Chapter 120: Liam is ready
"Do you believe what he said, that there is a large army hidden somewhere in the bush?" Lucien asked as soon as we were far enough away from the dungeon, his voice low but edged with suspicion.
"You don’t believe him?" I countered, stopping in my tracks. I turned to face him, one brow raised in question, searching his expression for more than just doubt.
"Why should I?" he replied without hesitation. "For all we know, it could be a trap."
"Set by whom? Alpha Victor?" I asked, letting out a short, humorless breath. "That is absurd. Alpha Victor might be involved, yes, but if he is, I can only see him as a pawn, nothing more than a piece being moved by someone far more dangerous." I spoke thoughtfully, my mind already trying to piece together possibilities that refused to settle.
Lucien studied me for a moment before speaking again. "Then you agree that there is someone out there, someone being called the true king,and that he has soldiers, an army hidden under his command?" He paused briefly, then shook his head. "If you ask me, I’d say the man is lying.
He was probably sent to throw us off course, to lead us on a wild goose chase and distract us from the real threat we’ve been dealing with for years, the Alpha of the Silver Moon Pack."
"Did you not hear him?" I asked suddenly, my voice tightening. "The other one, the one who killed himself. Did you not hear what he called me?" A strange unease crept into my chest, a lingering paranoia that I couldn’t quite shake, as though I was the only one who saw the truth hidden beneath the surface.
"The usurper," Lucien said finally.
"Yes," I replied quietly, running a hand through my hair in frustration.
"That doesn’t mean anything, Enzo," Lucien said firmly.
"It’s him," I insisted under my breath, the words barely audible even to myself.
"It is not him," Lucien countered immediately. "And even if it were, you defeated him once, you will do it again. I don’t think anyone would have the audacity to challenge you for the throne again after what happened years ago."
His words were meant to reassure, but they only stirred the storm brewing in my mind.
"You have gone hundreds of years unchallenged," he continued. "So why worry now?"
I exhaled slowly, forcing myself to nod in agreement despite the unease clawing at my thoughts. "You’re right. I might just be paranoid. He could be lying... but I won’t let this go until I am certain there is no truth in what he said."
"I understand," Lucien replied. "I’ll send people to track down the forest he claimed he was held in."
"Not only that," I added quickly, my tone sharpening with authority. "I want the rogues attacking the packs captured and brought back to Lycoria Citadel. Alive, if possible. I also want to know everything that goes on in the Silver Moon Pack, everyone who comes in and out, every movement, every whisper. And I want everything there is to know about Victor."
Lucien nodded without hesitation.
"Least I forget," I continued, my voice lowering slightly, "make sure you get all the information you can about her pack and Alpha Victor from Sophia.
I will do the same with Arabella."
Lucien nodded again, though this time I caught the flicker of reluctance that crossed his face. It was brief, but it was there. I chose to ignore it. I needed answers, and right now, nothing else mattered.
"One more thing," I added as I turned away. "Be quick about it. Join us for dinner when you’re done, and make sure everyone who needs to be present is there."
He inclined his head in acknowledgment.
We began moving again, this time in different directions, Lucien heading toward the training grounds, while I made my way toward my chambers, my thoughts heavy and restless, refusing to settle.
********
Linda walked into the dining hall with practiced authority, her sharp eyes scanning every corner to ensure everything was in perfect order. Satisfied, she turned her attention to Sophia.
"Sophia, drop what you are doing and follow me," the head maid instructed, already turning toward the exit without waiting for a response.
Sophia hurried after her, confusion written all over her face. Vie straightened from where she stood, startled, but didn’t follow. Instead, she decided she would check on Sophia later and returned to her task.
Some of the maids sneered when they saw Linda taking Sophia away and some of them snickered and began to gossip some wishes she was whipped as she made her way outside ignoring their side remark and comments
"I’m not done with my duties, head maid," Sophia said as soon as she caught up, slightly breathless.
"You don’t need to work there anymore," Linda replied coldly. "You have been assigned another duty for the evening."
Sophia blinked in surprise, but she held her tongue. Everyone knew better than to argue with the head maid.
"I thought this was my last duty for the day?" she asked carefully.
Linda stopped abruptly, causing Sophia to nearly run into her.
"Yes, it was, until you decided to disrespect Lord Lucien, the Beta."
A chill ran down Sophia’s spine, her eyes widening in shock.
Linda turned slowly to face her, her gaze stern and assessing. "I don’t know where the king brought you and your friend from, but here in the Lycoria Citadel, there is a hierarchy, an order to how things are done. It would do you well to show respect to those who deserve it."
Sophia lowered her gaze, her hands clasping tightly in front of her.
"You are a maid," Linda continued sharply.
"Always remember that. You are very lucky the Beta chose to punish you this way.
He could have had you whipped for insolence, or worse, beheaded. He is second in command. A maid’s life means very little to the king or any highborn in this citadel."
Sophia swallowed hard, the weight of her words settling heavily on her chest.
"I hope you learn your lesson from this," Linda concluded. "And know your place."
Without another word, she turned and continued walking. Sophia followed silently, her head bowed.
After a while, they arrived at the barn.
"You will be joining Ryan to clean the horses’ pens tonight," Linda said. "And when you are done, you will assist the maids in cleaning and washing the dishes after the king and his guests finish dinner."
Before Sophia could respond, a boy emerged from the barn, grinning brightly.
"Hi!" he said cheerfully, clearly pleased to have company.
"Make sure you finish your duties before midnight," Linda added. "Or it will be deducted from your wages."
With that, she turned and left.
Sophia stared after her in disbelief. All this... just for talking back?
Right then and there, she made up her mind, she would stay far away from the Beta from now on.
"I’m Ryan," the boy said, stepping closer and handing her a broom.
"Sophia," she replied, accepting it.
"Do you always work here?" she asked, scrunching her nose slightly as she glanced around the barn.
"Yeah," Ryan said easily. "I love horses."
Sophia watched him for a moment before joining in, reluctantly sweeping and clearing out the piles of hay and waste.
"How do you cope with being here every day?" she asked.
Ryan shrugged. "It’s not as bad as it seems. Riding them can be fun sometimes." He glanced around the open space with a small smile.
"It seems you don’t like horses?" he added.
"I love riding them," Sophia admitted. "But I don’t like cleaning after them. It seems someone knew this punishment would annoy me, that’s why they gave me this kind of... shitty task."
Ryan raised a brow. "Who gave you this punishment?"
"If you must know," Sophia said, clearly irritated,
"it’s the shitty Beta. He gave me this shitty punishment just because I talked back at him."
"You talked back to the Beta?" Ryan asked, clearly impressed.
Before Sophia could respond, another voice cut in.
"There you are! I’ve been looking everywhere for you."
Both of them turned to see Vie approaching.
"Vie!" Sophia exclaimed in surprise. "What are you doing here?"
"I should be asking you the same thing," Vie replied. "I got scared when the head maid came to get you alone. I thought you had done something terrible and she was taking you to be punished. I didn’t expect to find you here... with Ryan."
Sophia blinked as she called his name easily. "You two know each other?"
"Everyone knows Ryan," Vie said. "He’s the Beta’s cousin."
Ryan fell silent at that.
Sophia’s eyes widened. "What? He’s highborn?
Then why are you calling him by his name without a title?"
"He insists on it when he’s working with the horses," Vie explained sweetly. "We only use his title in court or official settings."
"Oh..." Sophia muttered, her stomach dropping as she remembered everything she had just said.
Her eyes slowly shifted to Ryan.
He chuckled. "Don’t worry. He won’t know, I promise."
Sophia let out a small breath of relief.
"What are you two whispering about?" Vie asked, a hint of curiosity, and something else, in her tone.
"Nothing," Sophia replied quickly. "Let’s hurry. I still have a lot to do before I can sleep."
She returned to her work, and Vie joined in, though she stayed unusually close to Ryan, almost too close, trying to mirror everything he did. It made him visibly uncomfortable, but he said nothing.
Sophia noticed it but chose not to comment, focusing instead on finishing her punishment as quickly as possible.
The evening stretched on, the scent of hay and sweat filling the air as the three of them worked under the dimming light, each lost in their own thoughts.
