The punishment

Mariana’s POV

The maid’s silence stretched across the corridor, becoming heavier with every passing second. I could hear my own uneven breathing as I stared at her, silently begging her to tell the truth. She had been there. She had seen everything. Surely she couldn’t stand there and allow Wren to get away with this.

My father stepped toward her, his face twisted with impatience. “What is it?” he demanded, his voice echoing through the corridor. “Who did this to Wren?”

The maid flinched.

Her eyes moved nervously between my father and Wren before finally settling on me. I watched her swallow hard, her entire body trembling as though she already knew what would happen regardless of the answer she gave. Then, in a barely audible voice, she said, “It was the young lady.”

For a moment, I couldn’t understand what she meant.

Then Wren’s lips curved into the smallest smile,It was barely there, hidden from everyone else, but I saw it.

My heart dropped.

“What?” I whispered, staring at the maid in disbelief. “No. I didn’t do anything. I didn’t—” Another slap came before I could finish.

Master Graham stared at the maid for a long moment, then slowly turned his eyes toward me. For a brief second, I saw something I wasn’t expecting in his expression—pity. It was quickly replaced by disappointment, his brows drawing together as his chest rose and fell heavily. He looked at me as though he was searching my face for an explanation, perhaps hoping I would deny it in a way that made sense.

“Mariana,” he finally said, his voice low and strained.

I opened my mouth, desperate to tell him I hadn’t touched Wren, but before I could get the words out, a sharp, heavy slap struck across my cheek. My head snapped to the side, and the entire room went silent. I stood frozen, one hand slowly rising to my burning cheek as tears gathered in my eyes.

My father’s hand struck the side of my face so hard that my head snapped sideways, and a sharp ringing filled my ears.

Whispers immediately erupted among the guests.

“She really attacked her own sister?”

“How wicked.”

“And on her birthday too…”

“Perhaps Nicholas was right to choose Wren.”

“Mariana was never a suitable match for such a powerful alpha.”

I stood there listening to every word, my chest tightening with each whisper. My wolf was crying inside me, restless and wounded by the rejection of the very people who were supposed to protect us. I wanted to scream that none of it was true, that Wren had done this deliberately, that I had never touched her.

Master Graham’s breathing remained heavy as he looked at me. “I have been too lenient with you,” he said, his voice carrying through the room. “Perhaps that is why you have grown to believe you can treat your own sister with such cruelty and still stand before this family without consequence. Wren is your sister, Mariana. Whatever resentment you carry toward her, whatever disagreement exists between you, you do not humiliate her or lay your hands on her.” His jaw tightened as he glanced around at the people watching us. “I will not stand here and watch my daughter disgrace the Graham name. I have tolerated enough whispers about your behavior, but I will not allow you to drag this family into the ground because you cannot control your temper.” He looked back at me, disappointment settling heavily across his face. “You will learn that there are consequences to your actions, whether you believe you deserve them or not.”

He turned toward the guards. “Take her to the dungeon.”

My eyes widened. “Father, please.”

“She needs to learn that there are consequences for her behavior. Look at what she has done to her innocent sister.”

“I’m not guilty!” I cried, stepping toward him. “Please, you have to believe me. I didn’t hurt Wren.”

He didn’t even look at me.

The guards seized my arms.

“Please!” I struggled against them, my voice breaking as they dragged me away. “Father, please listen to me!”

Nobody came after me.

Nobody stopped them.

The last thing I saw before they pulled me from the corridor was Wren standing beside Nicholas, one hand pressed delicately against her injured palm while the other rested against his arm.

And she was smiling.

The dungeon was cold.

It always was.

I had spent enough time there throughout my childhood to know every crack in the stone walls and every rusted bar across the entrance. My father had always considered the dungeon an appropriate place to send me whenever I displeased him, and tonight, on the night I had believed would change my life forever, I found myself sitting on its cold floor once again.

The irony almost made me laugh.

Instead, I cried.

I cried until my eyes burned and my throat became sore. I cried because Nicholas had chosen Wren. I cried because my father had believed her without hesitation, the mating year I had waited so desperately for had become the worst night of my life.

Most of all, I cried because a part of me had still believed that my family loved me.

That belief was dying slowly.

I curled my knees against my chest and buried my face in my arms. My wolf whimpered softly inside me, mirroring the ache in my chest. I could still feel the sting of my father’s slap, but somehow, the pain in my heart was worse.

“Happy birthday, Mariana,” I whispered bitterly to myself.

The words sounded pathetic in the darkness.

The night passed without anyone coming for me.

Neither my father nor my stepmother appeared. Nicholas didn’t come. Wren certainly didn’t come.

Only the guards came occasionally to push a tray of food and water through the small opening in the door.

And then they left.

Two days passed.

Two days of darkness, silence, and loneliness.

By the second evening, I had stopped expecting anyone to come.

Then I heard footsteps,they weren’t the heavy footsteps of the guards.

These were lighter.

My body immediately tensed.

I pushed myself upright and stared toward the entrance, wondering who could possibly be coming to see me. The footsteps grew closer until a familiar voice floated through the darkness.

“Mariana?”

My eyes widened.

“Clarissa?”

A moment later, her face appeared beyond the bars.

“Oh, goddess.” Her voice broke when she saw me.

The door opened, and Clarissa rushed inside. The moment she reached me, she stopped, staring at my appearance with tears filling her eyes. My makeup was completely ruined, my mascara had streaked down my cheeks, and my dress was still stained.

“What happened to you?” she whispered.

I shook my head as tears returned to my eyes.

“Everyone has been asking about you,” she said, kneeling beside me. “I tried to find you at the party, but everyone kept avoiding my questions. Nobody would tell me where you were. I knew there was only one place your father would put you.”

I couldn’t hold myself together anymore.

I threw my arms around her.

“I hate this place,” I sobbed into her shoulder. “Clarissa, I want to leave. I can’t stay here anymore.”

“I know.” She held me tightly, rubbing my back. “That’s why I’m here.”

I pulled away and looked at her through my tears.

“What?”

“I’ve already figured out the guards’ movements. Your father is in a meeting right now, and the back entrance isn’t being watched as closely.” She pulled a small set of keys from beneath her cloak. “We’re getting you out.”

For the first time in two days, something resembling hope flickered inside me.

“You’re serious?”

“Very.” She smiled faintly. “Come on. Before I lose my courage.”

Within minutes, we were moving through the dark corridors, keeping our footsteps as quiet as possible. Clarissa knew the mansion better than almost anyone, and she guided me through a narrow passage that eventually led toward the back entrance.

My heart hammered as we stepped outside.

Freedom was only a few more steps away.

Then something made me stop.

I turned around.

Through the glass doors of the mansion, I saw Wren standing in the corridor.

She was watching me

My stomach dropped.

“Clarissa,” I whispered.

She followed my gaze. “Don’t look back…just run”

“But she saw us.”

“Then run faster. We don’t have much time.”

We barely made it a few more steps before several guards appeared from different directions.

“No!” Clarissa shouted.

One of them shoved her aside while two others grabbed me.

“Let me go!” I screamed, struggling desperately against their grip. “Clarissa!”

They dragged me back toward the mansion.

By the time I was brought before my father, I was exhausted, disheveled, and covered in dirt from the struggle.

He looked at me with pure disappointment.

“So,” he said coldly, “you are not satisfied with disgracing this family once. Now you’re attempting to escape punishment.”

I looked around the room.

The atmosphere was different from the birthday celebration. Several unfamiliar men stood around the large table, dressed in the colors of Frostcrest. My father was clearly in the middle of an important meeting.

Nicholas was there too.

And Wren.

She looked perfectly composed.

My father’s eyes moved over my appearance. “Why can’t you be more like your sister?”

I said nothing.

“Look at you,” he continued. “You are a disgrace to the Graham name. Wren has shown you nothing but kindness, and this is how you repay her?”

Wren immediately lowered her eyes. “Father, please. Don’t punish her anymore.”

I almost laughed.

She sounded so sincere that anyone who didn’t know her would have believed every word.

“She is only acting this way because she’s hurt,” Wren continued softly. “I know she doesn’t like me, and perhaps she’s jealous, but she’s still my sister. I don’t want anything bad to happen to her.”

The room filled with murmurs.

Nicholas sighed. “Mariana, just apologize to Wren. You’ve already caused enough trouble. If you admit what you did and apologize, perhaps your father will forgive you.”

I looked directly into his eyes.

The man I had loved

The man who had replaced me with Wren without even looking back.

“No.”

His brows furrowed. “What?”

“I said no.”

Wren’s expression became wounded again. “Mariana…”

“Stop pretending,” I snapped. “You don’t need to stand there acting as though you care about me.”

Several people exchanged uncomfortable glances.

My father stepped forward. “You will apologize.”

“No.”

My voice was steadier this time.

“What is the worst you can do?” I asked, staring at him. “Send me back to the dungeon? I’ve spent most of my life there anyway.”

His jaw tightened.

I swallowed hard, but I refused to look away.

“Or perhaps you could treat me the way you treated my mother before she died.”

The entire room went silent.

I watched something change in my father’s face.

Anger.

Pure, uncontrollable anger.

For a moment, I thought he was going to hit me again

Then he smiled.

It was not a kind smile.

“You know what?” he said quietly. “Perhaps you’re right. The dungeon isn’t much of a punishment anymore. You’ve become far too familiar with it.”

I stared at him cautiously.

He reached toward the documents spread across the table and picked up a single sheet.

“I have a better punishment for you.”

My heart began to pound.

He looked toward the Frostcrest representatives before returning his gaze to me.

“You see, I have a debt to pay to the Frostcrest Empire.”

I frowned. “What does that have to do with me?”

He smiled coldly.

“My dear daughter. This isn’t about money.”

My blood ran cold.

“Then what is it about?”

He placed the paper back on the table.

“You are going to pay the debt.”

I stared at him, completely confused. “How? If you don’t have enough money to pay them, what makes you think I have any?”

A strange silence filled the room.

Then my father spoke the words that would change my life forever.

“You’re going to marry the Frostcrest warlord.”

The room erupted in shocked gasps.

I stopped breathing.

“The warlord?” I whispered.

My father’s eyes remained fixed on mine.

“Zayan Alastor.”