Chapter12
744 Words
Georgia remained quiet, her heartbeat heavy in her ears.
Anna’s desperate plea still lingered in the air fragile yet unyielding.
“Please, Georgia… help me."
Georgia’s fingers curled against her palm. The answer was obvious. She couldn't walk away from Anna. Not now. But a storm of thoughts churned in her mind, each one sharper than the last.
What if she helped Anna, and the village turned against her? What if the Alphawhoever he was saw her as an obstacle? And worse… What if someone told her parents she was here?
She swallowed hard. That was a thought she couldn’t afford.
Her parents had spent years hunting her down, dragging her back whenever she tried to escape. She had run too many times, only to be caught, caged, and punished. The last time… she had barely survived.
Her body remembered even when she tried to forget, the sting of betrayal, the cold iron of their will pressing against her throat.
If they found her now… if they knew she was here…
No.
She forced a breath through her nose, steadying herself. This wasn’t about her. Anna needed her. And Georgia had never been the kind of woman to turn her back on someone she loved.
Lifting her chin, she met Anna’s gaze. “I’ll help you.”
Anna sucked in a shaky breath, her shoulders sagging with relief. But before she could speak, her father’s voice sliced through the room.
“This isn’t your place to interfere.”
Georgia turned slowly, locking eyes with the man who had once ruled Anna’s life with an iron grip. His voice was calm, but there was a warning beneath it, a quiet, simmering threat meant to make her back down.
She didn’t.
“I’m only here for Anna,” she said smoothly. “Nothing else concerns me.”
His expression darkened. “You think that’s enough?” He took a step forward, lowering his voice. “You think you can stand in the way of a deal with the Alpha?”
Georgia didn’t flinch. “I think I can stand beside Anna. And that’s all that matters.”
Anna’s mother shifted uneasily. “Georgia… this is dangerous. You don’t understand what you’re getting into.”
“I understand perfectly.” Georgia’s voice was even, but there was steel beneath it. “You’re trying to sell your daughter off to a man she doesn’t want. Again.”
Anna’s father stiffened. “That’s not what this is.”
“Then what is it?” Anna snapped, her voice shaking. “Because from where I’m standing, it looks the same.”
Silence filled the room, thick and suffocating.
Then, a small voice cut through it.
“Why doesn’t Auntie Anna want to marry the king?”
Georgia’s breath hitched.
The triplets.
Kelsey, Keira, and Kelvin stood in the doorway, their sleepy eyes filled with curiosity.
Keira rubbed her eyes. “Isn’t he supposed to be a good man?”
Kelvin frowned. “Do you love him, Auntie?”
Anna froze, her face paling.
Georgia’s heart clenched. How could they explain something so dark to children so innocent?
Anna swallowed hard, then forced a small smile. “Sometimes… marriage isn’t about love. And that’s not fair, is it?”
Keira shook her head. “No.”
Kelsey, the more thoughtful of the three, tilted her head. “But if he’s the king, doesn’t that mean he’s kind?”
Anna’s expression flickered, just for a moment.
“No,” she whispered. “It doesn’t.”
Silence.
Kelvin’s little face twisted in thought. “Then you shouldn’t marry him.”
A soft, bitter laugh escaped Anna. “I agree.”
The triplets accepted this without question, their young minds unable to grasp the weight of what was truly happening. Georgia wanted to protect that innocence, to shield them from the ugliness of the world for as long as she could.
But she couldn’t even protect Anna from it.
And she knew deep in her bones that this wasn’t over.
Not by a long shot.
Anna’s father finally spoke, his voice tight with frustration. “You’re making a mistake.”
Anna’s jaw clenched. “So be it.”
His eyes burned into her, then flickered to Georgia. “And you? What wi
ll you do when this all falls apart?”
Georgia didn’t hesitate.
“I’ll fight.”
The challenge was clear. The battle lines were drawn.
And the war had only just begun.
- Writer
