Chapter 116
*Freya*
“I said Release her, Rafael!” I shouted, my voice cracking with urgency.
Rafael’s eyes narrowed into slits of pure malice as he glared at me, his lips curling into a snarl. Jessica, wide-eyed and trembling, seemed too shocked to move at first.
“Freya, you don’t know what you’re getting yourself into,” Rafael growled, his voice low and dangerous.
“Don’t I?” I challenged, stepping closer despite the fear clawing at my insides. “I know you’ve been blackmailing Jessica. I know everything, and I’m going straight to the Alpha king.”
The moment my words registered, Jessica broke free from Rafael’s grasp, stumbling backward until she collided into me. Her body shook like a leaf in the wind, her fingers gripping my arm with desperate strength. I could feel her terror seeping through her skin, raw and palpable. My heart ached with pity for her, despite everything that had transpired between us.
“Your days at this palace are over,” I declared, meeting Rafael’s furious gaze head-on. “You will be punished for plotting against the king.”
He threw his head back and laughed, a sound so devoid of warmth it sent chills down my spine. “You think you can just walk out of here and tell tales? There’s nothing you can do, Freya.”
“Let’s go, Jessica,” I said, turning toward the door, only to feel a sudden, brutal force slam against my face. Pain exploded in my cheek as Rafael’s fist connected, sending me hurtling through the air. I crashed into the wall with a sickening thud, the impact knocking the breath out of my lungs. Agony radiated through my body, every nerve screaming in protest.
Dazed, I blinked away tears of pain, struggling to remain conscious. Through the haze, I saw Jessica fleeing the room, leaving me alone with Rafael. Panic surged through me as his shadow loomed closer, but I forced myself to focus, to fight the darkness threatening to swallow me whole.
My vision blurred as Rafael’s heavy footsteps echoed through the room, each step a countdown to my demise. His wicked grin sent chills down my spine. “You see, Freya,” he drawled, his voice dripping with malice, “I can’t let you become Alpha Rafe’s queen. You’ve no idea how much I’ve sacrificed, how hard I’ve worked for this.”
“Rafael, please-” My plea was cut short by a shuddering gasp of pain, an agony that sapped my strength. I tried to push myself up, but my limbs were traitorously weak. Tears welled in my eyes, blurring my sight further.
“Everything is mine,” he continued, pacing closer, taunting me with every word. “The throne belongs to me, and I’ll do whatever it takes to get it. Even if it means killing you and Rafe.” His menace was palpable, a toxic cloud suffocating any hope I had left.
A sob escaped my lips as I struggled to rise, my muscles quaking with the effort. But I couldn’t-my body refused to comply. The despair was overwhelming, dragging me under like a stormy sea.
“Freya!” A familiar voice sliced through the haze of pain and hopelessness. I turned my head, straining to see through the tears. There he stood-Rafe, with Jessica and others behind him, their figures blurry against the backdrop of my pain. Relief flooded my chest, momentarily dulling the ache.
“Rafe…” I managed to whisper before a sudden yank on my arm dragged me back into reality. Rafael’s grip was ironclad, and the cold press of a knife grazed my neck.
“One more step, and she dies,” Rafael snarled, his voice a venomous hiss. “She’s trying to take what belongs to me, and I won’t allow it.”
Rafe’s eyes darkened with rage and fear, a tumultuous storm brewing within him. “Let her go, Rafael,” he warned, stepping forward cautiously.
“Or what, nephew? Or what?” Rafael tightened his hold, the blade pressing harder into my skin. Every heartbeat felt like a countdown, every breath a fragile thread ready to snap.
I tried to wriggle free, but Rafael’s grip was relentless, his arm like an iron shackle around my neck. The knife pressed deeper into my skin, a cold reminder of the thin line between life and death.
“Release her, Rafael!” Rafe’s voice boomed, echoing through the chamber with barely contained fury. “Or so help me, I will kill you myself.”
“Kill me?” Rafael scoffed, his laughter dark and mocking. “You think you can protect her from the truth?”
Rafe’s eyes widened, a flicker of fear breaking through his mask of rage. The shift in his expression was unmistakable; whatever Rafael threatened to reveal had struck a nerve deep within him.
“Why are you doing this? What secret?” I managed to choke out, my voice trembling as much as my body.
“Ah, dear Freya, i see that your dearly beloved has not told you.” Rafael whispered, his breath hot and vile against my ear. “The crimson pack is cursed.” His voice was loud and confident.
Gasps echoed through the room, disbelief spreading like wildfire among those gathered. My mind reeled, trying to process the weight of his words. A curse? It sounded ludicrous, yet the gravity in Rafael’s tone suggested otherwise.
“Shut the fuck up! Gamma!” Rafe shouted, though his voice lacked conviction. He took a hesitant step forward, his gaze darting between Rafael and me.
“Why should i? You don’t consider me your Gamma anymore so why should i keep your dirty little secrets Alpha?” Rafael’s grip tightened, forcing a wince from my lips. “The alpha lineage is cursed, Rafe. As long as you remain alpha, no one in this pack will ever find their true mate. That is why you needed this competition-to fabricate a bond that will never naturally exist.”
My heart pounded in my chest, each beat a thunderous drum against my ribs. Could it be true? The pieces of our history, the endless search for mates that always seemed just out of reach… suddenly, they all fit together with chilling clarity. Does this mean… what i felt for Rafe was not true? We were not mates? Just a convenience?
“Freya,” Rafe’s voice broke through my spiraling thoughts, filled with desperation and pain. “Don’t listen to him.”
But the doubt had already taken root. I looked at Rafael, whose eyes glinted with malicious satisfaction, then back at Rafe, whose face was now etched with fear and guilt. The room seemed to close in around me, every breath harder to grasp, every truth I’d held onto slipping away.
“Believe what you want, girl.” Rafael sneered, sensing the shift. “But know this: your precious alpha king has been leading you all under a shadow that he cannot lift.”
The air grew thick with tension, the room a state of shock and confusion. I felt my world tilt off its axis, everything I thought I knew about Rafe, about our future, crumbling before my eyes.
“Rafe… is it true?” My voice was barely above a whisper, my heart aching for the truth yet fearing it more than anything.
“Freya, I-” Rafe started, but words failed him. His silence spoke louder than any denial ever could.
And in that moment, surrounded by the gasps and murmurs of the pack, I knew that what Rafael had just said was the truth. That was why I had found myself in a competition with different women for one man.
It all made sense n0w.
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