Page 96 of The Throne's Undoing

"Most?" Kallie repeated, ignoring the twisting of her stomach at the mention of Graeson's name.

Medenia nodded. "According to Graeson and Dani, two men managed to escape, fleeing by horseback."

A previous conversation with Rian the day before the welcome ceremony resurfaced. Rian had mentioned that hissoldiers had been slaughtered and that he and Sebastian had to flee.

Was this what he was doing then? And if so, how could he have allowed it?

Based on her interactions with him, Kallie wouldn't have thought that Rian would partake in something like this. He was kind, modest...but he was also ignorant. His soft greeneyes always seemed troubled and soaked with sorrow.

Kallie had never seen any malice within them.

But perhaps the young king was not whom Kallie had imagined. Maybe she wasn't the only one who had been wearing a mask all this time.

Medenia grabbed a piece of meat from a nearby bucket, and Kallie quirked a brow, recalling a detail the princess had revealed to her during the hunt.

"I thought you were a vegetarian?" she remarked.

"I am," Medenia said with a small smile. She shrugged and threw the meat into the air. "But Nyrri is not."

Nyrri jumped, her wings spanning out as she caught the raw meat with a quick snap of her jaw. When she landed, the ground around her shook, causing Kallie to stumble back several steps. However, even as Kallie's heart beat rapidly in her chest and she got a good look at Nyrri's sharp canines, Kallie wasn't afraid of the wild creature, despite logic telling her she should have been.

How long had the animal been held in captivity? How long had she had to endure the Frenzians' cruelty before she finally gained her freedom? Before she found someone who did not wrap a chain around her neck?

Before the Tetrians stopped fearing her?

The creature might have been born to kill and destroy, but hidden within the dragon-wolf's gaze was a yearning for security and companionship. She bumped Medenia's thigh, silently begging for affection, for connection.

As Kallie watched Nyrri, she felt at ease for the first time in a long time, even as she felt the eyes of dozens of guards watching her in the garden.

Chapter 32

MYRA

The room carried many stories,stories Myra couldn't even begin to peel from the bricks and detangle. So much torture had transpired within this cell. In this entire godsforsaken castle.

The pain soaked the ground beneath her. It was so embedded into the very foundation of the castle that Myra didn't know if it would ever disappear.

Some scars were so deep that even when no marks were left, there was no erasing them.

Yet Myra was learning to find comfort in the agony that swathed the cell in shadows. Because, to an extent, the company of the pain wrapping around her was better than the fear and anguish of the living.

King Rian had fought the healer the entire time they were in that wretched room.

But more than that, he was fightingher. After the Frenzian King had screamed and fought Myra's attempts to soothe his mind, Domitius had left disgusted by Myra's failure.

Dr. Thorne and Myra were forced to stay, though. The hours were long and slow to pass. Only when the healer had enough and Myra could barely keep her eyes open as blood dripped fromher nose from exertion did they stop. By the time the guards had led her back to her cell, her mind was weary, her limbs exhausted.

She had never encountered such a strong-willed mind before. Every time she tried to soothe his emotions, to break him down, his anger and rage came back tenfold.

To some extent, she was glad that Rian was fighting it, for she did not wish for King Domitius to succeed.

Yet, she did not wish to see Rian in pain either.

Days later, Myra leaned her against the wall, dreading the day the guards would come to retrieve her once she had recovered. She squeezed her eyes shut as she tried not to think about the experiments, what became of the Pontian, or what would become of her brother if she failed.

But she had to believe Mynhos was still safe. Because if he wasn't...

Taking a deep breath, Myra attempted to steady herself. She brushed her palms against the rough concrete and focused on the pebbles scratching her skin. She let the cold ground seep into her flesh and fill her body.

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