Word Count: 2427

~Lavelle

I look into Zyre's cell, my stomach churning.

I've sat with an unsettled, uncanny feeling all day. Tavrik's plan is being laid out before me with more clarity now, and it's utterly terrifying.

"Any day now he's going to send me off with Finnian," I tell Zyre, voice heavy.

He watches my face quietly, as disturbed by what I've told him as I am. We both knew Tavrik had a plan, we just didn't know it would come to fruition so quickly.

"You're certain that is his intention?" He asks me.

"There is no other explanation for why an Alpha would take such a sudden interest in me." I shrug, hand Zyre a piece of bread from my plate through the cell bars.

He gives me a hard look. "Other than that you're beautiful, of course."

I shake my head. Nobody in the land is beautiful enough to garner this much attention naturally. After I left Finnian after our walk, he came to my room again in an attempt to talk to me. I excused him away, telling him that I had a headache.

"He was talking about marriage the moment that he met me," I say flatly, shuddering. "Avi did the same thing."

Avi was much better about it, much less obvious. Or perhaps his deception was clear from the beginning, and I didn't want to see it.

Zyre's jaw is set in a hard line as he looks down at the floor. "Hmm."

"I was a fool for falling for Avi's trick. I won't do it again." I lean against the cell bars, my mind swimming.

The feeling of betrayal when I finally accepted what Avi's true intentions were is a feeling I never want to encounter again. I cared about Avi — I thought he loved me. Instead, he was conspiring behind my back the entire time.

This time, I won't be so naïve.

A shadow passes over Zyre's face, thinking the same as me.

"I won't let anything happen to you, Lavelle. I won't," he vows.

"But what can you do?" I question. "Until we've come up with a plan, you're stuck in here."

We still haven't been able to figure out why Tavrik hasn't just done away with Zyre, who is the greatest threat to him. Our only theory is that he's planning a big spectacle in killing him, or he's breaking Zyre down for the fun of it.

I could believe either theory. Tavrik is sadistic enough for them both.

"Don't worry about me, okay? I will figure myself out," Zyre says softly, although I can't help but doubt him.

While I sneak him food and water consistently, it's clear the imprisonment is weighing on him. He still looks strong and reasonably healthy, but he's beyond fatigued.

I grip the bars. "I could steal a guards key. It would be easy enough."

"Tavrik would know you let me out," he says gravelly, which is exactly what he said the first time I brought the idea up. "It's best you focus on what you need to do."

I slump back, disheartened. I want Zyre out of here, even if he would never agree to it. I hate knowing I brought him back to a cell he spent part of his childhood in, exposing him to old scars he long since buried.
 
"It's hard to when Tavrik is going to marry me off to another creepy Alpha with bad intentions," I mutter. Sometimes I can't help but think this was a mistake, that I should have just let Zyre go to war with his brother.

"Were he going to do it any time soon, he wouldn't be bothering with lulling you into this," he reminds me.

I smile sardonically. "Perhaps part of the deal is to give Finnian a compliant wife."

For a male who seems relatively unassuming, I cannot believe Finnian would agree to do this. Is he in as desperate a position as Avi was, or is it his own greed luring him into the deal?

"Then don't make it easy on him." The looks Zyre gives me is emboldening. He knows that in the past, he was the one trying to keep me out of Avi's arms...

Now, it's up to me.

"Trust me, I won't." I sigh, rubbing my eyes.

He falls silent for a moment, and I can feel him watching me. When I open my eyes again, there's unease walking with trepidation across his face.

"Tavrik hasn't..."

"No," I say immediately. "His focus is on my sister, who very much wants his advances."

If his attentions were on me, it would be difficult to thrust me into the arms of whatever Alpha he struck a deal with to impregnate me. Keeping me at arm's length, but also indebted to him, in a way, is perfect.

"Good, because attempting to seduce you isn't below him," Zyre says gravelly.

"My only fear is that he is going to do something sadistic. He has this unbelievable coercive control over Caroline." My stomach twists at the thought of it, at the doe eyed looks she gives him, and the syrupy way she talks about her desire for him.

I can only wonder how he's done it — what he said to her to get her so enamoured by him.

"He's going to use her as a way to get you to do what he wants," Zyre says, mirroring my only worries.

I sit up straighter. "Then I need to get her out of here."

"But how?"

My mouth sets in a grim line. There's a plan I've been considering in my head, but making it work won't only corrupt my relationship with my sister, but may also blow up in my face.

And if it does, the façade is dismantled.
 
"I have an idea." I draw in a cautious breath. "Caroline has always hated when I had more than her. Always. If I can make her think that Tavrik is pursuing me, it will trigger her jealousy."

I barely recognise my sister anymore, but if there is one thing that I can be assured of, it's that her need to be above me in all circumstances comes above everything.

"You think you can get her to leave on her own?"
 
"No, but perhaps I can make Tavrik think that Caroline left on her own," I explain, knowing my sister has nowhere else to go but here, and would never voluntarily give up this level of luxury. "In the meantime, I'll have Elowen smuggle her out, but I'll need to drug her."

It won't be easy, and there is a chance it doesn't work, but it's the best I've got right now. Caroline needs to be eliminated from his plan, both for her own safety, and to ensure she can't be used against me.

Zyre nods, seeing the value in my plan as well.

"The infirmary will have what you need," he says.

I let out a breath, feeling myself relax. Having a solid plan gives me hope that I can do enough to eliminate Tavrik.

"With Caroline gone, I'll be able to focus."

"Just promise me you'll be careful." Zyre's brows crease. "Tavrik isn't someone you want to upset."

I nod assuredly. "I've got this."

With Caroline gone, my next focus will be destroying Tavrik's plan to have me sent off with Finnian. It will be by doing that, that I will reveal who Tavrik really is.

+++

I spent the next few days continuing to build my plan, confirming with Elowen what she needs to do.

I've learnt she's been staying in the forest nearby, keeping an eye on who comes and goes from the manor. No one has caught her yet, and I still haven't asked how she is managing to get in an out so smoothly.

With my plan for Caroline finalised, I weave through the manor and to the ground floor, trying to find the infirmary.

I'll need something strong that will knock her out for hours.

I only just make it down the stairs before I encounter Tavrik.

"Lavelle." He approaches me, looking concerned. "Everything okay?"

I pause my step, forcing myself to stop, even though my primary urge is to flee from him. I've been avoiding him and Finnian over these past few days, and he knows it.

"Of course. Why wouldn't it be?" I ask breathlessly, brushing stray hairs from my face.

"You've barely been out of your room recently." He frowns. "Is it Finnian?"

I swallow thickly. I want to say yes, that he creeps me out beyond measure, but that will only cause Tavrik to reroute his plan before I'm ready for him to.
 
"Honestly, I've just been having a persistent headache." I massage my temple sheepishly.

Understanding flickers across his face. "Ah, I see."

"Finnian is nice enough. A little...overbearing, at times." I shrug, like I'm still uncertain.

Tavrik smiles. It's the same empty, manipulative smile that I'm used to from him. One that tries to convey a male who does not exist.

"He's just friendly," he assures me. "Have you been to the infirmary about the headaches?"
 
"I'm just about to now, actually." I could benefit from him pointing me in the right direction.

"I'm not sure how much the physician will be able to do for you, though." He tucks his hands behind his back. "I'm afraid I know why you are experiencing head pain."

I frown, blinking.

In this moment, I may not have a headache, but I have had bouts of head pain. Inexplicable head pain that makes me feel as though I'm dying....Why does Tavrik know about this?

"You do?" I whisper.

"I've been working on something for quite a few months now. For you, of course." His smile suggest he's looking for praise, that he thinks he's being generous.

"What is that?" A dark and terrible feeling rolls down my spine.
 
"See, I know a very powerful person, who knows a great deal of things," he says. "They told me about my brothers plan as he was carrying it out, and what he was going to do to you."

I angle my head, not quite understanding.

"More important, this person told me how Zyre would make this happen."

Whatever I'm hearing isn't the true story. Tavrik is editing it to make Zyre look like the bad guy.

"How is that?" I ask nervously, unsure I want to know the answer.

"The mate bond, Lavelle. You do know you are mated to Zyre, don't you?" He looks over my face, gauging my reaction with palpable enjoyment. He knows I have no idea what he is talking about.

My eyes widen, all the breath immediately stolen from my lungs.

Mate.

Of course I've considered that Zyre could be my mate. Our connection has always been supernatural in a way, but could he really be my mate?

This changes everything...
 
"What?" I breathe, my head spinning.

"He's used this to get into your head, to manipulate you. He's known about this all along," Tavrik tells me, reaping a sadistic form of pleasure from being the one to tell me, instead of letting Zyre and I find out on our own.

I shift on my feet, trying to stay up right.

"Zyre is not my mate. You're mistake," I force out, although the truth of it falls heavy on my shoulders.

I may not know how Tavrik knows, or who he used to get this information, but I believe him. I believe him because now that he has said it, it feels so obvious.

Of course Zyre is my mate.

"I've known for some time now, but it is okay." He takes another step toward me. "This powerful has been helping me break the bond."

I flinch. What?
 
"Break...the bond," I stammer.

"Yes, which might explain some of the headaches you've been getting." He offers me a look of faux concern. "We've been having a hard time with it, but we're getting closer to breaking it."

I stare at him blankly, feeling faint.

If the head pain is from Tavrik trying to break the mate bond, that means he's known about Zyre and I for months. It means that all this time, when I thought I was dying, Tavrik has been behind it, trying to break the more sacred bond to werewolves of all time.

Everything suddenly becomes so clear, like the fog has been lifted from my mind.

This is why Tavrik isn't killing Zyre...he knows that if he kills my mate, he might kill me too. If that happens, he won't have any claim to power any longer.

"Lavelle?" He asks, angling his head into my view.

"I'm sorry, I'm trying to process this," I whisper. I need a wall to brace myself on.

"I thought you would be happy that I'm going to all this effort to have the bond broken for you." He looks a little hurt, like I planned to upset him.

Shaking my head a little, I force myself to focus. I can be shocked about this later.

"You're certain Zyre and I are mates?" I question.
 
He sighs drearily. "It's unfortunate, I know."

"I need to sit down." I clutch my stomach. I feel as though I'm about to throw up all over the floor at Tavrik's feet.

He immediately comes to my side, grabbing my arm for support. "Of course. I'll take you down to the infirmary."

I let him walk me in that direction, let him think I'm catatonic. This way, I can learn where the infirmary is, and grab the drugs I need while I'm there.

However, we're stopped as a flustered guard suddenly steps into our path.

"Alpha." He clutches the weapon at his side tightly, his hand shaking.

"Yes?" Tavrik exasperates. He's bothered by the interruption.

"It's your brother." The guard swallows, sweat beading at his brow. "He's gone."

My stomach drops.

"Gone?" Tavrik hisses through his teeth, letting go of my arm so quickly, I almost stumble.

The guard nods warily. "He escaped from the prison, and he's gone."

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~Midika 💜🐈‍⬛