CHAPTER 205: CHAPTER 205: YOU’LL BE MINE AGAIN.

The moment the door closed behind them, the silence in the hallway felt strange. The air between them shifted instantly. Whatever act Maximus had maintained inside vanished in a heartbeat.

Without hesitation, he tore his arm away from her grasp, as if her touch burned. His movements were rough, sudden. The disgust in his eyes was clear.

Elarliya froze for a moment, her hand left hanging in the air where he had brushed her off. The soft, elegant smile that had lingered on her lips faltered, then stiffened completely. For a brief second, hurt flickering through her eyes before she quickly masked it behind a bitter smile.

"So," she said quietly, her voice trembling but laced with sarcasm, "Maximus, don’t act like just touching me disgusts you."

Her words cut through the still air, soft but sharp. "You weren’t that disgusted when you impregnated me."

The moment the words left her lips, his entire body stiffened. His shoulders went rigid, and his eyes darkened like a storm had just rolled in.

"Elarliya," he growled, his tone low and dangerous, "don’t cross your line."

He took a step toward her, his voice growing colder with every word. "You and I both know what happened that day. If I had known it was you..." His jaw tightened, his teeth gritting together as fury trembled beneath the surface. "I would have rather died than touched you."

Her eyes widened slightly, but he didn’t stop. His voice was filled with venom now, each word sharp enough to wound.

"So don’t you dare twist the past, and don’t you dare use my daughter in your dirty games. If you ever try...if you even think of manipulating her...I will show you exactly what I’m capable of."

For a long moment, the hallway was silent except for the sound of his heavy breathing. His anger filled the space like a storm waiting to explode.

Elarliya stared at him, her mask finally cracking. Her calm, practiced expression began to tremble. The sharpness in her eyes dulled, replaced by hurt, anger, disbelief.

"She’s my daughter too," she snapped suddenly, her voice trembling, louder than she intended. "Don’t you dare talk as if she belongs only to you, Maximus!"

He turned away as if to leave, his patience clearly slipping. But her next words stopped him cold.

"It would have been better," she hissed bitterly, "if I had never told you about her."

The sentence hit him like a blade. He froze mid-step. The air around them grew heavy and dangerously still.

Then, without warning, he turned back. His eyes burned with fury. In two strides, he was in front of her, his shadow towering over her smaller frame.

Before she could even breathe, his hand shot out and clamped around her throat.

Elarliya gasped, her back slamming against the wall. Her eyes widened as his grip tightened, cutting off her air. Her hands instinctively flew to his wrist, trying to pry his fingers away, but his strength was like iron.

"I warned you," Maximus growled, his face close to hers, his voice trembling with rage. "Never threaten me with my daughter."

His grip tightened even more, her breath coming out in broken gasps.

"Do you hear me?" His words were sharp, each one more dangerous than the last. "If you ever use her to manipulate me again, I will forget that you are her mother. Don’t test me, Elarliya."

His jaw was clenched so tight that a vein twitched along his neck. His eyes blazed with fury and disgust, the same hatred that had been buried deep for years finally spilling over.

Elarliya’s vision began to blur. Her fingers clawed weakly at his arm, desperate for air. Tears welled up in her eyes, sliding down her cheeks as her lips parted soundlessly. Her body trembled under his hold, and for a moment, it felt like he truly might kill her.

The hallway seemed to shrink around them, the sound of her gasps echoing softly off the cold stone walls. His breath came heavy, his expression dark and twisted with rage.

Then, just when she thought her world was going black...his grip released.

Elarliya collapsed instantly, sliding down the wall and landing hard on the floor. She coughed violently, clutching her throat, gasping for air. Each breath came out ragged, painful. Tears mixed with the smeared makeup on her face, streaking down in dark lines.

Maximus stood over her, his chest rising and falling heavily. His fists were clenched at his sides, his expression still hard.

But he didn’t speak. He didn’t move to help her.

Elarliya coughed again, her voice hoarse when she finally managed to whisper, "You... would really kill me?"

He looked down at her, his face cold as stone. "If it meant protecting her," he said flatly, "yes."

Her breath hitched. She stared up at him, eyes wide, disbelief painted across her face.

He turned away before she could say anything more. The tension in his shoulders spoke louder than words...he didn’t want to see her anymore.

But her voice stopped him one last time.

"You still hate me that much?" she rasped, her hand pressed weakly to her throat. "After everything I’ve done... everything I gave up for you?"

He froze. His hands clenched tighter.

Then he spoke without turning around. "You didn’t give up anything, Elarliya. You destroyed everything."

The words fell like a final blow.

Her lips parted, but no sound came out. She stared at his back as he walked away, his footsteps fading down the corridor until she was left alone in the silence.

Her hands trembled as she touched her neck, feeling the faint bruises forming under her skin. The spot where his hand had been still burned, not just from pain...but from humiliation.

Slowly, her tears turned cold.

For a long time, Elarliya didn’t move.

The corridor was silent except for the sound of her ragged breathing and the faint echo of Maximus’s footsteps fading down the hall.

Her body trembled as she sat there, her back pressed against the cold wall, one hand still on her throat where his fingers had been. The skin burned, her pulse still racing under her fingertips.

Then...softly at first...a sound broke the silence.

A laugh.

It slipped past her lips, shaky and breathless, almost a whisper at first. But then it grew louder, richer, edged with something dark and broken.

"Oh, Maximus..." she murmured between quiet, breathless laughs. "Still the same... still the same hot-blooded Alpha."

Her voice dripped with a strange mix of affection and bitterness.

"You act like you hate me," she said softly, tilting her head as if speaking to the empty space he’d left behind. "You act like my touch disgusts you... but I can still see it. The fire. The same fire that once drew me to you."

Her laughter softened, turning almost wistful. "That’s what made me fall for you, you know... the wild, untamed Lycan prince who feared no one. The man who ruled every room he walked into, the one who could make even the gods bow with that stubborn pride of yours."

Her eyes glimmered faintly as she stared at the wall before her, lost in her memories. "You were magnificent. You and I...we were supposed to be perfect. The strength of the Lycans and the power of the Witch clans united. Even the stars would have envied us."

Her tone shifted...gentle at first, then tightening like a blade.

"But then... she came."

The softness vanished.

Elarliya’s expression darkened as she lowered her head, a faint, cold smile twisting her lips. "That woman... that perfect, shining little saint you couldn’t take your eyes off."

Her nails dug into her palms, drawing faint crescents of blood. "She walked in and ruined everything. She took what was mine and left me with nothing. You think I forgot?"

Her laughter returned...low, bitter, and trembling with hate. "Oh, no, Maximus. I remember every single moment. The way you looked at her. The way you changed because of her. You were never the same after that."

Her eyes gleamed with something unhinged. "And now... now she’s gone. Burned away by her own foolishness. The world finally took back what it stole from me."

She lifted her chin, the tears on her cheeks catching the faint torchlight. "Maybe it’s fate after all. Maybe the gods wanted to return what was mine."

Her smile grew, eerie and almost childlike. "You’ll see, Maximus. You’ll see soon enough. Because no matter how much you hate me... hate is still a bond. And you, my love, are still tied to me."

She brushed her fingers over the faint bruises on her neck and let out another low, trembling laugh. "And your daughter..."

The words trailed off, and for a moment, her eyes softened again. Then they hardened, cold and sharp.

"She has her mother’s eyes. That same defiant fire. The same arrogance that cost everything."

Her expression shifted...sadness melting into obsession. "But don’t worry, my dear. I’ll take care of her. I’ll make sure she joins her mother in due time... and then, when she’s gone, you’ll finally have no one else to turn to."

Elarliya rose slowly, brushing the dust from her gown, her movements graceful even in the aftermath of chaos. The queenly composure returned to her face, the perfect, serene mask of control that hid the storm within.

When she finally looked up again, her eyes were calm...terrifyingly so.

"Wait for me, Maximus," she whispered, her lips curving into a slow, dangerous smile. "You can run, you can threaten, you can hate me all you like... but in the end, you’ll be mine again."