Luna To My Ex Mate

Chapter 11: Three days vow

POV: Roxana

I paced my room until the sun went down, trying to think of a way to free Hestia without anyone noticing. Every plan I made fell apart the moment I thought about the guards watching that door day and night.

A soft knock came at my door. I opened it to find Celeste standing there, her sweet smile fixed perfectly in place.

"Luna Roxana," Celeste said, bowing her head just enough to seem respectful. "I heard the Elders visited today. I hope they did not frighten you too badly."

"I am fine, Celeste," I said, keeping my voice flat. "Is there something you need?"

Celeste stepped closer, lowering her voice like we were suddenly friends. "I only wanted to offer some advice, Luna," she said. "The dungeon guards change shifts at midnight. The new ones are young, and they do not yet know your face well. It might be useful information, for whatever reason you keep visiting down there."

My whole body went still. She knew. Somehow, she knew I had been sneaking to see Hestia. "I do not understand what you mean," I said carefully.

Celeste's smile widened just slightly. "Of course you don't," she said. "I only thought a new Luna might want to know the schedule of her own house. Goodnight, Roxana." She turned and walked away before I could ask her anything else.

I shut the door and leaned my back against it, my heart racing. Celeste was not stupid. She had figured out something was wrong, and instead of running to Magnus with it, she had handed me information instead. That scared me more than if she had threatened me outright. Nobody helps for free in this house.

I waited until the halls grew quiet, then I wrapped a dark cloak around my shoulders and slipped out of my room. The guards outside my door barely looked at me as I passed, too used to seeing me walk toward the dungeon by now.

The new guards at the broken door were young, just like Celeste said. They straightened up quickly when they saw my crown catch the torchlight.

"Luna," the taller one said, bowing his head. "The Alpha said you have permission to see the prisoner."

"I know," I said, stepping past him without slowing down. "I will not be long."

The dungeon was cold as always. Hestia sat against the wall, her chains rattling as she lifted her head to look at me.

"Back again," Hestia said, her voice dry. "Did you find a way to free your poor, innocent friend yet? Or did you just come to enjoy watching me suffer."

"I have two days left, Hestia," I said, kneeling near the bars. "The Elders were already here. One of them smelled magic on me. If they figure out the truth before I can fix this, we both die, not just you."

Hestia laughed, but there was no humor in the sound. "So now it is about saving your own neck," she said. "I knew you did not care about me."

"I care about both of us surviving," I said, my voice rising before I forced it back down. "You know me, Hestia. We grew up together. You know I would never sell you out for a crown."

Hestia's eyes flickered, just for a second, with something softer than hatred. Then it disappeared just as fast. "I do not know you anymore," she said. "The girl I knew would never sit at that man's table wearing his mark on her throat."

I touched the high collar of my dress without thinking, remembering the marks hidden underneath. "I did what I had to do to survive, same as you hiding in that cabin all these years," I said. "Do not judge me for staying alive, Hestia."

For a long moment, neither of us spoke. The torch on the wall crackled and hissed in the silence.

"There is a loose stone in the back wall of this cell," Hestia finally said, her voice quieter now. "It leads to an old tunnel that runs under the training grounds. My mother told me about it years ago, before the guards ever caught me."

My heart jumped. "Can you get out through it?" I asked.

"Not with these chains on," Hestia said, lifting her wrists. The iron cuffs glowed faintly, suppressing whatever power she had left. "You need to find the key that unlocks silver-forged chains. It will not be with the regular dungeon keys. It will be somewhere Magnus keeps his private things."

"His study," I whispered, thinking of the drawer where he kept our contract. "I think I know where it might be."

"Then you have two days to get it," Hestia said, leaning back against the wall. "Bring me the key, and I disappear through that tunnel. I will not say a single word about our past, I promise you that."

"And if I cannot find it in time?" I asked.

Hestia's eyes turned cold again. "Then I burn, and I make sure you burn right alongside me," she said. "I have nothing left to lose, Roxana. Remember that."

I stood up, my legs shaking slightly as I looked down at her. "I will find it," I said. "Just do not do anything foolish before then."

I walked back up the stairs, my mind already racing through every excuse I could use to get into Magnus's private study without raising suspicion. Two days. I needed to find that key in two days, or watch everything collapse around me.

As I reached the top of the stairs, I nearly walked straight into Magnus himself, standing in the dark hallway like he had been waiting for me.

"You have been down there again," he said, his eyes studying my face closely. "Tell me the truth, Roxana. What exactly is happening between you and that witch?”