Chapter Two

Lyra's POV

As I rose slowly from the cold marble floor, I clutched my chest, feeling the pain of Randall's rejection, which wrecked every fibre of my being. 

My legs were weak but I still managed to drag myself to the bed, leaning against the wall. 

The decision to leave my Pack now weighed heavily on my chest. So did my mother's words which echoed in my thoughts.

“One day, your feistiness will lead you into trouble. You must learn to listen and do as we say.”

If I had listened—if I hadn’t been so desperate to prove that I could make decisions for myself—I never would’ve left my Pack. I never would’ve walked straight into this nightmare. But how could I have known? How could I have guessed that Randall’s hatred ran so deep, that he would use our mate bond to trap me in his twisted plan for revenge?

But the signs were there. I saw them—the flickers of rage in his eyes, the way he avoided talking about his past. But I ignored them. Blinded by the bond, by my desire to escape the arranged marriage with Winston, I let myself believe in something that wasn’t real.

I let out a bitter laugh, lightly slapping my cheek in disbelief.

“What the hell was I even thinking?” I muttered under my breath. “Leaving the Pack with a man I didn’t even know…”

I should have questioned the urgency in his eyes that night. No, I did, but only in my head. As soon as I parted my lips to ask, he shut me up with the most entrancing kiss. 

It was my first kiss. It felt heavenly.

‘No wonder he insisted on leaving by midnight.’ 

And now, because of me, my family was in danger, about to be slaughtered by the man I called my fated mate. 

“I can't let that happen,” I whispered to myself. “ I have to leave this place.”

I threw the sheets aside and climbed off the bed, dropping to my knees to search beneath it.

Nothing.

I got up and began tearing through the room for anything that could help me escape, no matter how little.

I needed to warn my father about the impending danger. But more than that, I had to find out if there was any truth in Randall's words. If there were, I wasn't sure if I could ever forgive my father.

I checked the drawers, opened the bags lying freely in the closet, and tossed the clothes on the wall in anger, a little grunt with it.

Still, nothing.

Well, except for a useless stack of papers piled up on the table. I walked over and glanced at them, shaking my head. “Useless! They're all useless…”

As I lifted my head, my eyes caught the sight of a portrait. No, there were two, the other one hanging by the right of the first. 

“Randall?”

He was much younger but I could tell that it was him. His grey eyes and pointed nose gave him away as he stood beside a beautiful woman whom I guessed was his mother judging by the resemblance. 

“Did he bring me to his mother's room so I'd feel bad or what?” I pondered. 

Suddenly, a scroll fell from the table, immediately catching my attention as I bent to pick it up. But when I tried to place it back on the table, I had a strong nudge to see what was written. I unrolled the scroll and froze.

“A map?” My heart jumped, and my eyes flashed wide. “The map of the Nightshade Pack.”

This is it — This could just be my way out.

There was just one problem. I had no clue how to read a map. My father tried to teach me. So did Elayne, my best friend, but I always waved them off. Stupid me…

My heart nearly skipped when the door suddenly swung open.

There she was. The woman who had stolen my mate's heart.

I quickly tucked the map behind me, straightening my spine. 

“What are you hiding behind?” She smirked, strolling into the room.

“Uhm… Nothing,” I said quickly, letting the scroll fall to the ground and showing her my hands. 

She scoffed, brushing past me to look at the scroll.

“A map,” she chuckled, a smirk playing on her lips as she picked it up. 

“Trying to escape already ?” She chuckled.

She placed it on the table and crossed her arms. “I wouldn't have had a problem with that, Lyra, but you see, you need to pay for the crimes of your father.”

“My father has done nothing wrong,” I sneered. “Besides, I can't even read the map anyway.”

She twisted her head, unimpressed. “Feisty, huh?” She smirked, her right hand on her hip.

“Look, I have no problem with you, Lyra,” she said. “But I know that you're Randall's mate and he is my man. So I'm only here to warn you to stay away from him so we won't have any problems.”

I faked a smile. “You can have him. He already rejected me anyway. If there's nothing left to say, could I be left alone now?”

With a smile, Susan walked out of the room while I returned to the bed and sat, relieved to see her back. 

A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door but whoever it was couldn't wait for me to speak before walking into the room. 

A beautiful young lady wearing a patterned blue dress and a red bangle on her right hand walked into the room with a tray in her hands. 

“Your food is ready, Ma'am,” she said, moving a scroll out of the way before gently placing the tray on the table.

“Take it away,” I said to her. “I’m not hungry.”

But as she turned to leave, something shiny caught my eyes. A knife? Perfect. 

“What is your name?” I quickly asked. 

“May,” she answered, glancing over her shoulder. 

But as she reached for the door, I dashed across to her and snatched the knife from the tray, causing the tray to fall to the ground as the meal spilt all over the place. 

Then I pulled her closer and put a knife to her throat. “Please…” She gasped, her entire body trembling. 

“I don't want to hurt you, May,” I whispered into her ears. “I just need your help.”

“What… What do you want me to do?” She stuttered.

“I need to get out of this pack. Could you help me?”

“Alpha Randall will have my head for it. Please… I can't betray—”

“Would you rather I kill you right here, then?” I asked, pressing the blade a little harder.

“No…No. I'll do it. I'll do anything.”

“Good girl,” I smiled smugly. “After you, darling,” 

My heart pounded against my ribcage as we walked out of the room and down the hallway as stealthily as possible. I hoped that she wouldn't lead me to the guards but even if she did, the knife was my insurance.

I reminded myself of what Randall had said to me — that he valued every life in his Pack, including his servants. Perhaps, that truth was going to save me. And her. 

“This is it,” she whispered, pointing to a small brown door to the left. “Only the Alpha and a few trusted people know that it exists. You can leave. No one will find you.”

“She's not going anywhere…”

I froze. It was Randall's voice. 

Turning around, I pulled May closer and pressed the knife harder to her throat. 

“If you come any closer, Randall, I'll kill her,” I warned, frowning hard to show that I wasn't bluffing. 

“Don’t take one more step,” I said, as soon as he took another step towards me. 

Suddenly, four guards appeared from behind him, all stone-faced and well-armed as if they were about to arrest a hardened criminal. 

“So you thought you could run away from me?” He glowered. “Maybe I wasn't clear enough the last time.”

Ignoring my warnings and the tears rolling onto my hands from the maid's pleading eyes, Randall approached me. 

I gripped the knife tighter but my hands began to tremble, bringing with it the realisation that I couldn't kill the maid. 

“Don't make me do this,” I said as sternly as I could. “I swear, I’ll kill her.”

“Then do it. I dare you,” he bellowed. His voice shook the foundations of the building. 

“Do it!” He repeated, as his lips curled in a cruel grin. “You’re just like your father.”

I shut my eyes, ready to slice May's throat, but I couldn't. Instead, I let the knife fall to the ground and dropped to my knees in tears. 

“Please, Randall. Just let me go,” I cried. “Let me speak to my father and find out the truth. If he's guilty. I swear, I'll make him answer for it.”

“And you think his pleading will bring my parents back?” He flared, his fury boiling over as his face twisted into a frown. 

“Only his head on a platter can pacify me and give rest to my parents whose spirits hover around with rage,” he growled. 

“Please…”

“Perhaps, I have treated you too nicely. You must think you're an important guest,” he sneered. “But you're not. You're worthless!”

He turned to the guards and yelled at them. “Take her to the dungeon and lock her up. Give her no food or water for three days.”

Then he turned back to me with a smirk played on his lips. “You said you weren't hungry, right?”