Lycan King's Regret: Punished The Wrong Daughter

Arabella Toussaint

I watched Lilith carefully as she pressed her fingers against different parts of my stomach. She hummed thoughtfully before pressing a little lower, "Does this hurt?"

I shook my head, "Not really?" I didn’t know what she was looking for. I didn’t have any new wounds on my body.

Lucien was busy in his office, and he had requested me to let Lilith check me. I observed her face and found nothing but gentleness.

Will she help me? I asked myself.

She kept pressing my body until the pain shot right above the belly button.

"Ouch!" I bolted up in the bed.

"Sorry, dear," Lilith placed her hands on my shoulder, "Relax. I’ll be more careful."

I nodded and lay back.

"So..." She began with a mischievous smile, "How is my stubborn nephew treating you?"

I blinked at the question, "What?"

"The king, silly," she clarified with a grin, "He cares for you..." She was trying to sound casual about it, but it felt more like a test to me.

"I think you’re imagining things."

She chuckled and continued her examination, "I’ve known Lucien since he was a little boy. I can read him far better than he realizes."

I smiled awkwardly, "You’re mistaken. He only feels responsible for me because he marked me." I raised my hand, my fingers unconsciously brushing the mark on my neck, "He refuses to remove it, so naturally he has to make sure I stay alive."

I kept observing her face carefully, looking for signs.

Lilith raised an eyebrow, "Is that what you think?" I nodded at her question.

Of course. He was a king, and I was a slave. This was understood.

No matter how kind he was to me, someone like me could never belong in his world.

She studied me for a long moment before letting out a soft sigh, "I think I need to have a word with him about this."

What?

I got up and looked at her with a horrified expression, "No!" I blurted out, "You can’t!"

Wasn’t this supposed to stay between us? Girl code?

Apparently not.

Everyone in this palace was loyal to him. No one would risk helping a slave escape.

I had to rely on myself. I was on my own.

Lilith kept talking to me, telling me how kind-hearted the king could be and how different he was from what I believed. But I wasn’t interested in it anymore.

It wasn’t that I wasn’t attracted to him. I was. For me, that attraction was not enough to make me stay back and give up my freedom.

Not after everything I had been through.

***

EVERYDAY!

That was what Maya sent me. She would wait for me at Angela every evening at six.

Oh, Maya.

I lowered my head to hide the smile and tears, both threatening to show on my face. For the first time in what felt like forever, I had something to look forward to.

Hope.

I knew it was a dangerous game, but it was worth it.

For the next few days, I mostly kept to myself. I went to the kitchen daily just to chat with Helena even when I wasn’t expecting a message from Maya.

I needed to make everything believable.

Even I started agreeing to King Lucien’s every word whenever I was with him. He seemed happy, maybe because I had become more obedient. Submissive.

The queen’s stares grew colder with each passing day, but I didn’t want to pick a fight with her. In my mind, I was already counting the days until my escape.

One afternoon, a maid approached me, "Her Majesty wishes to see you in the royal garden."

I followed her with a nod. The moment I stepped into the garden, I knew I had made a mistake. The Queen sat beneath the gazebo while Aliya sat beside her.

"So..." The Queen’s lips curled into a wicked smile, "Our little slave seems awfully happy these days."

Shit. She noticed. I needed to be more careful. I lowered my head but remained silent.

She rose from her chair and stopped in front of me. Her fingers dug painfully into my chin before she forced my face upward, "What spell have you cast on my son, slave. He not only marked you but also lets you stay in his room. He tried to kill his childhood friend because of you."

Jasmine was his childhood friend?

I inwardly rolled my eyes. Instead of grilling me, why don’t you ask your son, bitch?

I was taken aback. Where had that thought come from? I had never spoken to anyone like that... not even inside my own head. Before I could gather my thoughts, her hand struck my cheek, catching me off guard.

I looked up and found Aliya looking at me with a satisfied smile. The queen raised her hand again, and I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing myself for another slap when a calm voice reached us, "My Queen."

With a frown, I opened my eyes and looked up in disbelief. Jasmine strode towards us in her warrior uniform, her braid swaying behind her.

When was she discharged from the hospital?

She stopped at a respectful distance away before bowing, "Your Highness... please don’t slap her."

The Queen’s expression darkened as her voice turned icy, "How dare you question me, Jasmine? Or did that beating from my son knock the sense out of your head?" she asked with a sarcastic grin.

A faint blush of humiliation crept across Jasmine’s face, "I would never question you, Your Majesty. I might no longer be a Head Warrior, but every royal warrior has direct orders from His Majesty to ensure Lady Arabella’s safety. It’s my duty to protect her."

The Queen and Aliya weren’t the only ones left speechless. I had no idea that she was no longer the head warrior. Nor could I digest the way she called me Lady Arabella.

Was I dreaming?

Once I went back to my room, I would like to pinch myself and see if this was all real.

"You are choosing a slave over your Queen?" Queen Theodora snarled.

"I’m only choosing to obey my king..."

The Queen’s jaw was clenched so tightly that I thought her tooth might crack and fall out of her mouth.

"Both of you! Out!" she hissed.

Jasmine and I exchanged a brief glance and jerked up when the Queen screamed like a mad woman, "I. Said. Get. Lost!"

Neither of us waited to be told a third time.

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