Chapter 7

Tara’s POV

I didn’t sleep that night.

The north tower was colder than I imagined both in temperature and silence. The guards posted outside the door never spoke. They didn’t even look at me when I was escorted in. 

The room was sparsely furnished, just a thin mattress, an old wooden table, and a chair that creaked every time I moved. A small window sat high on the wall, barred and far out of reach. I couldn’t see the moon, but I knew it was still there, watching me like the goddess who abandoned me.

I curled under the blanket, arms wrapped around my ribs. The bruises still pulsed with pain, but it was nothing compared to the weight in my chest. He didn’t kill me. That should have brought relief, but it didn’t.

Because I knew Ethan’s mercy always came with strings.

I replayed the encounter over and over again his fury, the way he said I was becoming something. Dangerous, he said. But how? I hadn’t done anything. I didn’t even know how I had seen anything during the rogue attack. Just heat. Shapes. A flicker of flame inside my chest that I couldn’t explain.

Maybe the seal was breaking. Or maybe I was breaking.

The door creaked open sometime after dawn. I didn’t move.

“Get up,” a guard barked. “You’ve got a visitor.”

I blinked, pushing myself up with effort. My limbs felt heavy, sore from sleeping in one position for too long. “Visitor?” I echoed.

“Come on. Don’t make me drag you.”

I didn’t ask questions. I just followed.

They didn’t take me far just two floors down, to a smaller room near the servants’ wing. When the guard opened the door, I hesitated on the threshold.

Sitting at the edge of a cushioned bench, legs crossed and smirking like the queen she believed herself to be, was Sophia.

Or as the kingdom liked to call her now, Lady Sophia.

Her scent jasmine and smoke  hit me like a slap. Her gaze swept over me with that all-too-familiar sneer, like she was examining filth that had dared to wear silk.

“Oh,” she said sweetly, “you’re even worse up close. What happened? You look like a kicked dog.”

I said nothing.

The guard closed the door behind me.

Sophia patted the bench beside her. “Sit. Don’t worry, I won’t bite.”

I remained standing.

She rolled her eyes. “Suit yourself.”

Silence filled the room for a moment, except for the light clinking of cutlery. I just noticed there was food laid out on the small table beside her was fresh bread, steaming eggs, and fruit. My stomach growled, loudly, and I winced.

“Hungry, are we?” She asked sarcastically.

I didn’t respond.

“You know, I actually admire you… a little. You’ve managed to survive this long, despite being so…” she paused  “…unremarkable.” She picked up a piece of fruit and took a slow, exaggerated bite, eyes never leaving mine.

I clenched my fists.

“I mean,” she went on, “you’re blind. Half-dragon. Practically feral. And yet… somehow, you still have his attention.” She leaned forward, voice low. “That shouldn’t be possible.”

“He’s my mate,” I said quietly, unable to stop myself.

Her smile twisted into something cruel. “Yes. And yet he chose me.”

I flinched.

Sophia’s voice hardened. “Let’s stop pretending. We both know what this is. You’re a problem. An embarrassing little complication in a story that was meant to be about me and Ethan. I’ve worked too hard and bled too much to let someone like you ruin it.”

I looked at the floor.

She rose from the bench and walked toward me, heels clicking softly on the stone.

“But I’m not stupid,” she said. “I know killing you won’t solve anything. He’d find out. He might be angry for a minute. Or two.” She leaned close. “But if you disappeared on your own… well, that’s different.”

I turned my head away. “What are you saying?”

“I’m saying,” she said slowly, “I’m offering you an escape. Money. Guards. Safe passage far from here. You’d be free.”

I frowned. “You’re lying.”

“No,” she said. “I’m being generous. You leave, and I promise you’ll never be hunted. I’ll even sweeten the deal.”

She walked back to the table, picked up a cloth bundle, and tossed it toward my feet. I didn’t move, but I heard the soft jingle of coins inside.

“And if you go,” she said, “I’ll make sure the lycans who murdered your mother are brought to you. Bound. Broken. You’ll have your revenge. I’ll even help you do it myself.”

I stared at her.

That was low. That was too low.

“You don’t know anything about my mother,” I whispered.

“Oh, but I do,” Sophia said. “I’ve had access to records you don’t even know exist. I know what happened. I know who held the sword. I know which wolf gave the order. Don’t you want justice?”

Tears stung the corners of my eyes. My wolf whimpered in the back of my mind.

“She’s lying,” my wolf said. “She’s desperate.”

But another voice… my own actually was tempted.

Revenge.

Freedom.

No more beatings. No more cold floors. No more Ethan.

“You’d let me leave?” I asked. “Just like that?”

Sophia smiled. “Of course not. You’d leave with my guards. And they’d make sure you really left. But yes… just like that.”

I bent down slowly and picked up the bundle. It was heavier than I expected.

“I’ll think about it,” I said.

Sophia’s smile widened. “Don’t think too long.”

She turned, swaying out of the room like she already believed she’d won.

Back in the tower, I sat on the edge of my bed, the coins still in my hand.

I hated that I considered it.

I hated that a part of me, the broken part that wanted to disappear. Wanted to run. To live somewhere quiet and unknown where no one knew my name or bloodline or scars.

But I knew it wouldn’t be freedom.

Because the bond would still be there. The ache. The tether.

And I’d still wonder, every night, if he was looking for me.

If he missed me.

If he ever regretted letting me go.

I pressed the coin pouch to my chest, heart pounding. My wolf growled softly in my mind.

“We don’t run,” she said.

I wished I believed her.

Later that evening, Freya finally came to see me. She rushed in looking half-exhausted and covered in soot. The moment she saw me, she froze.

“Tara?” she said breathlessly. “Are you okay? What happened?”

“I’m fine,” I lied.

Her eyes scanned me taking in the stiff way I sat, the faint bruises on my neck.

She walked over and knelt in front of me. “Did he hurt you again?”

I looked away.

She sighed, reaching for my hand. “I hate him for what he does to you. I hate that he can just summon you and throw you away like you’re nothing.”

I squeezed her hand gently. “It’s okay, Freya.”

“No, it’s not. And it’s getting worse.”

She looked around, then lowered her voice. “Some of the guards say he hasn’t slept since the rogue attack. That he’s been snapping at everyone, punishing warriors for the smallest things. They say… he’s getting unstable.”

My heart clenched.

Unstable?

Or unraveling?

“Maybe it’s because of me,” I murmured.

Freya looked at me like I was insane. “You think this is your fault?”

“I caused it I guess.”

“He’s the Alpha King,” she interrupted. “He can control himself. He chooses not to. Don’t blame yourself for his cruelty.”

I nodded, but I didn’t believe it.

I’d seen the way his hands trembled when he touched me. The way his eyes burned when I looked at him too long. The way he kissed me like he was starving, only to push me away like I was poison.

He was losing control.

And I was the reason.

That night, I didn’t sleep again.

I lay awake, staring at the ceiling, thinking about what Sophia had said. About the offer. About my mother.

But mostly… about him.

Because even now, after everything…

I still felt the bond.

And I didn’t know how to break it.