Piangi per me volpe
â–¶ Cry For Me Fox
Piangi per me volpe. episodi completi in italiano. #FilmCompleto #DramaItaliano #SerieCompleta
#FilmCompleto #DramaItaliano #SerieCompleta #ShortDrama #ReelShort
🔤 Attiva i sottotitoli / Enable subtitles (CC)
â–¶ Cry For Me Fox
Piangi per me volpe. episodi completi in italiano. #FilmCompleto #DramaItaliano #SerieCompleta
#FilmCompleto #DramaItaliano #SerieCompleta #ShortDrama #ReelShort
🔤 Attiva i sottotitoli / Enable subtitles (CC)
Categoria
🎥
CortometraggiTrascrizione
00:00My throat slit, I was pushed off the cliff, but the last seen before me was my devoted mate over
00:06there kissing the hand of my dear sister.
00:08Reborn, I had returned to the day I chose my beast.
00:11The little fox looked at me eagerly, his crimson eyes glistening.
00:15I raised my hand, and under his expectant gaze, pointed past him to the frail white snake behind him.
00:22I want him.
00:23You don't want me anymore?
00:25I had returned back to the day of the choosing.
00:27Vendors shouting in the black market, voices clashing with the snarls of caged beastmen.
00:33The truth is clear.
00:34I had returned to the day father had brought us to the black market to choose.
00:38Pax unspoken bloodlawed.
00:39Every young man and woman, three years before coming of age, personally select an equally young beastman as their future
00:47mate.
00:48Bonded for life.
00:49No betrayal, no abandonment.
00:52Beastmen matured much quicker than humans.
00:54A puppet's love was to prevent a bonded beastman from growing into a resentful predator.
00:59But I had never fully understood why.
01:01Beastmen ranked beneath humans, caged and passive, waiting to be claimed like livestock.
01:06So why would our bloodline insist on binding us to them?
01:11Weren't they afraid of us being betrayed?
01:13Suddenly, I locked with Kale's eyes, still young and naive.
01:16Memory of my past life resurfaced.
01:18The stinging pains of my throat being slipped are so vivid, I bit it back and steadied myself with a
01:25fist, pressed hard against the pain of my chest, and looked around.
01:29The massive holding cage ahead contained no fewer than 20 beastmen.
01:33Unsurprisingly, every one of them bore fresh wounds.
01:36My gaze locked instantly on Kale.
01:38Hunched in the corner, arm torn by bite marks.
01:41His fox ears and tail no longer able to stay hidden.
01:44He caught my gaze, and something lit in his eyes.
01:47Then he moved toward me.
01:48Alara, which one do you like?
01:50Serafina appeared at my shoulder, her smile perfectly gentle.
01:54She was father's daughter from his first wife.
01:57A woman who had bled out in labor, and never held her child.
02:00Father had remarried, and my brother and I came after.
02:04For years, Serafina had maintained a flawless image.
02:07Gracious and elegant to the outside world.
02:10Warm and devoted sister within the walls.
02:12In truth, she burned with rabid jealousy.
02:15Convinced that my brother and I had stolen father's attention, and her birthright.
02:19So she had delayed her own choosing.
02:21Father, I'd like to wait a bit before choosing an orc.
02:24I want to go with my sister.
02:28Laying a trap she'd been tightening for years.
02:31Watching Serafina now, poised as a flower, I understood perfectly.
02:35This was the moment Kale had first set his sights on her.
02:38Serafina spotted Kale too, and murmured,
02:41You've always had a taste for pretty things.
02:44That fuck suits you.
02:45Pretty, and nothing else.
02:48The color drained from Kale's face.
02:50In my last life, those words had fallen from Serafina's lips, and they had shattered him on the spot.
02:56This time was no different.
02:58He stared at me, ashen, his eyes flooding with disbelief.
03:02A question stirred in my gut.
03:04Serafina gave a small smile, drifted away, and began her own careful selection.
03:09Just as in my last life, she chose the powerfully built Shadow Wolf.
03:13Now I was the only one who hasn't chosen.
03:16Few beastmen remained in the cage.
03:18A quick sweep found Kale watching me with naked hope.
03:21My gaze moved past him, and settled on the beastman behind.
03:25Half human, half serpent.
03:27Coiled, and utterly still.
03:28If memory served, no one had chosen him in my last life.
03:32But a beastman had risen in this city after that.
03:34A name that made even hardened predators go still.
03:37Silas.
03:38Single-handedly, he had dismantled the black market.
03:41Led a mass exodus of captive beastmen.
03:44And years later, stood across a negotiating table from the humans.
03:47And won equal rights for every last one of his kind.
03:50I had crossed paths with Silas once, and that white serpent tail was burned into my memory.
03:55Right now, Silas could barely hold his human form.
03:59Every inch of him, fragility.
04:00Made up your mind?
04:01Father's voice cut through the noise.
04:04Yes.
04:07I want him.
04:09Kale's expression cracked.
04:10He spun around to stare at the frail serpent in disbelief.
04:14You're not choosing me?
04:15I didn't acknowledge Kale.
04:17Behind him, Silas cracked open his eyes.
04:19A pair of serpent-slit pupils fixing on me without a flicker of warmth.
04:23I held that gaze, my voice steady with conviction.
04:26Come with me, and I'll heal you.
04:28Silas pressed a palm to the floor, crawled toward me.
04:31He stopped at my feet.
04:32I crouched down and pressed a palm to his cheek.
04:34I'm taking you with me.
04:36Kale lunged forward and seized my wrist.
04:38Choose me.
04:39You're supposed to choose me.
04:41He's half-dead already.
04:43Why would you pick him?
04:44That settled it.
04:45Kale had been reborn, too.
04:47Before I could react, Silas's brow furrowed, and the blood-streaked serpent tail uncoiled
04:53and snapped around Kale like a whip.
04:55Kale hit the wall hard enough to rattle the iron bars.
04:58Silas's eyes were cold-slit.
05:00Come closer again, and I'll kill you.
05:03Watching Kale clutch his ribs, I felt something close to joy rise in my chest,
05:07and I rewarded Silas with an approving pinch of his cheek.
05:10That was impressive.
05:12Silas's lashes trembled.
05:14He dropped his gaze fast.
05:15After Father paid and sent us home with our chosen beastmen,
05:19Kale's voice chased me out of the black market,
05:21shouting my name with a fury that echoed off the iron.
05:25I glanced sideways at the bodyguard beside me,
05:27and, as if deeply inconvenienced,
05:29He's so irritating.
05:31Understood.
05:33I let the corner of my mouth curl.
05:35In the black market, every unchosen beastman was sent to the fighting pit,
05:39a place where survival was measured in blood and screaming iron.
05:43I was very much looking forward to that.
05:45The good mood carried me all the way home.
05:47Father spared no resources on beastmen care.
05:50Manuals, medicinal compounds, and supply crates flowed into my room like a tide.
05:55Silas's wounds weren't deep,
05:56but a congenital defect in his body slowed his recovery to a crawl.
06:00It made me only more curious.
06:02How had he survived the fighting pit in his last life,
06:05dragging that broken body through it all?
06:07My stare must have been too obvious,
06:09because a slow flush crept up Silas's neck.
06:12Mistress?
06:14Do you need something?
06:16In my last life,
06:17Kale had never once called me anything but my name,
06:20saving reverence for Serafina.
06:22Being called mistress had a strange, particular weight to it.
06:25I tossed the medicine kit onto his lap.
06:29Dress your own wounds.
06:30Silas caught it and nodded,
06:31docile as still water.
06:33A few days of rest,
06:34and Silas had reclaimed his fully human form.
06:37Taller, too,
06:39his frame filling out overnight like a plant after rain.
06:42Beastmen really did grow at an inhuman pace.
06:45That morning,
06:46father tracked me down.
06:47A beastmen healer had come to the city.
06:49He said,
06:50a merkin named Mira.
06:51She could treat both beastmen and humans.
06:55Father wanted me to take Silas to see her.
06:57The merkin carried innate healing gifts from birth,
07:00the strength of which scaled with individual talent.
07:03Even the weakest among them could mend their own bodies.
07:06But the most gifted could restore life to the near dead.
07:09Father turned to leave.
07:10I stopped him with a question that had been sitting in my chest for days.
07:13Father, our bloodline status over beastmen is absolute.
07:17So why does the PAC law bind us to them as mates?
07:21He paused,
07:22let out a long breath.
07:23Elara, remember this.
07:24A beastman's loyalty is something no human being can replicate.
07:28Whether you earn that loyalty,
07:30that depends entirely on you.
07:33He waved the conversation closed and walked away.
07:35I knew as well as anyone how rare a beastman's loyalty was.
07:39But in the mess I'd inherited from my last life,
07:42rare felt like a polite word for impossible.
07:45Wasn't this just gambling with our lives?
07:47I watched father go,
07:49then turned back and called Silas from his room,
07:51leading him out into the city for the first time.
07:54Mistress, what's that?
07:56Ice cream.
07:57He cataloged everything,
07:59stall signs,
08:00storefronts,
08:01passing vehicles,
08:02with wide, hungry eyes.
08:04Mistress, what's that?
08:06An amusement park.
08:07Mistress!
08:08When we get back,
08:09I'll teach you to read,
08:10then you'll figure it out yourself.
08:13Okay.
08:13Silas beamed,
08:15falling into step just behind my shoulder.
08:17Out of the corner of my eye,
08:19I caught him eating the ice cream with total indifference.
08:21He didn't like it at all,
08:23while his gaze moved in quick,
08:24methodical sweeps across the street around us.
08:27The carefully performed helplessness had cracked,
08:30just for a second.
08:31He didn't trust me,
08:32not even close,
08:34and beneath the docile surface,
08:36he was calculating.
08:37Of course he is,
08:38I thought.
08:38We arrived at the address father had given me.
08:41I had expected something imposing,
08:43a high-rise,
08:44gilded signage,
08:45because a beast-man healer of rare power
08:47commanded human respect as much as fear.
08:50Instead,
08:51I found the most unremarkable courtyard I'd ever seen,
08:54identifiable only because it was packed shoulder to shoulder
08:57with people waiting.
08:58Inside,
08:59I spotted Kale.
09:00He was slumped against a girl's shoulder,
09:03barely breathing,
09:04more absent than present.
09:05As if he sensed me,
09:07Kale opened his eyes,
09:08and found mine instantly.
09:10That one look was packed with a lifetime of grievances.
09:13He pushed himself upright from the girl's arms,
09:16eyes red-rimmed,
09:17and fixed me with an expression that begged without words.
09:20Then a hand closed over my eyes.
09:23Don't look at him.
09:24Glamour rat.
09:26I laughed and pulled his hand down.
09:29Get in line.
09:31Of course I could feel Kale's fox allure
09:34threading through the air,
09:35but it couldn't touch me now,
09:36not with only hatred and wariness
09:38where softness used to live,
09:40and not when his glamour was still this juvenile.
09:45Silas gave me one more uncertain look,
09:47then moved to join the queue.
09:49What was Kale even doing here?
09:50But I wasn't the only one questioning it.
09:52A fox and an heiress
09:54whose family treats beasts like dirt?
09:56The pair drew everyone's attention.
09:58Someone gossiped among the crowd.
10:00On Kale's first day in the fighting pit,
10:03he had weaved his fox allure around a girl named Talia,
10:06making her desperate to buy him.
10:08Her father was a business partner of fathers.
10:10And when the black market saw how badly she wanted Kale,
10:13they drove the price up.
10:15Talia didn't have enough,
10:16went home to scrape together the rest,
10:18and spent several days doing it.
10:20During those days,
10:21on the bodyguard's quiet instruction,
10:24every beast man Kale faced in the pit
10:26was as brutal as they came.
10:29Talia had come back just in time
10:30to pull him out at death's door.
10:32I understood now.
10:33Kale was wounded badly enough
10:35that Talia had brought him here.
10:36I took a proper look at Talia.
10:38Peach bloom skin,
10:40wide eyes,
10:41all open sincerity.
10:42Not a calculating bone in her body
10:44by the look of it.
10:45No wonder Kale had reeled her in so easily.
10:48He never does change.
10:49Suddenly, Kale tore free of Talia's grip
10:52and lurched toward me.
10:53Hey, where are you going?
10:55Talia reached for him
10:56and he shoved her hand away viciously.
10:58Don't touch me!
11:00He glared at her with an expression
11:02I knew by heart.
11:04Revulsion.
11:04The specific kind reserved for things
11:07that had already served their purpose.
11:09He was certain Talia couldn't live without him,
11:11so he treated her with careless cruelty.
11:13Something sour moved through me
11:15and I set my jaw.
11:17Silas' brow creased,
11:19his weight shifted.
11:20I stopped him with a look.
11:21Kale staggered to me in a few short steps,
11:24those steps costing him everything.
11:26His legs gave.
11:27He dropped to one knee,
11:29barely catching himself
11:30before he hit the ground entirely.
11:32He forced his chin up
11:33and his eyes were sincere
11:35in a way that made my skin crawl.
11:36I'm sorry.
11:38I know what I did.
11:40He reached out, small and careful.
11:42Can you forgive me?
11:44So, he'd guessed I'd been reborn too.
11:46I didn't move
11:47and a flicker of relief crossed his face.
11:49He was almost close enough to take my hand.
11:52I looked past him at Talia instead.
11:54Let me show you how to handle a beastman
11:56who won't behave.
11:57The next second,
11:58I drove my boot into the center of Kale's chest
12:01with every bit of force I had.
12:03He flew back and crashed
12:05through a low stone table in the courtroom.
12:07A choked sound,
12:08then a mouthful of blood hit the flagstones.
12:11Kale sat in the wreckage,
12:13white-faced,
12:14hand pressed to his chest.
12:15Talia sprinted over and rounded on me.
12:17What do you think you're doing?
12:19He's my beastman!
12:20Even if he's mishaving,
12:21that's between us!
12:22Who gave you the right?
12:24I tilted my head.
12:26You can't control him.
12:27And I don't like Fox Beastmen
12:28getting too close to me.
12:30They carry a certain...
12:32Musk.
12:32Kale coughed up another mouthful of blood
12:35and stared at me
12:36with the expression of someone
12:37whose world had just inverted.
12:39Talia flushed Scarlet.
12:41There's no...
12:41There's no musk!
12:42You're making that up!
12:43That's beastman discrimination!
12:45Careful.
12:46Statements like that
12:47tend to offend my beastmen.
12:49Silas looked at Talia,
12:50then let his gaze drop
12:52to the barely breathing Kale.
12:53You should be grateful
12:54it was my mistress who hit him.
12:56He said,
12:57his voice carrying the disinterest
12:58of someone announcing
12:59a weather forecast.
13:01Otherwise I would have killed him.
13:02The undisguised kill intent
13:04sat in the air like a blade.
13:06You...
13:07Talia sputtered at him,
13:08then whipped around
13:09to stare at me.
13:10At last,
13:11she made a disgusted sound,
13:13hoisted Kale up
13:14with visible effort
13:15and marched straight
13:16for the door.
13:20Out of the way!
13:21Can't you see he's dying?
13:23Everyone in the queue
13:24had been waiting far longer
13:25and had no interest
13:26in being cut.
13:28Talia ended up
13:28wedged at the entrance,
13:30Kale sagging against her.
13:31She raised her voice
13:32in desperation.
13:34Miss Mira!
13:35Please,
13:35I'm begging you,
13:36save him!
13:37He really is!
13:38From inside the room
13:39came a voice,
13:40smooth as river water.
13:44He won't die.
13:45Wait your turn.
13:47I raised an eyebrow.
13:48I liked this Mira already.
13:50Talia had no choice
13:51but to stand there,
13:52seething.
13:53Kale was losing his grip
13:54on his human form.
13:56The fox ears and tail
13:57slipped free,
13:58trembling.
13:59She glared daggers at me.
14:00This isn't over!
14:02I looked at her.
14:03Does your father know
14:04how much you paid
14:05for that beastman?
14:06The Talia family and mine
14:07were nothing alike.
14:08Our bloodline maintained
14:10some measure of regard
14:11for beastmen.
14:12The Talias treated them
14:13like livestock.
14:15If her father found out
14:16she'd spent a small fortune
14:17on a useless fox,
14:19the fallout would be spectacular.
14:21Talia blinked.
14:22You know my father?
14:23Then her eyes went wide.
14:25You're threatening me!
14:26I just smiled.
14:27Talia's lip trembled.
14:28Tears spilled down her face
14:30and she cried openly,
14:31chest heaving.
14:32I hadn't expected
14:33the waterworks.
14:34A headache bloomed
14:35behind my eyes.
14:36Stop crying.
14:38Your beastman isn't worth it.
14:39I won't let you say
14:40that about him.
14:41He's weak.
14:42Yes, but to me
14:42he's worth a thousand times more.
14:44Right.
14:45I had nothing left
14:46to say to that.
14:47The queue crawled forward
14:49for several more hours
14:50before it was finally,
14:52mercifully,
14:53Kale's turn.
14:54I had arrived later
14:55and stood behind them.
14:56By the time Talia
14:57helped Kale out
14:58of the treatment room,
14:59an hour had passed
15:01and his color had returned.
15:02He looked at me
15:03and the wounded
15:04helplessness was gone,
15:05replaced by something
15:06close to resentment.
15:08You're heartless, Alaksa.
15:09I made a dry sound.
15:10I can't compete with you.
15:12Stop wasting breath on her.
15:14Let's go.
15:16Steering Kale away
15:17with a huff in my direction.
15:18Behind me,
15:19Silas spoke quietly.
15:21You know them?
15:24I pointed toward
15:25the treatment room door.
15:26Your turn.
15:29Silas pressed his lips together,
15:31said nothing,
15:32and stepped inside.
15:33I followed and watched
15:34Mira work.
15:35The merkin were extraordinary.
15:37No instruments,
15:38no diagnostic tools,
15:40only a touch,
15:41and she already knew.
15:42I said it without thinking.
15:44That's remarkable.
15:45Mira looked at me
15:46with a faint smile.
15:47Nothing special.
15:48There are dozens
15:49in my bloodline
15:50more gifted than I am,
15:51and the greatest
15:52among them is...
15:53Her expression dimmed.
15:54A shadow of grief
15:55crossed her face,
15:57and she let the sentence die.
15:58His body has a congenital gap.
16:01It's why he appears
16:02far weaker than other beastmen,
16:04and it will shorten his lifespan.
16:06The hand resting at Silas' side
16:08closed into a fist,
16:10and his voice came out tight.
16:11Please, help me.
16:13Then he turned to me,
16:14and the look in his eyes
16:15said everything.
16:17Money is no obstacle.
16:19But Mira shook her head,
16:20her smile faint and tired.
16:23A congenital gap
16:24is beyond my reach.
16:26I can't mend
16:27what was never formed.
16:28Silas' face fell in a way
16:30that was visible
16:31to the naked eye.
16:32Thank you anyway.
16:34He turned to leave,
16:35and Mira looked at me.
16:37If you happen to know
16:38Lucian, Miss Alara,
16:39there may still be a chance.
16:41I was caught off guard,
16:42not only because Mira
16:43had recognized me,
16:44but because of the name itself.
16:46Lucian was the most gifted
16:48and most ungovernable
16:49of the Vos bloodline,
16:51the family's golden heir,
16:53known to everyone
16:54as their little crown prince.
16:55We had attended
16:56the same school once.
16:57I knew him after a fashion,
16:59but his health had declined,
17:01and he'd withdrawn
17:01from classes years ago.
17:03We hadn't spoken since.
17:04Does Lucian keep
17:05someone gifted near him?
17:07The Merkin are born
17:09with healing in our blood.
17:10It's simply a matter of degree.
17:12Even the least gifted of us
17:13can mend our own bodies
17:14through instinct alone.
17:16But the rarest among us,
17:17the ones born with song,
17:20they can restore
17:21the dead to life.
17:22I stared at her.
17:23That sounds impossible!
17:24I've never heard
17:25of anything like it!
17:26It isn't surprising.
17:27Our bloodline hasn't produced
17:28that level of gift
17:29in centuries.
17:30Then her voice shifted,
17:31quiet, deliberate.
17:33But in the past 20 years,
17:35one Merican was born
17:36carrying that gift
17:37from her very first breath.
17:39Something clicked into place
17:40at the back of my mind.
17:41What is her name?
17:43Lyra.
17:44Of course.
17:46I understand.
17:48Thank you, Mira.
17:48I set a payment card
17:50on the table
17:50and left with Silas.
17:52The moment we were outside,
17:53he asked,
17:54barely containing himself.
17:56Are we going to find Lyra?
17:58His eyes were bright
17:59with something almost desperate.
18:01If it's possible,
18:02I'll take you to her.
18:03I had heard Lyra's name once,
18:05in my last life.
18:06Lyra!
18:07She had been offered
18:08to the Vos bloodline
18:09by the Merican
18:10as a gesture of protection.
18:11Her extraordinary healing talent,
18:14the price of her bloodline's safety.
18:16And with her,
18:18Lucian had finally been free.
18:19She seemed to care for him,
18:21or so the rumors said.
18:22Lucian cared for someone else entirely
18:24and treated her accordingly.
18:26What happened after that,
18:27I didn't know.
18:29Because by that point,
18:31I was already dead.
18:32Given Lucian's erratic temperament,
18:34approaching him directly
18:36and asking for Lyra
18:37would be met with a flat refusal,
18:40no matter how I framed it.
18:41The better path
18:42was to go around him,
18:44reach Lyra herself.
18:45Silas must have sensed my hesitation,
18:48because some of the heat
18:49faded from his expression.
18:52Mistress doesn't need to worry.
18:54I'm fine as I am.
18:55That word,
18:57mistress,
18:57spoken aloud on a public street,
18:59turned heads up and down the block.
19:02A flush crept up the back of my neck.
19:04I cleared my throat twice.
19:07In public?
19:08You don't have to use that.
19:09Just call me by my name.
19:11Silas adapted without hesitation.
19:13All right, Lyra.
19:15When I got home,
19:16I sent Talia's father
19:17an anonymous letter,
19:18a quiet, detailed account
19:20of exactly how much
19:22she had spent on kale
19:23at the black market.
19:24I didn't want Talia
19:25to become what I had been.
19:27It took less than two days
19:28before the news reached me.
19:30Miss Alara, the news is here.
19:30Talia had been confined to the house,
19:32but the money was already spent
19:34and her father was too proud
19:36to return kale to the black market,
19:38which meant he would find ways
19:39to extract that investment
19:41from kale's skin.
19:42The Talia household
19:43would be its own kind of hell.
19:45I was still turning that over
19:47when a servant came running.
19:48Miss Alara,
19:48something's wrong.
19:49Silas,
19:50Simus,
19:51and Raven are fighting.
19:52Raven was Seraphina's beast man.
19:55I was on my feet
19:56before the sentence finished.
19:57I followed the servant
19:58to the garden outside the mountain,
20:00where Silas had been pinned
20:02beneath the flowering Hawthorne tree,
20:04and Raven's massive fists
20:06were falling on him
20:07again and again,
20:08each blow landing like a hammer.
20:10Miss Alara, please.
20:12You have to help him.
20:13He'll be beaten to death.
20:14The servant pulled at my arm.
20:16I raised a hand.
20:18Silence.
20:18My eyes stayed fixed on Silas.
20:21After days of recovery,
20:22his body was mostly healed,
20:24and this was the Silas who,
20:25in his last life,
20:27had survived the fighting pit
20:28on a broken frame,
20:30which meant there was
20:30no possible world
20:32in which he was simply
20:33being dominated by Raven right now.
20:35He was hiding what he could do
20:37because he didn't trust me.
20:38So I wouldn't save him.
20:40I had no use for a beast man
20:41who might drive a blade
20:42into my back.
20:44This first step towards trust,
20:46he would have to be
20:46the one to take it.
20:47Silas still didn't move,
20:49arms folded over his head,
20:51the crack of breaking bone
20:52cutting through the garden
20:53like a gunshot.
20:54He turned his head,
20:55spat blood onto the flagstones,
20:57and through the gap
20:58in the flowering branches,
21:00saw me.
21:00Disbelief in his eyes,
21:02hurt.
21:02A silent, furious question,
21:04why aren't you coming?
21:06My hand clenched at my side
21:08and my jaw locked.
21:09Raven, scenting blood,
21:11found the animal in himself
21:12rising to the surface,
21:14both ears pushing through his hair,
21:16every muscle lit up
21:17with predatory excitement,
21:19barely a step from the edge
21:20of a full, feral shift.
21:22I held my breath,
21:23my entire body strung tight as a wire,
21:26and stared at Silas.
21:28Just take this one step towards me
21:29and I swear I will never
21:31stop protecting you.
21:32Silas's pupils elongated,
21:34the calm human iris
21:36collapsing into serpent slit.
21:38In the moment before
21:39Raven lunged a biker's leg,
21:41Silas moved,
21:42his legs dissolved
21:43into a white serpent tail
21:45that coiled around Raven's body
21:46in one fluid motion,
21:48and then his fangs,
21:49long and curved
21:50and appearing from nowhere,
21:52drove into the side of Raven's neck
21:54without hesitation.
21:55Raven screamed and thrashed,
21:57every muscle in his body convulsing.
22:00Silas's tail contracted
22:01like a closing vice.
22:02I watched Raven's face shift
22:04from red to violet
22:05in the span of seconds,
22:06and understood instantly,
22:08Silas's fangs were venomous.
22:10So he's a viper,
22:11I thought.
22:12Serafina arrived then,
22:14late and unhurried,
22:15and when she saw
22:16what was happening,
22:17Simus.
22:18You dare kill him.
22:20I stepped forward
22:22without hesitation.
22:23What if he does?
22:25Serafina's fierce expression
22:27shifted through several versions
22:28of itself when she saw me.
22:30She drew a breath,
22:32steadied herself.
22:33Alara,
22:34tell Silas to stop.
22:35Raven will die.
22:36I smiled.
22:37My brother keeps his head.
22:39Don't worry, Serafina.
22:41I glanced at Raven's
22:42still-in-embodied with meaning.
22:43I won't let my sister
22:45become a widow this early.
22:46Alara!
22:47Serafina finally snapped.
22:49One finger leveled at me.
22:50Aren't you afraid
22:51father will punish you for this?
22:53I put on an expression
22:54of perfect innocence.
22:55Silas has always been
22:56fragile and obedient.
22:58He wouldn't provoke
22:59Raven without reason.
23:00This was self-defense
23:01and you know it.
23:02Why would father punish me?
23:04My voice cooled.
23:05Shouldn't the punishment
23:06fall on the one
23:07who started it?
23:08You.
23:09Enough.
23:09Everyone stop.
23:11Father's voice rolled
23:12through the garden
23:12from somewhere behind me,
23:14heavy with displeasure.
23:15Before Serafina
23:16could arrange her face
23:17into something pitiable,
23:19I got there first
23:20and let tears
23:21spill down my own.
23:22Father!
23:23She started it
23:24and now she's
23:24turning it around on me.
23:26Serafina went pale.
23:27I didn't, father.
23:28Please, save Raven.
23:30He'll die.
23:31Father let out
23:32a cold sound,
23:33spared Serafina
23:34one flat look.
23:35A lesson he needed
23:36to learn.
23:37And you,
23:37don't think I don't know
23:38what you've been doing.
23:39The handbook I gave you
23:41covers how to suppress
23:42a beast man's
23:42feral instincts.
23:43What exactly have you
23:45been doing with it?
23:45Father's voice rose.
23:47Serafina's chin dropped.
23:49I was wrong, father.
23:50Serafina.
23:51Raven is going
23:52to be your mate.
23:53Your work isn't
23:54only to tame him.
23:55It's to build him.
23:56Otherwise,
23:57his gaze cut across her,
23:58cold and quiet,
23:59and said nothing more.
24:01Serafina dropped
24:02to her knees.
24:03Yes, father.
24:04As Raven finally
24:05went still,
24:06the desperation
24:06broke through
24:07Serafina's composure,
24:08and tears ran down
24:10her face.
24:10Father,
24:11please save him.
24:12He's still going
24:13to be my husband
24:14one day.
24:15Please.
24:15Only then did
24:16father look at me.
24:17I nodded at Silas.
24:19Let him go.
24:20Silas released the coil.
24:21Raven's limp body
24:22hit the earth
24:23beside the hawthorn tree,
24:25scattering petals
24:26across the flagstones.
24:27I moved quickly
24:28to catch Silas.
24:29He had burned
24:30through everything
24:31he had,
24:32the serpent tail
24:32refusing to retract,
24:34his legs unable
24:35to carry him,
24:36his full weight
24:37dropping into my arms.
24:38father made a sound
24:39of pure displeasure.
24:40I bought you beastmen
24:41to bond with,
24:42not to put them
24:42against each other.
24:43If it happens again,
24:44you're both out
24:45of this bloodline.
24:48Understood, father.
24:51Quick,
24:52carry Raven inside.
24:57I looked at Raven's
24:59violet face
25:00and asked,
25:01will the venom
25:02kill him?
25:03I don't make
25:04problems for myself.
25:05look at him
25:06and found his face
25:07stripped of everything
25:08he usually wore around me.
25:10The deference,
25:11the careful performance,
25:12all of it gone.
25:13What remained
25:14was cold and still,
25:15the slit pupils unmoved.
25:17This is who he actually is.
25:19Then Silas went boneless
25:20against my shoulder,
25:21head lolling,
25:22as if the last of his strength
25:24had left him at once.
25:25But I didn't believe it.
25:26Then again,
25:27a performance was only
25:28worth running to its end.
25:30So I slid an arm
25:31around that ice-cold tail,
25:32settled my other hand
25:33at his waist,
25:34and lifted him.
25:36Silas stared at me,
25:38startled into actual surprise,
25:39a flush climbing
25:40fast up his neck.
25:41Hold still.
25:44I carried him back
25:46to his room,
25:46where the physician
25:47was already waiting.
25:49The broken ribs
25:49were set.
25:50Silas endured it
25:51with his face
25:52gone paper white,
25:53the scales along his tail
25:54rippling open and closed
25:56with every wave of pain,
25:57until the sight
25:58made my own skin crawl.
26:00I turned away
26:00and rubbed the goosebumps
26:01down my arms.
26:03When the physician finished
26:04and left with a list
26:05of instructions,
26:06I looked at the pale expanse
26:07of serpent tail.
26:10Silas pressed his lips together
26:12and under my gaze
26:13drew it back in,
26:14the tail dissolving
26:16into human legs again.
26:18Oddly fascinating, man.
26:20and met those still
26:21unrecovered slit pupils,
26:23blinking at me
26:24without looking away.
26:26He was asking
26:27why I'd stood there
26:28and watched.
26:29I smiled.
26:30Have you ever heard
26:31the saying,
26:31which one?
26:32Real trust is earned
26:33in kind.
26:34You didn't trust me,
26:35so don't expect me
26:36to trust you first.
26:38After I left Silas' room,
26:39I did a quiet round
26:40of inquiries
26:41and pieced together
26:42what had happened.
26:43Silas had developed
26:44a fondness for the
26:45hawthorn tree in the garden.
26:46It was full bloom
26:48and he'd been spending
26:49idle hours beneath it.
26:50He'd had the misfortune
26:51of crossing paths
26:52with Raven,
26:53who was wound tight
26:54and looking for
26:55something to hit.
26:56Serafina's standard
26:57for a beast man
26:58was raw power.
26:59And since a beast man
27:00who had learned
27:01to suppress their
27:01feral instinct
27:02lost much of that,
27:03she had never taught
27:04Raven to pull back
27:05from the edge.
27:06Instead,
27:07she trained him
27:08to his limits
27:08and then patched him
27:09up herself
27:10with careful,
27:11gentle hands.
27:12Two sessions of that
27:13and Raven was
27:14completely devoted to her.
27:15If I hadn't been blinded
27:17by Kale's fox allure
27:18in my last life,
27:19heart given over to him,
27:21every alarm in me silenced,
27:23I wouldn't have died
27:24so stupidly.
27:25Speaking of which,
27:26I wonder how Kale
27:27is doing in the Talia household.
27:29I asked,
27:30and promptly had
27:30to swallow a laugh.
27:32The Talia patriarch
27:33had been putting
27:33Kale's fox allure to work,
27:35entertaining guests with it,
27:37men and women alike,
27:38sparing no categories.
27:40Kale had always
27:40been beautiful.
27:41With his glamour
27:42on top of that,
27:43more than a few people
27:44had wanted him
27:45in my last life.
27:46To protect him,
27:47I had taken on damage
27:48I never should have absorbed.
27:50And every time,
27:51he had one thing to say,
27:53that's what you're here for,
27:54that's what I'm here for.
27:55As if I were furniture,
27:57a plan began to form
27:58in the back of my mind.
27:59I was humming to myself
28:01on the way back to my room
28:02when I heard voices
28:03inside Silas's
28:04and pressed myself
28:05quietly to the wall.
28:07Serafina's voice,
28:08all warmth and remorse.
28:10Silas,
28:11I'm so sorry.
28:12I should have kept
28:13Raven under control.
28:14You're hurt so badly.
28:15Can I help you
28:16with your bandages?
28:17I raised an eyebrow
28:18and leaned closer.
28:19Silas's voice
28:20came back flat
28:21as a locked door.
28:22Get out.
28:23Where's Alara?
28:24Didn't she stay with you?
28:25With injuries this serious,
28:27isn't this your future
28:28husband's work?
28:29Silas said.
28:30And the chill in his voice
28:31could have frosted glass.
28:33I bit down on a laugh
28:34hard enough to hurt.
28:35Serafina had clearly
28:36caught a glimpse
28:37of what Silas
28:38was capable of
28:39and immediately wanted
28:40to pull him
28:40into her orbit.
28:41When it didn't work,
28:42she said a few
28:43perfunctory words
28:44of concern
28:45and prepared to leave.
28:46I moved quickly
28:47back to my own room.
28:48But the next second,
28:49there was a knock
28:50on my door
28:51and Silas was standing
28:52in the frame,
28:53eyes dark and steady,
28:54looking at me.
28:55I was genuinely surprised.
28:57He'd looked critically
28:58wounded moments ago
28:59and he was already
29:00on his feet?
29:01Beastman healing
29:02was fast,
29:03but not that fast.
29:05Something you need?
29:06You said you'd
29:07teach me to read.
29:08I'd completely
29:08forgotten about that.
29:10Sorry,
29:11we can start now.
29:12Silas pressed his lips
29:13together and stepped inside.
29:15I started from the very beginning,
29:16the phonetic alphabet,
29:18and we sat across
29:19from each other
29:19until he looked up
29:20and said,
29:21Am I what you expected?
29:22I blinked.
29:23Hmm.
29:24Silas raised his eyes.
29:25Earlier,
29:26was it worth watching?
29:27He meant,
29:28Why didn't you come in?
29:29I smiled.
29:30Honestly,
29:31it was.
29:32Silas's brow
29:32drew together immediately.
29:34He looked genuinely displeased,
29:36the question in his voice
29:37coming out sharper
29:38than he probably intended.
29:40You have history with her.
29:41He'd picked up on the tension
29:42between Serafina and me.
29:44Of course he had.
29:45I let my lashes fall.
29:47Yes,
29:47that history.
29:48He was quiet for a moment.
29:50I can't.
29:50That one,
29:51I genuinely hadn't seen coming.
29:53And then my father
29:54kills you in return?
29:55Silas's gaze didn't waver.
29:57You said it yourself.
29:58Real trust is earned in kind.
30:00For the first time,
30:01I saw it.
30:02Actual sincerity in his eyes.
30:04But still,
30:05why?
30:06Trust for trust was one thing.
30:08But I hadn't done anything
30:09to earn it yet.
30:10A flicker of tension
30:11moved through his expression.
30:13I want Lyra to treat me.
30:15If I had a body
30:16that worked the way it should,
30:18I wouldn't have had to spend today
30:19looking as pathetic as I did.
30:21I softened my voice.
30:22You were anything
30:23but pathetic today.
30:24In your last life,
30:26you survived the fighting pit
30:27using exactly that.
30:29Fain weakness,
30:30let them close in,
30:31then coil and bite
30:32through their throats.
30:33Thinking that,
30:34I reached up without meaning to
30:36and touched my own neck.
30:37Learn what you need
30:38to learn first.
30:40Lyra,
30:41I'll find a way.
30:43Okay.
30:43For the first time,
30:45the usually cold boy
30:46let a genuine smile
30:47break across his face.
30:49A few days later,
30:50word came that
30:51the Voss family's grandmother
30:53was turning 80,
30:54and the Voss household
30:55had sent a formal invitation
30:57to ours.
30:58Because of the garden incident,
30:59father took only me
31:01and left Serafina behind.
31:03Beast men were barred
31:04from formal events,
31:05so I left Silas at home.
31:07In the banquet hall,
31:08I found Talia
31:09beaming at guests
31:10with practiced ease
31:11until she caught sight of me
31:13and her expression
31:14went flat as stone.
31:15I fell and stepped beside her
31:17after the gift presentation.
31:20Where's Kale?
31:21You have a nerve asking.
31:23This is all your fault,
31:24you know.
31:25Talia,
31:26do we have a problem?
31:30I don't know.
31:31You're the one
31:32who's had it out
31:32for me from the start.
31:33I've never had a problem
31:34with you,
31:35only with Kale.
31:37If you don't believe me,
31:42I don't believe
31:43he'd do that to me.
31:47Then test him.
31:48While the crowd
31:48was distracted,
31:50Talia guided me quietly
31:51toward the cellar
31:52below the manor.
31:54Go in
31:55and remember.
31:57don't look directly
31:58at his eyes.
31:59Talia wrinkled her nose,
32:01gripped her composure,
32:02and clicked into the cellar
32:04on high heels.
32:05I slipped in behind her.
32:06It took a while
32:07before the light
32:08reached Kale's cage.
32:09He was chained
32:10at the neck like livestock,
32:12locked behind bars,
32:13filthy and broken-looking.
32:15A picture of wreckage.
32:16I stayed back around
32:17the corner,
32:18out of sight.
32:19Kale had his eyes closed,
32:21the fox ears flat and still.
32:23If his chest
32:24hadn't been faintly moving,
32:26he could have passed
32:27for dead.
32:28Kale.
32:31Kale.
32:31Talia's voice
32:32barely reached a whisper.
32:34He opened his eyes slowly,
32:35and when he saw her,
32:37something electric
32:38came back into his face.
32:40The chain snapped
32:42and rang
32:42at his sudden movement.
32:45You came to get me out?
32:47I can't get you out yet.
32:49My father is still angry.
32:50He's still angry.
32:54He's still angry.
32:56But I promise.
32:59I'll come back for you.
33:01I will.
33:02Talia, look at me.
33:03Just look at me.
33:04I'm begging you.
33:06Get me out.
33:07The way you did.
33:08The fighting pit.
33:12You were everything to me then.
33:13You were the only light.
33:15Please, just look at me.
33:16Talia kept her chin down,
33:18listening.
33:19Kale ran out of patience fast.
33:21Talia,
33:23get me out.
33:24Now!
33:26Why not?
33:27Why can't you?
33:28You did it fine
33:29at the fighting pit.
33:30You were falling over yourself
33:32to help me then.
33:33Why is now any different?
33:35You're blaming me
33:36when you were the one
33:37begging me to save you?
33:39Who even gave you permission
33:41to be that gullible?
33:42You were practically
33:43throwing yourself at me,
33:45just like Alara.
33:47Alara.
33:49You've done this
33:50to her too?
33:57Do you see it now?
33:59He barely had to try
34:00and you couldn't
34:01hand yourself over
34:02fast enough.
34:03Talia turned to look at me.
34:04And you
34:05ended up being
34:06the one blamed for it.
34:07I rested a hand
34:08on her shoulder.
34:09Go wait outside.
34:11She glanced back
34:12at Kale,
34:13uncertain.
34:16But...
34:18you'll be fine.
34:20Talia looked over
34:20her shoulder
34:21three times
34:22on the way out
34:22and then the cellar
34:23was just the two of us.
34:24Kale watched me,
34:25something testing
34:26in his voice.
34:27What do you want?
34:30I'm curious.
34:32How were you reborn?
34:33Let me guess.
34:35After I died
34:36in our last life
34:36you went to Serafina
34:37but your fox allure
34:38never worked on her,
34:39did it?
34:40She kept her guard up.
34:41She knew what you were
34:42and what you were capable of
34:44so she was always watching.
34:45but your gift
34:45was too valuable
34:46to waste
34:48so she put it to use
34:49until the very end
34:50when you'd served
34:51your purpose completely
34:52and her shadow wolf
34:54finished you
34:54the same way
34:55he finished me.
34:55That's not true.
34:56She cared about me.
34:57She cared about me.
34:58You don't know anything.
35:00Then why were you hoping
35:01I'd choose you
35:02in the black market?
35:04Alara!
35:05Alara!
35:07You have to take me back!
35:09Why won't you choose me?
35:10Why?
35:10I stepped back
35:12just out of reach.
35:13The chain snapped
35:14taut around his neck.
35:17I'll give you something.
35:21One chance
35:23to take back
35:24what was done to me.
35:28When I came up
35:29from the cellar
35:30Talia was still outside
35:32eyes raw.
35:33I almost sighed.
35:35I told you
35:36he wasn't worth it.
35:38Why are you this upset?
35:39Sorry.
35:40For what?
35:43I was...
35:44I was so stupid before.
35:48I thought it was destiny.
35:54I thought we'd be
35:55this epic
35:56human and beast man
35:58love story.
35:59She broke into
36:00full shuddering sobs.
36:02I rubbed a spot
36:03on my temple.
36:04Even if you wanted
36:05an epic love story
36:06you'd need your father's
36:07blessing first.
36:10Come on, let's go.
36:12She wept.
36:13Okay.
36:14After managing Talia
36:15back to some level
36:16of composure
36:17I asked
36:18Is Lucien
36:19on the guest list?
36:20That was the second reason
36:21I'd come tonight.
36:25Did he bring anyone
36:26with him?
36:28I didn't pay attention.
36:29He sent a gift
36:30and went to rest.
36:30His health isn't great.
36:32Where is he resting?
36:33I'll take you.
36:34Talia led me
36:35to the VIP lounge
36:36and before we'd
36:37even reached the door
36:38we both heard it.
36:40A melody
36:40rising and falling
36:42like water over stone.
36:43The music moved
36:45through the air
36:45and straight
36:46into my chest.
36:49I feel like someone
36:50just told me
36:50it's going to be okay.
36:53I could go back in there
36:54and stab him
36:54about 15 times
36:55right now.
36:55I turned to look at it.
36:57surprised.
36:58It had that effect too?
37:00Then this was Lyra.
37:02It had to be.
37:03Walking up to Lucien
37:05directly and asking
37:06for her was out
37:07of the question.
37:08He was far too volatile
37:09for a frontal approach.
37:11Better to reach Lyra
37:13herself.
37:13I sent Talia off,
37:15opened the door
37:16directly across
37:17from Lucien's suite,
37:19sat down in the frame
37:20and listened.
37:21The melody flowed
37:23without pause
37:23and something in my bones
37:25began to unknot,
37:26the grief of a whole
37:28past life
37:28starting to quiet.
37:30I yawned,
37:31biting it.
37:32I kept my eyes open
37:34by force
37:34and waited.
37:35What I hadn't counted on,
37:38waiting the entire night.
37:40Lyra's voice
37:40never stopped once.
37:42When I realized
37:42how angry I was
37:43on her behalf,
37:44the feeling surprised me.
37:46The morning meal
37:47arrived for delivery.
37:49I opened the door
37:50at the right moment.
37:52Lyra was stepping out
37:53of Lucien's suite,
37:54waving off
37:54the breakfast tray.
37:56I raised a hand.
37:58Hi.
37:59Lyra turned at the sound
38:00of my voice
38:01and smiled.
38:01She was genuinely beautiful.
38:04Skin that caught
38:04the light like satin,
38:06eyes clear and bright.
38:07But what stayed with you
38:09was something
38:09underneath the beauty,
38:11something that made you
38:12want to draw closer
38:13and stay.
38:14Her voice came out
38:15sand rough.
38:16That made the next part
38:17awkward.
38:18She seemed to read
38:19the awkwardness
38:20on my face
38:21and gave a small,
38:22tired smile.
38:23Do you need
38:24something for me?
38:25I stepped aside
38:25and gestured.
38:26Would you mind
38:27coming in for a moment?
38:28Lyra nodded
38:29and walked in.
38:30I poured her
38:31a glass of warm water
38:32first,
38:33let her settle,
38:34then said,
38:35I have a beastman.
38:36He was born
38:37with a congenital gap.
38:38I took him
38:39to see Mira.
38:40She can't mend it,
38:41but she directed me
38:41to you.
38:42Lyra listened
38:43and nodded.
38:44Mira is my aunt.
38:45I blinked.
38:46Mira looked barely
38:47older than Lyra.
38:49Lyra checked the time.
38:50I have about two hours.
38:52You can bring your beastman
38:54to a nearby hotel.
38:55The fee for a congenital repair
38:57is two million.
38:58She said it
38:59with her lashes lowered,
39:01the expression beneath them hidden.
39:03What I was thinking about
39:04was her voice.
39:05Right now?
39:06Your throat?
39:08It doesn't matter.
39:10Every day is like this.
39:12If you're waiting
39:13for it to recover,
39:14you'll be waiting forever.
39:15Something dropped
39:16in my chest.
39:17Every day
39:18is like this.
39:21Is Lucien
39:22not ill?
39:23I said.
39:23He isn't.
39:25Then why?
39:26Lyra's smile
39:27went pale
39:28at the edges.
39:29Cruelty, mostly.
39:30I thought of the rumors
39:31I'd heard once
39:32in another life.
39:33You don't have to
39:34stay devoted
39:35to one tree.
39:36You're overthinking it.
39:37Get the hotel sorted.
39:38If Lucien wakes
39:39and finds me gone,
39:40there won't be another chance.
39:41I booked the nearest suite
39:42fast,
39:43then contacted Silas.
39:45After I hung up,
39:46I turned back to Lyra.
39:47She was working
39:48through breakfast
39:49in small,
39:50unhurried bites.
39:51Every movement
39:52neat
39:52and somehow restful
39:54to watch.
39:55But there was something
39:55about that narrow back
39:57that made the chest ache
39:58for no clear reason.
40:00I sat down
40:00across from her,
40:01words rising
40:02and dying on my tongue.
40:04In the end,
40:04I said nothing.
40:05Silas arrived
40:06minutes later.
40:07He had clearly
40:08run the whole way,
40:09sweat still at his temple.
40:11Lyra extended her hand.
40:12He glanced at me first
40:14and only after I nodded
40:15did he approach
40:16with any care.
40:17Lyra laid her palm
40:18over his
40:19and her brow
40:20began to draw together.
40:21I felt the tension
40:22move up
40:23through my own spine.
40:24I was desperate
40:25to intervene,
40:26but I forced myself
40:28to stay back.
40:29Lyra wasn't faring
40:31any better than Silas.
40:33Every note she sang
40:34seemed to tear
40:35something loose
40:36in her throat.
40:38Slowly,
40:39blood appeared
40:40at the corner
40:40of her mouth.
40:42I started forward.
40:43She stopped me
40:44with a look
40:45and a small shake
40:46of her head.
40:48An hour later,
40:49the singing stopped.
40:51Silas and Lyra
40:52folded to the floor
40:53at the same moment.
40:55I moved fast
40:56to catch Lyra,
40:58wiped the blood
40:58from her mouth.
40:59I'm sorry.
41:00I didn't know
41:01it would be like this.
41:01Are you all right?
41:02She was breathing hard,
41:04paid.
41:05I gave what was asked.
41:10There's nothing
41:11to apologize for.
41:13Let me take you back.
41:14Lyra looked at Silas,
41:16still on the floor,
41:17catching his breath.
41:19One moment.
41:23The gap is sealed,
41:24but he'll need
41:24a course of medicine
41:25to follow.
41:29And because the deficiency
41:30has held his body back,
41:32he's been presenting
41:33as a juvenile.
41:35But he's actually
41:36an adult beastman.
41:37Grown beastmen
41:38enter a heat cycle.
41:40Be careful.
41:42Don't let him hurt you.
41:43I understand.
41:44Rest for a moment.
41:45I nodded fast.
41:49Lyra let her eyes close
41:51and went quiet.
41:53I arranged transport
41:54and personally saw her
41:56back to the Talia estate.
41:58My plan had been
41:59to slip her back
42:00to her suite unnoticed.
42:05But standing at the
42:07front entrance
42:07when we arrived
42:08was Lucian,
42:10jaw set
42:10and expression
42:11like incoming weather.
42:13Behind him,
42:14Talia,
42:15red-eyed
42:16and...
42:18We'd been found out.
42:20I moved to step
42:21out of the car
42:21with Lyra.
42:22She stopped me
42:23with a hand on my arm.
42:25Go home.
42:26I shook my head.
42:28Lyra.
42:29I went to school
42:30with Lucian.
42:31He should give me
42:32at least a little room.
42:35Lyra smiled.
42:37If he were the type
42:38to give you room,
42:38he wouldn't have had
42:39to come to me directly.
42:42I'm alright.
42:43He still needs me.
42:45Go.
42:45Trust me.
42:47I gritted my teeth.
42:50In the end,
42:51I pressed the payment
42:52card into her hand.
42:53She gave it back.
42:55Give it to my aunt.
42:56She'll know
42:57what to do with it.
42:59I can't use it.
43:01There's nowhere
43:02it would go.
43:05She pushed
43:06the door open.
43:07The moment
43:07Lucian's eyes
43:08found her,
43:09his face darkened
43:10in a way
43:11that was visible
43:12from a distance.
43:14on the drive
43:15back to the hotel,
43:16I couldn't settle.
43:17What had happened?
43:19I asked Talia
43:19and she told me.
43:21Lucian had woken
43:2130 minutes ago,
43:23couldn't find Lyra
43:24anywhere
43:24and had made a scene.
43:26Everyone knew
43:26how much Lyra
43:27mattered to him.
43:29so they'd all
43:30started searching too.
43:32Eventually,
43:32someone reviewed
43:33the security footage
43:34and traced it to me.
43:35Under pressure
43:36from Lucian's people,
43:37Talia had been forced
43:38to give up
43:39the whole story
43:40of how I'd spent
43:41the night
43:41waiting outside his door
43:42and caught a thorough
43:43dressing down for it.
43:46I had a feeling
43:47I was out
43:47to receive one too.
43:48But my worry
43:49about that
43:50was smaller
43:50than my worry
43:51about Lyra.
43:52I gripped the payment
43:53card in my hand
43:54and pushed
43:54into the hotel room,
43:56ready to call Silas
43:57and head home
43:58when he launched
43:58himself at me
43:59the second
44:00the door opened.
44:01His usual cold
44:02was gone,
44:03he was burning,
44:04and he was bigger,
44:05taller,
44:05broader,
44:06the change in him
44:07unmistakable.
44:08Then Lyra's warning
44:09came back to me
44:10in a rush.
44:10Grown beastmen
44:11enter a heat cycle.
44:13Be careful.
44:15Don't let him hurt you.
44:16Heat cycle.
44:17Not this fast.
44:18Surely not this fast.
44:21Silas,
44:22it's me.
44:23Look at me.
44:24Look at me.
44:25I pushed against his chest,
44:26his scorching hands
44:27closed around my waist,
44:28his forehead
44:29pressed down to mine.
44:30Mistress.
44:32Mistress.
44:32That word
44:33in a voice
44:33dropped three registers,
44:35a fully adult male's voice.
44:37I had vastly
44:38underestimated Lyra.
44:41Let go of me.
44:42You can't do this.
44:42It isn't right.
44:43Silas tilted his head
44:45just slightly
44:45and the tip of his nose
44:47grazed my cheekbone.
44:48The heat off his breath
44:49landed against my face
44:51in waves.
44:52I threw every bit of strength
44:53into pushing him away.
44:54He didn't move an inch.
44:56That hurts.
44:57The grip at my waist
44:58drawing tighter.
44:59My waist was flesh,
45:00not iron.
45:01Silas buried his face
45:02at my shoulder
45:03and his breath
45:04came out ragged.
45:05Help me.
45:06Please.
45:07I had absolutely
45:07no idea
45:08how to help with this.
45:09All right, okay.
45:11I'll help.
45:12Just let go of me first.
45:13Silas loosened his hold
45:14by a fraction.
45:15The next second
45:16I spun for the door.
45:17My fingers were
45:18almost on the handle
45:19when a serpent tail
45:20coiled around my waist
45:22and reeled me back.
45:23I turned.
45:24The slit pupils
45:25had bled fully through
45:26and faint scales
45:28had begun appearing
45:28along his cheekbones.
45:30Full shift starting.
45:31That was a
45:32catastrophically bad sign.
45:35Help me.
45:36The vertical pupils
45:37went deep and still.
45:38You promised.
45:40Okay.
45:41Okay.
45:42Okay.
45:42I'll help.
45:43In my last life,
45:44Kale had gone through heat
45:46and made it very clear
45:47he wanted nothing from me.
45:48He was saving himself
45:49for Serafina.
45:50So this particular experience
45:52was new territory.
45:54My hand,
45:54trapped in Silas' grip,
45:56had lost all sensation.
45:58By the time we made it back
46:00to the estate,
46:01night had fallen.
46:02I felt deeply
46:04and specifically guilty
46:05about several things.
46:07Father was in the main hall,
46:09waiting.
46:10I walked in,
46:12dropped to my knees
46:13on reflex,
46:14and grabbed Silas
46:15down with me.
46:17His voice shook the walls.
46:19was in the main hall.
46:20Elyra,
46:22have I been too lenient with you?
46:24Is that why you act like
46:26there are no rules?
46:27If you wanted Lyra
46:28to treat Silas,
46:30you could have come to me.
46:31Instead,
46:32you took her without permission.
46:34Did it ever occur to you
46:36what would happen
46:37if Lucien collapsed
46:39while she was gone?
46:40If that had ended badly,
46:42how would I face
46:43the Vos bloodline?
46:44father's chest heaved
46:46with every word.
46:47I bent my head lower.
46:50I was wrong,
46:50father.
46:52Please don't stress
46:53yourself over it.
46:57If your brother were here,
46:59I wouldn't have to
47:00be more like your sister.
47:02She's composed,
47:03well-mannered,
47:04and makes no trouble.
47:05I kept my head down
47:07and let the rest of it
47:08wash over me.
47:10Then Silas tapped
47:11my hand twice.
47:13I looked up.
47:15Serafina was coming in
47:16from outside,
47:17with Kale behind her,
47:19looking considerably less
47:20like something dragged
47:21through gutters.
47:23So,
47:23Kale had made his move.
47:25I couldn't stop
47:26one corner of my mouth.
47:27You think this is funny?
47:31I flattened my expression
47:32instantly.
47:36No, father.
47:37Serafina came to father's side
47:38and made all the right
47:39soothing gestures.
47:40Alara,
47:41what did you do this time
47:42to upset him this badly?
47:45So father ran through
47:46all of it again,
47:47from the beginning.
47:49Thanks for that,
47:50Serafina.
47:51In the retelling,
47:51she managed to look concerned
47:53while adding fuel
47:53to every sentence.
47:54The verdict,
47:55one month's house confinement.
47:57When you're done,
47:58go back to your room.
47:58Don't leave without permission.
47:59Yes, father.
48:00When father finally released me
48:02and I turned to go,
48:04Serafina said,
48:09I looked back.
48:12Silas was nearly
48:13the same height as me now.
48:14His features sharpened
48:16and settled
48:16into something older,
48:18the boyishness
48:19almost entirely gone.
48:21Yesterday,
48:22he had still looked
48:23like a boy of 12,
48:24but that whole development
48:26was connected
48:26to the heat cycle
48:27and I was not going
48:29to explain the heat cycle
48:30to anyone in this room.
48:32Enough.
48:33I know.
48:35Go.
48:36Yes!
48:39I turned and walked,
48:41quickly,
48:42back to my room.
48:43Naturally,
48:43I did not miss
48:44the flash of jealous hatred
48:46in Serafina's eyes
48:47as I left.
48:48Back in my room,
48:55I crooked a finger
48:56at Silas.
48:57More?
48:58The look on his face
48:59was entirely too knowing.
49:01Silas!
49:02He laughed then,
49:04easy,
49:05unbothered.
49:05What does mistress require?
49:09I took a breath,
49:11steadied myself.
49:12All of this was exactly
49:14what you planned,
49:15wasn't it?
49:16The body that looked
49:18like a boy's
49:18had hidden a mind
49:20that had never been
49:20a boy's at all.
49:22Which meant from the beginning,
49:24I had been played.
49:26No.
49:28You choosing me,
49:30that was the thing
49:30I didn't plan for.
49:37He looked at me,
49:38and his eyes were level
49:39and serious.
49:41So everything else,
49:42he had.
49:43I can't even be surprised.
49:45The beast man
49:45who dismantled
49:46the black market
49:47and negotiated
49:48equal rights
49:49for his entire species.
49:50Of course,
49:51he was always
49:51three moves ahead.
49:53I was gnashing my teeth.
49:54Silas smiled,
49:55just slightly.
49:56You came out ahead,
49:57didn't you, mistress?
49:59He drew that last word
50:00out deliberately.
50:02I turned away.
50:03Please leave my room.
50:05I could take the loss,
50:06but I wasn't staying
50:07in the same space
50:08as his satisfaction.
50:10The month of confinement
50:11passed.
50:12I had the bodyguard
50:13route the payment card
50:14to Mira with a note.
50:15She would know
50:15what to do with it.
50:16During that time,
50:17I searched every channel
50:19I could find
50:19for news of Lyra
50:20and found nothing,
50:22every thread dead.
50:23The silence worried me.
50:25Meanwhile,
50:26Silas had grown
50:26at a pace
50:27that defied
50:28any reasonable measurement.
50:29Two days gone
50:30and he was noticeably taller,
50:32the ease of a predator
50:33settling into his posture
50:35with every passing hour.
50:36Father approved
50:37of the development
50:38in ways that visibly
50:39extended to me.
50:40Since Serafina
50:41had brought Kale
50:42into the house,
50:43Kale had been reporting
50:44to me daily.
50:45Small details,
50:46careful observations,
50:47while his fox allure
50:48went to work on Serafina.
50:50Drop by patient drop.
50:52Everything I had suffered
50:53in my last life,
50:54I was going to make her
50:56feel every inch of.
50:58Serafina had been
50:59resistant at first,
51:00but with Raven diminished
51:01after his confrontation
51:02with Silas
51:03and with my own quiet efforts
51:05pulling her reputation
51:06apart from the seams,
51:07her composure
51:08was starting to fracture.
51:09She was getting volatile,
51:11reaching for Kale's attention
51:12at any hour,
51:13storming when she didn't get it.
51:15Kale was doing to her
51:16exactly what he had done to me
51:18and she was falling,
51:20piece by piece.
51:21The ugly incidents mounted,
51:22scenes in public,
51:24a shouting match
51:24that had left witnesses unsettled,
51:26a round of self-pity so deep
51:28it had shaded
51:29into something worse.
51:30The worst incident?
51:32She had nearly used
51:33a blade on her own wrist.
51:34A servant had caught her
51:36in time and run for father.
51:37Father arrived home
51:38from the office
51:39to find her
51:40and the fury on his face
51:42was something
51:42I had never seen before.
51:44He slapped her,
51:45once open-handed.
51:50For a beastman,
51:52have you lost your mind?
51:55Isn't this exactly
51:56what you wanted, father?
51:58You were the one
51:59who said we had to bond
52:00with beastmen.
52:01One mate,
52:03one life,
52:03no betrayal.
52:04So why is it wrong now?
52:07Father's fury and grief
52:08fought each other visibly.
52:10Wake up!
52:14Serafina surfaced
52:15for a moment,
52:16blinking.
52:17Father pressed his fingers
52:19hard into his temple.
52:21I know you've resented me
52:22for a long time.
52:24You think I failed you,
52:26that I shouldn't have remarried,
52:28that Alada and her brother
52:29took something from you,
52:30that the bloodline's legacy
52:32belongs to you alone.
52:33But Serafina,
52:34have I ever actually
52:35neglected you?
52:36He looked at her
52:37and something wet
52:38moved through his eyes.
52:40You're older than Alira
52:41by a few years,
52:41you know as well as I do
52:42why this bloodline
52:43requires us to choose
52:44a beastman companion
52:45at 18.
52:45It isn't cruelty,
52:46it is what gives us
52:47the right to lead.
52:48I spoke up from the side,
52:49genuinely confused.
52:51What does that mean?
52:52Father looked at me
52:54and let out a long,
52:55slow breath.
52:57It's the old law,
52:58the founding rule,
52:59to inherit and hold
53:01the family's work.
53:02You must be in true accord
53:03with a beastman.
53:05Serafina,
53:07you've always known
53:08the bloodline standard.
53:09Leadership goes to
53:10the most capable,
53:11regardless of birth order
53:12or gender.
53:13Three years ago
53:14was when you should have begun.
53:16Chosen your beastman,
53:18prepared yourself,
53:20entered the business
53:20with intent.
53:21Instead you waited
53:22and while you were waiting,
53:24you were building a trap.
53:28Don't dress it up,
53:30Father.
53:31Answer me honestly.
53:32Did you treat us
53:33the same?
53:34Ever?
53:35I was born with no mother.
53:37You were busy,
53:38you gave me to the nurses.
53:40You gave me everything
53:41material I asked for,
53:42yes.
53:43But how many hours
53:44did you spend with me?
53:46How many times
53:47did you hold me
53:48or come to quiet me
53:49when I was scared?
53:51After you remarried,
53:52you held Elira.
53:54You came when Elira cried.
53:56You gave her the pair
53:57because she wanted the pair.
53:58You gave me what you thought
54:00I should want,
54:01not what I asked for.
54:04Every one of those
54:05small things you thought
54:06didn't matter,
54:07they were scars, Father.
54:09Every single one.
54:10This bowl was never level.
54:12You just couldn't see it.
54:14Serafina,
54:16I'm sorry.
54:17You were right to feel it.
54:19I failed you.
54:21Sorry doesn't fix it!
54:23I want Elira dead!
54:25I want all of them dead!
54:29She lunged for me,
54:31hands in my collar,
54:32and her face had gone somewhere
54:34I hadn't seen it go before.
54:36Elada,
54:37I had a dream.
54:38I dreamed you died.
54:41The fully shifted raven
54:43bit you right through the throat.
54:45You were dead!
54:48You were dead!
54:50The blood in my veins
54:51turned to ice water
54:52and stopped.
54:53It wasn't a dream.
54:54It happened.
54:55Father couldn't watch anymore.
54:57He had her removed
54:58and confined to her rooms.
55:01When Kyle came to me later,
55:03pleased with himself,
55:04I took him directly
55:05to Serafina's door.
55:07In the cellar
55:08of the Talia estate,
55:10I had made him
55:10a single offer,
55:11his freedom
55:12in exchange
55:13for his obedience.
55:15Seduce Serafina
55:16and do it
55:17until she broke.
55:18He'd agreed
55:18and she had broken.
55:20So now,
55:21it was his turn.
55:23Through the door,
55:24Serafina's voice
55:24rose and fell,
55:26cresting and breaking.
55:27Kale!
55:28Why aren't you answering me?
55:29Don't you love me anymore?
55:31You said I was
55:33the one person
55:33who mattered most to you.
55:35You said you'd never leave.
55:37You said you'd give me
55:39anything I wanted!
55:40Serafina,
55:41you've gone insane!
55:42Alara,
55:43open this door!
55:44Open it!
55:45I stood still
55:45and listened to
55:46what was happening
55:47on the other side,
55:48the frantic banging,
55:50and then gradually,
55:51silence.
55:52I went to
55:53Father's room instead.
55:55I've sent for your brother.
55:56I should never
55:57have sent him away.
55:59Little Alara,
56:01everything she said
56:02it was true?
56:03Or you wouldn't
56:04have done what you did.
56:05That's on me.
56:06It's all on me.
56:07Father didn't punish me.
56:09He showed me
56:09the bloodline's
56:10founding records,
56:11and without exception,
56:13every paired name
56:13on the page
56:14was a human
56:15and a beastman.
56:17Long ago,
56:18the family's
56:19founding grandmother
56:20had a beastman
56:21against all opposition,
56:22and the world
56:23had denied them both.
56:25A disaster came,
56:27and the beastman
56:28gave his life
56:28to save her.
56:29Out of grief
56:30and out of conviction,
56:32she had used
56:32her authority
56:33to set the law
56:34that had governed
56:34every generation since.
56:36So that one day,
56:37humans and beastmen
56:38might live in peace.
56:40When I came out
56:40of father's study,
56:41Silas was in the hallway,
56:43leaning against the wall.
56:44All of it handled?
56:45I nodded.
56:46He had been busy
56:47this past month.
56:49I'd barely seen him,
56:50and I was starting
56:50to recognize,
56:52in the way he moved
56:52and held a room,
56:54the shape of who
56:54he was going to become.
56:56Father had warmed to him
56:57in ways he hadn't
56:58bothered to hide.
56:59Since Kale had moved
57:00into the house
57:01as Serafina's beastman,
57:03he'd been reporting
57:03to me faithfully.
57:05While in the background,
57:05Serafina's image
57:07had been quietly
57:08and methodically demolished.
57:10She had done to herself
57:10everything Kale
57:12once did to me.
57:13Then father had stepped in.
57:14My brother came home,
57:16took over the business
57:17under father's guidance,
57:18and the household
57:19found its footing again.
57:20As for Silas,
57:21the heat cycles
57:22kept coming back.
57:23More and more frequently
57:24as it happened,
57:25every deep night,
57:26a cold serpent tail
57:28would find its way
57:28around my ankle.
57:29Silas.
57:30Hmm?
57:32I have a knife.
57:34The tail withdrew.
57:35As I thought,
57:36he had been exaggerating
57:37all along.
57:38Silas.
57:39Explain yourself.
57:41He leaned in
57:41and grazed his lips
57:43against the shell
57:43of my ear.
57:44Is it really so hard
57:45to understand?
57:46I turned on him.
57:48Plain words.
57:49He was quiet
57:50for a long moment.
57:51In my last life,
57:52you buried me.
57:54I jolted upright.
57:56You...
57:57you also...
57:59Silas sat up
58:00unhurried.
58:01After that,
58:02my spirit wouldn't leave.
58:03I stayed.
58:04And I watched you
58:05grieve for Kale,
58:06suffer for Kale,
58:07and finally die for nothing.
58:08And then...
58:09with you,
58:10I came back.
58:13Remarkable.
58:14And then he spoke again.
58:15Alara.
58:17Do you remember
58:18the bloodline's
58:18founding law?
58:21What?
58:22He smiled,
58:23and the look in his eyes
58:24held something
58:25that had been there
58:26for a long time.
58:27Choose a beastman to raise.
58:28bond with them
58:30for life.
58:32No betrayal.
58:33No abandonment.
58:35His voice dropped low.
58:37You chose me.
Commenti