Chapter 31 Friends In Unusual Places
CHAPTER 31: Friends In Unusual Places
Seraphine's POV
I had memorized every inch of Aric’s quarters and that was the problem.
The ceilings were too high, the walls too wide and the silence too loud. Everything in that room screamed power and control, from the massive carved pillars to the dark stone floors that always felt cold under my feet no matter how warm the fires burned and yet, every single time I was brought here, I felt smaller like an ornament placed on a shelf and forgotten.
“Wait here,” they always said.
So I waited. Again.
I paced from one end of the room to the other, my boots echoing softly as my fingers tugged at the sleeves of my dress. Sit. Wait. Stay. I was beginning to feel like a well-dressed prisoner with a very nice view and absolutely no purpose. The worst part was knowing that outside these walls, the pack was tearing itself apart while I was stuck in here doing nothing.
A sharp laugh escaped me bitterly and tiredly. Useless. That was the word that kept circling my mind. I had survived Grimhowls, crossed borders that should have killed me, and somehow ended up reduced to waiting quietly while the world burned.
The riots hadn’t stopped. If anything, they were getting worse.
They called me weak, human and a distraction. The girl their Lycan King had lost his mind over. I could almost hear their voices through the stone walls, snarling accusations, twisting the truth until it fit whatever fear they needed to hold onto.
And I didn’t doubt for a second that Vespera was somewhere in the shadows smiling softly as she poured fuel on the fire. She always liked things subtle, clean and deadly and Grimhowls didn’t just attack for fun.
I stopped pacing and pressed my palms against the tall window, staring out at the darkening sky. I couldn’t breathe in there anymore. If waiting was all I was allowed to do then at least I could wait somewhere that didn’t feel like a gilded cage.
“I need air,” I muttered, mostly to myself.
Before I could talk myself out of it, I turned and walked straight for the doors.
The guards outside stiffened the moment I stepped into the corridor. Two massive Lycans, armor gleaming, eyes sharp as blades.
“My lady,” one of them said quickly, stepping into my path. “You can’t leave.”
I scoffed.
“Watch me.”
“You’ve been ordered to remain inside the King’s quarters,” the other guard said, voice firm but uneasy. “Until His Majesty says otherwise.”
I tilted my head and smiled without humor.
“Funny. I don’t remember agreeing to that.”
“This is for your safety,” the first guard insisted, moving again when I tried to step around him.
“And I’m telling you I’m going outside,” I snapped. “The sky won’t kill me.”
They blocked me completely now, standing like two walls of muscle before me. One of them even had the nerve to gesture back toward the doors.
“Please return inside, Lady Seraphine.”
I stared at him. Really stared.
“Do you always talk to grown women like disobedient children or am I special?”
His jaw tightened.
“This isn’t a joke.”
“No,” I agreed, stepping closer, refusing to back down. “It’s not.”
The tension snapped when a familiar voice cut through the corridor like a blade through silk.
“Enough.”
The guards stiffened instantly. I turned to see Lyrin approaching, her dark hair loose, her stride unhurried, her expression already bored. She took one look at the guards blocking my way and clicked her tongue.
“Move,” she said. “Before I forget you’re not pups.”
“My lady...” one of them started.
She silenced him with a look.
“I said move.”
They didn’t like it. I could see it in their eyes, the resentment, the pride swallowing hard. But Lyrin was the Lycan King’s sister and rank mattered more than bruised egos. Slowly, they stepped aside.
I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding.
Lyrin glanced at me, one brow lifting.
“You look like you were about to bite someone.”
“Only a little,” I said. “Thank you.”
She smirked.
“You’re welcome. Come on. Walk with me if you want. Or go cause trouble on your own. Either way, I won’t stop you.”
I hesitated then nodded and fell into step beside her.
We walked in silence at first, the castle corridors stretching long and winding, torches flickering softly against stone. It was oddly peaceful compared to the trouble brewing outside and yet my thoughts wouldn’t slow.
After a while, I glanced at her.
“Why are you being nice to me?”
She burst out laughing loudly and suddenly.
“Straight to the point. I like that.”
“I’m serious.”
“I know,” she said, still smiling. “I assessed you the first day you arrived here. Watched how you stood your ground when you should’ve been terrified. You’ve got some balls for a human.”
I snorted despite myself.
“That’s… comforting?”
She shrugged.
“It’s a compliment and I like you because of it.”
We turned into the gardens with moonlight spilling over stone paths and blooming night flowers.. the air was cooler there, softer. I finally felt my shoulders relax.
“And,” Lyrin added casually, “my brother is completely head over heels for you.”
I nearly tripped.
“What?” I blushed even though I already knew.
She laughed again.
“Oh, don’t look so shocked.”
“That’s not true,” I said quickly, heat creeping into my face. “He barely tolerates me half the time.”
“Believe what you want, human.”
I groaned.
“Stop calling me that.”
“No,” she said cheerfully.
I hesitated, then said quietly, “It’s not right anyway. A human and a Lycan. Look at what’s happening.”
She waved a hand dismissively.
“Mediocre thinking. People riot because they’re bored and afraid. Give it time. They’ll find something else to scream about.”
I shook my head.
“Vespera could be behind it. And the Grimhowl attacks. It all feels connected.”
Lyrin stopped walking and her face darkened just for a second but I saw it.
“Maybe the riots,” she said slowly. “But not the Grimhowls. They only serve one entity.”
I opened my mouth to ask who, when hurried footsteps approached.
“Lyrin!” Darius called out, breathless. “You need to know... Aric lost control. A protester is dead.”
She barely blinked.
“Yes. And?”
Darius stared at her.
“He killed him.”
She shrugged.
“Someone was bound to die. That man fucked around and found why.”
My stomach dropped.
“No,” I whispered. “That’ll make everything worse.”
Darius nodded grimly.
“Exactly. He’s losing control. Seraphine, you need to talk to him.”
“I’m not his leash,” I said.
“Please,” Darius said softly. “Everyone already knows you’re his sweetheart.”
I scowled.
“I hate that word.”
But I went.. I soon reached for the throne room doors and then froze when I heard a voice inside.
“You must do away with the human girl…”