Kaius’s expression ened unexpectedly. “She won’t do a thing to your mother.”
“You seem so sure.” I couldn’t keep the skepticism from my voice.
“When your mother was heading back to her pack, I sent someone to keep an eye on her; with you back here, she is in more danger
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Chapter 229
than she had been before your return.”
The revelation stunned me. All this time, I’d been terrified for my mother’s safety, and Kaius had already taken steps to protect her.
“So Thalia wouldn’t have gotten to her.”
“No, she wouldn’t.”
Relief washed through me, followed quickly by guilt. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, I just-*
“It’s alright. She has been captured now; I think it’s time we have a little chat with her.”
The dungeons were cold, the air heavy with the lingering scent of silver and wolfsbane–a toxic combination designed to weaken even the most powerful werewolf. Thalia sat in the center cell, her ageless beauty untouched despite her predicament. She looked up as we approached, a smile playing at her lips that didn’t reach her eyes..
“I didn’t expect to see you down here so soon; I mean, I only got here,” she remarked, her voice as smooth as ever.
“Well, it is nice to see you too, Thalia. I need to ask you some questions, and I want the truth.” Kaius’s tone was conversational, almost friendly.
Thalia’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Would you let me out of here if I did tell you everything?”
“Yes.”
“Kaius you can’t—” I began, alarmed at the thought of Thalia free after what she’d done.
“I can. Tell me everything, and I’ll let you out with a condition.” His confidence was unshaken.
“And that is?” Thalia leaned forward, interest piqued.
“You would never act against me ever again.”
She studied him for a long moment, as if weighing his sincerity. “How do I know you are going to keep to your words?”
“This cell is about to be your worst nightmare; the bars had been made with silver, and from time to time, wolfsbane would be, released into the air you breathe in. It might not affect you as it would an ordinary werewolf, but a few days breathing in wolf’s bane would do the trick. Your death would be very, very slow. The faster you speak, the better for you.”
The threat didn’t seem to frighten her, but it did appear to convince her that cooperation was in her best interest.
“You want to know the truth? Then here it is.” She straightened, a new intensity in her expression. “You tricked me, Kajus Valerian. You took me for a fool. We made a deal, a deal you weren’t willing to keep. I betrayed my people for you, and what did I get in the end? Nothing. I was pathetic to have trusted you, but it took only a while for the doubt to set in. I saw the way you looked at her; you were never going to let her go. Still, I had no other choice but to hold on to your words. Just as I had suspected, you didn’t keep to it. When I discovered Soren was alive, I knew I had to kill him; if I didn’t kill him, then he would find me, and he would kill me very slowly for what I had done. But then I found out Caleb too was alive. I wasn’t expecting to see him ever again, but there he was. I was trapped and tortured in ways you cannot even imagine. Give me more reason to seek revenge; they did all that to me because I helped you, and what did I get out of helping you? Betrayal. Maybe it was karma catching up with me. I barely survived, and when I did, I knew it was time to act against you; I built up my army
