3

LYRA.

I clutched my burning cheek, the tears in my eyes finally spilling over. I waited patiently for the pain to dull, but it throbbed even more as each second passed.

Warm liquid slid down my jaw, but it felt too thick to be tears. I looked up just in time to catch Aurelia mid-shift. That only meant one thing -- Aurelia didn't strike me with her hand, but with her claws.

I pulled my hand away from my cheek to see it covered in blood, and my heart dropped.

"Aurelia!" Lord Bailey's agitated voice cut through the tension as he rushed in. Someone must have informed him that his daughter had come for me.

He looked at me and his eyes widened in shock.

Aurelia's palms must have left such a visible print on my cheek, to warrant such reaction from him.

"Aurelia!!" he roared as she lunged at me again. “Get her out of here!” he ordered the guards who had come with him.

As a Beta trained warrior, subduing Aurelia in the middle of her rage shift was no easy task.

I silently stood there as the guards finally managed to restrain Aurelia and carry her out. Lord Bailey remained in the room.

For a brief moment, he looked unsettled, before the familiar coldness returned to his face.

"You're not special," he muttered.

There was a brief moment of silence, before he took a few steps closer to me. If it had been another noble, I would have felt uneasy and backed away.

Lord Bailey was no saint. Like the rest of them, he took omegas and slaves to his bed whenever he pleased. But strangely, I had never feared him in that way.

Placing his index finger underneath my chin, he lifted my face.

"The king is very displeased to have found you, Lyra," he whispered, shooting me an ingenuine look of sympathy.

"Don't keep your hopes up, he would reject you soon enough. He just didn't do so tonight because you were already humiliated enough."

I nodded, the pain in my heart increasing.

Lord Bailey wasn't really lying. I had seen the look of disgust in Alpha Ronan's eyes when he looked at me earlier that night.

"All you have... is me," he spat, then let his gaze travel across my face, landing on my cheek that had just suffered from his daughter's fury.

"This was an accident," he muttered gruffly. "Aurelia didn't mean to hurt you."

It should have been an apology, but his words sounded like a warning. Like he was daring me to take offense just after making it clear that no one was coming to save me -- Not even the king, who was supposedly my mate.

"Y-yes..." I whispered, my voice breaking as more tears streamed down my face.

I winced in pain as the salty liquid touched my cheek, making me wonder how badly Aurelia had hurt me.

"Good," he gently patted my other cheek. "I would make sure she never hurts you again," he promised.

But I didn't take his promise to heart. I wasn't special.

"Jocasta would come tend to your wound soon," he said, before turning and walking out.

I remained in the same position where he left me, until minutes later when madame Jo showed up with some herbs and balm to treat the wound.

I noticed how taken aback she seemed when she looked at me, and it made me worried.

"How bad is it?" I asked.

"Not too bad," she quickly shook her head, an uneasy smile on her face.

As she got busy tending to my wound, my mind was occupied with only one thing -- The face of a man with silver hair.

It was a helpless feeling.

Tears filled my eyes as I replayed everything that happened tonight, my heart breaking over and over again.

**********************

THE NEXT MORNING.

I stirred awake, my eyes resting on the wall facing my bed. The first thing that entered my mind was his face.

"Goddess," I whispered under my breath, unable to believe myself.

Ever since I had laid eyes on him yesterday, my mind was no longer mine to control.

I felt possessed, because how was he the first thing I thought about after waking up?

"Lyra."

I turned to see my roommates all standing by my bed, looks of sympathy on their faces. My closest friend, Elektra, sat next to me. I noticed the tears in her eyes, and my heart melted.

She reached out, letting her finger gently caress the side of my face that was injured.

"Goddess..." she whispered, almost inaudibly.

I released a low sigh. "It's just an injury, Elektra. It would heal with time. At least it's better than having my head squashed with an arrow."

Silence fell for some seconds, before another one of my roommates spoke.

"I can't believe the king is your mate."

She had whispered so low, it was obvious she felt scared to say it out loud. Just then, the door to our room flung open and madame Jocasta walked in.

"Everyone, to your respective duties," she ordered. "Now," she added, and they all scampered out of the room.

"Good morning, madame Jo." I quickly sprang up from my bed.

While she was the kindest superior to me and the other omegas, the woman was also disciplined and I knew better than to take her kindness for granted.

"I'm sorry I woke up late," I blurted out, almost panicking.

"That's okay," she replied softly, her eyes on my face. I knew she was looking at the injury. Just how bad was it?

"You have the day off, Lyra."

"I can manage..." I rushed out, finding a free day odd.

Omegas and slaves were hardly given a day off in Lord Bailey's residence, unless they were literally on their deathbed.

"It's okay." She nodded reassuringly. "Lord Bailey specifically asked me to give you the day off."

"He did?" I whispered in disbelief.

"Yes, he did," she replied. "You should go wash up and rest. I would send breakfast to you as soon as it is ready."

"Thank you." I gave a small bow, before she turned and walked out.

After that, I picked up my bathing things and headed for the communal bathrooms shared by the female quarters.

Reaching my preferred bathroom at the far end of the row, I hung my towel over the door and picked up a bucket before heading toward the tap fixed along the passageway.

I slid the bucket beneath it and turned the tap on. As the bucket filled, I absentmindedly caught some water in my palm and splashed it over my face out of habit.

The sting came instantly.

I sucked in a sharp breath, my hand flying to my cheek as my fingers carefully traced the injury. It was only then it occurred to me that I hadn't even seen it.

Immediately, I stepped away from the tap and hurried toward the mirror hanging at the end of the passageway.

The closer I got to the mirror, the more my heart dropped as my reflection became clearer.

Goddess...

That wasn't an injury on my face. It was... ruin. From beneath my left eye, the scar dragged down in a rough uneven line, toward my upper lip.

Tears filled my eyes as I looked at the horror my face had become.

No wonder everyone felt sorry for me.

Aurelia had turned my face into an eyesore forever.