The Alpha’s Rebellious Fiancee novel Chapter 4

Lyra’s POV

I didn’t run. Running would’ve made too much noise. Instead, I walked fast—head low, steps quiet—until I reached the narrow servants’ corridor, then the creaky door to my tiny room at the end of the hall. My hands were still shaking as I closed it behind me.

The second the door clicked shut, I collapsed.

The walls were too close. The ceiling too low. The bed was just a thin mattress on a wooden frame, tucked under the only small window, too high to see the moon. But it was mine.

And tonight, it felt like the only place I could break without anyone watching.

I buried my face into my pillow, letting the sobs out as silently as I could. The fabric soaked up my tears, but not the pain. Nothing could.

I hated crying. But I couldn’t hold it in anymore. She almost burned me. And no one cared. Lucien didn’t care. Lucien never cared.

I rolled onto my back, wiping my face with the edge of my blanket. That’s when I saw it.

A letter.

Sealed with the Hawthorne crest, resting neatly on top of my folded apron. My heart stopped. I sat up, hands trembling as I opened it. Inside was a short letter.

Lyra,

You are to leave at dawn. Your travel has been arranged. Do not speak of this to anyone. –Alpha Magnus

That was it. No explanation. No comfort. No choice. I stared at the wall, my breath shallow. I was leaving. After two years. After two years of surviving in silence. I didn’t even know what to feel.

My eyes drifted to the small stack of clothes I owned. Three dresses. Two aprons. A worn-out sweater.

Slowly, quietly, I began folding them.

One by one.

Because when you’ve been thrown away before, you learn how to pack quickly.

***

Lucien’s POV

Her lipstick was smudged. I didn’t care. Her legs were wrapped around me, her fingers tangling in my hair. I had her pinned against my bedroom wall, one hand under her thigh, the other sliding beneath her shirt.