bChapter /bb161 /b

    ra’s POV

    I could hear the sound of footsteps outside the door–heavy, deliberate. Then, a creak, and the door cracked open just enough for Wendy to peek through, her wide eyes meeting mine with a sh of fear.

    “M–Master!” she stammered, voice barely above a whisper. “I was just about to tell the Queen… about what happened downstairs.b” /b

    I saw it now–she must’ve caught sight of Thorne fighting Dorian. Scared out of her mind, she ran up here to tattle.

    “Tell Mi I need to see her,” Thorne’s voice cut through the tension like a knife.

    I struggled in his hold, trying to pull my arms free. “Stop! Are you losing your mind, Thorne?!”

    He couldn’t seriously be doing this. Handing me over to Mi?

    “Yes,” he gritted through clenched teeth, his voice low and dangerous. “I am, and it’s because you made me this way.”

    I felt my stomach churn. Thorne, the one who’d always tried to protect me, was now the one pushing me into this nightmare.

    Wendy gulped, her hands trembling as she pulled the door open wider. “Come inb,/b” she whispered.

    Thorne shoved me, and I stumbled into the room. Mi was there, sitting at her dresser, a maid brushing her long, silky hair. She turned her head slowly, meeting our gaze in the mirror. Her eyes sharpened, a flicker of surprise crossing her face.

    “What are you doing here?” she asked, her voice cool butced with suspicion. “It’ste. And let me remind youb–/bmy room is guarded by soldiers.”

    Thorne snorted, unimpressed. “Rx. I’m not here to hurt you.”

    He pushed me forward again, and I barely caught myself. “You said you were good at training ves,i” /ihe said coldly. “I think I might need your help with one.”

    Mi’s jaw dropped. She stood up, turning around to face us. Her eyes flickered between me and Thorne, her expression morphing into something between curiosity and doubt.

    “Wait… her?i” /ishe gasped.

    Thorne nodded.

    “This isn’t some kind of trick, bis /bbit/b?” Mi asked, stepping forward, her voice lower now, more probing. “I thought she bhad /bbyou /bbwrapped /baround her finger! Did you change your mind? What happened?”

    Her words were a p, sharp and cutting. Just days ago, I’d seen her trying to sever my hands with an axe. Thorne had stormed binto /bbthe /bCounseling Hall and threatened to do the same to her.

    Why had things shifted so drastically?

    Thorne’s eyes turned hard, his voiceced with venom. “No matter how kind I was to herb, /bshe just bwouldn’t /bbappreciate /bbit/bb. /bbShe /bbtrampled /bbmy /bheartb, /bso now… this ends.”

    My chest tightened, anger bubbling up. It was byou /bbwho /bbetrayed me bfirst/b! bYou left /bbme/b, bThornel /bbYou’re /bbthe /bbone /bbwho’s /b

    “I bdidn’t /bbbetray /byoub,/b” he binterrupted/bb, /bbhis /bbvoice /bblow/bb, /bbdangerous/b. b“/bbBut /bbyou /bbdid/b. bYou /bbgave /bbyour /bbheart /bband /bbbody /bbto /bbsomeone /bbelse/b. And now you

    b1/3 /b

    going to pay for that choice.”

    The air between us crackled. I wanted to scream, tosh out. And then Mi–always the snake–let out augh.

    “Wow, ra! Did you really sleep with someone else? What a piece of work you are. Let me help you out of that sluttiness,” bshe /bsneered,

    My blood boiled, every part of me wanted to strike her, but I held back, fists clenched. “Stay the hell away from meb,/bb” /bI warnedb, /bbtaking /ba step back.

    “I’m not going to let you touch me,” I hissed. “Remember the dungeon, Mi? When you tried to hurt me? When I knocked out your bfront /btooth?”

    Her eyes flickered with fear.

    She hadn’t even dared to grin after that.

    “Thorne…” she muttered, her voice almost a whisper. “You have a feisty one here.”

    Thorne’s expression was unreadable as he loosened his tie. He stepped forward, his hand grabbing for me. I fought back, but it was useless. His grip was too strong, and I couldn’t escape.

    With one swift motion, he tied my hands with his tie.

    “You might want to swap that for iron chainsteri,” /iThorne said, his voice icy.

    I stared at him in disbelief. “You’re really doing this. You’re handing me over to her? After everything? You’re… you’re just going to let her bhurt /bme?”

    He didn’t answer. His eyes were hollow, emotionless.

    Thest shred of hope I had left in me broke. The man I’d trusted, the man who’d once vowed to protect me, was now the one who was handing me off to be tortured.

    Tears welled up in my eyes, but I didn’t let them fall. “Thorne! I hate you! I fucking hate you! Go to hell!”

    His expression didn’t change. He turned toward the door. “Saye some of that energy,” he said quietly. “You’ll need itter.”

    “Wait! Don’t you want to stay and watch?” Mi asked, her voiceced with excitement.

    Thorne didn’t even slow his pace. “No.”

    “And how far can I go?” Mi pressed. “Can I chop her hands? Her legs? Things might get extreme-”

    Thorne’s voice cut through the air, colder than ice. “No missing hands or legs. No permanent injuries.”

    “Then what’s the point of all this?” Mi asked, her frustration rising.

    “I said NO,” Thorne snapped, his voice a finalmand. “When Ie back to fetch her, I want her in one pieceb. /bbUnderstand/b?b” /b

    He stormed out without another word.

    Mi pouted, her eyes still on me as Iy on the floor, panting with exhaustion. “Wendy,” she ordered, “Tie her feet band /bbgag /bbher /bbmouth/b.

    Wendy scrambled to obey.

    I didn’t fight back. I couldn’t. My body was too weak from the emotional turmoil. When thest bof /bbmy /bblimbs /bbwere /bbbound/bb, /bbMi /bbfinally /bbseemed /b

    b15:34 /bbFri/bb, /bb8 /bbAug/b” “)

    to rx. She walked toward me with a cruel smirk.

    “Look at you. So pathetic.”

    I squeezed my eyes shut, refusing to meet her gaze.

    She giggled, the sound sharp and filled with malice. “The man who loves you most has abandoned you again. You must feel like aplete failure, huh? Like trash.”

    I couldn’t look at her. Couldn’t respond. All I wanted was for this to end.

    Mi wasn’t done yet. “Look at me,” she purred, “Open your eyes, and I’ll tell you a little secret about Thorne.”

    I hesitated. Slowly, my eyes opened.

    Mi’s grin widened, her face full of wicked satisfaction. “Wrong,” she giggled. “Maid’s code of conduct, rule number two–never look bthe /bmasters in the eye. Guess you’ve forgotten that, huh?”

    ing me hard across the face.

    Before I could process the humiliation, her hand shot out, pping

    The sound rang in my ears as my vision blurred.

    I didn’t respond. I couldn’t. My body, my mind–everything

    felt like it was slowly slipping away.

    “We’re going to have a lot of fun now, aren’t we, ra?” she whispered, her ivoice /ifull of promise.

    I couldn’t move. Couldn’t scream.

    All I could do was endure.

    X