Chapter 58

Evelyn

My wrists were rubbed raw.

Every twist, every tug, carved the rope deeper into my skin. Eventually, the futile efforts had created chaffing deep enough to draw blood, but still, I didn’t stop.

The knot the guards had tied to bind my wrists was tight. I knew that I was smarter than the guards who tied it, but it seemed I was not smart enough to find its weakness.

I’d been working at it for hours, slow and methodical, as the sun rose to bring the first glow of true daylight. Even as the morning wore on, I continued making my fingers learn the give in the hemp and the slick of blood by making feeble tugs that allowed the knot to loosen enough to shift my wrists slightly. But it was still not loose enough to slip free.

I needed more time. But fate, as usual, had other plans.

The cage door opened without warning, and my fingers froze.

Jesse strolled in like a man returning home after a long day. No guards accompanied him. It was just him and me in that small, enclosed space.

He had wine in one hand and a dagger lazily tucked into the belt at his side.

“I was hoping you’d still be awake,” he said, grinning. “Look at you, still a pretty little thing even with that tense jaw and those stiff shoulders. The picture of a woman with the kind of fight that makes men lose wars. It is a shame how easily you folded, though. Really. I can’t lie, I was a little disappointed.”

I averted my eyes defiantly. I refused to look at him any longer. I didn’t need to look at him to know he was enjoying every second of this.

“I trusted you,” I hissed, testing the ropes again behind my back. “I believed that you actually wanted peace. We could have ended this war. But it seems only one of us spoke with good faith.”

He crouched beside me, letting the stem of his glass dangle from his fingers. With his pointer finger, he pulled my chin up so I had no choice but to meet his eyes again.

“Oh, I do want to end this war. Believe that, darling. But it will end in my own way. On my own terms. You have to understand, Evelyn. Peace is just another name for control if it means bending before your oppressors. And you?” He tilted his head. “You are control wrapped in something far too lovely to waste on a man like Logan.”

I glared at him, but my heart was beginning to pound uncertainly. I hoped he couldn’t feel my quickening pulse on his finger.

I spat the words through clenched teeth, “You think this is admiration? Am I supposed to be flattered? You kidnapped me. And you tied me up in a cage like a common criminal when I came to you proposing a resolution. I came prepared for peace.”

He smirked. “Details. Look, you came willingly. I’m just making sure you stay. It’s not my fault Logan didn’t protect what was his.”

I flinched at that. I hated that it landed.

“I am no one’s,” I said.

He saw my reaction. Of course he did. His smile spread, making something deep inside me recoil.

“Ah,” he said, eyes lighting up like he’d found a soft spot. “That’s lovely to hear. Especially with the recent entanglements he’s had with Emma. Yes, I even heard about that fake engagement rumor she spread. Is that what this is? Are you still sore about Emma, darling?”

“Don’t say her name,” I warned.

“I mean,” he continued, ignoring me entirely, “it’s always been her, hasn’t it? The tragic romance. The one who breaks rules and hearts. It’s all right there, really. You were never his priority. To them, you were just a healer. Someone who did the work but not someone to reward. Not someone to love.”

I looked away.

“You deserve better,” Jesse said, suddenly quiet. “Someone who would put you on a pedestal. A person who will rule with you. Who will love you first. You will not get that with Logan, trust me. He loves no one but himself, even if he does have a fondness for Emma. No, you will never be the priority. Not until after her.”

He brushed a knuckle down my jaw. I winced, pulling away as my heart continued pounding. This time, however, it was not from fear, but from fury. How dare he touch me? If he only knew the truth of who I was…

“I could give you that,” he whispered, interrupting my thoughts. “Be my queen, Evelyn. Say yes, and we will rule together as equals.”

“That’s rich coming from a man proposing to a woman bound as a prisoner. And besides, I’m already married.”

He chuckled. “Not here you’re not. Out here, you can be whoever you want. I can give that to you, Evelyn, if you only say yes.”

I narrowed my eyes. “All I want is to be far away from you now. You could not accept our treaty’s proposal, so I will not accept yours.”

He tsked under his breath, rising to his feet.

“I’ll win you over eventually. You’ll see, darling. You’re worth the wait, and I am a patient man. You’ve got too much fire to be wasted in Logan’s shadow.”

Throughout our conversation, I’d continued my bloody, painful work on my bindings. My right wrist had slipped nearly halfway out of the rope. One more twist. One more distraction.

But then, as though to prove the point that timing was not on my side, in the distance came a long, low horn that split the tense hush that had fallen between Jesse and me.

It rang out with jarring volume once, twice, three times. It was not hard to identify the sound: They were the pronouncements of warhorns.

Jesse’s entire demeanor shifted. The smirk widened into a full-blown grin, savage and satisfied.

“Right on schedule,” he murmured.

And I knew what he meant even before he put words to it.

“No…” My breath caught.

He didn’t give me time to plead or stall.

He reached down, grabbed a fistful of my hair, and yanked me to my feet. The pain was so jarring it was almost blinding.

“Let’s give the good Alpha his prize,” he said, dragging me from the cage. “A glimpse of what he let slip through his fingers.”

The sun was bathing the rogue camp in gold that juxtaposed with the tension of the moment.

Standing at the camp’s border, just beyond the ring of weapons and rogues, was Logan.

His clothes were torn and covered in dirt. His arms were streaked with blood. His sword dripped red.

And beside him was my brother. Alex. He looked just as haggard and beaten as Logan, hunched forward as he paused to observe our approach.

Jesse shoved me forward, and I stumbled, exposed and bound, into the light.

“Welcome, Logan,” Jesse called. “I believe you came for something that no longer belongs to you.”

I looked up at Logan, heart aching, body burning from rope and humiliation.