corner!"

"It is dangerous. It doesn't matter how many guards there are." Alexander approached the table, pouring himself a glass of wine. "Tomorrow I may have to leave again. I do not have time to take you to see the castle."

Jana felt tears of frustration stinging her eyes. The culture shock, the fear, and the confinement were breaking her resistance.

"Fine, tomorrow I'll go alone!" she snapped at him, winking in a gesture of pure defiance.

In a blink, Alexander dropped the glass and cornered her against the wall, taking her chin with a force that compelled her to look him in the eye.

"I said it is dangerous! You cannot go out, even within the castle, do you understand?"

"But I’m bored!" Jana shouted, letting a tear slide down her cheek. "You don't own me and I'm not your slave. I arrived yesterday and was treated like a criminal, locked in a dark, ugly hole... I'm scared and I'm alone!"

Seeing her tears, something in Alexander's iron expression broke. He released her jaw and, with unusual clumsiness, wiped the trail of the tear with his thumb.

"Fine... tomorrow I will let you wander. Only for one hour, and with a guard escorting you," he sighed, giving in.

"Thank you," she whispered, calming down a bit.

"One more thing," he added, regaining his severe tone. "There is a woman in the palace, Leticia, with red hair. Do not go near her. She is my fiancée."

Jana felt her heart skip a beat. *Fiancée? I don't remember reading about any fiancée in the book,* she thought with bewilderment.

"Does she know you have me here, in your quarters?"

"No. And if she finds out, she will want to kill you."

"And you just say it like that?! My life is in danger!"

"If she touches a single hair on your head," Alexander said, and his red eyes glowed with a murderous light, "she is dead."

Jana looked at him, horrified.

"How can you say that? Do you just go around killing anyone for no reason?"

"Yes! No one touches what is mine."

"I am not yours!" she retorted, regaining her spirit. "I am no one's property. You aren't my husband, or my boyfriend, or anything."

Alexander closed the distance between them in a feline movement. Before Jana could protest, he took her by the nape of the neck and kissed her with an intensity that left her breathless—a mix of fire and possession that made her stagger.

As they pulled apart, he whispered against her lips:

"Do not provoke me, Jana."

She, with her heart beating a thousand miles an hour and her cheeks flushed, could only manage to say:

"I... I’m going to sleep now."

Alexander watched her in silence as she retreated under the covers, knowing that, even if she denied it, the thread of fate had already chained them together.

The darkness in the royal quarters was dense, barely broken by the soft glow of dying embers in the fireplace. Alexander lay there, one arm behind his head, staring at the ceiling with a lost gaze. A few inches away, Jana slept with a tranquility that he found almost insulting.

*What is wrong with me?* Alexander asked himself in the silence of his mind. His blood boiled every time he recalled the taste of her lips. *I want to possess her, I want to consume her and make her mine right now... But I don’t want her to be afraid of me.*

That thought bewildered him. He, the "Butcher Prince," the man who never hesitated to execute traitors or enemies, now found himself keeping watch over the sleep of a stranger in odd clothes. He couldn't close his eyes. He turned onto his side, propping his head on his hand to observe her. In her rest, Jana didn't look like the talkative, brave girl who defied him; she looked like an angel fallen into a century where she didn't belong. Alexander reached out a hand, barely brushing a lock of her blonde hair, vowing to himself that any man who dared look at her would suffer a fate worse than death.

### A Stormy Awakening

The following morning, Jana opened her eyes slowly, disoriented by the weight of the canopy above her head.

"Uh... Alex?" she murmured, her voice husky from sleep. "Your Highness?"

The bed was empty. A trace of warmth in the sheets indicated he had left recently. A knock at the door pulled her from her thoughts.

"Miss, His Highness is waiting for you downstairs," Liz's voice said from the other side. "He says not to delay and to come down quickly. He will see you in the dining hall."

Jana sat up abruptly, feeling a mix of nerves and hunger.

"I don’t know where that is!" she shouted toward the door.

"I will take you," Liz replied, entering the room. "Would you like me to help you get ready?"

"Yes, please. Something that doesn't suffocate me so much, if possible," Jana requested with a faint smile.

Liz worked quickly, dressing Jana in a silk gown of cream tones that brought out the blue of her eyes. However, as they crossed the threshold of the quarters to head to the dining hall, fate laid an ambush.

Leticia was there, leaning against a marble column as if she had been waiting for the prey to leave the wolf's den. Her face went pale with rage upon seeing Jana exit the prince’s private room.

"What are you doing coming out of my fiancé’s quarters?" Leticia spat, her eyes red with fury. "Who do you think you are?"

Jana felt her heart climb into her throat. *(What do I say now? If I tell her the truth, she’ll slit my throat right here!)*

"Answer me, you wench!" Leticia insisted, taking a step forward.

Liz, trembling but brave, stepped slightly in between them.

"If I may, my lady, the Young Master was the one who took her there. If you do not wish for him to be angry, please, let the lady pass in peace."

The response only fueled the fire. Leticia, blinded by hatred, swung a violent backhand.

"No one gave you permission to speak, you're just a common servant!" she screamed as her palm struck Liz's cheek with a sharp crack.

"Hey! What are you doing? Don’t hit her!" Jana shouted, stepping forward to hold Liz, who was sobbing silently.

"What is all this racket at this hour?" A masculine voice, melodic but with a touch of arrogance, echoed in the hallway.

Jana looked up and saw a young man with shimmering blonde hair and eyes as blue as the sky. He was the antithesis of Alexander in appearance, but dressed with the same royal elegance. *(This must be Tomás... he’s so handsome, though not more than Alex)*, Jana thought mechanically.

"Tomás!" Leticia exclaimed, pointing at Jana. "This girl came out of Alex's quarters! Deal with her, send her to the gallows right now!"

Prince Tomás approached, scanning Jana with a curious and appreciative gaze that made her feel uncomfortable.

"Well, well... since when does my brother bring women into his quarters?" Tomás laughed ironically. "He always said he had no interest in feminine distractions. Apparently, he has exquisite taste."

"Tomás! He is my fiancé!" Leticia roared.

"Dear sister-in-law, the lady is very well dressed," Tomás noted, touching the fabric of Jana’s sleeve. "That only means my brother ordered her to be treated like a queen. I won't involve myself in this matter. I don't want to die young without having found the love of my life... though perhaps, I’ve already found it standing before me."

Jana felt invisible during the nobles' argument.

"They keep talking as if I’m not even here!" she muttered under her breath.

"Where is Alex?" Leticia asked, beside herself. "I have to tell him to throw this woman out! I’m sure he’ll kill her when he realizes she’s an intruder."

Leticia, losing all control, grabbed Jana’s arm with surprising strength, digging her nails into her skin, and began dragging her toward the stairs.

"Let me go! Let me go!" Jana struggled, feeling the pain in her arm.

"Sister-in-law, let her go!" Tomás warned, though he didn't move to intervene, seemingly amused by the chaos.

"I SAID TO COME DOWN QUICKLY!" Alexander’s voice, heavy with dark authority, made time stand still.

He appeared at the foot of the stairs, dressed in black and leather, with an expression so icy that even Tomás stopped smiling. Leticia released Jana immediately, backing away. Jana took the chance to rub her arm, where the redhead's finger marks were already appearing.

"Brother, we were just heading to the dining hall, weren't we?" Tomás said, trying to smooth over the atmosphere.

Alexander didn't look at his brother. His red eyes were locked on Jana, noticing how she held her arm.

"I told you not to speak to anyone!" he reprimanded her, though his gaze shifted quickly to Leticia with a promise of violence.

"Alex..." Leticia began with a trembling voice. "Who is this woman? What was she doing in your bed?"

Without warning, Alexander moved with the speed of a predator. His fingers circled Leticia’s neck—not enough to choke her, but enough to make it clear who was in charge.

"Do not test my patience," he whispered, bringing his face close to hers. "I warned you: do not touch what is mine."

Leticia tried to pull his hands off, terrified, her eyes wide.

"Stay out of my business!" the prince declared.

"Your Highness... let her go, please," Jana pleaded, frightened by the intensity of the scene. She didn't want anyone to die because of her.

"Yes, brother!" Tomás seconded. "It’s not that big a deal, your fiancée is just jealous."

Alexander released Leticia abruptly, and she fell to her knees, gasping for air.

"If you touch what is mine again, I will not stop," he said, ignoring her cries. "Who will stop me? The King? Let him come."

"Alex, I’m hungry... can we go?" Jana interrupted, wanting to get Alexander out of that state of fury before he did something crazy.

"Yes, yes, let’s go eat something," Tomás added enthusiastically.

"Liz!" Alexander ordered. "Take Jana back to my quarters."

Jana stood there agape.

"What? But I just said I was hungry..."

"Brother, the lady is hungry, why don't we go eat first?" Tomás suggested, looking at Jana with a flirtatious smile.

Alexander turned toward his brother with clenched fists.

"Tomás, get lost before I lose my mind!"

Jana, seeing that the situation was about to explode again, sighed with resignation.

"Fine, let’s go, Liz," she said crossly, turning around.

Leticia, from the floor, screamed with hatred:

"This won't end like this, Alex! I’ll tell the King!"

Alexander strode up the stairs, following Jana into the room. Upon entering, he slammed the door with a bang that made the girl jump.

"Get out, Liz!" he ordered. The maid disappeared in a blink.

"I told you not to speak to anyone!" Alexander roared, facing Jana.

"But I was just leaving and she saw us!" she replied, taking two steps back from the prince's imposing figure. "It wasn't my fault she was standing there like a crazy person."

Alexander continued to advance, his gaze glowing with dangerous desire and contained rage.

"It seems I have been too soft with you..." he murmured. "You think you can defy my orders and come out unscathed."

"Alex, are you listening to me?" she asked, her heart racing as her back hit the bedpost. "It was just a misunderstanding."

"I have to punish you," he said in a voice that sent a shiver down Jana’s spine. It wasn't a death threat; it was something much more intimate and unsettling.

"Alex, stop! Enough!" she exclaimed, but it was too late.

With a quick, firm movement, Alexander grabbed her by the waist and threw her onto the soft blankets of the bed, dropping over her and pinning her with his own body. Jana looked into his eyes, realizing that, in that moment, the beast wasn't angry with Leticia—he was hungry for her.