The King Burned His Mate In Fire

On the day my father took the throne as the Alpha King, he threw my motherDthe woman who had bled for him on the battlefieldDinto the silver cells.

Instead of honoring her, he made the daughter of the High Chancellor his Queen.

Even my husband, the Pack's Lead Enforcer, became engaged to a noblewoman.

I asked him why my father broke his sacred vow to my mother.

Alaric told me, "Zala, the King has just ascended. Your mother is the daughter of a rival pack. Him sparing her life is already an act of supreme mercy."

"Stay inside and be quiet. Do not let anyone see those cursed eyes of yours."

Yet, the night before we arrived at the capital, he had held me tight. He whispered that my eyes were the stars he steered his soul by.

My father had once sworn that my mother was the only woman he ever loved.

On the day of the Royal Wedding, the silver cells were consumed by a roaring fire.

The new King and the Lead Enforcer charged into the inferno, losing their sanity over two charred corpses.

1.

When the Royal Guards came to take my mother away, I stood in front of her, ready to die.

The captain of the guard looked at me with pure annoyance.

"Lady Zala, taking Lyra is the King's direct command. Do you plan to commit treason?"

"The King has already been generous by letting you walk free!"

I bit my lip, refusing to move an inch.

My mother, however, looked as calm as a still lake. She set down the wedding cloak she hadn't finished embroidering and stood up with grace.

"I will go with you," she said.

"Mom!"

I couldn't let her go. I gripped her sleeve, my knuckles white.

She reached out with her scarred hand and gently stroked my face. Then, she placed my hand into the grip of my husband, Alaric.

"Alaric, I won't be here to see Zala's children grow up."

"Since you took her as your wife, never forget the oath you made under the moons of the Great Plains."

Alaric held my hand and swore a blood oath to her. Only then did she leave, a look of grim satisfaction on her face.

"Mom!"

I watched her back disappear into the shadows and cried until the world went black.

For the next few days, I didn't eat or drink. I moved through the manor like a ghost.

Alaric eventually found time to see me.

He saw the cold, untouched food on the table and sighed deeply.

"What is the point of this? The King's word is law. Even if you starve yourself to death, his mind won't change."

"Behave. Eat something. Your body can't take much more of this."

Alaric looked at me with pity. I slammed the bowl out of his hand, my voice trembling with rage.

"He is my father! She is his mate! How could heD"

"Zala! Watch your mouth!" Alaric's face darkened. It was the first time he had ever truly snapped at me.

"He is the King of the North. Your mother was a common dancer from a rogue territory. How could he face his people if she sat on the throne?"

"She is only in the dungeon. He hasn't taken her life. Stop this childish tantrum."

Childish?

When my father was sent to the rival pack as a powerless hostage, it was my mother who saved him.

He had sworn a thousand times that she was the only woman he would ever love.

Now, he had traded her for a crown and a new Queen.

My chest ached. I looked down and noticed a new silk pouch hanging from Alaric's belt.

The craftsmanship was exquisite, nothing like the clumsy things I used to sew for him.

I remembered the rumors. The Lead Enforcer was set to marry a high-born lady.

"Is that what you think too?" I asked quietly.

Alaric didn't answer. He just stared into my eyes and spoke coldly.

"Stay inside the manor. Do not wander out."

"If people see those eyes of yours, even I won't be able to protect you."

2.

Alaric turned to leave without another word.

A bitter, mocking smile touched my lips.

"Alaric!" I screamed after him. "Are you getting engaged to someone else?"

"You're imagining things. I'm doing this for your own good," he lied, walking faster.

Suddenly, a guard announced a guest at the gates.

"General, Lady Seraphina has arrived."

A spark of joy lit up Alaric's eyes, one he probably didn't even realize was there.

A second later, a girl burst into the courtyard like a whirlwind. She threw herself into Alaric's arms.

"Alaric! I waited for you to go riding today. Why didn't you come?"

"I was at the river so long my hands are freezing. You have to warm them up for me."

She shoved her small, cold hands into the collar of his shirt, against his skin.

I flinched just looking at it, but Alaric wasn't angry. He let her tease him with a soft expression.

Then, she noticed me standing in the corner. Her eyes filled with instant hostility.

"Alaric, who is she?"

"Just a servant," Alaric replied.

The words hit me like a physical blow. I felt my blood turn to ice.

Seraphina's hostility vanished, replaced by a look of pure disgust.

"Oh, just a servant."

"Alaric, I hate her eyes. They're creepy. Why don't you cut them out and feed them to my hounds?"

Alaric hesitated for a heartbeat. My heart skipped a beat, waiting for him to defend me.

Finally, he nodded.

"Fine. If it makes you happy."

"But it's a bloody business. Go to the front hall and wait. I'll come find you once it's done."

Seraphina chirped happily and left, throwing a triumphant look over her shoulder at me.

Alaric walked toward me, his face a mask of cold logic.

"Is she the noblewoman you're marrying?" I whispered.

"Are you really going to feed my eyes to her dogs?"

Alaric didn't deny it. He reached out and covered my eyes with his hand.

"Zala, I told you. These eyes will only bring trouble."

"I've already arranged a private villa for you. People will take care of you there."

"It's just your sight. It's better than losing your life."

3.

Alaric drew a silver dagger. He moved to carve out my eyes without a shred of mercy.

Just as the tip of the blade touched my skin, I kicked him hard in the wrist.

I didn't wait. I scrambled over the manor wall and sprinted into the streets.

Seraphina heard the commotion and came running back.

When she saw Alaric's injured wrist, she screamed in a fury.

"Find that bitch! I want her dragged back and torn apart!"

The city gates were already sealed. The streets were crawling with Royal Guards.

I hid in a pile of damp firewood behind a commoner's house, shivering and covered in dirt.

I could hear the criers announcing a bounty on my head. A thousand gold coins.

A thousand gold

When I first saved Alaric's life in the wilderness, he had promised me a thousand gold coins.

I remembered what I told him back then.

"Shut up. I don't want your gold. I just want you to live."

Looking back, I should have taken the money.

At least then I wouldn't be hunted like a stray dog.

The footsteps grew closer. I knew it was over.

Mom, I'm sorry. I couldn't live the happy life you wanted for me.

I was caught before sunset.

Seraphina and my husband, Alaric, sat on high chairs, looking down at me like I was vermin.

The girl debated my fate. Should I be drawn and quartered? Skinned alive? Or maybe thrown into a cage with a beast?

Alaric didn't say a single word the entire time.

Finally, Seraphina clapped her hands.

"I heard the King brought a Great Wolf from the plains. It's a monster."

"Since this slave managed to escape from you, Alaric, she must be fast. Let's see how she does against the wolf."

"No!" I screamed. A guard immediately kicked me in the ribs.

"Shut up, slave. You don't have a voice here."

I curled into a ball, gasping for air. I looked at Alaric, pleading with my eyes for any shred of the man I used to know.

His lips moved, but the words were hollow.

"Whatever the Lady wishes."

4.

They dragged me to the Royal Arena.

The stands were packed with the city's elite, all eager for blood.

Seraphina had even invited my father no, the Alpha King, to watch the show.

The woman beside him, the soon-to-be Queen, looked a bit uncomfortable. "A girl against a beast? Is this necessary?"

Seraphina's smile was like a poison flower.

"Don't worry, Your Majesty. I know you're pregnant and can't stand the smell of blood."

"I've had a special charm made from the pelt of a rare scent-marten. It will keep the air around you smelling like spring flowers."

"Such a rare treasure? You are very thoughtful," the Queen-to-be said, touching the charm.

I dug my nails into my palms until they bled.

That scent-marten

It was my mother's pet. Back on the plains, my mother would cry if it even caught a cold.

Now, it had been skinned and turned into a trinket for the woman who stole her throne.

And that woman was carrying the child of the man who used to be my father.

The irony was sickening.

Before I could sink further into despair, a massive wolf was released from the cage behind me.

It was starving. It let out a howl that shook the very foundation of the arena.

The crowd went wild, cheering for the kill.

The wolf lunged at me, pinning me to the dirt. But instead of tearing my throat out, it began to lick the hair away from my face.

It whined softly, nuzzling me like a giant puppy.

The crowd grew bored. They wanted a massacre, not a reunion.

Even the Queen-to-be complained.

"What is wrong with this beast? I thought it was a killer. It won't even bite."

"It's probably defective. Just kill it," someone yelled.

Seraphina grabbed a bow, aiming an arrow at the wolf on top of me.

I stroked the wolf's soft fur and whispered in its ear.

"Fenrir, eat me. Do it now."

The wolf looked confused. I cupped its face, my heart breaking.

"Fenrir, I can't get out of here. If you eat me, maybe they'll let you live. Please."

The wolf let out a mournful whimper. A second later, it collapsed onto the dirt beside me, lifeless.

Fenrir chose to die rather than hurt me.

But the wolf didn't understand. Humans aren't like animals.

Humans are the most vicious creatures on earth.

Seraphina stood up in a rage, her face twisted.

"How dare this slave mock me!"

"Take her away! Cut her into a thousand pieces!"

5.

I gave up.

I only felt bad for Fenrir.

He was my friend.

When we left the plains, the big dummy didn't want to let me go.

He kept biting my new silk dress, leaving holes in the expensive fabric.

My father hadn't been angry. He just laughed and petted Fenrir's head.

"If he wants to come, let him," he had said.

"I'll build him a hunting ground as big as the plains in the capital."

"What about me and Mom?" I had asked, grinning. My father pinched my nose.

"You two are the most important women in my life. When I'm King, your mother will be my only Queen."

"And you will be my precious jewel. The only Princess of the North."

Now, the two most important women in King Silas's life were trash. One in a cage, one on the chopping block.

I pulled a simple wooden hairpin from my hair. It was a gift Alaric had given me long ago.

I should have thrown it away when I ran, but I couldn't.

Now, it would save me from the humiliation these monsters planned for me.

I raised the pin, aiming for my own throat.

Alaric, who hadn't said a word, suddenly stood up.

"Your Majesty, the wedding is tomorrow. Seraphina is about to be a bride. Spilling blood now is bad luck."

"Let us imprison her for now. We can settle this after the festivities."

Silas must have agreed.

The next time I opened my eyes, I wasn't in hell. I was in the silver cells.

My neck was wrapped in thick bandages. I touched the wound and laughed.

I was too stubborn to die, it seemed.

Silas appeared at the bars of my cell shortly after.

He looked at me with nothing but disgust.

"You savages never change. Elara is pregnant, and you tried to kill yourself in front of her? You nearly caused her to lose the baby!"

"It's a miracle she's okay. If I knew you were this troublesome, I would have locked you up with your mother from the start!"

I looked at this man I had called father for ten years. He was a stranger.

"Seraphina tried to have me killed first!" I argued.

"Silence! Seraphina is nobility. You're just a wild girl from the dirt. She wouldn't have touched you if you hadn't provoked her."

"You clearly haven't learned your lesson. Guards! Teach her some respect!"

6.

The guards swarmed in. They forced my fingers into heavy wooden clamps.

They pulled the ropes. The pain was blinding. Silas just stood there, asking if I repented.

When I didn't answer, he told them to keep going. Every time I fainted, they threw cold water on me to wake me up.

They didn't stop until my fingers were a bloody mess, the bones crushed beyond repair. Then, he finally left.

There was no medicine in the cell. My hands began to rot.

Alaric came to see me once. He brought an expensive jar of healing salve.

As he applied it, he couldn't stop complaining.

"Zala, you're so reckless. If you had just given up your eyes, none of this would have happened."

I didn't argue. I just told him to get the hell out.

He refused, so I used my broken hands to knock the jar onto the floor, shattering it.

Alaric turned red with anger.

"Zala! You are being impossible!"

"The King was right. You need to stay in this hole until your spirit is finally broken!"

He stormed out, completely forgetting that if it wasn't for Fenrir, I'd be dead in the arena.

But none of that mattered anymore.

The Royal Wedding was tomorrow.

The new King was acting merciful, granting a general amnesty to all prisoners.

Even the political enemies were being released.

Except for me and my mother.

Through the wall of the cell, I heard my mother crying.

"Zala, I'm so sorry. I chose the wrong man to be your father. I let you suffer like this."

I smiled at the wall. "It's okay, Mom. I have you. That's enough."

The ceremonial cannons were firing outside. I knew Alaric had asked the King to wait until after the wedding to execute us.

But I wasn't going to let them decide how I died.

"Mom," I whispered. "Do you want to leave?"

"I don't care if it's life or death. I just want to get out of this disgusting place."

My mother reached her hand through the bars and found mine.

I smiled, finally feeling at peace.

Then, I set the straw in my cell on fire.

The flames spread instantly. In the heat of the fire, I held my mother's hand tight.

Goodbye, Father.

Goodbye, Alaric.

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