(TW!!! descriptions of violence/abuse)

Amora stood there, her mouth agape as she watched Epiales so naturally take on his new role as King. Almost immediately he set the tone for his new ruling, everyone was terrified the second he opened his mouth. She didn't even get a chance to properly reunite before he was ripping up everything that remained of Richard in the castle, his throne, his bedroom, his wallpaper.

"Epiales?" Amora asked cautiously as he was yelling out orders.

"Yes, love?" He asked, a large smile on his face.

"You-you just became King 10 minutes ago," she pointed out.

"I need to get started right away, I'm ridding the werewolf society of Richard, he does not deserve to be remembered nor mourned."

"How do you even know what you're doing?"

"This is the moment I've been waiting my whole life for."

Amora couldn't ignore the sting in her chest as she listened to his words, knowing that the moment she had been waiting her whole life for was to meet him, yet she wasn't that special to him.

"Amora! What the hell is going on?" A disgruntled Katana screeched as she stumbled onto the courtyard.

"Katana!" Amora sighed in relief, running into her arms.

"One minute I'm being manhandled by a bunch of guards and the next I'm dropped to the ground as everyone starts saying something about a new King!"

"Epiales, he-he killed Richard," Amora spoke slowly, not believing the words herself, despite witnessing it firsthand.

"He killed the king?" Katana's mouth fell open in shock.

"Now he is the king."

"And now you're the queen!"

Amora stilled, she hadn't even thought about that, "I don't want to think about that right now."

Katana nodded in understanding, smiling at her soothingly.

"Katana, can you do me a favour?"

"Of course, Luna."

Amora cringed at the title before shrugging it off, "I need you to go back to the pack, everyone has to know what happened, these past few months have been a mess for everyone, you need to bring them here."

"Bring them here? Every pack member? Amora where are they all going to stay? I know this castle is huge but you have too many pack members."

"Okay, okay, just go back to the pack and inform everyone, please," Amora begged.

Katana nodded at her, "I'm just going to shift, that carriage is too damn slow."

As she watched Katana disappear behind the large doors, Amora focused on herself and she regrettably recognized the familiar sting on her neck.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she gently placed a hand over the burned skin, rushing towards the nearest door.

She trailed along the endless corridors, the emptiness feeling unusual to her, she was so used to the castle bursting with life, she wasn't sure of the protocol for when your King has been killed and his murderer takes over his role.

A familiar room came into her sight and she sighed in relief, rushing in and shutting the door. The bed looked the exact same and Amora assumed no one had slept in it since she and Epiales had.

The memories flashed through her mind as she smiled sadly, it was the first time she had been so intimate with her mate.

She turned her attention to the luxurious mirror beside her, staring at her reflection intently. Amora nervously pushed her long hair back, taking in the sight of her damaged skin. A sharp gasp escaped her as she realized how bad it really was. The skin was a vibrant shade of red, small bruises were littered around the skin and there were droplets of blood scattered across the injury.

Forcing her tears back, Amora's gaze turned to her arms, noticing the faint scars scattered on the inside of her wrists, so faded that no one would ever notice them anymore. No one but her.

'I said to lay your arms out!' Lincoln screamed, shaking Amora to her core as she quickly laid her arms out across his wooden desk.

The fourteen-year-old girl did not understand what she had done. A mere few weeks ago she had lost the only person in the world who ever cared for her, and all of a sudden this man replaced him as her Alpha. She did not know who he was, but she foolishly believed he would be as kind and loving as her previous Alpha was.

The wooden object came flying down onto her skin as she screamed and pleaded, tugging at her arms that were now in Lincoln's hold as he violently whipped the insides of her arms, splinters of wood flying off the object and embedding themselves into her skin.

Amora's eyes flew away from her arms in a panic, the old memories resurfacing.

She slowly peeled off her long dress, letting it pool around her ankles. For the first time in a long time, Amora truly looked at herself. She looked at every scar, every wound, every inch of skin. Tear droplets fell down her skin elegantly as her arms wrapped around her body. The memories came back in waves.

'I'm sorry Alpha,' she wailed, unable to understand why everyone was just staring at her. Help me! She wanted to scream, she wanted to plead and fight back.

'Shut up! I have had enough of your disrespect! Just because my father so foolishly took you in means nothing to me. You are nothing.' Lincoln shouted, dragging her down the cold steps.

A fist came flying towards her stomach as she was pushed into the small room.

She screamed out, falling to the ground and hitting her head off of the stone.

'My father always had a soft spot for abandoned children, don't feel so special Amora, it was pure pity, he did not love you.'

'Yes, he did!' Amora protested, tears pouring down her face as she struggled to stand up.

A boot came flying to her stomach, sending her back down once again.

'Do you not listen? You meant nothing to him.'

'That is not true!' She cried, unable to even attempt to sit up before another kick came flying at her, pleading as she watched Lincoln reach for the long silver knife.

And so it continued for hours, and each time she protested, shouted back, desperate to block out the words Lincoln threw at her.

Amora's hands traced over the small white lines covering her back as she twisted around to stare at them in the mirror. She hated the knife most of all. It was the one thing Lincoln used so rarely, but he seemed to use it on Amora more than anyone else. She hated it because it was one of the few things that left a permanent scar. It was the one thing that she couldn't wash away.

She slowly lifted her dress back up before collapsing onto the soft bed, her wolf content, even with just the faint scent of Epiales resting on the pillow.

The silence that engulfed the castle lulled her into a deep sleep.
___________________________________

"Amora!" A worried voice woke her up instantly.

"Huh?" She mumbled, sitting up slowly to notice that the sky that was once a light blue was now a deep midnight colour.

"I've been searching everywhere for you, though I should have guessed this is where you would be," Epiales smiled softly at her.

"Have you been crying?" He asked, worry taking over his features.

"No, I'm just...tired I think, I don't know I can't think clearly," Amora grumbled.

"Sorry, I'll give you a moment to wake up."

Amora stretched, before hissing and grabbing her neck as the pain flared up again.

Epiales' face immediately fell before he slowly grabbed his own neck, almost as if he could feel her pain.

"You marked someone else," she reminded him, staring anywhere but his eyes.

"I had to Amora, I was minutes away from being executed, I could not leave you," he pleaded, grabbing her chin and turning her to face him.

"Where is she?" Amora asked, closing her eyes briefly before staring at him.

"I-I don't know," Epiales admitted, a sigh leaving his lips as he looked down.

"You don't know?"

"She fled the castle as soon as I killed Richard, no one saw where she went and no one can find her, but I have many people tracking her as we speak, we shall find her soon I assure you."

"Then what? I just hang by the side while you and your new mate play king and queen?"

"No! You are my only mate. I will find her and I will make sure that mark is ridded off her skin, please, believe me, Amora, you are the only woman I want to mark, I panicked, I had to do something and I didn't think."

"A woman is still out there wearing your mark, do you not understand how it feels to constantly be aware of that? Every time I move I feel it," Amora whispered softly, "you rejected me."

"No! No I did not! I did what I had to do to get back to you!" Epiales said desperately.

Amora wanted to shake her head in denial, but she knew the situation called for desperate measures. She looked at his hands that gripped hers tightly.

"I don't deserve you, Amora, I don't deserve the comfort and the love you bring me, I don't even deserve to think about you, I will be damned to hell forever for how I have treated you, you're an angel sent from heaven." He got down on his knees, gripping onto the frills of Amora's dress, "I am far too selfish to accept my punishment and let you go, please forgive me, please don't give up on me."

Amora looked down at him as he rested his head on her knees, gripping her tightly. She loved him, she was so deeply in love with him that she didn't even consider her own pain as she nodded, promising him that she would not give up on him, not yet.