Chapter 244: Chapter 244

Her figure vanished into the palace, leaving only the sound of our ragged breaths and the echo of her fury.

I sat there, clutching my bleeding side, trembling so badly I could barely move. Adrik was bent over, coughing blood into his hand. Uncle Fridolf stood stiff, his eyes narrowed, but I could see it: shock. Real shock. He had been hurt, too.

I clutched my side, the pain burning deep, and gasped for air. My whole body was trembling, my knees were weak, and my heart was beating too loudly in my ears. I forced myself to whisper, my voice shaking, "What the hell just happened? Why... why was Lisa like that?"

No one answered right away. Adrik was bent over, blood dripping from his mouth, his hand pressed against his chest. Even he, strong and fierce as he was, looked broken, shaken. My uncle Fridolf stood there, his eyes wide with something I had never seen in him before, fear.

He wiped the blood from his lip, his voice low but sharp. "Belinda... are you sure she’s the human she claimed she was? Because what I just saw, what she just did..." He trailed off, shaking his head. His face was pale. "That wasn’t human."

I stared at him, my mind racing. My voice cracked, tears stinging my eyes. "She almost killed us, Uncle!"

Fridolf’s jaw tightened. He forced himself straighter, though I could see the pain in the way he held his side. "We can’t stay here. Not now. She’s dangerous, more dangerous than I thought. If she comes back, she won’t hesitate next time. We need to leave. Now."

Adrik coughed, groaning as he tried to push himself up. "She left us alive on purpose... she could have ended us, all of us. That wasn’t mercy, that was a warning."

His words made my skin crawl. I looked back at the shadows where Lisa had disappeared, my body shivering as if the night air had turned to ice.

I swallowed hard, forcing myself to stand though every bone in me screamed. "Then let’s go," I whispered. "Before she comes back."

Uncle Fridolf barked at us with urgency. "We need to get out of the palace. Now!"

I scrambled to my feet, clutching my side where pain burned hot. My chest was on fire, my legs were weak, but fear drove me forward. The thought of Lisa’s furious eyes was enough to keep me running.

At last, we slipped through the gates and into the night.

The forest loomed ahead, vast and endless. I paused, gasping for air. "Uncle, we can’t survive out here. Not in this state."

He turned, his face half-shadowed in the moonlight, and smirked. "Who said we’re wandering? I told you, Belinda. I have a plan."

I frowned, my voice shaking. "What do you mean?"

"You’ll see soon enough."

Adrik limped behind us, his breathing ragged. "We need to keep moving before the alarm spreads. The palace will discover our absence any moment now."

We pressed deeper into the forest.

"Uncle," I whispered nervously, "are you sure about this? What if we’re caught? What if..."

"Shut up and walk, Belinda," he snapped.

We walked for what felt like hours. My feet ached, my dress caught on branches, and sweat dripped down my neck. Adrik stumbled once, his limp worsening, and I thought I might collapse beside him. Then, just as my strength gave out, the trees thinned.

By the time we finally reached the hideout, my body was almost giving up on me. My legs shook so badly I thought they might break. My side still burned from Lisa’s strike, every breath like fire. Adrik had blood on his clothes, and Uncle Fridolf’s face was pale, though he tried to hide it.

We stepped into a wide clearing, and I froze, my mouth falling open.

Men. Dozens, no, hundreds of them. Soldiers. Their bodies gleamed with sweat under the pale moonlight as they trained in formation. Some sparred with swords, others with claws and teeth, their growls echoing through the clearing. The night air vibrated with discipline and power.

My breath caught. "What... what is this?" I whispered.

Fridolf stepped forward proudly, his chest swelling. "This," he said, "is my army."

I turned to him, stunned. "Your... army? You mean... they follow you?"

He smirked, eyes gleaming as he watched the soldiers move in deadly precision. "They don’t just follow me. They obey me. Every single one of them."

Adrik nodded grimly. "We’ve been building this for years. Hidden, silent, waiting. The Alphas never suspected."

My hand flew to my mouth. "Years? You’ve been planning this... all this time?"

Fridolf’s eyes shone with triumph. "Of course. You think I ever intended to bow to Rowan, Kael, or Damon? No. I was always meant to rise. And now, with their trust shattered, with suspicion already gnawing at them... the time is coming."

I shook my head, backing away. "You’re insane. This is madness."

He laughed coldly. "Madness? No, Belinda. This is power. And you, you should be grateful you chose the right side before it was too late."

My body trembled, fear and awe tangling inside me. I stared at the endless battalions drilling in silence, their eyes sharp, their muscles coiled like predators. They weren’t just an army. They were a storm waiting to be unleashed.

A whisper slipped from my lips, my voice trembling.

"My goodness... what have I gotten myself into?"

The guards rushed to us the moment they saw our condition. They laid us down, cleaned our wounds, and pressed wet cloths against the bleeding. I hissed from the sting, clutching the edge of the bed as they poured something bitter down my throat. Adrik groaned quietly, and for the first time, I saw fear in his eyes.

When the healers finally left, silence filled the room. Only the sound of our breathing remained. I turned my head toward Uncle Fridolf. He was sitting up, his eyes fixed on the wall, as if his mind was far away.

"Uncle," I whispered, my voice weak. "She almost killed us. What are we doing about her?"

He didn’t answer at first. Then, slowly, he looked at me. His eyes were sharp again, though tired. "Belinda," he said firmly, "Lisa is not who she told us she was. She is not some weak human locked away. What she showed us tonight... it means she’s something else. Something dangerous."

A shiver ran down my spine. "So what do we do now? Do we run from her?"

Fridolf leaned forward, his mouth tightening into a cold smile. "No. We put her into our plan. Someone with that kind of power... she can’t be ignored. We have to destroy her."

I gasped softly. The thought of Lisa being dragged into all this scared me even more. "Uncle, she hates us. You saw it in her eyes. How can you ever beat such a monster?"

He didn’t flinch. "Every person has a weakness, Belinda. Even her. And we’ll find it."

He snapped his fingers, and one of his guards stepped forward. "Go," he ordered. "Find out everything about Lisa. Where she came from, what she really is. But be careful. Don’t get noticed. If she catches you, she’ll kill you without hesitation."

The guard bowed quickly and left.