Brought to his knees before the kingdom after ten years of hiding, Kyros believed that he would be sentenced to death for the murder of his pack. His sentence would mean the end of it all - his torment, his abuse, his turmoil.
But his destiny change...
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The night after the trials was a long one. The evening dawned upon the lands with a splendid array of colors washed upon the sky. The atmosphere was bare, holding no clouds in its grasp and the slight touch of wind could be felt upon one's skin. Black silhouettes of birds fluttered and danced across the painted skies, calling to their mates and singing heaven's song.
The trees and plants which crept upon the ground wore the shadows like black robes as the sun sunk lower into the sky. And while creation welcomed the light of the moon and fell unconscious under their creator's eyes, one could not.
One was kept awake.
Kyros lay in his bed, looking up at the ceiling with a blank stare. Not moving. Hardly blinking. Barely breathing.
He battled through his thoughts and questions but felt like he was losing the war. Had Candie really been drugging him all his life? How had he not noticed the drug in his own home? And what about when he was a child? Was someone working behind the scenes his entire life for a plan that had yet to be found out?
And are they still out there? Surely, Candie couldn't have been the only one involved.
And if this was the case, that meant he wasn't evil. His wolf wasn't a demon like others had speculated, he wasn't ill. He wasn't an abomination, he wasn't a monster.
That didn't excuse his uncontrollable actions, but his heart was not blackened and bruised with the vile poison of wickedness.
And Asheria. She had whipped him. She had marred his back to save his life. He had mixed emotions about the situation, part of him wished she wouldn't have taken the offer and let him die. Part of him wishes he didn't have to live through the pain of torturous flogging and the scars that will be forever present upon his back.
And the fact his own mate had done it left a different kind of pain in his heart. Why was it that he felt betrayed? She had done it for the greater good, so why did he feel that way?
But a part of him was grateful he didn't have to suffer for two whole weeks. His punishments were relatively short in days, and he was relieved he didn't have to go through any more of it.
A part of him knew that Asheria was grieved by what she had done to him. He knew that it wasn't easy in any way - to harm your mate, whether small or great.
Was he free? Was he truly free? He let out a loud breath of air. His fingers clenched the soft sheets. He became aware of the little dark tendrils of hair tickling his forehead, the feeling of his toes touching one another. The way he could breathe, the low thumping of his heart moving in his chest.
A sense of touch, a breath of air, the beating of his heart.
If he was dead, he would be experiencing none of these things. Now that he was free, he could finally notice the small details in his life. His mind had been so clouded with anxiety and pain, that he had never noticed the small details that made up life.
