Free Web NovelChapter 30: A Dangerous Secret.
Selena felt like tearing the tent into shreds, but she forced herself to control her anger. It would only make King Kane furious and from Ethan’s stories, his father was a deeply dangerous man who would gladly punish her for such a spectacular tantrum.
"I hate you, Arianna," she hissed under her breath.
With a vicious kick, she sent the water jug flying off the table and crashing onto the floor. She brushed right past the mess to the bed and collapsed onto the edge, burying her face in her palms while restlessly bouncing her leg.
It is going to be okay, and everything will still fall into place, she kept assuring herself, trying to soothe her racing mind.
If only Ethan had actually paid attention to her from the very beginning, Arianna wouldn’t even be their problem right now.
Back when the princess was still completely crazy about him, Selena had practically begged Ethan to propose immediately to win the favor of the King of the West.
But what did that fool do instead? He kept unnecessarily provoking Arianna’s father, bragging and constantly looking down on the Western King.
Ethan had only escaped severe punishment because of who his own father was, but the Western King had ultimately frozen him out, wanting absolutely nothing to do with him.
"If only that stupid Ethan had just listened to me," Selena muttered, lifting her head.
She had been in love with Ethan ever since he first started attending the King’s court. He was a northern prince with massive ambitions, even if his eyes had been solely fixed on Arianna back then. But Selena had refused to give up. When she wanted something, she got it.
It had been ridiculously easy to seduce Ethan. In no time at all, he had fallen completely for her, eventually revealing his darkest secret: he only wanted Arianna for her title. He wanted the power, because whoever married Arianna would ultimately rule the entire West as King.
The West was incredibly vast and since his father was refusing to give him a single chance to rule in the North, becoming King in the West was an even better alternative. It would mean equal power on the global stage.
"Selena," a voice called out, breaking her train of thought.
Looking up, she saw Ethan standing a few steps away from her. He looked at her, his brow furrowing slightly. "Are you alright?"
Selena rolled her eyes and sat up straight, intentionally avoiding his gaze. The sting of how he had completely ignored her out there in front of his family still burned.
"You can’t be serious right now," Ethan scoffed, irritated by her cold attitude. When she refused to answer him, he pushed past her silence and kept talking. "You wouldn’t believe my aunt. That old hag almost got me into massive trouble with Uncle Cassius. I can’t even fathom what my father would do to me if he finds out I went somewhere I wasn’t supposed to be."
"I do not care, Ethan," Selena said coldly.
She stood up, walked over to the mirror, and stared at her reflection, gently resting a hand on her stomach. It wouldn’t be long before she started showing.
"Really? Now you suddenly don’t care about what happens?" Ethan’s voice dropped, laced with venom. "You were the one who started this entire plan, don’t you forget that."
His words struck a nerve. Selena’s hands balled into tight fists, her fingernails digging deep into her palms. She turned to face him. "Do you still love me, Ethan?"
The sudden question hit him like a physical blow. His gaze snapped to her, completely caught off guard that she would even ask such a thing right now.
"Of course I do, Selena," he stammered, gesturing sharply between them. "Can’t you see everything I’ve already lost because of you?"
"Oh, please," she scoffed, rolling her eyes as she turned to face him fully. "I am not Arianna, so don’t try to guilt-trip me. You didn’t lose anything because of me. You lost it all because of your own refusal to listen to me."
"When did I ever not listen to you, my love?" He stepped closer, his voice suddenly softening, a shift that gave her a fleeting glimmer of hope that he was still deeply in love with her.
"I told you to be patient and win Arianna’s father’s trust and respect," she reminded him sharply. "But what did you do instead? You kept acting completely disrespectful to him and his entire court."
"So?"
"So, the King would have ultimately let you marry his daughter!"
"You think it’s really that easy?" Ethan shot back, defensive. "Arianna was promised to another man. Have you forgotten that Prince Casper wanted her, too?"
"But she loved you," Selena countered. "I know there were more political benefits coming from a marriage to Casper, but if you had just followed my advice and stayed on the King’s good side, he would have accepted you for his daughter since she chose you."
"Okay, fine! I didn’t stick to your advice and things didn’t go the way we wanted," Ethan snapped, throwing his hands up in frustration. "But explain this to me—why on earth did he let his daughter marry my father, of all people?"
Selena stared at him, genuinely wondering if he had hit his head on his way over to the tent. "Are you seriously asking me that? Whose power shielded you in the West every single time you broke their laws?" She didn’t even wait for him to answer. "Your father’s, Ethan. His name carries immense weight and now Arianna is his wife. Anyone who wants to cross her father now will have to tread lightly and be incredibly careful. The other kingdoms are going to beg to form alliances with the West simply because of your father’s fearsome reputation and you are seriously asking why?"
Ethan felt a sharp sting. Hearing his father receive all the praise while he was forced to live in his shadow was unbearable. It was the one of the reasons why he desperately wanted to pave his own path and become great on his own terms.
"Alright, Selena," he muttered, shoving his frustrations aside. "Things are a mess right now, and we have to think about how to move forward."
"Well, that is no longer my business, Prince Ethan," she replied coldly. She turned back to the mirror and began casually pinning her hair up.
"Why?"
"Go ask Arianna or your commanding aunt for help, since they clearly know best."
"What on earth is wrong with you tonight?" Ethan asked, genuinely failing to understand why she was so furious with him.
"I am a nobody to you, so why are you even asking me for help, Ethan?"
"Do not tell me you actually took what I said out there seriously?" He walked over to where she stood, but she completely ignored him, continuing to fix her hair. "What else were you expecting me to do? My father was already enraged, and I didn’t want to give him a reason to become even more furious with me."
"You can do better than that. That excuse isn’t convincing at all," Selena sighed, deliberately stepping away from him. "The truth is, I do not matter to you. Even though I am carrying your child."
"You do matter, my sweetheart," he insisted, reaching out to catch her hand.
She quickly dodged his touch, moving to the opposite side of the tent. "Do not touch me. Since I am such a nobody, I have no desire to sit here and listen to your sob stories."
Ethan bit his lower lip in sheer frustration. Why were all the women around him being so incredibly stubborn lately? They were becoming completely impossible to control.
"I will just go back to the West where I belong," Selena declared, walking over to her travel trunk. She flipped it open and began packing her things inside with dramatic flair. "At least there, no one will ever make me feel so insignificant."
"You cannot be serious right now," Ethan said, staring at her in sheer disbelief that she actually wanted to abandon him. "I won’t let you leave. Especially not while you are carrying my child."
"Is it only about the child? Is that truly all you care about?"
"No, you are completely misinterpreting me," Ethan insisted, hurrying over to where she stood. He gently but firmly took her hands in his. "Do you actually know why the throne in the West is so incredibly vital to me?"
Selena shook her head slowly, though her curiosity was instantly piqued.
"If I tell you a secret... will you swear on your very life that you will never repeat it to a soul?"
She was stunned by the gravity of his demand. It was completely obvious that whatever he was about to reveal was massive. "I swear, Ethan. What is it?"
He let out a heavy sigh, releasing her hands as he rubbed his face with a trembling palm. "I am not Kane’s biological son. No one in the tribe knows about it except for him, my aunt... and I, who only recently found out."
Selena’s eyes widened in absolute shock. Her lips parted, but her voice failed her completely. She stared at him, desperately hoping he would laugh it off and tell her it was a twisted joke. But as the silent minutes ticked by, he didn’t alter his statement. Instead, he leaned in closer to explain.
"My mother was brought here from a neighboring pack ruled by Kane’s uncle. She was already heavily pregnant when she arrived, but the King publicly declared both her and the child she was carrying as his own."
"Wait..." Selena stammered, her mind racing. "If Kane isn’t your father... then who is?"
"I have no idea," Ethan admitted bitterly. "I only learned the truth recently, and the family is aggressively keeping it hidden from me and the rest of the tribe. They don’t want a single soul to find out."
"But why would they go to such lengths?"
"Because Kane cannot lay with a woman due to a curse, yet the tribe desperately needs an heir to the throne. For now, I am that heir."
A dark realization began to dawn on Selena. "So that’s why you need the West..."
"Exactly, my sweetheart," Ethan answered, a ruthless glint appearing in his eyes. "I am thinking steps ahead. If that curse is ever lifted and Kane begins fathering his own children, I will be stripped of my title in an instant. His biological son will become the next King, and I will be left with absolutely nothing."
