Page 2

Chapter

Two

K YSON

I am taken aback, unsure if I truly recognize the strangers sitting across from me. “Wait a minute. First, explain this sire bond of yours. Then we can address Ester,” I say, feeling myself lose track of the unfolding situation.

“When Garret discovered my existence, he wanted me dead. Tatiana used his infidelity against him, leveraging the threat of divorce and returning to Azure, even though it was just a bluff. Azure had already fallen, and there was no one left there. But she would have walked away, knowing that she held control over the council, which meant she now held control over Garret as well. He wanted to overthrow all the Kingdoms and needed an heir. So they compromised. Tatiana would carry his child and turn a blind eye to his infidelity,” Trey explains, his voice filled with a mix of bitterness and resignation.

“And what about her infidelity? Did he turn a blind eye to Tatiana’s actions?” I inquire, attempting to unravel the complexities of their relationship. Trey shakes his head.

“No, he did not allow us to be together. Not once Azalea came into the picture, Garret became paranoid that I would harm his only heir. So he sired me to Azalea, as a means of ensuring her safety. Not that I would ever harm her intentionally. She was Tatiana’s daughter, and I would never do anything to hurt her, knowing it would devastate my mate.

I loved Azalea as if she were my own child.

For nearly four years, I watched her grow and cared for her deeply,” Trey answers with genuine emotion in his voice.

“And then what happened?” I press further, noticing Trey’s discomfort as he leans back in his chair and looks away. His arms fold protectively across his chest.

“You don’t want me to answer that, my King,” Trey replies, and a growl escapes my lips.

“But you will answer. I am in no mood for games, Trey. So answer truthfully. I need to determine whether you pose a risk to my mate, despite the sire bond,” I snarl at him.

“Tatiana was off-limits,” Trey responds, and I glance at Ester, who displays equal curiosity.

“But Garret allowed you to remain after discovering the affair? Even after Azalea was born?” Damian chimes in, his confusion mirroring my own.

“Part of the sire agreement that Garret made was that Azalea would be promised to me once she came of age,” Trey explains, causing my inner beast to stir at his words.

The desk suddenly soars towards the ceiling, narrowly missing Trey as he moves aside just in time.

Damian swiftly pulls Ester away from the chaos as the room descends into disarray.

Within seconds, my hands are wrapped around Trey’s throat, his defiant glare meeting mine.

My Lycan side surges forward as I shift, claws slicing through his skin while I tighten my grip.

“I warned you that you didn’t want to know!

” Trey snarls. “That’s why Garret cheated in the games!

He needed his daughter’s hand back!” he reveals through clenched teeth, his anger matching mine as he remains steadfast and unyielding even in the face of imminent danger.

Peter whimpers from the corner of the room, hiding behind Clarice, who has risen to her feet.

“Kyson, release him,” Damian’s whispered plea reaches my ears, but my Lycan side can’t see reason past Trey trying to take my mate away from me. That was all my mind could register. Azalea is mine, and I won’t allow anyone else to have her.

“Kyson, think clearly. We need answers that only he possesses,” Damian reasons, his grip tightening on my shoulder.

A shudder courses through me, but I reluctantly let Trey go with a growl, shoving Damian away.

Ester and Clarice quickly attended to the scattered papers while Trey rights the desk.

I struggle to regain control of my shifted form, and Damian hands me a bottle of whiskey, which I snatch from him and gulp down, attempting to suppress the raging anger that threatens to consume me.

“I will fetch more coffee,” Clarice offers, sensing the tension in the room.

“And I will get a mop,” Ester adds, prompting another growl from me.

“Peter stays! I want to ensure your return. If you attempt to flee, I will have Liam track you down and force you to watch as I kill your son!” I snarl at Ester, my gaze piercing her in place.

Her eyes dart towards Peter, who is about to follow her.

She points him back towards the chaise, and though he glances at me with fear-filled eyes, he obediently returns to his seat.

“I will wait with him until you return,” Clarice assures Ester, who hurries off. Gannon arrives shortly after, with clothes in hand that Damian must have summoned him to bring.

I quickly dress while keeping a watchful eye on Trey, who has resumed his seat. When Ester returns with a mop and broom, my office suddenly feels crowded. Clarice leaves to retrieve the coffee, and Peter takes up the task of cleaning under Gannon’s watchful gaze.

Damian clears his throat, signaling that it is his turn to take charge. My mind is still reeling from the information that had been revealed.

“So you were promised Azalea?” Damian prompts Trey, who shifts his attention towards my Beta.

“Yes, but I had no intention of acting on that promise. Knowing that she was Tatiana’s daughter, I couldn’t even fathom looking at her in that way.

Besides, I was not sired in the same manner as you may think, if the King had allowed me to explain.

In the end, Azalea would have had the ultimate choice.

But that’s why Garret tried to cheat you out of the games for years before Tatiana conceived Azalea,” Trey explains.

“And what did Garret gain from this arrangement?” Damian probes further.

“In return for my loyalty, Garret agreed not to pursue Tatiana and allowed me to remain by her side. My devotion was never to Garret himself; it was always to my mate and Azalea. Garret simply wanted to ensure the survival of his heir. So Tatiana suggested the sire bond as a means of protecting me when Garret’s paranoia resurfaced after Azalea’s birth,” Trey clarifies.

“So your allegiance was never truly with Garret?” Damian sought confirmation, to which Trey shakes his head.

“No, it was always with my mate and Azalea. Garret wanted to ensure the safety of his child, and Tatiana understood that. Hence, she proposed the sire bond to protect me from him should he decide to kill me,” Trey answers honestly.

“And where does Ester fit into all of this?” Damian turns his attention towards Ester.

“My mother revealed that I had brothers. When I asked about them, my father and I had a heated argument. He disowned me and insisted that my mother’s past should remain buried, claiming that those boys were not my brothers,” Ester shares, her voice laced with a hint of pain.

“So you went searching for them?” I interject, trying to grasp the full extent of what happened.

“Yes. After my father disowned me, I moved in with my grandparents,” Ester explains.

“My grandmother helped me locate them, so I left to find them,” she adds.

“And why did your father disown you?” I probe further.

“He discovered that I was secretly searching for my brothers. We were already at odds, as my father could be quite strict. He accused me of destroying his relationship with my mother and kicked me out. So I went to live with my grandparents, who supported me,” Ester recounts her tumultuous past.

“My father eventually took me back in when he learned that I had found Trey and was returned. He managed to secure a position for me as a cleaner at the castle,” Ester continues, her tone flat as she glances towards Trey, who meets her gaze with a glare.

Ester lowered her head. “You knew she was my mate,” Trey growls, and Ester purses her lips in response.

“So you and Garret became involved?” Damian directs his question towards Ester.

“Yes. I left when Ivy was almost four after Tatiana discovered that I had been sleeping with her husband. I had been serving as one of his personal servants,” Ester confesses.

“How did Tatiana find out it was you?” I ask, struggling to make sense of the situation.

“Marissa caught us together. She tried to kill me. Marissa threatened Garret, saying that he needed to get rid of me, or she would expose the affair to Tatiana. She claimed to understand the alliance, but she refused to share Garret with anyone else,” Ester reveals bitterly.

“Marissa told Tatiana?” Trey interjects, clearly taken aback by this revelation.

“Yes, Marissa was also sired to Azalea. That’s why she took her,” Ester sneers at Trey’s disbelief.

“What? That’s bullshit! You’re not sired to Azalea!” Trey protests vehemently.

“No, I’m not. But Marissa was. That’s why she took her,” Ester repeats.

“How did Marissa come into the picture?” Damian questions, his confusion mirroring my own.

“Marissa was Garret’s human mate. Tatiana was allowed to keep you. Did you truly believe that Garret would kill his mate and allow her to keep you?” Ester asks, her voice dripping with disdain.

“Wait, so Marissa was Garret’s mate?” I ask, struggling to process this new information. Ester nods in confirmation.

“That’s why Garret refused to let her go when Tatiana raised concerns about her,” Ester explains.

“Then Marissa’s husband?” Damian inquires.

“Jordan was not Marissa’s husband. He was her assigned guard, tasked by Garret to keep a close watch on her. He was a werewolf from the pack where Garret had hidden her,” Ester clarifies, revealing another layer of deception.

“But Marissa was a werewolf,” Damian argues, shaking his head. We had thoroughly researched her background, or so we thought.

“No, she was the daughter of a hunter. Garret took her and turned her into a Lycan. That’s what ignited the war.

Her father disapproved of his daughter being involved with a Lycan, so Garret kidnapped her, turned her, and staged her death.

After he married Tatiana and conceived Azalea, he introduced Marissa to Tatiana as a servant seeking employment,” Ester discloses, dispelling the previous assumptions we had made about Marissa.

“Marissa’s true identity remained hidden from us,” I state incredulously, trying to come to terms with the web of lies that had been spun around us.

“Yes, she wanted me gone when she found out about our affair. Marissa threatened to expose me and contacted the hunters, intending for them to kill both Tatiana and me. Fortunately, I had already left by the time they decided to strike, and Marissa was powerless to stop them. So she went along with their plan and kidnapped Azalea, claiming that she was all she had left of Garret. I never anticipated that she would target your sister when she arrived here,” Ester confesses, her voice heavy with remorse.

My hands tremble with rage, and I clench them tightly to restrain myself from lashing out or succumbing to my violent instincts.

My sister’s death could have been prevented if only Ester had spoken up. I had wrongly let Azalea take blame for Marrissa and for the tragedy, unaware that the woman sitting across from me held the key to averting it.

“Azalea has awakened,” Liam’s voice enters my mind through the pack link.

“Shall I bring her to you?” he asks, and I press my lips together in a firm line.

“No. I will go to her,” I reply before turning to Damian.

“Azzy is awake,” I inform him, and he nods in understanding.

“So, what do we do now?” he inquires, his gaze shifting between Peter and Ester.

“I am going to see my mate,” I state firmly.

“And them?” Damian gestures towards Peter and Ester.

“I can’t kill Peter,” I growl, not now he has been openly claimed as a Landeena. I stand about to walk out the door when I pause.

“Your mother will take your punishment,” I say, turning back to the room. Peter whimpers and Clarice gasps.

“You want me to kill her?” Gannon offers and Peter screams, rushing toward his mother, only for Gannon to rip him backward and knock his feet out from under him. He lands on his ass and sobs while Ester looks resigned to her fate.

“No. 500 lashes,” I tell Gannon, only to pause and my eyes fall on Peter.

“And you will do 250 of them. I see one piece of her back unmarred when I return. Not only will you receive the same, but I will also then make you kill her by the time I am done with her,” I tell Peter.

Peter whimpers, and tears brim in Ester’s eyes.

Her lips quiver, but she only speaks when Peter begs not to do it.

She looks over her shoulder at him. “A punishment must be served.”

“Mum, please! I can’t.”

“But you will, or The King kills me. So choose Peter, which is it you prefer?” she snaps at him. He drops his head.

“Count everyone, and call me down when he is done. I will deliver the last 250. Which will be silver and wolfsbane dipped,” I tell her, and she sucks in a shuddering breath before swallowing and looking away.

She bobs her head once, accepting her punishment.

Trey just stares with eyes ahead at the wall.

“You will watch her receive her punishment. If you make a move to stop it, you will be pulled from my guard and Azalea’s,” I warn him.

“No issue, My King. I told you that already. My loyalty is with Azalea,” Trey answers, and I nod before walking out and heading up to find my mate.