Semua Bab The Mate Games: Bab 111 - Bab 120

ASHERIt’s been days since I ordered Althea’s family brought to the palace. I expected them to put up a fight, to argue, to plead ignorance, and that’s exactly what they did, just like I thought. Each one of them swore they didn’t know where she was. Faces pale, voices shaking, eyes darting around like scared mice. I didn’t believe a word. So I had them all locked up until I decide what to do with them. I can’t risk anything. Not now.Maybe that makes me cruel. I don’t care. This is about survival, mine, my father’s, and the entire kingdom’s. I’ll deal with feelings later.If only my head would let me think straight. Ever since that night I shifted, my skull’s felt like it’s being split open from the inside. A constant pounding that no amount of cold water or deep breaths can chase away. It’s been making me impatient, snappish. I’ve caught myself growling at servants who did nothing but step too close. At night, the pain is worse, crawling down my neck, burrowing deep into my spine. I

ASHERI jolt awake with a strangled gasp, my heart slamming against my ribs like it wants to tear itself free. My shirt sticks to my skin, drenched in sweat. It takes a full minute to remember where I am—to feel the weight of my mattress beneath me, the faint moonlight cutting across my room.Another nightmare.I drag a hand over my face, trying to slow my breathing. But the images still claw at the edges of my mind. Blood. So much blood. A little girl screaming. And me… or something that feels like me… teeth bared, hands soaked red, the world shaking underfoot.I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to force the pieces to come together. But it’s always the same. Just when it feels like I might see the full picture, it all blurs into nothing.They’ve been coming more often since I accessed my wild. At first I thought they were just dreams—my mind working out the new instincts, the sharper hunger, the restless rage. But now… now it feels different. Like they’re memories clawing their way up fr

ASHERI sit at the head of the long council table, elbows resting on the polished wood, trying to keep my face blank. The voices around me rise and fall, arguments and complaints tumbling over each other like waves against rock. I stare at a spot on the far wall, forcing myself to listen.Trade. Supply lines. Merchant guilds being robbed on the eastern road. They’ve been talking about this for hours, going back and forth about taxes and patrol routes, every word drilling deeper into my skull.My head still aches from days of little sleep and too much raw instinct simmering just under my skin. Each heartbeat throbs behind my eyes. My wolf paces inside me, restless, snarling. He doesn’t care about grain shipments or merchant complaints. He wants something else. Something I can’t even name.Across from me, Lord Darrow slams a hand on the table. “Your Majesty, if we don’t divert more soldiers to the east, the caravans will keep being picked off. The guilds are threatening to raise prices.

ASHERIt’s late. So late the halls feel like another world entirely. The torches have burned low, their flames nothing but tired flickers that throw long shadows across the marble. My boots echo on the floor, too loud in all this silence.I should be in bed. I should be resting, letting my body heal from days of tension and long councils, but sleep won’t come. Every time I close my eyes, I see her face. A face I’ve come to love and hate in eq yak measures. So I wander.I walk with no real direction, letting my feet decide where to go. The palace is a maze at night, hallways twisting back on themselves, lined with towering windows that reflect my shape in dark glass. Sometimes, just for a breath, I see icy blue eyes stare back. My wolf, restless and hungry.I rub at my chest. It feels tight tonight. Like there’s a band around my ribs that won’t let me take a full breath.Somehow, my wandering takes me to the old wing. This part of the palace doesn’t get used much anymore. The rugs are

ALTHEAIt’s finally the night.We’ve been planning it for days, another trip into the kingdom to trade for salt, bandages, bits of meat we can’t hunt ourselves. Everyone’s on edge, half-whispering plans under their breath, checking weapons twice over. It’s risky every time we slip past Asher’s patrols, but we’re desperate. We always are.Jarek catches my eye across the clearing. Gives a small nod. My stomach flips. I pull my cloak tighter around me, trying not to look like I’m shaking.Theo gathers us all together before we head out, his voice low. “Pairs tonight. Keep to your assignments. In and out quick, no heroics. Jarek, you take Althea.”I keep my face neutral. Inside, relief loosens my ribs. I don’t think I could’ve managed this with anyone else.When we’re finally moving, boots crunching quietly over brittle grass, Jarek drops back to walk beside me. “Stay close,” he murmurs.“I will.”We slip into the darkness beyond the last tents. The others start splitting off at different