Chapter 68 The weight of a Kingdom
"It's not execution, Your Majesty. It's salvation. For her and for your entire kingdom."
"It's murder." Adrian moved toward the door. "And I won't be part of it. Find another solution. Another ritual. Another curse to break. But leave Lila out of it."
"There is no other solution!" Freya's staff struck the floor with a crack like thunder. "The blood rejection is the only way. King Aldric learned this through the deaths of thousands. Must you repeat his mistakes? Must your people pay the price for your stubbornness?"
Adrian stopped. His hand on the door handle. His entire body shaking with rage and pain and the weight of impossible choices.
"How does it work?" His voice was barely above a whisper. "This blood rejection ritual. Explain it to me."
Freya's expression softened slightly. "The Alpha King must call his mate before witnesses. Must cut his own palm and hers. Must mingle their blood while speaking the words of rejection. The bond will fight back. Will try to stop the severance. Both parties will experience agony unlike anything they've felt before. Their wolves will rage. Their bodies will rebel. Some don't survive the process. Their hearts simply stop, unable to bear the severing."
"And if we do survive? What then?"
"The bond breaks completely. Irreversibly. You'll feel nothing for each other. No pull. No recognition. She'll be a stranger. You'll be able to look at her without pain, without longing, without any of the connection that currently binds you."
The description should have brought relief. Instead, it felt like death. Adrian tried to imagine looking at Lila and feeling nothing. Seeing her copper-red hair and green eyes and feeling only indifference. It seemed impossible. Worse than impossible. It seemed like erasing everything that made him human.
"I need time." He opened the door. "Time to think, time to find her, time to…"
"There is no time!" Miriam's voice rose. "Your Majesty, the curse accelerates with each passing hour. By tomorrow, we could have a hundred deaths. By the next day, the plague could spread beyond your borders. The other kingdoms will quarantine you. Will burn your cities to contain the infection. Everything you've built, everything your father and grandfather built, will turn to ash."
"Then let it burn." Adrian's voice broke. "Let the whole world burn if it means I don't have to destroy my mate."
He walked out. Left the council chamber behind. Left Freya and Thorne and all the frightened councilors staring after him.
In the corridor outside, he collapsed against the wall. His legs gave out. He slid down until he was sitting on the cold stone floor, his head in his hands, his bandaged arm throbbing in rhythm with his racing heart.
The bond was silent. Lila was too far away now. Beyond the city. Beyond the mountains, probably. Running as fast as that horse could carry her. Running from the sacrifice she thought would save everyone.
She didn't know yet. Didn't know that her running wasn't enough. That the curse required active rejection, not passive separation. That he would have to call her back, cut her palm, speak words that would destroy them both.
Adrian pressed his fists against his eyes. Felt tears burning behind his closed lids. Felt his wolf howling in anguish. Felt every carefully constructed wall around his heart crumbling into dust.
He was the Alpha King. The strongest ruler in five kingdoms. Battle-tested. Iron-willed. Capable of making impossible decisions.
But this decision was beyond impossible. This decision required him to murder his own soul. And he didn't know if he was strong enough. Didn't know if any man could be strong enough to willingly destroy the one thing that made life worth living.
Footsteps approached. Marcus appeared, his expression carefully neutral.
"Your Majesty. The patrols have reported no sign of Lady Lila. She's covered her tracks well. But if you want, I can assemble the best trackers. We could find her within two days."
"No." Adrian's voice was hollow. "Let her run. Let her be free. At least one of us should be."
"And the ritual? The blood rejection?"
"I don't know." Adrian looked up, met his friend's eyes. "Marcus, if you were in my position, what would you do? How do you choose between one life and thousands? Between personal happiness and the greater good?"
Marcus was quiet for a long moment. "I'd like to say I'd choose duty. Choose the kingdom. But honestly, Your Majesty? I don't know. I've never been tested like this. I hope I never am."
"I wish that for you too." Adrian pushed himself to his feet. His legs shook but held. "Gather the council in the morning. Tell Freya I'll hear more details about the ritual. But I make no promises. I won't condemn Lila without exhausting every other option."
"And if there are no other options?"
Adrian had no answer. He walked away, back toward his chambers,
leaving the question hanging in the air like smoke.