Mated To The Alpha King (Raven and Ethan) novel Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Raven’s roy

I went back to my room, locked the door, and sank to the floor, tears slipping silently down my cheeks. This wasn’t the life I had dreamed of. Why was Late this cruel? Why did everything I touched turn to dust? Why did Olivia always get what she wanted, even when they were suppond to be mine?

How I wished just once that someone would fight for me. That someune would hold me when I was breaking, But I had no one. Not even my own father,

Just then, a loud knock tore through my thoughts. Hinched, heart jumping into my throat.

I ignored it, wiping my face quickly. Maybe if I didn’t answer, they’d think I wasn’t here. But the knock came again, louder, this time, more demanding. The kind of knock that warned you not to test your luck.

Swallowing my nerves, I stood and made my way to the door. My fingers trembled as I unlocked it. The second it creaked open, a guard stood thre towering over me with a stony expression. I barely had time to part my lips before his hand shot out, gripping me by the arm

“Hey! What’s going on–tyelped, but he said nothing

I stumbled behind him, trying to keep up. The direction he was dragging me told me exactly where we were going–the grand hall. My stomach twist That was where the party was being held. My breath quickened

What now!

As we entered the brightly lit hall, music still played faintly in the background, and laughter echoed off the high ceiling. The moment we stepped in, all eyes turned to us. Conversations died. The silence was immediate and heavy.

At the front of the room stood her.

The Luna. My half–sister. Her golden gown sparkled under the chandeliers; her posture perfect lips twisted into a smug expression that made my blood run cold.

“There she is,” she said, voice loud and clear. “The maid who stole from our guest.”

I froze, confusion flashing in my mind. “What are you talking about?”

“You know exactly what I’m talking about,” she hissed, stepping closer. “You stole Lady Myra’s diamond necklace while you were serving her. Don’t

pretend to be innocent.”

I blinked. “I didn’t take anything-

“She’s lying,” Lady Myra chimed in with a sneer. “I placed it on the table, and it was gone the moment she served me. No one else came near me

swear i didn’t” tumed desperately toward the crowd, but no on

No one ever did.

no one met my

“You can lie all you want,” Olivia said, her voice dripping with fake pity. “But we’ve already searched your room

Her words punched the air from my lungs.

And then a servant stepped forward with something glinting in her hands.

The necklace

The same one Lady Myra had worn.

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Chapter 28

“No… No, I didn’t somer

“In her drawer,” the servant said, eyes cast low–fucked beneath

My knees weakened. “That’s not possible.

Gasps rang out in the hall. Whispers followed..

“She was always suspicious…….”

“Can’t believe she’d steal from a noble…

“She’s always had a jealous streak, that one.

“I didn’t do I shouted, tears burning the corners of my eyes. “I’ve never stolen anything

“Enough,” Olivia said, her tone sharp. “This pack has no place for liars and thieves, Alpha Ethan,” she turned toward him now, her vorce laced with kirgency, “we must uphold the law. She must be punished–publicly. Let her be flagged and locked up. Show everyone that no one is above amad”

I looked toward Alpha Ethan, my heart pounding so loud it drowned out every sound,

He hadn’t said a word this whole time.

He was watching me. Not with anger. Not with disgust. But with something deeper–conflicted. His eyes met mine, and I saw the hesitation there. The way his jaw clenched, his fists curled

He didn’t want to believe it.

He didn’t want to hurt me.

But then Olivia stepped closer to him, whispering something into his gar. Something I couldn’t hear.

And his shoulders stiffened.

He nodded.

My breath caught.

The world tilted.

No

Not him.

Not like this

Being betrayed by the very person fate had bonded you to.

I wanted to scream, to plead to run. But my v

my voice failed me. My knees hit the ground. The room swam with noise and murrours.

They were going to punish me for something I didn’t do.

And he was going to let them.

Two guards seized me, each gripping one of my arms like I was nothing more than trash to be thrown out. My legs refused to move at first, but they dragged me forward, out of the grand hall, past the gawking crowd, through corridors lined with torches that flickered like judgmental eyes..

My wrists were shackled before i even realized what was happening, the cold bite of iron cutting into my skin. The halls blurred, the echo of my own

Chapter 28

footsteps dined out by the roaring in my ears I didn’t speak What was the point? Hoone would listen to one ever did.

The courtyard was waiting

It was always the courtyard.

A wide, open space used for punishments, duels, and lessons in obedience. The center was cleared, and at its heart stood the wooden cin and stained with the ghosts of past screams. Thad seen it used before. Heard the sounds. But I never imagined it would be

“Strip her back,” someone ordered coldly

Hands tagged at the back of my uniform dress, ripping it down until my spine was bare to the cold night air. I shivered, not from the temperature, but from the humiliation. The shame My skin prickled under the dozens of eyes that watched from the balconies above–wolves, nobles, servants All of them looking down at the fallen maid..

At the har

The thirt

Even though I wasn’t.

I was pushed forward and forced against the wooden cross, my wrists stretched wide and fastened tightly to the outstretched beams. Rope cut into my skin, but I barely felt it

I felt nothing

Not until the first lash,

CRACK

A sharp, burning pain tore through my back like fire. My head jerked forward, a strangled gasp escaping me before I could stop it. The whip wasn’t just leather, it was laced with silver–meant to punish even the strongest wolf.

Even a human body couldn’t bear it.

CRACK

The second lash hit lower. I bit my lip so hard I tasted blood

They were counting.

A slow, cruel count that echoed after each strike,

“Three..

“Four…

“Five…”

My knees buckled by the sixth. I whimpered by the tenth. And by the fteenth, I was screaming, Screaming not just from the pain–but hom the betrayal From the injustice. From the look on Olivia’s face as she watched from the steps of the courtyard, calm and satisfied, like she was watching art unfold.

I could hear Lady Myra’s snide chuckle from somewhere above. “She should’ve known her place…

Twenty.

Thirty

I stopped screaming around the fortieth. My voice was gone. My throat raw Tears soaked my face, but I didn’t have the energy to wipe them away.

Chapter 28

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