The Lycan King and his Dark Temptation novel Chapter 335

NARRATOR

"My lord!!" Wallace was in shock—relieved yet troubled, unable to fully grasp the situation.

Even more so when the Duke stepped in front of the Duchess protectively, shielding her.

"Why… why, if you were in the city, didn’t you return to the castle? I sent a search party across the entire duchy, combing the area where you were ambushed. One of the soldiers survived and came to warn me," he hastily began to explain.

The atmosphere around them was cold and menacing.

He felt like a rat caught in a trap.

"I thought… I thought the Duchess had conspired with the enemy—!"

"SHUT UP AND STOP BEING SO DAMN CYNICAL!" Elliot couldn’t stop himself from exploding with rage.

He had trusted this man, placed his estate in his hands.

He was sick of being stabbed in the back—this was why trusting anyone was so damn hard.

"I didn’t—"

"Yes, you did!" Elliot stepped forward, barely holding back the urge for his canines to emerge.

"And you’re going to tell me every last detail, or I swear I will rip your heart out with my bare hands! Take him away—silently—straight to the Black Dungeons!"

Wallace couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

These accusations—this was madness! Lies! He was the Duke’s most loyal servant.

Then, suddenly, he convinced himself this was all the Duchess’s doing. That woman, that demon, was wicked, a liar.

"You damn traitor! You’re just poisoning the Duke’s mind!" He tore free from the guards’ grip and charged at Katherine, ready to tear her apart, to force a confession out of her.

He didn’t even get close.

A fist crashed into his face, landing a savage punch that sent him sprawling to the ground with a mouthful of blood and a loose tooth.

"In your damn life, don’t you ever speak to my wife like that again! Don’t rush your death—don’t be so eager to die like a dog! Take him away immediately, and if he escapes again, you will all pay for it!"

Elliot was seeing red.

It didn’t matter how much Wallace pleaded, how much he roared about the injustice.

He was gagged and hauled off in a rush to the steel carriage waiting outside the small house.

Katherine watched the whole scene, shaken by how extreme it had been.

She had never seen Elliot so enraged—only once before, when he had shot that man dead.

She wondered what the Duke would do if he ever discovered her deception—or that she was half-witch—if this was what he did to a man who had served at his side for years.

A chill ran down her spine. She swallowed hard, fear settling deep in her chest.

"Your Lordship, what are your orders?" Vittorio stepped forward, bowing his head respectfully before his Duke.

Elliot reached out and traced those mischievous, seductive lips with his fingers.

Only she could fall asleep like this in the middle of all this chaos.

She must have been exhausted.

The Duke shifted gently, pulling her against his chest, wrapping her in his arms, inhaling that soft lavender scent that calmed his fury and the storm in his mind.

Even with the evidence in his hands, he could throw her and her daughter out on the streets the next day, but something inside him resisted the idea of letting go of the woman curled against his body.

And this time, he decided to listen to his instincts.

*****

KATHERINE

I lifted a hand over my eyes, waking up in slight confusion.

When had I fallen asleep? The memories crashed into my groggy mind all at once, and I sat up abruptly in bed.

It looked like my room… yes, I was here.

"Relax, child, you’re safe now."

I turned my head to see Nana knitting in the chair beside me. She seemed to be watching over me.

"Nana… when did I get here?" I asked, still a little dazed.