The days in the private cell were quiet, but Zeus’s mind was a storm. He didn't like the way General Alex looked at him now—not with hatred, but with a strange kind of respect. Alex saw Zeus as a powerful weapon, a lion he wanted to put on a leash and lead into battle.Zeus knew he should escape. He had the strength to break the bars, and he still had his hidden wealth waiting for him in offshore accounts. He could disappear and live like a king in a distant land. But every time he thought about leaving, he saw Juliana’s face. He was falling in love with her. It wasn't just that she looked like Maria; she had a soul that was pure, trapped in a house of cruelty. He couldn't leave her behind.Meanwhile, Commander Greg was losing his mind with jealousy. Every night for a week, he sent a different beautiful woman into Zeus’s cell. He sent dancers, singers, and even daughters of minor lords."Go in there," Greg would hiss at the women. "Make him weak. Give him wine, give him your body, and

The blood on the marble floor was still wet, but the silence in the hall was even heavier. General Alex looked at the bodies of the veteran prisoners and his own guards. He had seen many warriors in his life, but he had never seen the kind of speed and raw power Zeus just showed. He didn't say a word. He didn't try to argue or offer the mansion again. He simply nodded his head, his eyes full of fear.Zeus turned away without looking back and walked toward the dark corridors. The guards didn't dare touch him. They followed at a distance as he entered his old cell in the Black Hole. The iron door slammed shut, and for a moment, Zeus felt the peace of the stone walls again.But the peace did not last long. An hour later, the small window in the door slid open. It wasn't a guard. It was Juliana. She had bribed the man on duty with her gold jewelry to let her in. When the door opened, she stepped inside the damp, dark room.Zeus was sitting on the floor, his back against the wall. He looke

The duplex was a masterpiece of white stone and marble, standing in sharp contrast to the suffocating dampness of the Black Hole. It sat on a small hill within the palace inner circle, surrounded by manicured gardens. Inside, the air smelled of lavender and fresh cedar, and the bed was draped in silk so fine it felt like water.But to Zeus, it felt like a cage with thinner bars.General Alex stood by the fireplace, the orange glow of the flames dancing in his eyes. He didn’t look like a celebrating man; he looked like a man holding a tiger by a fraying leash."You have your command, Zeus," the General said, his voice dropping to a hard, official tone. "But do not mistake this luxury for true freedom. You are a Commander by my grace alone. You will follow the Code of the Realm to the letter. If you default on a single law—or," he stepped closer, his voice lowering to a threat, "if I feel your presence has become more of a liability than an asset, I will strip those medals from your che

The morning sun rose over the palace, but for Zeus, the light felt like a spotlight on his humiliation. He sat in his white duplex, the breakfast on his table untouched. The silk sheets he had slept on felt like sandpaper against his skin. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw two faces: Juliana’s tear-stained cheeks and Deborah’s toothless, greasy grin.He wasn't the only one who hadn't slept. In the main palace, General Alex was pacing his chambers, his boots clicking rhythmically against the marble. He was a man who lived by strategy, and right now, he felt his grip on the situation slipping. Zeus was too quiet. A man like Zeus didn’t just accept a "Dirty Deborah" as a wife unless he was planning something."He’s going to run," the General muttered to himself. "Or he’s going to kill her. Or he's going to kill me."The General stopped pacing and looked out the window. He saw Zeus in the distance, standing in the training yard, motionless. The man looked like a statue of grief and po

The morning sun had barely touched the palace spires when Commander Greg made his way to the back entrance of the white duplex. He didn't come as a friend; he came as a puppeteer checking on his favorite doll. He found Deborah in the kitchen, sitting on the floor and gnawing on a cold chicken wing she had found in the trash.Greg suppressed a look of disgust and replaced it with a wide, fake smile. "You were magnificent last night, Deborah! Simply magnificent. The way you screamed about the other woman... the whole palace is talking about it. You’ve protected your honor like a true royal."Deborah looked up, her greasy face lighting up at the praise. "He was looking at a tiny lady in a gold box, Greg. He didn't want to look at me. He looked sad.""Don't let him be sad," Greg urged, leaning down to her level. "Listen to me, Deborah. You are the General’s sister. You are a queen in this house. If Zeus does anything you don't like—if he looks at that box, if he ignores you, if he breaths