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Chapter 03: "Kailel shows his true face."

In the stifling silence of her dark room, Selene was chained and confined, without food or drink. Her body was weakened by days of deprivation, but her resolve remained unshaken. She even considered breaking free from the chains that bound her, but that might expose the secret she wanted to hide so desperately.

One day, as she struggled once more against the chains using her wolf-woman strength, Selene heard the door open and a whisper coming from the crack. Her curiosity was piqued when she realized there was someone there. The whisper seemed to come from Kailel, Kassia's son, who secretly came to her aid.

"Selene, it's me, Kailel. I'm trying to help you, but we need to be careful. Neither Ian nor Kassia can know about this," he said in a low voice.

"Kailel, why are you helping me? You are her son, shouldn't you be on my side?" asked Selene, her voice tinged with suspicion and hope.

"I'm helping you because I don't agree with my mother's actions and I also feel guilty for bringing her here," Kailel explained as he offered Selene water and bread.

Selene pondered for a moment, processing Kailel's words. She knew that if she stayed in that house, she would probably die of exhaustion. She tried to reason with the one who seemed to care at least a little about her:

"Kailel, if you really want to help me, you need to find a way to get me out of here. Please, I really need your help.

"So, if you really feel guilty and remorseful, help me escape. Please, Kailel. You are my last hope," Selene pleaded, full of anticipation and with a glint of hope in her eyes, looking for a positive response. However, that was not quite what happened.

"I'll tell you a secret... I don't regret bringing you into the Silver Claws pack. When I saw her almost lifeless in the forest, you know what I thought? She's beautiful and seems strong despite everything. I can take her home and enjoy her as I wish. But I forgot that my mother is a cruel, manipulative and totally selfish woman. It was obvious that she wouldn't let her son, the Alpha, be with just anyone. So I had to watch you accept being Ian's mate, poor thing, I thought. But in the end, it was your choice and you learned the hard way that it was better to have stayed alone," Kailel used a cold tone unlike anything he had done before, revealing his true self.

"Oh, my God! How innocent I am. For a while, I thought you were just a coward who is afraid to stand up to mom and her bully friend. But I was completely wrong; you are complicit in all of this and, as I understand it, you even enjoy it. You don't need to get your hands dirty or your reputation; you stand in their shadow because it's convenient. It all makes sense now," Selene glared at the Alpha of the Silver Claws pack, showing her complete contempt.

"You're very expressive, Selene. That gave me the creeps," Kailel was sarcastic and, sensing someone approaching, jumped out the window.

Selene, for her part, grows restless as she smells the scent of mother and daughter coming closer and closer from afar, until....

"No more rest. Go back to your duties." Kyma enters the room and goes to Selene to release her.

"Can I at least have a shower and something to eat?"

"Go to the kitchen. I told Ayda to sort out some leftovers for you to eat, and as for bathing, wash yourself in the waterfall like you always did." Kassia gives the order with her usual arrogance.

And just like that, Selene's hellish life was back in full force, with no hope of improvement, or so she thought. Because on the other side of town, Lyall couldn't stop thinking about the woman he spent the night with a few days ago. At this very moment, he was meeting with the Wind Wolves pack to discuss a possible marital alliance between King Lycan and the Alpha's daughter.

"Lyall?!" Theron, the Alpha of the Wind Wolves, calls out for the third time.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Theron. I know we are discussing matters of importance to our packs, but could we reschedule our meeting? I'm not in the right frame of mind to discuss anything," the Lycan king tries to dismiss the unpleasant subject he didn't want to deal with, feeling the disapproving look of Leila, his advisor, but not caring and promptly leaving the meeting room. However...

"I apologize for my persistence, King Lycan. But I will not leave until I have confirmation of your marriage to my daughter, Elena. You need allies in the war that is approaching the city of Sirion, and that is my condition," says the alpha of the Wind Wolves.

Lyall, who was walking at a brisk pace to leave as soon as possible, stops in his tracks, turning to the middle-aged man with an unshaven beard and some scars on his strong arms, a sign of battles he participated in, including with Wyatt, the former Lycan king who died in a battle against the packs trying to take over his kingdom.

"I understand, sir! But if you don't want to ally with me of your own free will and think blackmailing me is the best option, with all due respect, think again. I already have a destined mate, and again, with all due respect, your daughter Elena does not appeal to me," Lyall bows slightly to the Wind Wolves' Alpha and finally leaves the meeting room as he had planned. However, Leila follows him to his room and angrily

Leila follows him to his room and angrily tries to scold the young king.

"Lyall, have you gone mad? Have you forgotten that the Umeris pack has been completely devastated and therefore your future mate is dead? So why not accept Elena as your mate and gain an important pack as an ally? Too many enemies, we don't need another one. Think it over; I'll try to calm Theron and ask for more time."

"Even if you do that, I won't marry his daughter."

"But why?"

"Remember that night I went out to clear my mind?"

"Yes, the night you turned off your phone and decided to disappear, leaving me a nervous wreck. What about it?"

"I met a woman; her beauty and scent were perfect for me. I can't get her out of my mind. I think I've fallen in love."

"You must be kidding, right? What's her name? Where is she from? What lineage does she come from?" Leila fires off the questions.

"I don't know yet. But I must find her and make her my companion. When the sweat of our bodies mixed with the desire and pleasure of that single moment, I felt a connection like never before. I feel that finding her is the right thing to do," Lyall replied thoughtfully, looking out his bedroom window as the sun set.

"Oh my! Spare me the details, will you? Even if you want to go after this mysterious woman, where do you think you'll find her?"

"Summon Ethan and get a map. We'll need it."

Reluctantly, Leila complied with the king's request and went to find Ethan, Lyall's best friend and right-hand man. However, she found him arguing with his father, who happened to be the Alpha of the Wind Wolves pack.

"Calm down, Daddy. It's your fault for pressuring the Lycan king. You know his difficult personality all too well."

"Ethan, are you on his side?"

"It's nothing like that. It's just that..."

"Excuse me! Ethan, Lyall is requesting your presence in his chambers. He asked you to bring a map," Leila interrupted the heated discussion between father and son.

"I have to go, father. We'll talk later."

As Leila and Ethan walked through the halls of the magnificent mansion, the young man breathed a sigh of relief that the counselor had spared him the difficult and tense conversation he was forced to have with his father.

"Thank you for saving me!"

"You're welcome! But now you owe me one and you can be sure I'll collect." Leila smiled in a corner, watching Ethan's face close, for he knew all too well Leila's ability to ask for favors.

When they reached the Lycan king's chambers, he was already waiting in front of the huge wooden table that stood on the right side of the enormous room.

"You sent for me, sir?"

"Did you bring the map I asked for?"

"It's here. But why do you need a map, we are going to attack some neighboring towns? Apart from Howlington, Timberclaw and Lupinia, which, by the way, are subordinate to the state of Nifhil, no other city is hostile to the lycan kingdom."

"Actually, we are not going to attack, but to look for a certain person." Lyall replied, looking at the map spread out in front of him.

"And who would that person be?" asked Ethan

"The woman I want as my companion."

" What?"

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