Betrayed and Claimed by the Lycan King Chapter 12

Isolde's POV

 

Twenty-four hours in a concrete box gives you a lot of time to think. And right now, I had only one burning question that needed an answer.

 

*Lyra,* I called out to my wolf, my mental voice sharp with frustration. *What the fuck happened?*

 

For hours, she'd been unusually quiet—not her typical sarcastic commentary or restless pacing. It was starting to piss me off even more than the throbbing pain across my back.

 

*Lyra!* I tried again, more forcefully this time.

 

Finally, she stirred, but her response felt hesitant, almost confused. *I... I don't know how to explain it.*

 

*Try me. Because thanks to whatever the hell you did, I just got whipped like a disobedient slave and thrown into solitary. So start talking.*

 

I felt her pace within me, agitated and uncertain. *When we saw him—the Alpha—something happened. Something I've never felt before.*

 

*What kind of something?*

 

*It was like... fate calling. Like every cell in my body recognized him, needed him.* Her mental voice grew stronger, more confident. *Isolde, I think he might be our mate.*

 

The words hit me like a physical blow. I sat up on the thin mattress, my heart hammering against my ribs.

 

*That's impossible,* I said. *I would have felt it too. Mate bonds are supposed to be mutual, immediate recognition.*

 

*That's what I thought too. But this is different.* Lyra's confusion bled through our connection. *It's not like the mate bond stories we've heard. It's... more intense. More consuming. And stranger.*

 

*Stranger how?*

 

*Normal mate bonds are supposed to be gentle recognition, right? Like coming home. This felt like being struck by lightning. Like my soul was being ripped apart and rebuilt.* She paused, and I could feel her trying to make sense of her own experience.

 

I processed this information, my mind racing. *If he felt it too, then why didn't he say anything? Why didn't he stop what happened?*

 

*I don't know,* Lyra admitted. *Maybe he's fighting it. Maybe he doesn't want a mate.*

 

The thought stung more than it should have. *Or maybe you're wrong. Maybe it wasn't a mate bond at all. Maybe it was just... I don't know, some kind of Alpha power thing. Even if you're right,* I said bitterly, *it doesn't matter. He's obviously involved with that blonde bitch Evanthe. And I'm stuck in this fucking place whether he's my mate or not.*

 

Then, the sound of keys jingling outside my cell door interrupted our conversation. I quickly lay back down, not wanting to give them the satisfaction of seeing me sitting up and alert.

 

The door creaked open, and a guard I didn't recognize stood in the doorway.

 

"Time's up," he said curtly. "Get out."

 

I stood slowly, my back protesting the movement. The whip marks had mostly healed thanks to my werewolf regeneration, but the skin was still tender and tight.

 

Following the guard through the maze of corridors, I found myself back in the main living area.

 

"Isolde!"

 

I turned to see Thalia rushing toward me, her face a mixture of relief and concern. She pulled me into a careful hug, mindful of my back.

 

"Jesus Christ, where have you been?" she demanded, pulling back to look at me. "I've been going out of my mind looking for you."

 

"You were looking for me?"

 

"Of course I was looking for you!" She grabbed my arm, leading me toward a quiet corner of the lounge. "Yesterday I went to use the bathroom, and when I came back you were just... gone."

 

I glanced around, noting how the other girls in the room were studiously avoiding looking in our direction. Word had obviously spread about my punishment.

 

"I heard from some of the other girls that you were taken away for discipline," Thalia continued, her voice dropping to a whisper. "What the hell happened?"

 

I sank into one of the plush armchairs, suddenly feeling exhausted. "I walked into the wrong room at the wrong time."

 

"What does that mean?"

 

I looked at her carefully, trying to decide how much to tell her. Thalia had been nothing but kind to me, but I barely knew her. And given what Lyra had just told me about mate bonds and fate, I wasn't sure who I could trust with that information.

 

"I was looking for a bathroom and accidentally walked in on the Alpha having a... private moment with Evanthe."

 

Thalia's eyes widened. "Oh shit. You saw them together?"

 

"More than I ever wanted to see," I said dryly.

 

"And they punished you for that? That's insane!"

 

"They said I was disrespectful. That I talked back." I shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant despite the anger still burning in my chest. "Apparently that earns you a whipping and a day in solitary."

 

"A whipping?" Thalia's voice rose slightly before she caught herself and lowered it again. "They actually whipped you?"

 

I turned slightly, lifting the back of my shirt just enough for her to see the faint lines still marking my skin. Her sharp intake of breath told me everything I needed to know about how bad it looked.

 

"Those bastards," she muttered. "And for what? Walking through the wrong door?"

 

"Welcome to Silver Moon Group," I said bitterly. "Where the customer service is top-notch."

 

Thalia was quiet for a moment, studying my face. "There's something else, isn't there? Something you're not telling me."

 

I met her gaze, noting again that calculating intelligence lurking behind her warm brown eyes. She was far more perceptive than she let on.

 

"What makes you say that?"

 

"Because you look like someone who's had their world turned upside down. And I don't think it's just because of the punishment."

 

I hesitated.

 

"It's complicated," I said finally, "what do you know about mate bonds?"

 

Thalia's eyebrows rose slightly. "The usual things. Why?"

 

"What if... what if someone experienced something that might be a mate bond, but it wasn't like anything they'd heard described before?"

 

Understanding dawned in Thalia's eyes. "Are you telling me you think the Alpha might be your mate?"

 

"I don't know," I said honestly. "Maybe. My wolf thinks so, but she admits it felt different from what she expected."

 

"Different how?"

 

"More intense. More overwhelming. And he didn't seem to recognize it—or if he did, he chose to ignore it."

 

Thalia was quiet for a long moment, processing this information. When she finally spoke, her voice was carefully neutral.

 

"That would certainly complicate things."

 

"That's an understatement," I laughed bitterly. "Especially since he's obviously involved with Evanthe."

 

"Maybe not as involved as it appears," Thalia said thoughtfully.

 

"What do you mean?"

 

"Just... something I heard. Rumors that their relationship isn't as solid as she likes people to believe." Thalia shrugged.

 

"Regardless," I said, "it doesn't change my situation. I'm stuck here either way."

 

"Maybe," Thalia agreed. "But if you really are his mate, Isolde, that changes everything. Mate bonds can't be ignored forever, no matter how hard someone tries to fight them."

 

Maybe she was right.

 

But first, I needed to figure out how to survive long enough to find out.