The Lycan King’s Mark (Nevara) by Tiffanie L. Campbell novel Chapter 124

124 – The Ruin She Chose

Chapter 124 – The Ruin She Chose

Nevara

“He forced me,” she said suddenly. “Your father. He forced me.”

The words landed heavy.

Kael went still.

I didn’t look away from her.

“He cornered me,” she continued, voice rising now–not hysterical, but edged with old bitterness. “He threatened my position. My livelihood. And when I finally leaned into what he wanted–when I trusted him -he called me a whore and sent me away.”

Jonas’s small fingers curled into the fabric of his trousers.

“You think I wanted to raise a child alone?” she demanded. “You think I wanted to beg and scrape and

build something from nothing?”

Her laugh was sharp.

“He denied him. Denied us. Said the child wasn’t his.”

Thoren didn’t move.

“But you knew he was,” he said quietly.

“Yes,” she snapped. “Of course I knew.”

“And instead of fighting him publicly,” he continued, “you waited.”

Her chin lifted.

“I survived.”

“You plotted,” Kael corrected.

Her eyes burned.

“I corrected an injustice,” she shot back. “You were next in line. The crown would pass to you. Why should my son grow up cast aside when he carries the same blood?”

Jonas looked at her, startled.

“Blood?” he whispered.

She dropped to her knees in front of him now, gripping his arms.

“You were meant for more than scraps,” she said fiercely. “You were meant for everything.”

I saw it then. Not just ambition. Wounded pride turned into obsession.

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Chapter 124 – The Ruin She Chose

Thoren stepped forward again. “You used him,” he said.

“I protected him.”

“You weaponized him.”

Her jaw trembled.

“For a throne that was never his,” Thoren finished.

+25 Points s

Bethany inhaled slowly. She wasn’t panicked or hysterical. Just measured. Her lips twitched. Not quite a

smile.

Jonas shifted in his chair, small hands gripping the armrests now.

“Mama?” he tried again.

She looked at him then. And something inside her broke in a way that was real.

“Listen to me,” she said, cupping his face in both hands. “You did nothing wrong. Do you understand me?”

He nodded, uncertain.

“You are not bad,” she continued. “You are not a mistake. You are not something to be hidden.”

My chest tightened.

Thoren didn’t interrupt.

She pressed her forehead briefly to his.

“They’re going to tell you things,” she whispered. “About me. About what I did. Some of it will be true. Some of it will be twisted.”

“Bethany,” Thoren warned quietly.

She ignored him.

“I did what I thought I had to do,” she said, voice shaking now. “For you.”

Jonas frowned. “Did you steal?”

Her mouth opened.

Closed.

“Yes,” she said finally. “In a way.”

His lower lip trembled.

“But I didn’t steal you,” she added fiercely. “You are mine.”

Thoren stepped forward then.

“He is not property,” he said evenly.

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<Chapter 124 – The Ruin She Chose She looked up at him, eyes blazing.

“No,” she agreed. “He is blood.”

“And blood doesn’t excuse treason,” Kael said from the doorway.

Bethany’s gaze cut toward him, hatred flickering.

Jonas looked overwhelmed now. Processing too much, too fast.

“Mama… are you leaving?”

The question was small. Terrified.

Bethany swallowed hard.

“Yes,” she said.

“For how long?”

She hesitated. And that hesitation told him more than any number would have.

“For a while,” she answered softly.

His hands fisted into her coat.

“I don’t want you to go.”

The words shattered the room.

Bethany closed her eyes for a brief second.

Then she pulled him into her arms and held him tightly. Not graceful. Not careful. Desperate.

Thoren looked at me.

I nodded.

+25 Points

Sabrina slipped into the room quietly, exactly as planned. Gentle. Unthreatening. Her eyes softened when

she saw Jonas clinging to his mother.

“Jonas?” she said softly. “Noah’s looking for you. He thinks he’s finally mastered the triple spin.”

Jonas didn’t move.

Bethany loosened her grip slowly.

“You like Noah,” she murmured into his hair. “You said he cheats at sword fights.”

A faint, watery smile tugged at his mouth.

“He does,” Jonas said.

“Then you’d better go show him how it’s done.”

He looked between her and Thoren.

Chapter 124 – The Ruin She Chose

“Will you be here when I come back?”

The question wasn’t for Thoren.

It was for her.

Bethany’s throat worked.

“No,” she said.

The honesty cost her.

“But you will see me again,” she added quickly. “I promise.”

Thoren’s jaw tightened slightly at that, but he didn’t contradict her.

Jonas leaned forward and wrapped his arms around her neck.

“I love you,” he whispered.

She held him like she could fuse him into her bones.

“I love you more than anything,” she said fiercely. “Never forget that.”

Sabrina stepped closer, offering her hand.

“Come on,” she said gently.

Jonas pulled back slowly. His eyes were red but dry.

He looked at Thoren.

“Are you really my brother?”

“Yes,” Thoren said quietly.

Jonas nodded once.

“Okay.”

He took Sabrina’s hand.

As she led him out, he glanced back only once.

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