30 Days with The Ruthless Alpha King

After the Storm

~Cressida

I cried myself to sleep the night I defied Lucian.

The hours blurred into a mess of hot tears, jagged memories, and dreams that twisted like knives. Every time I closed my eyes, Lucian’s face haunted me. The flash of gold in his eyes, the raw fury twisting his features, the way his voice had dropped into that deadly growl when I dared to say no. By the time weak morning light crept through the window of my old room, my eyes felt swollen and gritty, my throat raw from sobbing.

I lay curled under the thin blankets, staring at the familiar stone walls. Just yesterday I had woken in Lucian’s chambers, wrapped in his warmth and the scent of cedar and smoke. Now I was back here, alone. The thought sent a sharp ache through my chest. Two weeks ago, I would have begged the Moon Goddess for any escape from him. Now that I had walked away, the emptiness felt worse than anything.

I rolled onto my back and traced the cracks in the ceiling with my eyes. Part of me was still terrified. I had seen Lucian angry before, ruthless and cold. But last night had been different. For one terrifying heartbeat, I had believed he might actually kill me. The memory of his fingers digging into my arm made me shiver under the covers.

Yet guilt gnawed at me too. I had wanted to hurt him. Not with fists, but with words. Every sentence about my mate, my people,I had chosen them to cut deep. And I had seen it, just for a second, before the rage swallowed everything. Real pain in his eyes. That frightened me almost as much as his anger. I had never seen Lucian look wounded before.

A soft knock pulled me from my thoughts. I quickly wiped my face. “Come in.”

Elara stepped inside, carrying a tray heavy with warm bread, fresh fruit, and steaming tea. The smell of mint and honey filled the room. The moment she saw me, she sighed. “Oh, you poor thing.”

“I’m fine,” I muttered, looking away.

She barked out a short laugh. “That is the biggest lie you’ve ever told me.” She set the tray down and sat on the edge of the bed, studying me. “I saw Lucian storming out of the fortress this morning like the world had personally offended him. What happened?”

“Nothing.”

“Cressida.”

“Nothing.”

She raised one eyebrow. I folded my arms. She kept staring. I lasted maybe ten seconds before I cracked.

“We argued.”

Elara snorted. “No kidding.”

I groaned and buried my face in my hands. “It was bad.”

“How bad?”

I hesitated, then whispered, “I refused him.”

Silence. When I peeked up, Elara was staring at me like I had grown a second head. “You what?”

“I refused to mate with him. To his face.”

The tray rattled as she nearly dropped her cup. “Cressida!”

“What?” I winced.

“Any woman who has ever refused my brother didn’t live long enough to regret it.” She waved her hand quickly at my horrified expression. “Because he killed them all instantly! Gurl… the fact that you’re sitting here right now is shocking. It must mean something.”

I swallowed hard. “What?”

“I don’t know.” For once, her voice was serious. “But it means something.” Then she rolled her eyes. “My brother has the emotional intelligence of a brick.”

A small, unexpected laugh escaped me. Elara pointed triumphantly. “See? Still alive.”

My smile faded. I looked down at my hands. The words slipped out before I could stop them. “I think I’m falling in love with him.”

The room went quiet. Elara’s expression softened.

“I even told him i didn’t want to leave blackstone after the contract ends,” I continued, voice thick. “That I wanted to stay after the thirty days.” A bitter laugh caught in my throat. “Stupid, right?”

“No,” she said gently.

I blinked. “No?”

“No.” She squeezed my hand. “But I know it feels wrong. Because of everything else.”

Fresh tears burned my eyes. “My people are still suffering. Jace was right. I keep forgetting. I laugh with you. I feel happy with Lucian. I walk around this fortress like I belong. Then I remember my pack is gone. My people are slaves. And I feel like a traitor for every moment of joy.”

Elara listened quietly, then sighed. “There are things you don’t know, Cressida. Blackstone wasn’t always like this. When our father ruled, he was fair. Loyal. Too loyal.” Her smile was sad. “The other packs were jealous. They betrayed him during a council meeting. He never came home.”

My chest tightened. Lucian had only been a teenager.

“Everything fell apart,” she continued. “Lucian rebuilt it all. He watched kindness destroy our father, so he decided he would never look weak again. He isn’t cruel because he enjoys it. He’s terrified that if he lets his guard down, someone will destroy everything he loves.”

Understanding settled over me. A glimpse behind the monster. A boy who had lost everything and built walls of iron to survive. But even with that. Was the tyranny really necessary?

The rest of the afternoon passed more gently. Elara dragged me to a sunny sitting room for a distraction. She taught me bead weaving, colorful tiny beads spilling across the table. I was terrible at it and half the beads kept slipping through my clumsy fingers. Elara wasn’t much better. We spent more time laughing as they scattered across the floor than actually weaving. For a little while, I forgot everything.

Then a servant knocked. “His Majesty has returned. He requests Lady Cressida’s presence for dinner.”

“No,” I said instantly.

Elara choked on her tea. The servant blinked in horror.

“I… I cant tell him that,” she stammered.

“Well you have to.”

As soon as the door closed, Elara stared at me. “You must have a death wish to refuse to see him.”

“I don’t care.” That wasn’t entirely true. I cared very much. I just wasn’t ready to face him yet.

As sunset painted the sky in soft golds and pinks, I slipped outside to clear my head. The garden air smelled sweet with roses and fresh grass. Flowers swayed gently in the breeze. Servants passing by smiled and bowed. “Good evening, Lady Cressida.” The title still felt strange, warm in a way I didn’t deserve.

Deeper in the garden, two guards stood near the wall, voices low. I froze when I heard them.

“I heard him screaming last night.”

“So did I. I heard from the servants that he destroyed the entire chamber, even smashes several furnitures into pieces.

My heart stuttered. Because of me?

“Have you noticed that healers have been coming secretly?” the first guard whispered. “I think Something isn’t right with him.”

“You’d better thread carefully with your words. He is still Alpha Lucian. You and your family will loose your heads just because you said the wrong thing”

The other guard warned.

The curse. The old woman’s warning echoed in my mind: Blood and shadow. Cold dread settled in my stomach.

That night, sleep refused to come. I tossed and turned for hours, Lucian’s face flashing behind my eyelids. His anger, his pain, the way he had looked when I told him to kill me. Near midnight, I threw back the blankets. The fortress was silent as I slipped into the moonlit corridor, bare feet cool against the stone. Without letting myself think too hard, I headed toward Lucian’s chambers.

My pulse raced with every step. Part of me wanted to turn back. The other part, the part that couldn’t lie to itself anymore, kept walking.