The silence was a living thing. It was heavy, suffocating, and absolute.Ares’s words, "I believe this belongs to you," echoed in the dead air, a casual, brutal line drawn in the sand. He was still smiling, his hand a possessive, cold weight on my good shoulder.Every eye at the party was locked on us. I saw Raymond, my… father… his face pale, his eyes wide, flickering between me and the impossibly powerful man beside me. He looked utterly lost.“I… I don't understand,” Raymond finally stammered, his voice thin. He took a half-step forward, his hands spread in a gesture of placation. “What is the meaning of this? Yara, what happened?”Ares chuckled, a low, condescending sound. “She didn't do this to herself, Elder.” He gave my shoulder a little shake, and I had to bite back a scream as the movement sent a fresh explosion of agony down my back. “I found her in your woods, being hunted by three of your guards. This,” he gestured to my bloody, broken body with a wave of his free han
Last Updated : 2025-10-28 Read more