Forgotten Wife Let the traitors kneel Down (by Patricia Maradiaga) novel Chapter 253

< Part II: The Answer I Am Looking For

Part II: The Answer I Am Looking For

Claim

Abril was surprised to see a strange landscape; they were in a dark alley that smelled of urine

and rotten food.

“Where are we?”

“In the real capital of Laios,” replied Sirius, holding Taren. The place seemed very different to Abril compared to what she remembered seeing when she had been taken to the kingdom of Cosset, so she asked, “Are you sure? It looks different from what I remember.”

“We are in one of the poor neighborhoods.”

After taking a quick look at the run–down buildings outside the alley and making sure there was no danger, Abril focused all her attention on Taren. He was still unconscious and looked very pale. She used her magic to help him while Sirius said to her, “There’s an inn nearby; I hope we can find an available room.”

Abril helped Sirius hold Taren up. As they walked out of the alley and down a few streets, she felt uneasy seeing that all the streets were completely deserted. At first, she feared the worst, that everyone had been attacked by monsters and there was no one left, especially considering the sorry state of the place. But soon they saw curious eyes watching them from half–open windows and doors.

Sirius said, “I don’t think we can go unnoticed; we’re the only ones on the streets.”

“Everyone seems to be terrified. What do you think has happened?”

“I don’t know, but hurry up; it’s not good to stay exposed for too long.”

They walked two more blocks to the inn, but the door was closed. Sirius knocked on the door insistently.

“Open up, we need a room.”

Curious eyes peeked through a crack, and a male voice spoke:

“We’re closed, so you better leave.”

“Our friend is sick and needs rest, please let us in. I will pay you well.”

That man didn’t seem willing to open the door, so Abril showed him the bag of gold she was carrying, made the coins clink, and said to him, “We have a lot of money, we’ll be very generous, please let us in.”

1/4

< Part II: The Answer I Am Looking For

Claim

The door opened, and a tall, big, muscular man with dark skin and grayish hair hurried them inside, then closed the door.

“Thank you very much,” Abril said while trying not to collapse under Taren’s weight. That man pushed her aside, took Taren in his arms as if he were a little child, and said to them, “Follow

me.”

He led them to a room with two beds, laid Taren on one of the beds, and said, “You’re not from around here, are you? Where do you come from?”

Sirius answered the question, “We’re travelers. We were passing through here, but everything is closed. Has something happened?”

“The slums have never been safe, but now they’re even worse. Monsters have been showing up and killing whoever they find. Everyone is afraid to leave their houses, afraid to be the next ones to become their meal.”

“Do the guards do nothing?”

“The guards are useless; their weapons don’t affect them, and the magic users have only been able to hold them back. But no one feels safe anymore, and judging by your appearance, I suppose you were also attacked by a monster.”

“Yes, but we managed to escape,” replied Sirius.

That man walked to the door and said to them, “My name is Dovant. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask, although I will charge you for everything you request.”

“Could you bring us some food?” Abril asked. Sirius added:

“And a change of clothes. We also need to clean ourselves.”

“At the end of the hallway are the bathrooms. You can clean up there, and I’ll bring the rest

right away.”

Dovant left the room. Sirius looked out the door to make sure he had left, and after making sure no one was listening, he said, “Apparently, the entire kingdom is suffering monster attacks.”

“I don’t understand why Enzo didn’t ask me to come earlier if things were so bad. If the letter had mentioned how bad things were, I…”

“You shouldn’t blame yourself. This is not your fault.”

“I just think that if I had closed the Hades rift when I returned from the Fairy Land, none of this would have happened.”

2/4

:

< Part II: The Answer I Am Looking For

“Stop thinking about what could have been and wasn’t. It only eats away at the soul and destroys your mind.”

Abril approached Taren, she infused her magic in him again and said, “I hope he recovers

soon.”

Claim

“Taren is like a cockroach; no matter how much they attack or step on him, he never dies, so don’t worry, he will recover. We just have to give him time.”

“I hope so.”

Dantriel was summoned by the queen of the elves to the dungeons. He accompanied the two guards who had come to get him without asking any questions, but curiosity was eating away at him inside.

Upon arriving at the dungeons, he thought they would take him to the cell where Ethan was, but when he saw that they were taking him to the torture chamber, his skin crawled.

He hesitated for a moment, whether to enter or escape, but in the end, he gathered his courage and entered. Ethan was hanging on the stone wall with thick steel shackles.

Dantriel bowed before the queen. Without raising his head, he began to speak, “Your majesty

summoned me.”

The queen gestured to the guards to hold him. Dantriel asked, “What does this mean, your majesty? Have I done something wrong?”

The

queen approached Dantriel, took his chin, raised his face, and with an indifferent look, replied, “No, I only do this as a precaution.”

The queen released Dantriel’s chin and headed towards the only chair in that room and ordered with a cold voice, “Begin.”

Dantriel stiffened when he saw one of the guards heading toward him with a hot poker in his

hand.

“I’m going to be tortured,” he thought.

But the guard passed by and headed toward Ethan. He put the hot poker on his arm, but Ethan didn’t scream; he just clenched his teeth and looked at him with great hatred. That was repeated several times until they managed to get a cry of pain out of him.

“What happened to my sister?” the queen asked as she crossed her leg and looked at him with indifference.

Ethan remained silent. The queen made a gesture with her hand, and the torture resumed.

3/4

< Part II The Answer I Am Looking For

Claim

They beat and cut him until he was half dead. Dantriel could only clench his fists, watching how they tortured his friend, helpless and unable to help him. The queen asked again, “What happened to my sister? If you continue to refuse to answer, it won’t end well for you.”

Ethan continued to remain silent. That torture continued until they left Ethan half dead. The queen was very upset; her always impassive face showed different expressions. The contained anger and rage were evident.

“If you won’t speak, you are not necessary to me, so you will die.”

The queen drew her sword, placed it on Ethan’s neck, and when she was about to slice his throat, Dantriel said, “Enough, your majesty, I will tell you what you want to know, so please, have mercy, don’t kill my friend.”

With a half smile, she replied, “That will depend on you.”

Comments

H