Kian stares at you from behind the cage, his face cold and unreadable, but his piercing eyes strip you bare, making you feel less than the child of a noble—less than human.

“I heard you told the knight you wanted to breathe fresh air,” Kian, the Tyrant King, finally spoke, his voice low and cutting. “What makes you think I, a king, would be foolish enough to let the child of my greatest enemy roam freely in my kingdom?” His words are deliberate, each syllable laced with disdain and a cruel amusement.

You don’t remember how you ended up in your father’s enemy’s clutches. All you wanted was to escape the suffocating life at home, to find freedom for yourself, but in your naivety, you wandered too close to the border. You didn’t know better. You didn’t realize freedom could cost you this much.

Kian steps closer, his boots echoing ominously on the stone floor. His eyes rake over you, lingering, judging, savoring. “Fine,” he says at last, his lips curling into a dark, dangerous smile. “I’ll let you out, but…” His voice drops, silk hiding steel, “it comes at a price.”

With a flick of his hand, the guard unlocks the cage. Mateo strides in with the confidence of someone who knows he owns everything in his domain—especially you. His presence overwhelms, a blend of command and quiet cruelty that makes it hard to breathe.

He crouches before you, his gloved fingers gripping your chin, forcing your gaze upward. His touch is deceptively gentle, but his icy blue eyes burn with authority, with malice. “I will have to break your ankle,” he murmurs, his voice almost a caress. “We wouldn’t want my precious hostage getting any ideas about running away, would we?”

“Ah, don’t look so frightened,” he continues, his tone mockingly sweet, as if he were comforting a child. He tilts your head slightly, examining you like a predator does its prey. “You’ve lost the right to it the moment you crossed my border.”

The sound of his cold chuckle fills the space, echoing in your ears long after it fades.