Chapter 5: Two lies make a third.

-ELARA-

I didn't have time to wash the mud from my boots. I barely had time to wipe the dirt from my face with the hem of my dress before Darius was moving, and I was forced to move with him.

He didn't drag me, but he didn't exactly wait for me either. His large, rough hand engulfed mine, his grip firm and possessive, pulling me down the long, torch-lit corridor.

I was breathless, trying to keep up with his pace. Every step Darius took was heavy with purpose, his boots echoing like thunder against the stone floor. He towered over me, a mountain of black fabric and muscle, making me feel small beside him.

As we swept down the hallway, the Lycan guards posted at intervals collapsed into bows, snapping their fists to their chests and lowering their heads as Darius passed, their eyes fixed on the floor, too terrified to meet his gaze.

Behind us, Marcus trailed close. He walked with his arms folded tightly behind his back, his head bowed in a mixture of reverence and anxiety, like a man walking to his own execution but too polite to complain about it.

"Shoulders back," Darius murmured without looking down at me, his voice rumbling low in his chest. "I said… shoulders back."

I heard him the second time and straightened my spine immediately, lifting my chin despite the mud streaked across it.

We reached the massive double doors of the Throne Room. Two guards pushed them open with a heavy, grinding groan that sounded like the earth itself splitting apart.

"Majestic" didn't begin to describe it.

The Lycan throne room was a massive hall of black marble, with silver veins. Above us, floating orbs of cold, white fire cast long shadows, stripping the room of any warmth.

In the center of the throne room, five Lycan Elders sat around a massive, long table, carved from a singular slab of dark stone, with runes that seemed to absorb the light etched into it. 

As we entered, the murmurs from their conversations died instantly into a suffocating silence, their weathered and hard faces snapping toward the doors.

I could feel the weight of their gaze pressing on me. They looked at King Darius with fear and reverence. Then  looked at me— a muddy, disheveled rogue clutching a satchel to her chest— with pure confusion.

"You're late," a sharp female voice cut through the silence.

A lady stood at the foot of the table. She was stunning in a terrifying way, dressed in armor plated silk that hugged her curves like a second skin. Her hair was platinum blonde, pulled back in a severe braid, and her eyes were the color of poisonous emeralds.

She looked at Darius, her gaze hungrily tracing his jawline. Then her eyes slid to me, her lips curling in a slow, deliberate disgust.

"And you brought... a servant?" The lady asked, her voice echoing off the stone walls. "Or perhaps a prisoner?"

Darius didn't stop walking until we were at the base of the dais, right in front of the dark stone table. He released my hand but stayed close enough that his heat radiated against my side, his aura enveloping me in a silent, suffocating warning to anyone thinking of attacking.

"Neither," Darius said, his voice bored, echoing with effortless power. "This is Elara. My intended.”

The silence that followed was deafening. It was broken only by Marcus, who shifted his weight nervously behind us, his arms still locked tight behind his back.

Then the lady broke out laughing. It was a brittle, dangerous sound that grated on my nerves.

"This?" She gestured at my mud stained dress, using one finger to size me. "This is a joke. You are mocking the alliance, Darius. You would marry a rogue. A nobody… over the Princess of the Obsidian Pack?”

I felt the blood drain from my face. Princess of the Obsidian pack? Wait, she's Princess Seraphina ? 

"I would marry a swamp toad over you, Seraphina," Darius replied smoothly. "But Elara is no toad. She is the future Queen. And my choice is made."

"You cannot be serious," Seraphina demanded, stepping forward, her composure cracking. "The Council requires a union of status. You cannot simply pick a stray off the street and crown her!"

"I am the King," Darius said. His voice dropped an octave, vibrating with an Alpha command that made the Elders at the stone table flinch. "I do not require the Council’s permission to choose my mate. I require their obedience.”

Seraphina’s eyes narrowed. She wasn't looking at Darius anymore. No. She was looking at me. 

My breath caught in my throat. Her emerald eyes burned into mine like she was staring right into my soul. She stepped closer, invading my space until I could smell her.

"You are a thief, aren't you?" Seraphina hissed, leaning in so only I could hear. "I can smell the desperation on you. What did you steal to buy your way into his bed?"

Before I could react, her hand lashed out and grabbed the strap of my satchel.

"No!" I gasped, trying to hold on to the bag.

But despite how slender she looked, I was no match for her strength, and she ripped it from my grasp effortlessly.

"Let's see the dowry of a beggar Queen," she sneered, turning the bag over on the polished floor.

The contents spilled out for the whole court to see, vials of medicine clattering loudly as they fell. "Look at this filth. You bring disease and trash into the palace?"

And then, the photo of Leo fluttered down, landing face up.

Seraphina froze. She crouched down, using her long pink nails to snatch up the photograph.

My heart stopped beating. I felt a cold sweat break out over my skin, chilling me instantly. 

I felt exposed. 

The dye in the photo hid Leo's golden hair, yes, but to me, everyone in the room could see the Camelot gold beneath it.

Seraphina stared at the crumpled picture of Leo for a long moment, looking at his hazel eyes, looking at his hair. 

"A child," she whispered, standing up and holding the photo like a weapon. A cruel smile spread across her face. "So that's it," she announced, spinning to face the council at the stone table. "She's a whore looking for a sponsor for her bastard."

She slammed the photo on the table and shoved the photo toward the Council elders. "Look,” Seraphina turned to the elders with venom in her voice. “She intends to bring another man's pup into the royal palace. A rogue bastard."

The Council began to murmur angrily. The Elders leaned over the dark stone table, their faces twisting in disapproval. In Lycan culture, raising another male's offspring was seen as weakness. And it was a stain on a King’s honor to raise another blood.

"Darius," the Elder in the middle growled, slamming his fist on the table to call the rest to order. "Is this true? You intend to put this–,” he turned to me, trying to find the words to use. “...rogue, and her child on the throne? To let a stranger's blood eat at your table?"

I turned to Darius, panic clawing at my throat. I waited for him to give the orders to throw me out. To save his reputation and hand me over to the wolves.

But Darius went quiet.

He stood like a statue, his jaw clenched so hard a muscle feathered in his cheek. His steel-blue eyes were fixed on the photo now in Seraphina’s hand, glancing from Leo's black hair to his hazel eyes with a terrifying intensity.

The silence stretched, agonizing and heavy.

He’s done, I thought, my knees shaking. He’s calculating the fastest way to get rid of me.

I had signed a contract for protection. But contracts didn't matter to Kings when their honor was questioned. Contracts could always be breached. Bonds could always be served. I of all people should know that. 

I was done for. I was going to be executed right here in the throne room.

Then suddenly, Darius stepped forward between me and the Council, and snatched the photo from Seraphina’s hand.

"He is not a stranger's blood," Darius said, his voice booming through the hall.

What!?

Seraphina blinked. "What?"

"That child is no bastard," Darius continued, holding the photo up. "He is my son."

The world seemed to tilt on its axis. I actually grabbed the edge of Darius’s sleeve to keep from falling over.

His son?

The gasp that went through the room sucked all the air out of the hall. I stared at the back of Darius’s head, my mouth falling open in genuine shock. My mind had railed with every possible scenario I could think of, but I would have never expected this!

“Yours?" Seraphina choked out, the colour draining from her face. "That’s impossible. You... you never..."

"Elara and I met five years ago," Darius continued, weaving the lie with terrifying ease. "We are fated. I only kept her hidden to protect her from vipers like you. I didn't want my son to become a political target"

Darius thrust the photo to the stone table and the Elders leaned in, squinting at the small image. Because of the dye, there was a subtle resemblance between them. And if you looked for Darius in Leo’s face, you would find him.

"Black hair," one Elder pointed out. "Strong jaw. He looks exactly like Valerius.”

"A son," the middle Elder breathed, his anger replaced by awe. "The King has an Heir."

"Yes," Darius said firmly. "And now, the time is right to bring the Crown Prince home."

Seraphina looked like she had been slapped. Her entire political leverage had just evaporated.

"You're lying," she hissed, but her voice lacked conviction. "Show us the boy. If he is yours, his wolf will prove it."

Darius turned slowly to me, his eyes hard, warning me to play along.

"Elara," he commanded, his voice loud enough for the entire court to hear. "Take the Royal Guard. Go to the city and retrieve our son."

Darius closed the distance between us, and to the watching court, what he did next must have looked like a tender, lover’s touch. His large hands settled on my shoulders, his knuckles grazing my cheek as he brushed a strand of hair from my face. 

But his steel-blue eyes were void of any affection. It was a warning to me.

He leaned down, his lips brushing the shell of my ear. "Go get the boy," he whispered.

I swallowed hard, nodding.

"I will bring him home," I said and gave a court bow, almost out of fear.

"Good," Darius straightened up, turning back to Seraphina with a triumphant smirk. "Now, if you excuse me, Princess. My council and I have other things to take care of."

I turned and walked out of the hall, clutching my empty satchel to my chest like a lifeline. Marcus scrambled to follow me, signaling the guards to open the massive doors.

I was supposed to feel a sense of relief. Darius' lie had just saved me. But the way my heart hammered against my ribs told a different story.

Because that single lie was a death sentence, not just for me, but for Leo too.

Now, instead of merely being a hidden child, Leo had to impersonate the Lycans' Crown Prince.  And I was tasked with hiding him in plain sight, under the same roof as what could be our greatest enemy, for an entire year.

My stomach dropped.