The silence in the dining hall was deafening.
Killian turned and walked out as abruptly as he had arrived, leaving a room full of shattered egos and dropped jaws. He didn't look back at me. He didn't need to. The mark on my neck was a leash, invisible but heavy, tethering me to him.
As soon as the door clicked shut, the explosion happened.
"You... you whore!" Chloe shrieked, her face turning an ugly shade of red. "You slept with him? With Killian?"
Liam looked like he had been punched in the gut. He stared at the mark on my collarbone, his eyes filled with a mixture of disgust and... jealousy?
"How could you, Elena?" he whispered, shaking his head. "My father? really? Is this how low you'll stoop for revenge?"
"Revenge?" I let out a dry, bitter laugh. "You rejected me, remember? I'm a free agent. Who I sleep with is none of your business."
"It is my business when it's the King!" my father roared, slamming his fist on the table. "Do you have any idea what you've done? He's a monster! He'll use you and discard you like trash!"
"Better to be discarded by a King than betrayed by a coward," I spat back, looking directly at Liam.
Before anyone could stop me, I turned and ran out of the hall. I didn't stop until I reached the safety of my room.
I locked the door and slid down against it, my legs finally giving out. My heart was racing so fast it hurt.
What have I done?
Killian wasn't just a fling. He was possessive. He was dangerous. And based on that performance downstairs, he had no intention of letting me go.
I walked to the bathroom mirror and splashed cold water on my face. I looked at the reflection—pale skin, wide frightened eyes, and that dark purple bruise on my neck.
Suddenly, a wave of nausea hit me. Hard.
I gripped the sink, dry heaving until my stomach cramped.
No. It can't be.
It was too soon for morning sickness. Way too soon. Unless...
Unless it was a Lycan thing.
I had heard the legends. When a female conceives a Lycan's pup—especially a Royal Lycan—the reaction is instant. The pup's powerful energy clashes with the mother's body immediately.
My hand trembled as I hovered it over my flat stomach. A strange warmth radiated from within, a tiny, flickering spark that wasn't there yesterday.
Pregnant.
The word echoed in my mind like a death sentence.
If Killian found out, he would never let me leave. He would lock me in that Forbidden Wing forever, turning me into nothing but a broodmare for his heirs. And Chloe... Chloe would kill me and the baby out of jealousy before I even reached the second trimester.
I couldn't stay.
I grabbed my old backpack from under the bed. I didn't pack clothes—they would just weigh me down. I packed the essentials: a flashlight, a knife, a bottle of water, and the gold coins Killian had left me.
Ironic, I thought bitterly. His money will fund my escape from him.
I waited until nightfall. The Pack House was quiet. Everyone was either asleep or still gossiping about the morning's scandal.
I slipped out through the kitchen window, moving like a shadow.
The forest loomed ahead, dark and uninviting. But it was safer than the monster in the Forbidden Wing.
"Goodbye, Liam," I whispered to the wind. "Goodbye, Killian."
I took a deep breath and stepped into the darkness.
I made it exactly ten steps before a low, dark chuckle stopped me dead in my tracks.
"Going somewhere, little mother?"
My blood turned to ice.
I turned around slowly.
Leaning against a tree, smoking a cigarette with lazy elegance, was Killian. His eyes glowed in the dark, fixing me with a look that promised punishment.
He knew.
He already knew.