Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

Magnus POV

I held Zara's shoulders firmly, my grip steady despite the war raging inside me. Her eyes were guarded, but she didn't pull away from my touch, maybe she was too tired to do that. The mark on her neck still glowed faintly, it's delicate still forming those two letters that I could never ignore.

LU.

The truth slammed into me like sledgehammer, yet I still wanted to confirm the truth from her.

"Are you Beta Lupine's daughter?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

She stiffened slightly, her lips parting as if she is contemplating if she should deny it or not. She hesistated for a while but after a long pause that seemed like eternity to me, she sighed, slumping her shoulders in defeat.

"Yes," she whispered.

A sharp sigh escaped my lips as my hands felt weak and my grip around her loosen.

Beta Lupine. My father's most trusted friend. The man who had once been like an uncle to me. Or rather a father.

Memories that had been long buried between the layers of pain and blood clawed back at me, pulling me back to the time I was just a boy, to the time before the throne was stolen, before my family was slaughtered, before I was forced to fight for survival.

Beta Lupine had helped me with plans on reclaiming back the throne from the shadows. And he was executed for treason.

I hadn't thought about him in years —at least, not like this. When I was a child, Beta Lupine would visit the Frostfang pack often, together with his family. His daughter, Zara, had just been a little girl then. We used to play together, running through the halls, laughing like we were the only remaining in the world.

But that time was fleeting.

After my parents were murdered, everything changed. The alliances between our families crumbled and I was forced to flee. I never saw Zara again.

Years later, when I had nothing left but rage and ambition, Beta Lupine had found me. He hadn't forgotten the loyalty he once had for my pack. He took a risk by helping me, feeding me information, moving in the shadows to ensure I could one day reclaim what was mine.

And then he was gone. Branded a traitor. Executed like a common criminal.

I had been investigating his death for years but nothing made sense. No evidence. No leads. He wasn't reckless and he was never a traitor.

And now, his only daughter's fate was in my hands.

The realization felt like poison in my mouth. Our fate was cruel. I had been torturing the daughter of the only man who had truly stood by me.

I clenched my fists, pushing the emotion down. This changed nothing. Zara was still my enemy. Ashen’s mate. A threat.

But a small part of me still remembered the little boy who ran around the palace with this little girl and I felt something dangerously close to regret.

I stood up, my voice quiet but firm. "Untie her."

Nerissa and Viktor both turned to me, disbelief flickering in their eyes.

"Magnus —" Nerissa started but she was cut off by a single glare from me.

"I said untie her."

Viktor hesistated, but after a while, he obeyed cutting the ropes that bind Zara's wrists. She slumped forward, weak but still defiant, her gaze locked onto mine with defiant.

I turned away, my jaw tightening but before I could leave the room Zara's cold voice stopped me in my tracks. "Why do you suddenly care, you bastard?"

Zara's POV

My whole body ached from the torture Nerissa had inflicted on me. They wanted me to be broken but I won't.

Why did he ask about my family name earlier?

Why did it seems like he knew my family?

And then Magnus ordered that I should be untied but whatever reason it was I don't care. He's an asshole and nothing he did would atone for the crime he committed against me.

My wrists ached as the ropes fell away, leaving red angry marks on my skin. I didn't have the strength to move but my mind was still sharp with anger that is ready to be unleashed. I lifted my head, my eyes locked with Magnus's retreating back. I couldn't watch him leave without giving him a piece of my mind.

"Why do you suddenly care, you bastard?" My voice was hoarse in pain but sharp and filled with venom.

Magic stopped, his shoulders stiffening, but he didn't turn around. Typical coward. After standing there and watching me suffer, now he wanted to act like he had a conscience? Pathetic.

Despite the protest in my muscles, I forced myself to sit up. My heart thundering against my ribs, my vision blurring with exhaustion but I refused to look weak. Not in front of him. Not in front of his little minions—Nerissa and Viktor.

"Don't pity me," I spat. "I don't need your guilt. I don't need your regret. You think doing that would suddenly make you a good person or erase everything you've done. I would rather be with Ashen than spend any more seconds in the hell hole."

Nerissa crossed her arms, smirking. "This is interesting. The same girl who was screaming in pain an hour ago is suddenly declaring loyalty for a wolf who had abandoned her."

I hissed at her, glaring. "Shut up Nerissa. You know nothing about me or Ashen.

Viktor let out a slow breath, shaking his head. "You missed up, Magnus. Badly."

Magnus finally turned, his expression unreadable. His eyes locked with mine as he studied me for a while.

"You'll return to Ashen tonight." His voice was steady, emotionless. "He is your husband to be afterall."

My anger falter momentarily as a chill ran down my spine. Is he still using me as leverage or Is he simply letting me go?

Something about everything felt wrong.

And the way he looked at as if there was something deeper than he is letting on. Something I couldn't quite place and it only made me more uneasy.

But it doesn't matter.

I would return to Ashen.

I would return to the man who truly loved me even without a mate bond.

And one day, I would return to make Magnus pay for ever laying a hand on me.