Accused

Chapter Six

Her POV

Immediately Rowan left the room, it went quiet m, but it seems the silence made my thought worse, I really can’t just stop thinking.

I stayed standing beside the bed for a long time, staring at nothing while my mind refused to settle. tried to calm myself, but the tightness in my chest refused to ease.

Everything since arriving at the Crown Enforcer yard kept replaying in my mind. Dante. The punishment, the ointmentRowan carrying me here himself, I can’t actually think straight because none of it made sense.

Slowly, I looked around the room again.The new room, even though I was to be very happy and glad about it, but my mind can’t keep calm. This room was different from the others and somehow, that frightened me more.

Because life had taught me something very early, nothing good ever came without a price attached to it, nothing is actually free, not even in a place like this, not even from him, Rowan . I swallowed hard before walking toward the mirror hanging beside the wall.The girl staring back at me barely looked like herself.

My face still looked drained from exhaustion, my lips pale, my eyes swollen from crying too much. Faint bruises still marked parts of my skin despite the treatment Rowan had given me earlier.

I quickly lowered my hand, irritated with myself for even thinking about it.

Then… A knock on the door. I jumped so badly my shoulder hit the edge of the table beside me, I was so scared

For one foolish second, I thought Rowan had come back, but when the door slowly opened, it was not him. It was her, the woman from earlier. Lara.

She stepped inside without hesitation, moving with the kind of confidence that made it seem like the Crown Enforcer yard and even my room belonged to her.

She was beautiful in a way that was hard to ignore.

Dark hair fell neatly over her shoulders, smooth and perfect, and the fitted dress she wore only made her look even more elegant. Everything about her looked polished. Controlled.

Her expression looked calm, but her eyes unsettled me immediately. They looked like the kind that could smile without warmth

She closed the door quietly behind her, then she locked it, the click echoed loudly inside the room.

My stomach twisted, and before I realized it, I had already stepped back.

Her gaze caught the movement at once.

A small smile appeared on her lips, but it did not reach her eyes.

“So,” she said softly while glancing around the room, “the rumors are true.”

I swallowed carefully.“I don’t know what you mean.”

She ignored my answer and walked farther inside, her fingers trailing across the table beside her. Her eyes moved slowly around the room like she was inspecting something unpleasant.

Then she looked back at me.

“Do you know how long I’ve lived in this pack or how long I have been with Rowan?”

I shook my head quietly.“No.”

“Five years.” There was something sharp beneath her calm voice.

“In all those years, Rowan has never given anyone a private room.”

My throat got tightened.“I didn’t ask for it,” I said quickly.

Lara let out a soft laugh under her breath.“That’s exactly why I am here, to give you a soft warning, to let you know”

Her heels clicked softly against the floor as she walked closer.

“You arrived barely a day ago, yet somehow Rowan already brought you here himself.”

I opened my mouth, then closed it again because I truly had no explanation.

Nothing about this situation made sense to me either.

“I don’t know why he did it I actually didn’t know, I am just..,” I admitted quietly.

Lara stopped directly in front of me, and now he was too close.

I could smell the faint perfume on her skin.

She tilted her head slightly while studying my face.“You expect me to believe that, you expect me to believe everything you said now”

I lowered my eyes immediately.“No. I… I”

“Good.”The single word came out smooth and cold.

For a moment, silence filled the room.Then she spoke again. “Just like two days, I have heard from servants, I have heard from maids, how he had treated you specially, it seems you are really that good in bed for him to give you promotion”

My fingers tightened around the fabric of my dress.

I already knew it could not be anything good.

“And I won’t tolerate anyone to occupied my space, I won’t allow him to like anyone, to give anyone attention or to care about anyone”

I was confused “No,” I said immediately. “That’s not true.”

Lara stared at me for a long second before suddenly grabbing my chin and forcing my face upward.

I was shocked .“Look at me when I’m speaking to you.”

Fear shot through me instantly.“I’m sorry,” I whispered.

Her grip tightened slightly.“You should be.”

My breathing became uneven.

I hated this feeling, I hated how easily she made me got scared.

Lara looked into my eyes for several seconds before finally releasing me.

“You really are pathetic,” she said flatly.

The words hit harder than they should have, not because I had never heard insults before, I had, so many times.

But something about the way she said it made it feel worse, like she truly believed I was nothing.

“I’ve seen girls like you before,” she continued calmly. “Quiet. Fragile. Always looking for someone stronger to save them.”

I shook my head weakly.“That’s not me.”

“No?” she asked with mock amusement. “Then explain why Rowan suddenly cares.”

“I never said he cared.”

The answer slipped out before I could stop myself, for the first time, Lara looked slightly surprised.

Only for a second, then her expression hardened again.

“You think you are different from others, smarter than others,” she murmured.

I stayed silent, because speaking felt dangerous now.

Lara crossed her arms slowly.“You still don’t understand this place yet, do you?”

A chill crept through me.“Girls like you don’t survive long here.”

Something inside me tightened.“Especially when Rowan notices them.”

My lips parted slightly, but no sound came out, because deep inside…

That thought had already been haunting me too.Lara stepped closer again until her voice dropped lower.“I want you gone before next week.”

My eyes widened.“What?”

“You heard me.”Fear immediately wrapped around my chest.

“I have nowhere else to go,” I admitted quietly.

“And that is supposed to matter to me?”

My eyes burned painfully.

Lara watched me carefully, almost like she enjoyed seeing me struggle.

“You can cry later if you want,” she said. “But listen carefully while I’m still being polite.”

The word polite made my stomach turn.

“I’m not trying to cause problems,” I whispered desperately.

Her expression sharpened immediately. “Then leave… I, his fiancée doesn’t want you here!”

There was a pause at first, just then, she continued..“I said leave this pack before next week,” she repeated slowly. “If you stay…”

She leaned closer, her voice dropping near my ear.“You will regret it.”

A shiver ran through my entire body, but because she shouted but because she didn’t.

Everything about her calmness felt dangerous.

She sounded like someone who knew exactly how to scare people without raising her voice.

I forced myself not to cry in front of her, but I could already feel tears gathering in my eyes.

Lara noticed, of course she did.People like her always noticed weakness, she stared at me for another moment before finally stepping away and walking toward the door.

My body remained frozen where I stood, the she stopped with her hand resting on the handle.

“One last thing.”I swallowed nervously.

Still, she did not turn around.

“Do not mistake Rowan’s attention for protection.”

Her voice remained but somehow that made it worse.

“Sometimes the people who notice you the most are the same ones who destroy you.”Then she unlocked the door and walked out.

Just like that, the room fell silent again, but this time, the silence felt heavier.

I stood there shaking, staring at the closed door while her words repeated endlessly inside my head.

And for the first time since arriving at the pack…I truly felt trapped.