Chapter 186: Chapter 186 The Kings Lethal Wrath
Fiona’s POV
Joe supported Tricia while Upton hoisted Reginald onto his back, with Fiona leading their small group forward. The brothers had filled her in on the chaos that erupted at the capital’s entrance.
The avalanche had claimed thousands of Valerium fighters, sealing their fate beneath tons of rock and debris. Only a scattered few had escaped the devastation, now huddled together in hiding, desperate to avoid detection by the royal forces.
For now, they remained relatively safe. The royal army had suffered heavy losses too.
But their temporary sanctuary wouldn’t hold. Word had spread that the king had returned, which meant it was only a matter of time before he swept the area with his warriors, hunting down any surviving enemies.
"Have you picked up anything else?" Reginald’s voice was strained as he rode on Upton’s back, his face ashen despite his wounds beginning to mend.
"Nothing new," Upton replied, adjusting his brother’s weight. "Getting any closer to their camp would be suicide, especially with all this unstable ground from the slide."
Joe’s jaw tightened. "We have to go back for Darius’s body. He deserves a proper burial."
"We will," Fiona promised, though guilt twisted in her chest. Darius had died because of her choices. If she could trade places with him, she would. At least in death, she’d be reunited with her parents. But Draven still needed her, and that thought kept her moving forward.
"How much farther?" she asked, exhaustion weighing down every step.
She’d found Upton and Joe while searching the landslide area, so she had no idea where the other survivors had gathered.
"Just over that ridge. There’s a small cabin we can use temporarily, but we’ll need to relocate soon. Our numbers are too few to stay in one place long."
Fiona nodded, forcing her leaden legs to keep moving. They still had to retrieve Darius’s body, and so many other tasks awaited if they wanted to survive.
——
Phoebe’s POV
I threw my arms around Perry, clinging to him with everything I had. Whatever he planned to do, I knew it wouldn’t end well when he was this furious.
I kept shaking my head, trying to hold him back, but how could I possibly match the king’s strength? Especially when exhaustion made me feel like I might collapse at any moment.
To my surprise, he actually stopped. My desperate determination to protect Samuel and Justin was the only thing preventing him from destroying them both.
"Step back, Phoebe." His voice turned lethal, each word dripping with menace. I hadn’t heard him sound this terrifying in so long, and honestly, it made my blood run cold.
The strangest part was how much more worried I became knowing his rage wasn’t aimed at me.
Perry was beyond furious with the two warriors, and he wasn’t bothering to hide it.
I shook my head again, then looked up to meet those electric blue eyes blazing with murderous intent.
Around us, everyone in the camp dropped to their knees, trembling as they felt his wrath through their bond.
Samuel and Justin bore the worst of it, knowing they’d failed by allowing their queen into the heart of this deadly disaster.
"What?"
*Please, don’t.*
I mouthed the words, trying to communicate without my pen and paper, though my lips trembled from fear of his outburst.
*Please, I’m the one who insisted on coming here. They just followed my orders.*
"They should know better."
He took another step forward, but I held on tighter. There was no stopping him when he was this determined to kill someone.
*If you want to punish them, then punish me too. I’m the one who put my life in danger and disobeyed your orders.*
"I don’t understand what you’re saying."
He understood perfectly well—he just didn’t want to argue with me as he continued toward the two terrified warriors.
But then I did something that froze him in place. I released him and dropped to my knees in front of Samuel and Justin, begging for their lives.
"What the hell do you think you’re doing?!"
His rage exploded because I’d lowered myself for the two warriors behind me.
*Please, if they’re punished for following my orders, it’s the same as punishing me for doing what I wanted. You said I could do whatever I wanted.*
The others couldn’t read my lips, but Perry caught every word without effort.
"Not if it risks your life!" He was beyond furious now.
But as I tried to respond, my head suddenly felt impossibly heavy.
Obsidian spots danced across my vision, and before I could form another word, the world tilted sideways. The last thing I heard was Perry calling my name in panic.
What was happening to me? Everything felt so sluggish and wrong.
