My Second Chance Mate is a Barbarian (Sera and Fenris) novel Chapter 101

Sera

We walked out of the room and headed down the long, winding stone corridors toward the lower levels. The keep was slowly waking up. The distant sounds of armor clanking and servants shouting echoed up the stairwells. I kept my pace steady, walking right beside Mina.

We turned a sharp corner near the guest quarters.

I caught the smell before I saw the person. It was the heavy, cloying scent of my mother’s expensive perfume, mixed directly with the sharp, acidic stench of fresh sweat and…

Sex.

Lord Torin stepped out of my mother's quarters right in front of us.

He was actively pulling his collar straight, looking down at his boots. He almost walked directly into my chest.

Torin stumbled backward, his leather boots slipping slightly on the stone floor. He looked up. When he saw me standing there, the blood completely drained from his face. He knew exactly what I had caught them doing yesterday. He had just been fucking the Queen again. I could smell my mother all over him.

Then, he noticed Mina standing right beside me. His eyes darted nervously between us. He was a cornered rat, trying to figure out if the trap had already snapped.

"Princess Seraphina," Torin stammered. He tried to force his diplomatic mask back into place, but his voice cracked slightly. He tripped over his own words. "I... I was just..."

He cleared his throat, failing entirely to finish the sentence.

"Good morning, Lord Torin," I said. I kept my voice entirely flat, offering zero comfort.

Torin swallowed hard. His Adam's apple bobbed in his throat. He looked at Mina again, clearly uncomfortable with the northern girl's presence. "Princess, might I have a private word with you? In my quarters?"

"No," I answered immediately. "You can speak here."

I honestly didn't expect him to take the offer. I assumed he would make an excuse and scurry away, too terrified to discuss his treason with an Ironmaw pack member standing two feet away. I wasn't trying to talk to him about fucking my mother anyway.

But Torin was an idiot. He bought the bluff.

He took a cautious step closer to me. He lowered his voice, trying to speak in a coded, diplomatic rhythm so Mina wouldn't understand.

"Regarding the... situation we encountered yesterday," Torin started, his eyes darting frantically to Mina again. "I want to ensure that our mutual understanding remains intact. The climate here is hostile. It would be a tragedy if certain... misunderstandings were blown out of proportion and reached the ears of those residing in the South."

Mina frowned deeply. She tilted her head, actively trying to piece together the bizarre, cryptic puzzle he was presenting.

"I assure you, my discretion is absolute," Torin continued, sweating slightly in the cold hall. "And I trust yours is as well. We are all adults simply navigating a difficult terrain."

"Stop talking," I cut him off. My voice was harsh and clipped.

Torin clamped his mouth shut.

"I don't care about your terrain," I said, keeping the details vague enough to confuse Mina, but sharp enough to cut him down. "I already stated the terms. You stay out of my way, and the South hears nothing. Do not approach me in the halls to secure a guarantee you do not deserve."

Torin’s jaw tightened. The panic in his eyes instantly morphed into wounded pride. The diplomatic mask completely shattered. I had just spoken to him like a disobedient servant in front of a northern girl. He couldn't handle the disrespect.

I didn't struggle against Mina's grip. I stood my ground, staring down at the Valdris lord writhing in the dirt. Pure, unadulterated disgust churned in my stomach, but I kept my face completely rigid. I clenched my fists at my sides, my knuckles throbbing dull and heavy from the impact.

"Listen to me carefully," I said. My voice was deadly quiet, but it echoed clearly in the empty hall.

Torin stopped screaming. He looked up at me, his eyes watering wildly from the intense pain, blood soaking the front of his expensive tunic.

"I do not care what you do with the Queen," I warned him, delivering the threat with absolute, freezing precision. "You can fuck her until you both turn blue. But if you ever step to me again, or if you do anything that negatively affects this pack, I will send a raven to King Aldric myself. And I will make sure he boils you alive."

Torin flinched hard. He pressed his bloody hands tighter against his ruined face, scooting backward on the stone floor like a terrified animal to get away from me.

"Let's go, Mina," I said, turning away from him.

Mina didn't need to be told twice. She grabbed my arm and dragged me quickly down the corridor. I let her pull me. As we walked away, I could feel Torin's hateful, watering eyes burning a hole right between my shoulder blades. I heard him murmur something under his breath but we were already too far away to make out the words.

We walked in complete silence for a full minute. The only sound was our boots hitting the floorboards.

Then, Mina slowed her pace. She looked straight ahead at the corridor wall.

"Is that idiot fucking the Queen?" Mina asked casually.

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