Chapter 108
Thorne’s POV
I stood by the door, the weight of every set of eyes in the room pressing down on me. Litea was a few steps behind her presence just as fierce as mine, I could feel the tension in the air like a live wire, sparking with every unspoken threat
Then, just as the silence thickened, Thome stood. He hadn’t moved an inch until now, but the moment he rose, could feel his power radite. He took a step toward me, a hand stretched out in my direction with a warm, inviting smile,
A part of me hesitated. But as his hand wrapped around mine, all the walls I’d built up melted away, and I allowed myself to sit beside him, Under the tablecloth, his fingers brushed against mine, offering comfort in this hostileden.
“Fabulous,” Lance’s voice rang out, sharp and triumphant, shattering the fragile peace.
He stood, beaming like a cat who’d just caught a bird, “Ladies and gentlemen, we have two very special guests today. And I don’t think I need to introduce them, do 11 His eyes flicked to Thorne and me, amusement dancing behind them.
The room fell into an eerie silence. No one dared speak, but their glares felt like daggers.
A lanky man shot to his feet, the words spilling out like venom. “My King!“. His voice boomed across the hall. The man was long–faced, his features sharp and cold, like a predator sizing up its prey. “These two–these people–they are our enemies. Why the hell are you serving them wine? why the hell are you being nice to them?”
A murmur of agreement rippled through the room, the hostile eyes never leaving in.
Lance just smiled. “Alpha Thorne, moet my Great General, Danton. And his foster son, Andre. He gestured lazily at the young man sitting beside Danton.. Andre, barely eighteen, sipped his wine, completely uninterested in the spectacle unfolding before him.
Thorne’s voice was cool, calm: “No need for introductions. We’ve crossed paths before, haven’t we, Danton? I remember you. You were the one who lost half your men to me. How many do you have left, by the way? You still got enough to form a decent army?”
Danton’s jaw clenched, the fury practically radiating off him. He slammed a fist onto the table, rattling the glassware. “Don’t get too cocky, Thorne,” he snarled, his voice dripping with malice, “You’re in our hands now. Don’t think for a second you’re safe. I could skin you alive if i wanted to.”
A dark chockle escaped Thorne’s lips. “Ambitious. But tell me, Danton… does your competence match your ambition? How about a little test?” Thorne’s eyes gleamed. “One on one. Just you and me, right here.”
Danton froze. The bravado drained from his face as he took a step back, his chair scraping against the floor. “W–Wait…one on one?”
Thome’s knuckles cracked as his hands clenched. “That’s right. You and me, Right here. Right now.”
The air around us seemed to thicken, the tension palpable. Danton stumbled again, his eyes darting toward the soldiers in the room. “I don’t need to fight you,” he stammered, his voice rising with false bravado.
“Oh, don’t you?” Elara scoffed from beside me, her voice biting her eyes never leaving Danton, “Or are you just too scared?”
Danton’s face flushed, a mix of rage and humiliation twisting his features. He looked like he might explode. “Enough” he spat
Lance, who had been sitting back quietly, finally slammed his fork onto his plate, sending a sharp clatter echoing across the room. “Silence” His voice, sharp as a whip, brought the chaos to an abrupt halt. “There will be no fighting. I’ve invited these two as guests,” Lance continued, his voice unyielding. “Everyone will treat them with respect. Is that understood?”
Kimberly, who had been lounging beside Lance, coiled a strand of her crimson hair around her finger, a playful smile dancing on her lips. “And we’re not even allowed to know why, Lance?” she purred, her voice honeyed and sof
Lance leaned over, his lips brushing against her hand. “You’ll get your answers soon, my love,” he murmured, a smirk playing on his face. “But not this one. Not yet
Chapter 108
Kimberly glazed, her eyes sparkling with mischiel. “Such a bease,”
But Elara wasn’t having it. “We demand to know why” Her voice was cold, slicing through the air like a knife. Her eyes locked onto Lance’s think you’re planning something dark here, Lance,” she said, her voice filled with icy certainty. “And you need to give it up. Because, belie stop you before you can even think about succeeding in whatever you’re plotting.”
Casps filled the room. Banton, his eyes wide with disbelief, sputtered, “My King! You heard them! They’re threatening your His voice cracked with a mixture of fear and anger. “Are you really going to let them sit here?”
The room buzzed with nervous whispers. The panic was palpable, but Lance, ever calm, didn’t flinch. Ho simply leaned back in his chalk, his smile wavering.
“Gamma Elara,” Lance sighed, as if weary of her accusations, “why do you always have to think of me as the villain! Can’t I just want to befriends with you?”
Elara’s eyes narrowed, her voice a low growl. “You’re a murderer, Lance. You killed my friends. We will never be friends” Her hand hovered over her knife, thing it slightly from the table, making the room tense with fear.
Someone gasped. “She’s going to attack
Elara’s voice was cold as ice, deadly in its precision. “We don’t know what kind of sick game you’re playing here, but mark my words…we will find a way to kill you if it comes to that. And if we can’t, we’ll bring an army here. We’ll burn this place to the ground.” Her eyes bored into his “By the time your men are dead, can you still call yourself a king?”
Aman jumped from his seat, a panicked expression on his face. “We should stop them now!” he shouted.
But Lance simply waved his hand, as if dismissing them all “Calm down,” he said with a devilish smile. “Gamma Elara and Alpha Thorne can’t leave this city. His words hung in the air, thick with menace. “They’re trapped.”
Elara’s heart skipped. “What the hell do you mean we can’t leave?” she demanded, her voice shaking with a mix of confusion and fear
Lance smiled like a cat with a mouse in its paw. “Did you forget something, Elara?” He asked, his voice dripping with amusement. “Remember the snacks that Prisca gave you before you left Cragen Fortress?”
Elara’s eyes widened as everything clicked into place. The snacks. She’d trusted Prisca–too much. Miela, always close to Prisca, must’ve been involved They hadn’t even checked them.
“What did you put in those snacks?” Elara’s voice came out hoarse, barely a whisper.
Lance raised his glass, as if toasting her “Rogue’s blood,” he said, as casually as one might say “wine.”
Elara and Thorne exchanged a quick, knowing glanced. The realization hit them both like a punch to the gut
“What does it do?” Thome asked, his voice dark.
Lance’s grin only i grew wider. “Oh, a lot of things” he said. “With our blood in your system, you’re bound to this city. You can’t leave. You can’t shit.”
Elara’s fingers tightened around her knife, but her fury only grew. Lance’s casual cruelty was beyond anything she had imagined.
“Don’t look at me like that,” Lance sighed, as if disappointed in her. “I just want to spend more time with you, Elara, Be friends” His grin stretched wider, almost predatory, “In fact, I even prepared a little tertainment for you.”
Before she could react, the doors swung open, and a massive cage was wheeled in, inside, si men–rogues–and a wom huddled together. The woman was shrieking, toying to evade the men, her eyes wild with terror
Elara’s stomach turned. “What the hell are you doing?” she snarled, her fury rising
ely older than a child,
Lance laughed, a dark, twisted sound. “These men are desperate, in need of a woman. Why don’t we place our bets, and see how long it takes for them to catch her!”
Chapter 109
– bet ten minutes,” Danton called out.
“Five,” another rogue yelled.
Elara’s hands shook with age. Without thinking, she rushed toward the cape, her hemt pounding. She grabbed the bars, but the inch was i unmovable
“Give it up, Elara,” Lance’s voice rang out, casual and mocking. “Only I have the key”
The woman’s cries filled the rooms as one of the rogues lunged at her. Just then, a knife flow through the air, striking him in the temple. Blood spraye everywhere as his head exploded in a bloody mess
Thome lowered his hand, his face cold as store. “Back the hell away from her,” he hissed.
And in that moment, it was clear whatever Lance had planned, it wasn’t going to go his way,
