Chapter Five – Zara's POV
Left to Rot
I sat in silence, the weight of betrayal pressing down on me like a crushing force. My back was still in pain but it wasn't the type of pain I was feeling in my chest.
No matter how much I tried to make sense of it, the truth was clear. I have seen it now with my eyes and there is no need to act like it is not.
I had been played by them.
By the one I had trusted as my mate.
By the one I had loved as my sister.
Everything was just crashing down on me as I couldn't believe it one bit, why me, why do I have to be different.
A hollow numbness settled inside me, spreading like slow poison. My body still ached from the whippings, from the bruises, from the relentless pain—but none of it compared to the ache in my chest.
I had spent my entire life fighting to prove I wasn't a monster. To show my father I can make a change.
But what was the point?
No one believed me.
No one ever would.
The dim torchlight flickered against the stone walls, creating long, twisting shadows across the floor. My wrists were raw from the chains, my dress torn, my skin caked with dried blood.
I had nothing left.
No family.
No mate.
No future.
Then, the heavy iron door creaked open.
I didn't look up.
I didn't care who it was.
Footsteps echoed through the small cell, steady and deliberate.
Then a familiar voice spoke, a voice filled with command.
"Leave."
I didn't need to look up to know who it was.
Killian.
I heard the shuffle of his boots against the stone ground of the cell.
Then Killian's voice, amused. "The Alpha doesn't want anyone near her?"
James didn't answer right away.
James let out a soft chuckle. "Fine," he said. "She's not worth my time anyway."
I felt his gaze on me, but I refused to meet it.
"Such a shame," James mused. "I really did enjoy watching you break."
I still didn't look up.
But I felt it—the way his lips curled into a smirk, the way his amusement barely masked his disgust.
And then, finally, he walked away.
The door groaned shut behind him.
I let out a slow breath, but the air still felt thick, heavy.
Just when I thought I was alone again, I felt her presence beside me.
Cora.
I didn't react when she crouched down, close enough that I could feel her breath against my ear.
"No matter what you say," she whispered, her voice sickly sweet, "no one will believe you. Just remember this Zara you will never be perfect."
I flinched, but only slightly.
She was right.
Even if I screamed the truth, even if I begged, no one would believe that their precious, blessed child had been the one to kill our mother.
Cora pulled back, standing gracefully, her blue eyes gleaming with satisfaction.
"Goodbye, sister."
Then she was gone.
The silence stretched around me, pressing against my skull.
Slowly, I turned my head and met Killian's gaze.
He had been silent this entire time, standing still, waiting.
I studied him carefully.
His expression was unreadable.
He wasn't smirking like James.
He wasn't sneering like my father.
He wasn't gloating like Cora.
He was just… watching.
And for some reason, that made me feel worse.
I swallowed, my throat dry and raw. "Do you think I'm a monster?"
The words came out softer than I intended, almost fragile.
Killian didn't answer.
He didn't nod.
He didn't shake his head.
He just stood there, his silence stretching between us like a blade.
I watched him waiting for him to say yes that I was a monster but he said nothing.
That silence told me everything.
A bitter chuckle escaped my lips. "I see," I murmured. "You do."
Killian's expression didn't change.
But then, slowly, he moved.
He reached for something—a small wooden tray with a bowl of food. Without a word, he set it down in front of me.
Then he turned and walked away.
The heavy door shut behind him, leaving me alone once more.
I stared at the food.
A piece of bread. A bowl of stew.
Nothing extravagant.
Just enough to keep me alive.
Enough to make sure I didn't die.
I reached for it—then stopped.
Before I was filled with a lot of food by my mom but now I am being served as a servant.
Why?
Why should I eat?
Why should I live?
I had lost everything.
The hatred in my father's eyes.
The smirk on Cora's lips.
The laughter in James' voice.
They would never accept me.
Never love me.
Maybe it was better to die.
My wolf stirred.
"Weak," she growled.
I ignored her.
"Let me take control," she hissed. "Let me tear them apart. I'm not weak like you."
"No," I whispered.
I wasn't going to kill my father.
Or my pack.
Or even Cora.
Even after everything she had done.
I couldn't.
I wouldn't.
Instead, I shoved the tray aside, ignoring the way my stomach ached with hunger.
I lay down on the cold stone floor, curling in on myself.
The pain in my body was nothing compared to the emptiness in my heart.
I closed my eyes.
And let the darkness take me.
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