Chapter 9

Fiona’s POV

“Will, do as I have ordered.” Luna commanded coolly.

I felt large reluctant hands close over my shoulders and began pulling me up to my feet. My body felt lifeless like it wasn’t my own. I could slowly feel life draining out of me. I had the mind of asking Will for a knife to end my suffering should he leave me there. I know he’d do it. He cared enough for me too….he had too. There was no telling how I’d be if I ever came out from the Black Room so I might as well kill myself to end my suffering as Jin said.

Is this really my end? After all these years of physical and emotional torture. Is this really it? Honestly, I was relieved. My earlier hysterics was gone, replaced with this soothing calmness that was a bit terrifying at first.

Finally…

“Wait a minute!” Jin called out, rising to his feet; Soren, Lyn and Kai stood up behind him as well. “"Luna, I don't think she should be punished so severely."

Will stiffened behind me and I looked up to him in confusion. Why did he stop?

“Excuse me?” Luna stared at her son in utter surprise.

“She shouldn’t be punished for something that clearly wasn’t her fault. If anyone’s to blame it should be me. I threw her out of the party, not Fiona.” Jin maintained calmly, his face leaving no room for argument.

I stared, shocked at the words leaving Jin’s lips. What the hell is happening here? Jin was acting entirely out of character; first, his argument with Lyn, and now his mother. Why is he standing up for me knowing fully well that the mere sight of him repulsed me to the core. My attention snapped to Lyn, Soren and Kai, searching their faces for answers but found none. They all mirrored the same blank yet curious expression with an intensity that was creepy. Shaky hands wrapped around Will’s arm drawing his attention to me, “Is this a dream, Will?” I whispered while Jin and his mother fell into a argument. “Or am I dead and relieving this scene?”

Will’s eyes twinkled with a soft amusement even though his face was blank. “I’m afraid you’re not dead yet, neither is this a dream. Come on, you can stand properly if you aren’t weak enough.”

I willed my legs to stand but they refused. “I don’t think my legs agree with you, Will.” I flashed him a soft sad smile, returning my attention to Jin and his mother. “Besides, I don’t think the Luna would appreciate me standing.”

Odd.

This entire evening has been a series of bizarre situations. I pinched my arm discreetly and winced at the pain which grounded me to reality. This was real. And fucking weird. This was the first time I’ve seen Jin openly oppose his mother and for me nonetheless. No matter how severe Luna’s punishment was, Jin never interfered. He either looked pleased while I suffered or if he felt I wasn’t being punished enough, he’d make up stuff to anger his mother, literally fuel to a already blazing inferno, leaving me to bear the scars and burns.

Luna was clearly angered and unhappy with her son’s opposition. I resisted the urge to shrink other her icy glare and had it not been for Will’s steady grip on my shoulder, I would have collapsed fully to the floor. She terrified me, and I honestly couldn’t understand the source of her hatred towards me. I didn’t beg her to save me when my parents died. She did it of her own free will. I sounded ungrateful, I knew that. But that was nothing compared to the abuse I’ve suffered.

“”Do you think she shouldn’t be punished?” she asked Jin in a frigid voice, her face hardened with anger. “Give me a solid reason. Well?”

Jin didn’t immediately answer his mother’s question, his eyes snapped to my crumpled form on the floor. I loathed the look of superiority and playfulness tinged with possessiveness that made my skin crawl and set my teeth on edge. I quickly lowered my gaze to avoid his eyes, fixing them on the lacquered marble floor stained with streaks of gold and black. Jin’s behavior was weird.

The silence stretched for an uncomfortably long time until the Luna snapped impatiently, “Since there is no reason, let the butler drag her into the small dark room!”

No!

Blood curling fear gripped my body followed by panic. I was naïve to think Jin benevolent enough to spare me from suffering. He basically dangled my fate from his fingertips and there he stood looking smug about it. I wanted to scream at him and rip his face off. Anything to wipe that smug look off his lips.

Just when I thought hope had abandoned me, the dark, silent void around me seemed to ripple. The footsteps—his footsteps—echoed first, steady and unyielding. Then three more joined in perfect rhythm, a synchronized, almost predatory beat. I didn’t dare lift my head, not yet; the Luna’s glare aimed at me still glinted with malice, waiting for the first crack in my defenses.

But the air shifted, thickened, and I felt him—felt them. Prying my eyes open while trying to calm my pounding heart, I stared at the pair of gleaming leather dress shoes with words lodged in my throat. Then, suddenly, they were all there, surrounding me with an undeniable power, an aura that silenced all the occupants of the room.

They lined up, shoulder to shoulder, blocking me from the Luna’s dark glare, their gazes hard and unbreakable. My heart stammered, caught between relief and something I couldn’t name. And then, in one harmonious, commanding voice that sent a shiver down my spine, they spoke:

“She is our mate. We’d like to see who dares to touch her!”

The words seemed to ring in the air, fierce and absolute, as if marking me with a shield stronger than any I could ever forge. In that moment, I could feel their possessiveness, their fierce loyalty weaving into a protective wall around me. My heart hammered wildly, torn between the thrill of safety and the overwhelming realization of what lay between us. That, and fear.

No. This had to be some twisted joke. Surely the Fates weren’t so cruel as to link my destiny with the objects of my nightmares.

But as I dared to look up, something in their eyes flickered—something dark, something unspoken that lurked beneath the surface. It was as if they knew something I didn’t, as if this moment was just the beginning of a much deeper storm.

And that storm, I sensed, was about to break.