Page 140 of Crowned In Venom

It cannot be.

It cannot.

"No." The whisper leaves my lips, shaking.

I do not believe it—I do not want to believe it?—

But I do.

I see it now.

In the way he spoke his name, in the way he asked about him, in the way he grieved.

This thing.

This monstrous creation of the Matriarch’s cruelty.

This is his father.

My lips part, my body shaking.

"What happened to you?" I breathe.

The monster does not answer.

Instead—

It stands.

For the first time, it does not cower in the corner.

For the first time, it does not scream in agony.

It rises, straightens its ruined back, its massive form towering over me.

"I should have done this long ago," it murmurs.

And then?—

The dungeon trembles.

The very air shifts.

The magical barriers around the cage flicker.

Crackle.

Fizz.

And then—they collapse.

The iron bars crumble, reduced to dust.

I stare at the gaping hole in the dungeon.

I can escape.

I can run.

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