FAZER LOGINEllian P.O.V"He did that to me," I whispered. The words tasted like ash and blood in my mouth. "The King.""I know," Kaelen answered softly. His jaw tightened, a muscle feathering in his cheek. "No one survives the silver mines with a smooth back. But those scars... they are not from a regular guard's whip. A guard strikes to break the skin. An Alpha strikes to break the soul. I know a Warlord’s work when I see it."He slowly moved his hand from my knee and rested it flat on the dirt between us, palm up. An open invitation. A safe space."Tell me," Kaelen urged gently. "If you carry the weight of it alone in the dark, it will eventually crush you. Tell me what he did to you."For a long moment, I just stared at his open hand.No one had ever asked me for the truth. Cillian had demanded it. Selene had twisted it. The kingdom had ignored it. But this feral, scarred rogue Alpha sitting in the dirt simply wanted to listen.I took a deep, shaky breath, letting my head fall back against the
[Elian’s POV]My hand was still resting on Kaelen’s. The heavy, emotionally exhausted silence between us stretched on for a long time after he told me about his past. My heart ached for him. For the first time since the guards dragged me out of the Blackwood courtyard, I felt like I was not entirely alone in the world.I pulled my hand back slowly, shivering as a sudden draft of freezing air hit my exposed arms."I need to check the wound," I whispered. My voice was raspy and completely dry. "The bitter moss only slows the bleeding. The silver from the sword... it burns deep. If the moss has turned black, I have to replace it."Kaelen let out a low, rough breath. His massive, heavily scarred chest rose and fell slowly. He looked incredibly pale in the firelight, the dark veins of silver poison still faintly visible near his neck, but his golden eyes were completely lucid."Do it," Kaelen grunted, his voice tight with pain.I crawled closer to him on the hard dirt floor. My own body was
[Cillian’s POV]The absolute silence inside my study was heavy and entirely cold.I stood perfectly still in front of the unlit stone fireplace. The dark steel of my battle armor felt like solid ice against my broad chest. My mind was racing, entirely consumed by the memory of the courtyard. The pieces of the puzzle were shifting in my head, and none of them fit together.I needed answers.The heavy metal lock on my study clicked loudly. The thick oak doors were shoved open, slamming against the stone walls.My two hardened Royal Guards stepped into the room, shoving Selene forward.She stumbled slightly, her bare feet hitting the cold stone, but she did not fall. She caught her balance instantly. She ripped her arm out of the guard’s heavy leather grip, her eyes flashing with absolute, terrifying fury. She was not a weeping victim. She was a deeply insulted, powerful Lycan Princess."Do not put your filthy hands on me!" Selene hissed, glaring at the Lycan soldier with pure venom.She
[Selene’s POV]The royal suite was completely suffocating with the thick, sweet smell of warm rose oil.I sat comfortably in front of my massive gold vanity mirror, staring at my perfect reflection. A massive fire roared in the stone hearth. Two of my own personal guards stood at perfect attention by the heavy oak doors, their polished silver armor shining brightly in the firelight.I smiled, letting out a long, happy, triumphant sigh.I had won. Everything was perfectly mine.I picked up a tiny glass jar of expensive face cream, but my mind was miles away. The Warlord King was currently drinking himself into a useless, pathetic stupor in the dark, still mourning his lost, broken slave. Good. Let him bleed.My fingers gently traced the cold gold of my heavy necklace. My plan was perfect. Cillian was already dead inside, and soon, he would be dead in reality, too. The only thing standing between me and complete ownership of this entire Lycan Kingdom was one person: Prince Lorcan, Cilli
[Cillian’s POV]The absolute silence inside my study was heavy and cold.I stood perfectly still in front of the massive, unlit stone fireplace. The heavy, dark steel of my battle armor felt like solid ice against my chest. My hands were clasped tightly behind my back. My golden Alpha eyes were locked entirely on the heavy oak doors.I was not a drunk, broken man anymore. My mind was completely sharp. I was a hunter, and I was patiently waiting for my prey.The sound of heavy, armored boots echoed loudly in the stone hallway.The thick metal handle turned, and the heavy oak doors were pushed wide open. My two Royal Guards stepped into the room. Standing directly between them was Martha, the old kitchen cook.She looked absolutely terrified. Her gray hair was messy, and her thin hands were gripping the dirty fabric of her white apron so hard her knuckles were completely white. The moment her eyes found my massive, armored body in the dark room, her knees completely gave out.She dropped
He looked closely at my small, shaking hands. He saw the dark, dried blood completely covering my skin to my elbows. He looked at the massive puddle of blood on the floor between us.The bright, violent red light in his eyes slowly faded completely away. His inner beast settled down deep inside his mind, realizing the danger was finally gone. His eyes turned back into a deep, exhausted human brown."You did not run," Kaelen stated. His voice was incredibly rough, dry, and weak. It sounded like heavy boots walking on broken glass.I swallowed hard. "I... I could not.""The path was entirely open," he rasped, coughing weakly. "The guards were gone. You could have hidden in the deep tunnels. Why did you stay in the blood?"I looked down at my dirty, blood-stained fingers. "You did not move," I whispered softly. "When the fat man swung the silver sword... you stayed perfectly still. You took the sharp blade so it would not hit me behind you."I looked back up and met his exhausted brown e







