Freed

LUCIAN

Elias’ face hardened with recognition. “What the hell are you doing naked in my bed?”

I could feel my cheeks burning.

God, Lucian, open your damn mouth and say something, will you?

But what should I even say?

— Elias, the weather doesn’t seem so great today, the rain looks pretty heavy. Did you get caught in it? You should probably take a shower. Speaking of showers…

FUCK, Lucian Ashborne, could you please stop focusing on his naked body all the time?

There was a long, terrifying pause. Elias stepped closer.

I wished the ground would open and swallow me.

I’m Naked. Tied. In my brother-in-law's bed. Who is also the freaking Lycan King.

This wasn’t rock bottom.

This was being buried under the damn mountain.

I don’t know what the hell I was expecting. Maybe someone old, someone scary, someone royal enough to ignore the naked, tied-up mess I’d become. Not him.

Not Elias.

My mouth opened, words dying before they formed.

The steam curled around him like it knew whose body it was touching and was lucky to even exist in the same room.

His hair was soaked black silk, shoulder-length, slicked back to reveal sharp cheekbones, and the cold-blooded scowl carved into his face.

Fuck.

His pupils shrank. Like he’d seen a ghost. Then twisted.

His entire face darkened with unbridled anger.

His jaw clenched, muscles tensed, and his cold, dark aura filled the room, thick enough to choke on. My chest squeezed, heart racing for reasons I couldn’t place.

I don't remember being disrespectful to him in the past, so why was he like this?

I blinked up at him. “Uh… Elias?” My voice cracked. I forced an awkward smile that felt like it belonged to someone dumber. “When did you become the Lycan King?”

No answer.

Just that stare. Blank, cold, burning, and venomous.

I shifted slightly, well, tried. The ropes bit into my wrists, my dignity in shreds. And still… nowhere to hide.

And gods help me. My eyes drifted again.

Broad chest. Bronzed skin. Tattoos inked in deep black across his shoulders and sides, curling over his abs. It was wolves and flames wrapped together to become one.

Judging from his height, he should be six foot five, and yet every inch of him moved with lethal grace.

Then I looked down.

Yeah. That was a mistake.

My stomach flipped. I couldn’t stop it. My gaze caught the thing swinging between his legs, long and thick and heavy. The kind of cock that could split someone in half and not apologize for it. Paired with balls like punishment devices. My cheeks burned with heat.

“Are you enjoying your career as a whore for men,” Elias sneered suddenly, “or did your irresponsible lover finally throw you out like garbage?”

The venom hit me so fast I choked on it. What the heck? What was going on?

“What?” I blinked at him, confused. “Why are you like this?”

No answer.

Just more cold. More hate.

I tried to laugh it off. It sounded pathetic. “You think I wanted to end up like this?” I hissed. “My ex, Andrew, reunited with his first love, blamed me for her miscarriage and treated me as his dirty secret.

Elias’s jaw ticked, and a whisper escaped his lips. “Suits you well.”

I froze.

The words hit like a slap, overshadowing my fear. “What is fucking wrong with you?”

He stalked closer, dripping water, a snarl curling on his lips. “How dare you speak to me like that?” His voice was dangerously low, “Don’t you want to be untied?”

I bared my teeth. “If you don’t unbind and set me free, how are you gonna explain this to my sister?”

Rage exploded in his face. “How dare you mention her?”

I flinched.

For the first time tonight, I was actually scared. Not of his power. Not of his body. Of that expression. That fury felt ancient. Bone-deep.

And suddenly, I remembered.

How my sister cried the day I ran away.

How I left her behind when she needed me and begged me not to go, chasing a toxic man like a fool. I didn't stop to think about how hurt she'd be or how she'd be affected.

I lowered my gaze, heat crawling down my neck. Shame swallowed my voice.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered. I didn’t even know if it was to Elias or her.

Tension filled the thick silence that descended.

Then, without a word, Elias crouched and untied the knots around my wrists. The ropes fell away, leaving red burns on my skin. His fingers lingered just a second too long.

He handed me a pair of clothing. I wore the shirt quickly, but the pants were too big for me.

Thankfully, the shirt stopped on my thighs, so that was enough for me. His scent filled my nostrils, surprisingly sweet for a man as dark as him.

He straightened, arms crossed over his chest, looking down at me like I disgusted him, but also like he didn’t know what to do with me.

“Get out,” he said flatly.

I swallowed. “Right.”

I got up awkwardly, the shirt swaying far too high, I had no pants on. My knees shook, my pride was damaged but I was free, at least from the ropes.

Still, I glanced back.

His gaze was on me.

There was something strange there. Something I couldn't place.

No, it didn’t matter.

Everyone hated me now, right? Especially him.

I slipped out of the room, bare-legged and humiliated, and began to plot my escape. No way in hell was I sticking around to be some pawn in Alice's mind games.

First, I had to grab the few essentials I still owned in Andrew’s house.

Just a quick grab and go. In and Out.

But the second I stepped past the door I once called home, I froze.

Loud sounds of moans filled the air along with a thick stench of sex.

My eyes widened.

"No. No way." I shook my head, like it was going to dislodge the image forming in my head.

I crept closer. The sounds only grew louder. I could hear the rhythm of their body slamming together.

Then I heard his voice, Andrew's.

He was fvcking someone else in our room.

I nearly laughed.

Of course. What was I expecting?