Chapter 28 Chapter 28

Chapter 28 Chapter 28
Ashley
It had been three days since I was thrown into the dark room. The space was small and suffocating, with no light at all. There were no windows, no cracks, nothing that could let in air or even the faintest glow. The darkness pressed against me, making it hard to tell if it was day or night.
I wasn’t allowed to leave the room for anything. In one corner, there was a toilet, and even that made things worse. The smell in the room was unbearable, especially for me in my condition. Being pregnant made everything more difficult—my body felt weaker, more sensitive, and constantly uncomfortable.
The food they gave me was barely enough. Each time, it was so little it couldn’t even fill a child, let alone someone like me who needed strength. Hunger twisted painfully in my stomach, but I had no choice except to eat whatever they brought.
I spent most of the time sitting on the cold floor, my back against the wall, thinking about my life. Tears had once come easily, but now my eyes felt dry and tired, as if they had nothing left to give. Losing my parents had already broken me, but everything that came after only made the pain worse.
I missed them deeply. If I could bring them back, I would do anything. The thought of them filled my chest with both love and anger that they were gone, and anger at the king, who I blamed for everything. That anger burned quietly inside me, growing stronger each day.
Gerald’s betrayal had hurt more than I thought possible. I had trusted him, believed in him. But even that pain felt smaller compared to what my friend had done. Someone I cared about, someone I helped, had sold me out without hesitation. That cut deeper than anything else.I had no strength left to cry, only silence remained.
Suddenly, the door opened, a figure stepped inside, but I couldn’t see his face clearly in the darkness. Still, I knew it was one of the guards. His movements were confident, as if the darkness didn’t affect him at all.
He walked straight toward me without saying a word. Before I could react, he grabbed my arm and pulled me to my feet. “Probably your last day on earth,” he said.
His words should have filled me with fear, but instead, I felt something else, acceptance. I had already imagined this moment many times. There would be no justice, no revenge for my parents. Just an end, like them accused and executed.
He dragged me out of the room and through the hallway. The sudden change from darkness to light made my eyes sting, but I didn’t complain.
When we reached the main area, he threw me down roughly. I landed hard on the ground in front of Abel, like I was nothing more than an object. I had made a promise to myself, I would not beg again. Begging had never helped me before, and it wouldn’t start now.
Slowly, I lifted my head and looked at him. Our eyes met, and I held his gaze. I refused to look away, no matter how much he hated me. He stepped closer and crouched in front of me. His expression was cold, unreadable.
“I don’t know what you did,” he said quietly, “or what plan you think you have but you are not going to last.”
His words confused me, I frowned slightly, trying to understand what he meant. “What do you mean?” I asked.
“Pretend all you want,” he said coldly. “I will make sure I end you myself.” He straightened up and stepped away from me.
I stayed on the ground, staring at him in confusion. His words didn’t make sense. If I was already going to die, why was he still threatening me? What more did he want from me?
“Leave her here in the cold for an hour before taking her back to her room,” he ordered the guards.Then he looked down at me one last time. “Maybe you’ll freeze to death before then.”
With that, he turned and walked away without looking back. The guards didn’t say anything. They simply stepped aside, leaving me where I was.
I was still wearing the thin gown they had left me in, and it did nothing to protect me. The ground beneath me was freezing, and the air felt sharp against my skin. My body began to tremble uncontrollably. I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to hold in whatever warmth I had left, but it wasn’t enough.
Time passed slowly, painfully. I didn’t know how long I had been sitting there when I heard footsteps approaching. I lifted my head weakly.
Ethonian stood in front of me, there was a smug smile on her face, like she was enjoying every second of this.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk,” she clicked her tongue. “Look at you, the so-called savior of the people.” She took a step closer, her eyes scanning me from head to toe. “You look completely broken,” she continued. “It must be hard, knowing your death is so close and there’s nothing you can do to stop it.”
Her words stung, but I forced myself to speak. “What did I ever do to you?” I asked quietly. “I thought you were my friend. I never treated you badly. I never judged you, even when everyone else did.”
She laughed. “That’s exactly the problem,” she said. “At least those people were honest about how they saw me. But you…” She shook her head. “You hide behind your fake kindness. Your little savior act.”
I frowned slightly, not understanding what she meant.
“Oh, Ethonian, I’m going to save you,” she said, imitating my voice. “Oh, Ethonian, ignore them, you’re not a whore. Oh, Ethonian this, Ethonian that…” She rolled her eyes. “All of that was fake. Just something you did to make yourself feel better.”
Her words hit harder than I expected. Before I could respond, she continued. “When I came to you that night at the pack about becoming the king’s whore,” she said, watching my reaction closely, “did you really think I was doing that for you?”
My eyes widened in shock, she shook her head slowly. “I was trying to get closer to the king,” she admitted. “I wanted his attention. His favor.”
Her expression darkened. “But then your foolish husband stepped in and offered you instead,” she added bitterly. “You ruined everything for me.”
“Everything I ever did for you was because I liked and respected you,” I said firmly. “Not because of any hero complex. But you’re too bitter to see that.”
Now I understood why the others in the pack never got along with her. I had always thought they were just being cruel, but I was wrong. “Do you really think that even if the king had been with you that night, it would have changed anything?” I continued. “He wouldn’t even remember you the next moment. They call him the mad king for a reason.”
She rolled her eyes, clearly annoyed. “And yet,” she said, crossing her arms, “he went all the way to another pack, captured you, brought you here, and made you his mistress.” She scoffed. “Do I look like a fool to you?”
Her voice grew sharper. “That night was my chance,” she said. “And when I heard he was choosing another mistress, I worked hard to be noticed. I did everything I could and then you showed up again and ruined it for me.”
Her words made everything clear. All this time, she had been pretending to help me, pretending to be my friend while planning against me.
“I never asked to be chosen,” I replied, my voice filled with anger. “It’s people like you who are desperate for titles like that. I am not a whore like you. I will never be.”
Her expression darkened immediately. “Oh really?” she snapped. “You call yourself better than me?”
Before I could react, she stepped forward and slapped me hard across the face. The force sent my head to the side. Pain spread instantly, and I held my cheek, trying to steady myself.
“Not a whore, huh?” she said mockingly.
One of the guards quickly approached us. “What’s going on here?” he demanded.
Ethonian didn’t hesitate. “She needs to learn some manners before she dies,” she said smoothly, a satisfied smile on her face.
Then she leaned closer to me, her voice dropping to a whisper. “I’m going to enjoy watching you die.”
She stepped back, still smiling.
Another guard walked in just then. He looked at the first guard and gestured. “Take her back to her room.”
The first guard nodded and grabbed my arm, pulling me up roughly. My body felt weak and heavy, but I didn’t resist as he began dragging me away.
We had only taken a few steps when the second guard’s voice rang out again. “I said take her back to her room, not the basement.”
My eyes widened in shock, Ethonian’s smile disappeared instantly. “What do you mean by that?” she asked, her voice no longer confident.