Word Count: 2164

~Lavelle

I sit on the grimy cell floor, my heart heavy.

Everything has gone wrong. My plan will have to shift, thanks to my sister, but that is not what upsets me the most.

I've put Elowen in danger.

She sits in the cell opposite me, visible through the thick metal bars. She doesn't look nearly as dejected as me, leaning back against the concrete wall with her legs stretched out in front of her.

I admire how she is able to keep her head in situations like these. The confinement doesn't seem to bother her at all.

"I'm sorry, Elowen." My voice sounds hollow in the echoey space.

She glances over at me, dark shadows spilled beneath her eyes. "What for?"

"For putting you in this position." My clothing scrapes against the concrete bricks as I adjust my seating position. "I had no idea Tavrik felt the way he did about you. If I had, I might have thought differently than to bring you along."

I didn't care about her wellbeing. I figured she was expendable, because I didn't like her. I definitely don't feel that way anymore.

"This isn't on you. I want to be here." She turns to face me.

"You wouldn't have come back if it weren't for your loyalty to Zyre," I say.

She frowns at me, disrupting the layer of grime that mars her skin. It is impossible stay clean in here, which makes me sad for all the time Zyre spent here growing up.

"You really think that my loyalty is all that is going on here?" She slides closer to the bars that separate us. "Lavelle, I am here because I believe in you. I believe that you are the one who can kill Tavrik."

"But you keep trying to convince me to leave."

She sighs through her nose, frustrated that I am not understanding. It is hard to, when this entire time, she has been resolute about me not staying here.

"Only to remind you of why you are here. To harden your resolve," she insists. "We are both exactly where we need to be."

I doubt she means this prison exactly, but it is hard to know. Her ability to remain optimistic in a solemn situation is uncanny.

"I'm sorry for being such a bitch to you in the past," I mutter, looking down at my hands. The lines in my palms and the ridges of my fingernails are lodged with dirt, no matter how much I pick and rub at the spots.

Elowen laughs lowly, a deep rumbling sound.

"I kind of deserved it," she mutters. "I should have been more understanding, considering what you were going through, and what you witnessed with Avi's death."

I shrug. "That wasn't on you."

"I was in love with Zyre when I arrived, but the moment I saw you together, I want you to know that the feeling released me. It was as if I were caged, and now I've been set free." She smiles a little. "Knowing he has found a mate bond in you brings me joy beyond comprehension."

I look at her, a little surprised.

There is no lie to be sensed on her breath. She means what she says, and she is grateful both for my sake, but especially her sake.

"I believe you," I murmur.

Leaning her body against the cell bars, she captures my gaze. It lifts some of the burden weighing down on my chest, giving me hope like I haven't had before.

"You will see him again. You will be happy together," she promises.

I smile softly. "Thank you, Elowen."

I will get her out of this mess, and soon. Even if it at great cost to myself. She doesn't deserve to be here, subject to Tavrik's whims.

He deigns to join us for the first time a few hours later.

I'm laying down when I hear his footsteps, watching a leak from the ceiling drip steadily in the corner of my cell. I immediately sit up, scrambling back from the cell doors as he approaches.

He stops as close as he can reach me, a smug grin tilting his lips up.

"Comfortable down here?"

"What do you want?" I grit out.

I knew he would come down to taunt us at some point, I just hoped he would hold off while Elowen and I discussed a plan. I've been letting her sleep until now, as she rises up onto her hands to glare scathingly at the Alpha.

"I have a few questions, naturally," he muses, looking between us.

"We're not in the mood to answer them," Elowen spits out. She doesn't retreat to the wall as I do. Instead, she stands, folding her arms over her chest.

Tavrik sighs at her. Did he think she would be happy to see her?

His eyes sweep to me, deciding I'm a more favourable target. "This was a ruse all along, wasn't it, Lavelle?"

"You believe anyone would choose to be in your presence?" I seethe. "Look at Elowen. She ran from you the second she got a chance."

His eyes narrow slightly, my taunt hitting him right where he is the most insecure. It is easy to notice how no one here lingers, except for my brainwashed sister.

He has no one, and he knows it.

"Are you in love with my brother?" He deadpans.

I draw in a slow breath. I could lie, but what point is there to that now? Tavrik has decided he doesn't believe me. Any lie I force out now would only seek to satisfy him.

And right now, I want him to hurt.

"Of course I am. He is my mate, and he is a good, kind male. He deserves to be an Alpha, unlike you." I raise my chin, meeting his stare with a steady one of my own.

A muscle in his jaw ticks, his earlier amusement fading.

"Is that why you are here then? To kill me?"

I stand, refusing to appear weak before him. "What do I get for my honesty?"

"I don't kill you."

I glance at Elowen, who nods imperceptibly. We've already discussed what we would tell Tavrik when he came to interrogate us. Yet, she does not know what else I have planned.

"You can't kill me," I remind him. "If you kill me, you'll never have a claim to Alpha Liora's pack."

Surprise flutters across his face, betraying him.

He had no idea about Zyre and I's trip to Liora's pack, to find out about my ancestry. He was relying on my naivety to conduct his plan, and now, it is all falling apart.

"And how do you know about that?"

"I figured it out," I say simply.

He swallows, his fingers reflexing in barely restrained anger. He's watching his ruse melt away, revealing the cruel, disturbed male we've known him to be this entire time.

"Then I shall kill Elowen," he snaps, looking to her.

Even now, I note the forlorn look in his eye. A male enamoured by the strong female who stares back at him, unmoved by his threat.

"The only female you love? I don't believe that." I shake my head, unconvinced.

He inhales sharply, eyes narrowing. He feels himself being corned, and he hates it.

"Then I'll kill your pathetic, simpering sister." He steps closer to my cage, eyes wild with unkempt fury. "Her use has entirely dried up."

I pause, a bolt of fear spearing through me.

He must read my hesitation, knowing that despite what she has done, she is still my weakness. He knows I could never sign off on him killing her.

He angles his head, smiling sadistically. "Her betrayal not enough to warrant her death?"

Thankfully, I'm already prepared to be honest. Well, appear honest, anyway. I would never admit that I am here to kill him, or else he will have caused to kill everyone I know.

"I'm here to spy on Zyre's behalf. That is it," I state.

He stares at me silently for a moment, uncertain. Is my lie enough to satiate him?

"And what have you found?"

"Nothing of note, if I am honest." I shrug my shoulders, appearing disheartened. "Only that your army is stronger than Zyre has anticipated."

He straightens, posture fortified by my compliment.

The only way to get everyone out of this alive is to play to his weakness—his own ego. He doesn't just want power, but also notoriety. He wants everyone to admire him, to fill his empty life with their adoration.

"He always has underestimated me," he mutters.

I step closer to him, ignoring the unease that follows the path of his cruel gaze.

"Please let Elowen go. She doesn't deserve to be here." I gesture at her, hoping Tavrik's fondness for her will spare her.

Instead, his expression twists into one of anger again. "Of course she does. She betrayed, choosing to leave with my brother instead of staying to accept my marriage proposal."

Elowen makes a sound of contempt from low in her throat. "I was never going to accept it."

I wince as Tavrik flinches. She is not helping her own case by riling him, but she is not one to simper, even if it means saving her own life.

"Let her go, Tavrik. I will stay and comply with your wishes," I assure him. I intend to stay anyway, to see this plan through.

"For her freedom?"

"Her complete freedom," I say steadily. I will not agree to anything where this is a loop hole for him to exploit. "You will never see her again, and she will be allowed to travel wherever she pleases without risk of you apprehending her."

Elowen looks at me, alarmed. She thinks I'm going to let her stay here, to help me with my plan. The problem is, I don't trust Tavrik. I know he will force her into something the moment he is able.

"You are to marry Finnian," he says tightly.

"I will do that," I assure him. "If he ever returns."

His eye twitches. Another weak spot.

"If he does not return, then it will be my heir you will carry," he states. "If I cannot have three packs under my control, I'll have to settle for two."

I shudder, repulsion spilling through me. He will be dead before he ever got to touch me.

"You can have your heir in a year," I barter.

"No. Immediately." His jaw sets in a hard line. "I need the gaurantee, for Zyre will wage war against me otherwise."

Zyre would do far worse to him if he forced himself on me. I doubt there could be anywhere in the world Tavrik could hide to escape his wrath.

"If you allow me to see him, I will tell him not to," I promise.

He tilts his head. "And where might I find my brother?"

I pause, resisting the urge to look at Elowen. She knows, but I do not. One glance at her, and Tavrik will know she is aware.

"I didn't think so," he growls. "You will also have your mate bond removed."

"No!" My raised voice echoes in the space, reflecting my desperation right back at me.

He could already be close to removing our mate bond. A couple more days and it could be complete, and everything will be destroyed.

"That is non-negotiable," he says cruelly.

I shake my head, coming to the cell bars. "I'll do anything...just not that."

He looks down at me, both contempt and disgust milling in his eyes. He hates me, and hates that his power is contingent on my continued existence.

"I'll think on it," he mutters, stepping back. "I'm sure I can find something advantageous to barter for."

I shudder. Whatever he could conceive of in his demented mine wouldn't be good.

"For now, you are to remain in these cells." He turns on his heel, walking from the prison with his guards behind him.

Elowen immediately shifts to where our cell walls converge, his eyes wide and desperate.

"Lavelle...no," she pleads. "Don't do all this for me."

"I'm buying us time, me time," I tell her. "And hopefully getting you out of here in the meantime."

Her hands wrap around the cell bars. "I'm not worth all these agreements."

"You are." I am doubting a lot down here, but not that. "Even if I weren't going to kill him before our agreements could come fruition."

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