Finn's POV
The air thickened. Lucas' name hung between us like a corpse on a noose.
I let my shoulders shudder first - a convincing tremor. Covered my face as if stifling sobs. Gean moved to embrace me, his idiot heart thundering through his charred coat.
He said, "You already have Mediland. You have hurt those who once persecuted you. It's time to reconcile with your past self. If you don't stop now, you will eventually die from your own hatred."
I looked up at this moment, and Gean was horrified to find that I wasn't crying, but laughing.
"You..."
Chrome claws slid through his ribcage like butter. He gasped, warm blood pattering the floor in Rorschach blooms.
"Shhh," I breathed into his ear as he sagged. "Jafar's scrubbing Leo's memories as we speak. He will help me to rebuild the lab. Your body will be used Leo's next experiment. He may cry when he sees your body, but he will not remember why he cried, just like... you've never appeared in his life."
When his body crumpled, I stepped over it to pour whiskey from the decanter. The Hollywood Hills burned amber through the window, smoke plumes mirroring the ones in my mind - thick and acrid, the night Lycidas had pinned me to his sheets, touching thet branding marks across my chest.
"You've been a slave before." His slender, powerful fingers stroked my stigma of shame, over and over again. "Tell me what it's like at the slave market."
"Did you beg?" he growled, teeth at my jugular. "Cry for mercy?"
I bit my lips, trying not to moan. But it was impossible.
He yanked my hair. "I'm fucking talking to you now."
"Sir... Your Highness... Please... I don't want to talk about it..."
"Do you want another round?" he asked in a sadistic voice. I could sense he was smirking without looking at him. "I haven't cummed yet. I'm going to fuck your brain out, you fucking slut."
I closed my eyes. "The soldiers... They would come every night. Three or four of them... Every time I felt unbearable, I would look at the door. I always hoped that someone would appear at the door... someone would come to save me. He would pick me up like I was his belonging and take me away from all of this. But every time, the door was empty. No one ever appeared..."
"Pathetic," he laughed, and fucked me raw until dawn.
Lucas' POV
I woke to the sterile scent of antiseptic and the hum of machines. The room was vast, bathed in the cold light of modernity, but it felt like a gilded cage. My body was heavy, my limbs unresponsive, as if I'd been dragged from the depths of some endless nightmare. I blinked, trying to orient myself, but the memories were a haze - fragments of pain, betrayal, and loss.
The door creaked open, and Jorah's face appeared, gaunt and shadowed with exhaustion. His eyes widened when he saw me awake, and for a moment, he just stood there, frozen. Then he rushed to my side, his hands trembling as they hovered over me, unsure whether to touch or retreat.
"Alpha," he whispered, his voice breaking. ""You're awake. You're really awake."
His tears fell freely, and I watched him, this young Beta who had aged decades in what felt like moments. His face was haggard, his hair unkempt, and his eyes bore the weight of sleepless nights.
"How long have I been...?" I croaked, my voice rough and unfamiliar.
"Three months," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "You've been in a coma. The doctors… they said you might never wake up. But I... I couldn't give up. I came every day. I brought you clean clothes, wiped your body, turned you over, and talked to you... I just... I just couldn't let you go!"
His words were a torrent, spilling out in a rush of relief and desperation. I reached for his hand, my movements slow and clumsy, and he grasped it tightly, as if afraid I'd slip away again.
"I'm here," I said, though the words felt hollow. "Stop crying. I'm not dead yet."
I looked down at my chest, where a jagged scar marred my skin - a reminder of Leah's claw. The pain was still there, sharp and unrelenting, but it wasn't just physical. My heart, or the void that used to hold my heart, ached with a loss I couldn't fully comprehend.
She wanted me dead, but I was already dead inside. That was the only reason that I'm still alive. How sarcastic.
"What happened?" I asked, my voice steadier now. "Did you find Leah?"
Her name burned on my tongue, and I felt a searing pain in my chest, as if the wound had reopened. Jorah's face fell, and he shook his head.
"No," he said, his voice heavy with defeat. "We've searched everywhere. The rogues, the Royal Guards - even detectives from the human world. But she vanished. It's like she disappeared into thin air."
I clenched my fists, the pain in my chest intensifying. Leah was gone. The bond between us was shattered, but I could still feel her absence like a gaping wound.
"What about Lucian?" I asked, my voice strained. "Can't he sense her? He's her father..."
Jorah's expression darkened. "His Majesty… he's been driven mad by Jalin. No one can see him now. The Elders are managing the kingdom, but everything's falling apart."
I frowned, the pieces of the puzzle slowly coming together. The Kingdom is falling apart, but Finn wasn't strong enough. That was why he saved me from prison - he wanted to take advantage of the chaos, rallying the old resistance forces under my banner.
"Finn's formed a Rogue Army," Jorah continued, his voice bitter. "He's using your name to unite them, but it's all a lie. He's just consolidating power. He's up for something, Alpha. I don't know exactly what it is, but he's definitely up for something..."
The door opened again, and Dr. Jafar entered, his face lighting up when he saw me awake.