To Love A Villain-Chapter 205: Convince The Father

>>Einar

The stench hit me first.

Thick and rotting, like blood soaked into old stone, like piss and mildew and pain. My stomach turned, but I kept walking.

Down. Deeper.

The guards had looked at me strangely when I passed—too sickly to be wandering the halls, let alone the dungeons. But no one stopped me. Maybe they were too stunned. Maybe they thought I was hallucinating from fever.

I didn’t care.

My body ached with every step, the lingering burn of sickness slowing my legs, but I gritted my teeth and pressed on. I needed to see her.

Enya.

The cells were carved right into the rock, thick bars and even thicker shadows. I moved past the first few, ignoring the empty ones, ignoring the growls and snarls from things caged deeper within. Until—

"Enya," I breathed.

I stopped. My hand caught the bars before my knees could buckle.

She was there.

Curled in the corner, pale skin dusted with dirt. Her back was to me, but I’d know her anywhere.

My twin. My other half.

"Enya," I said again, louder this time.

She stirred. Slowly. Like she’d been pulled from somewhere far away. When she turned to look at me, my heart clenched.

She looked... so small.

So tired.

Her eyes widened slightly. "Einar?"

Her voice was raspy and dry. My chest twisted.

"What the hell are you doing down here?" she asked, dragging herself closer to the bars.

"I could ask you the same thing." I exhaled shakily, gripping the rusted iron between us. "Why are you in here?"

Her mouth opened, then closed. Like she didn’t know where to begin.

"I heard..." I swallowed hard. "I heard you were missing. And Emrys—he wouldn’t tell me anything. Just gave me the medicine and walked out like nothing happened. I knew something was wrong."

Her face twisted with something bitter. "Of course he didn’t tell you. He’s the reason I’m here," I could see the hate in her eyes.

She looked like a ghost behind the bars.

"Father punished me," she said quietly, fingers curling around the iron. "For trying to get your medicine. The stocks were empty, no one had ordered more, and no one was doing anything—so I did." Her voice cracked at the edges. "And this is what I got for it."

My heart splintered.

I’d thought I was prepared for anything. I wasn’t. I wasn’t prepared to see her like this—sunken cheeks, pale and frail.

She was always the fierce one. The sharp one. Now she looked like she’d been wrung out.

Yet still, I could see the fire in her eyes.

"Enya..." I breathed her name like an apology, sinking to my knees in front of the bars. "I’m so sorry. I should’ve known. I should’ve stopped him—"

"You were sick," she cut in, gentle but firm. "You didn’t even know."

I reached into the coat I’d barely managed to button, pulling out the one thing I had to offer. A jam sandwich. It was crushed from the walk, half-warm and poorly wrapped—but it was food. Something soft. Something not thrown at her like scraps... That is, if she was given any.

Her eyes locked onto it with quiet disbelief.

"Here," I said, pushing it through the gap in the bars.

She took it with a whisper of fingers, her throat working as she looked down at it like it might disappear. And then, slowly, she brought it to her mouth and took a bite.

Her shoulders sagged with the first chew.

"I’m going to get you out," I told her, voice hardening with resolve. "I swear it."

She didn’t answer. Just kept chewing. She spared me a glance and nodded.

I spared a glance at the other two in the cell but didn’t say anything about it.

I stood and turned.

***

I knocked on the door, but didn’t wait for an answer and went into the study.

Emrys looked up from the desk like he’d been expecting me, green eyes cool as ever.

I know he’s not as bad as he acts... but that doesn’t justify his actions

"She’s going to die down there," I said, barely managing to keep my voice level. "You have to let her out."

He didn’t move. "She was going to leave us."

That - There.

It’s not anger.

It’s fear

"She was going to get my medicine," I replied calmly, "You and I both know that’s the truth. She wasn’t running."

He looked at me, silent for a moment. Like he was weighing it.

"Emrys, Enya would never run away from us-"

"You-" He cut me off, "She would leave me."

"..." He wasn’t wrong. Enya didn’t hold any affection for Emrys. He was the favored child after all. The heir to the Dukedom and the entire North.

Finally, he said, "You should be in bed."

I stepped closer. "She didn’t betray anyone, Emrys. You say she would never leave me. So you know she wasn’t running away. She was trying to help me. Our sister. You think locking her up next to those things is justice?"

Emrys’s jaw tightened. There. A crack. Barely visible, but it was there.

"The things you do will never get her to like you." I said and his expressions faltered.

"..." He looked down in defeat, "I’ll talk to Father," he said and I shook my head in dismay. He has a lot of emotional turmoil.

But the way he acts only makes Enya hate him more.

***

>>Emrys

The corridor outside Father’s chambers felt heavier than usual. Each step I took echoed too loudly, like the house itself was warning me not to continue. But I did.

Because she hadn’t eaten. Because she’d looked at me like I was a stranger and I knew I was making it worse.

I knocked once before entering.

The Duke was slouched against his chair by the hearth, blankets piled over his legs, eyes sunken and sharp like daggers waiting for a throat. His lips were pressed together, pale and cracked, but the moment he saw me his eyes lit up

"Emrys! My only son!!"

I stood before him, arms at my sides, every inch of me taut with restrained control.

"Father," I gave him a small bow

"What brings you here?" He tried to smile

"..." I knew he wasn’t going to like it,"It’s about Enya." Yet I said if anyway

He narrowed his eyes. "She tried to run. You put her in the dungeon, didn’t you?"

"I did." I nodded, voice neutral. "But I’ve been thinking. I think we’ve punished her enough."

"You think?" His voice held anger, "Why would you think that?"

"If we punish her more, she’ll die."

"She’s a monster. She won’t die that easily."

I knew it wouldn’t work

I’m all too familiar with father’s way.

"Yea, but if we keep her in the dungeon, then she won’t be able to do the work for us."

He raised his brows at me, "What work?"

"The wolf..." I paused, swallowing the taste of bile that rose with the next words. "We have a powerful beast in the dungeon that we can put to use."

"Hmm?"

"He’s a werewolf. And werewolves imprint on a person they will love for life." His expression relaxed a little as he got what I was saying,"If he imprints on her, she could be... useful."

Father leaned forward, eyes glittering with interest. The way a predator leans closer to a struggling creature.

I didn’t really like this

She was my sister. Even though she didn’t like me, "She’s half-fae," I continued, forcing a calm I didn’t feel. "That might trigger something in the wolf. A bond. Some sort of affinity. And if he imprints—"

"Then he’ll be our weapon," Father finished for me, leaning back, looking satisfied. "Yes... yes, that might work."

I didn’t breathe for a second.

"She won’t run again," I said. "Not when we have Einar."

Father snorted. "She’s still a beast."

I clenched my jaw but didn’t respond.

"Fine," he said after a moment. "Get her out. But she stays under guard. And if she steps out of line again, she goes back in."

"Yes," I nodded and turned to leave.

"Ah," Father sighed, "Should have killed the filthy bloods, but the witch said to keep the half breeds alive." He grumbled to himself

***

>>Enya

Rika and I sat across from each other in the damp gloom, our knees almost touching on the cracked stone floor. The silence hung heavy between us, broken only by the occasional drip of water echoing somewhere in the back of the dungeon. She was still chewing what little remained of the meat Ahin had left for her, her small hands dirt-streaked and trembling. Her eyes, though dulled by exhaustion, were wary and watchful as they met mine.

"How did you end up in here?" I finally asked, my voice rough from thirst and disuse.

Rika’s eyes flicked to her brother—Ahin, the man shackled like a beast just feet away. He didn’t say a word. Didn’t move. Just stared at the wall with that same tired, hollow look he’d worn since the first day I was thrown in here.

Rika swallowed, then turned her face back to me. "It’s all my fault," she whispered.

I blinked. "What?"

She dropped her eyes. "I couldn’t hide my tail."

My heart ached at the shame in her voice. She looked so small. So frail. Her thin shoulders shook slightly, and I realized she was trying not to cry. She rubbed her arms, chained wrists scraping against the metal.

I turned to look at Ahin. "Is that true?" I asked him gently, cautiously. "How did it happen?"

His head tilted just a little in my direction, but he didn’t respond. The silence stretched. He didn’t even blink. There was no fury in his face this time, only weariness.

Defeat.

Like he had stopped trying to explain anything to anyone a long time ago.

I didn’t push further.

Just as I was about to say something else—anything to ease the tension—footsteps echoed down the corridor. Sharp. Intentional. The metal clatter of keys followed.

I scrambled to my feet, instinct warning me before I even saw his face.

Emrys.

He stepped into view, dressed in his usual black, his red hair slicked back, jaw clenched. Behind him, two guards stood like stone statues.

"Take her out," he ordered.

I stiffened. "What?"

"You’re coming out."

One of the guards moved forward and unlocked the cell door. I took a step back, instinct screaming at me not to trust this. But Emrys didn’t look angry this time. Just... cold.

I glanced once more at Rika, then Ahin. His eyes were open now, focused on me like he was waiting—like he was measuring me.

I hesitated, but I had no choice.

The guards grabbed my arms, dragging me forward.

Still, my eyes remained on the siblings I was leaving behind in the dark.