Chapter Six Promoted.

For a moment I thought he would. The wolf inside him surged like a dark storm. The room shook with the force of it.

Then suddenly, his fangs dropped. “Careful what you wish for.”

His claws dragged slowly down the stone beside my head, carving deep gouges into the wall.

Stone crumbled to the floor.

“If I lose control, there won’t be enough left of you to bury.”

“Good. Because if I ever get free… I’ll finish what that knife started.”

Then Lucian’s expression changed, into something far worse than anger.

“Bring the chains,” he said to someone outside the door.

My pulse screamed in my ears as the lock on the dungeon door clicked open. And Lucian looked back at me with a calm, terrifying smile.

“You wanted my attention. Now, you’ll learn exactly what defying me costs.”

The clink of metal echoed in the dungeon before the door even opened fully. My stomach twisted as I realized what they were bringing.

The door swung open and two figures stepped inside, carrying iron chains and cuffs. My wrists and ankles stung at the thought of the metal biting into my skin.

Lucian’s hand gripped my hair, tilting my head back just enough for me to look at him.

“You’ve been bold today. Testing my limits. Questioning my authority.”

I flinched but refused to bow my gaze. “I didn’t do anything but speak the truth.”

His lips curved into a slow, cruel smile. “Truth is a luxury you cannot afford here.”

The chains clanged against the stone floor as one of the men approached, stepping cautiously.

I straightened, daring him. “You think chains will scare me? You’ve already lost control once today. You should be careful. Push me too far again…”

Lucian’s head snapped forward. “No one talks to me like that. I've given you more freedom than you deserve. You tempt me. And I hate being tempted.”

“You have one chance. One chance to obey. One word, and I decide if you leave this dungeon intact.”

I met his gaze, defiance burning hot. “Do your worst.”

His head tilted, studying me, then nodded to one of the men. The chains were thrown over my wrists and ankles. Cold metal clamped around me with a sharp bite.

I bit my lip. Not out of pain, but to keep me from laughing. “This doesn’t scare me.”

Lucian’s hand snapped from my hair to my jaw, tilting my face up. “It should. Because what comes next… is worse than chains. Believe me.”

I hissed as they jerked my arms up, forcing them above my head. The chain hooked into a ring in the stone wall, pulling my body upright until my shoulders burned.

Lucian watched, unmoved.

“Comfortable?” he asked calmly.

My wrists strained against the metal. “You’re nothing but a tyrant hiding behind your wolf.”

His hand wrapped around my throat again, tighter this time. “You talk too much.”

My lungs burned but I forced the words out. “Then stop listening.”

Lucian’s control slipped. His claws slid free, not fully shifted.

They dragged slowly down my arm. Fire exploded across my skin.

Blood welled instantly, dark against the stone floor. I bit down hard on the scream clawing up my throat.

Lucian watched the blood bead along my skin like it fascinated him. “Interesting,” he murmured.

“Go on,” he said softly.

“Beg.”

When I didn’t move, his eyebrow lifted slightly.

“Don’t make me repeat myself.”

I laughed, even though my arm burned. “You’ll be waiting a long time.”

His fingers brushed the cut he’d made. Pain flared again.

I sucked in a sharp breath, my body jerking against the chains. The metal bit deeper into my wrists.

Lucian watched the reaction with quiet interest. “Still no begging?”

His thumb pressed lightly against the wound.

White-hot pain shot up my arm. I clenched my teeth hard enough that my jaw ached, refusing to give him the satisfaction.

His gaze lifted slowly to my face. “Stubborn.”

I forced a crooked smile through the haze of pain. “Disappointed?”

Then his hand tightened in my hair again, pulling my head back. “Not disappointed.”

His grip tightened.

The wolf inside him pushed against the air again, heavy and oppressive. The guards shifted uneasily behind him.

Lucian leaned closer until his forehead almost touched mine. “You have no idea how dangerous it is to provoke me.”

Then his claws slid free again. This time they didn’t stop at my arm. They dragged slowly across my collarbone.

Pain ripped through me.

A choked sound escaped my throat before I could stop it. Blood slid down my skin in slow, dark lines.

Lucian watched it fall. Something dark and satisfied flickered in his eyes.

“You see? That wasn’t even an attempt to hurt you.”

Lucian reached for the chain above my head again.

“Lucian.”

The voice cut through the dungeon like a blade. Everything stopped.

Lucian froze.

The guards immediately stepped back.

Slow footsteps echoed down the stone staircase. A familiar figure appeared in the doorway, the torchlight catching the dark strands of her hair.

Lena.

Her gaze moved from Lucian… to the chains… to the blood running down my arm.

“What are you doing down here?” he asked coldly.

“You need to stop.”

“This doesn’t concern you.”

Lena’s eyes flicked back to me, taking in the chains pulling my arms above my head.

He slammed his fist into the wall, the sound echoing in the cell. “Leave,” he told the guards.

They vanished immediately.

Lucian turned slowly toward Lena, irritation flickering across his face.

“You shouldn’t be here.”

Lena crossed her arms. “And you shouldn’t be carving up prisoners in the dungeon like a bored child.”

“She’s chained to your wall, I think your point has been made.”

For a long moment, the two of them stared at each other. Something passed between them — silent, tense.

Lucian exhaled sharply.

Then he turned back to me. His gaze dragged over the blood running down my arm, the chains digging into my wrists.

“Fine.”

His claws snapped the chain above my head loose. My arms dropped suddenly, sending sharp pain through my shoulders. I barely had time to gasp before Lucian grabbed my arm and yanked me forward.

Hard.

My feet stumbled across the stone floor as he dragged me toward the stairs.

“Wait—!” I struggled, but his grip only tightened.

“Congratulations,” he said flatly, not even looking at me.

“You’ve just earned yourself a promotion.”

He stopped at the bottom of the stairs and turned to face Lena. "From now on, she works.”

Lena frowned slightly. “Lucian—”

“She cleans,” he continued, ignoring her. “She cooks. She scrubs the floors.”

His grip tightened painfully on my arm.

“And if she disobeys…”

His gaze dropped to the blood still running down my skin.

“…we finish what we started down here.”

My pulse hammered, but I lifted my chin anyway. “Then you’d better keep the dungeon ready.”