A Gilded Cage
1140 Words
Liora’s POV
I woke with a sharp breath and for a moment, I didn’t know where I was.
The ceiling above me was unfamiliar with high, smooth, carved with intricate patterns that caught the soft morning light spilling through tall windows.
The air felt different too. There was a faint scent of rose and fresh linen, a quiet calm that didn’t belong to the chaos I remembered.
My body felt heavy, my head throbbed faintly and then, it all came rushing back.
The throne hall, the council, their voices and my stomach twisted. My fingers moved instinctively to my lips and rhe sting was still there.
My chest tightened as the memory surfaced of his hand gripping my chin, his voice low and cold, the way his eyes had darkened right before he kissed me.
I sucked in a breath and pushed the thought away then anger rose instead.
My parents were the reason I was in this f*****g mess. Everything traced back to them.
My fingers curled into the sheets beneath me.
“I hate them,” I whispered under my breath.
The words felt too small for what I felt, too weak, because it wasn’t just hate but even as that anger twisted inside me another equally strong feeling rose alongside it and my Jaw tightened.
Alpha Kael was a bastard. He had no right to touch me the way he did, no right to speak to me like I was something he owned, no right to decide whether I lived or died and yet he had.
My chest rose and fell slowly as I forced myself to calm down.
Getting angry wouldn’t help, not here, not in his territory, not when I didn’t even know if I was free to walk out of this room.
That thought made me sit up quickly. The movement sent a slight wave of dizziness through me, but I ignored it.
I needed to think, to understand where I was, to figure out what I could do next.
My eyes scanned the room. It was… beautiful, far more than I expected.
The bed beneath me was large, covered in soft, rich fabrics. The walls were lined with elegant panels, decorated with subtle carvings. A wide window stretched across one side of the room, letting in golden sunlight that illuminated everything in a warm glow.
This didn’t look like a prison but it didn’t feel like freedom either.
I swung my legs off the bed and froze. There was someone in the room standing quietly near the edge of the bed watching me.
It was a maid but my heart jumped.
“How long have you been standing there?” I asked sharply.
She bowed her head slightly.
“Since you woke, my lady.”
A chill ran down my spine.
“You were just… watching me sleep?”
“My apologies if that made you uncomfortable,” she said calmly. “I was instructed not to leave your side.”
My brows furrowed.
“Instructed by who?”
Her answer came without hesitation.
“Alpha Kael.”
Of course it was him.
I let out a quiet, frustrated breath.
“Why?”
She hesitated for a brief moment.
“Because I am to accompany you at all times.”
I stared at her.
“At all times?”
“Yes, my lady.”
I let out a small, humorless laugh.
“That sounds less like ‘accompany’ and more like ‘watch.’”
She didn’t respond which told me everything I needed to know.
I stood slowly, ignoring the slight weakness still lingering in my limbs.
“I don’t need someone following me around. You can go” I said, brushing a hand through my hair.
“I cannot.”
The firmness in her voice made me pause and I turned to look at her.
“I just told you—”
“And I must follow the Alpha’s orders, not yours” she said gently, but without wavering.
My lips pressed together.
Of course, I should have expected that.
I walked past her toward the window, needing space and air.
“Fine, then just… stand somewhere else. Not right next to my bed like some kind of shadow” I muttered.
She nodded.
“As you wish.”
At least she was reasonable, that was something.
I reached the window and pushed the curtains aside. The view took me by surprise.
The compound stretched far beyond what I expected, surrounded by high stone walls that shimmered faintly under the morning light.
Buildings stood neatly arranged across the grounds, their architecture elegant but strong, built with purpose and there were lots of people moving about working, talking and training.
My eyes narrowed slightly when i realised a vast majority of them were women.
I blinked, that couldn’t be right.
I leaned closer to the window.
No, it was right. The majority of wolves I could see were female.
Dressed in different ways, some in simple attire, some in maid/servant clothing, others in more fitted clothing, moving with a confidence that suggested they were far from helpless.
It was unexpected and strange.
“Why are there so many women here?” I asked without turning.
The maid stepped closer, stopping at a respectful distance behind me.
“This territory has always been different. Alpha Kael does not follow traditional structures" she said.
I frowned slightly.
“What does that mean?”
“It means that women here all belong to him and no-one else” she said carefully,
That made me pause and before I could ask more, the sound of engines broke through the calm.
My attention snapped toward the gates as several sleek vehicles were entering the compound.
They moved smoothly across the grounds before coming to a stop near the central building.
My curiosity sharpened immediately.
“Who is that?” I asked.
The maid didn’t answer right away which only made me more curious.
The doors of one of the vehicles opened and then he stepped out.
My breath caught slightly.
He was tall, striking with broad shoulders, dark hair and sharp features that carried a quiet confidence.
Not as intense as Kael, not as overwhelming, but still dangerous in his own way.
There was something about the way he moved, controlled and purposeful, like he belonged here, like he knew exactly what he was walking into.
My eyes followed him as he adjusted his coat and looked around briefly before heading toward the main building.
“Who is he?” I asked again, softer this time.
The maid hesitated.
“He is not someone you should concern yourself with.”
That only made my curiosity burn stronger.
I leaned slightly closer to the window, watching as he disappeared from view and a strange feeling settled in my chest.
- Writer
