Unknown's POV
The words burned like acid as they left my lips. I needed them to slice through the suffocating air of this chamber and prove that I deserved her attention.
My mother's eyes locked onto mine with the force of a predator sizing up prey. That look had reduced seasoned warriors to trembling cowards in the past. Now it was aimed at me, her own blood, still desperately seeking her validation after all these years. I forced myself to stand straighter and placed the severed human heads I had taken from Alonzo onto the ancient wooden table.
The heads hit the surface with wet thuds, their dead eyes staring at nothing. The metallic stench of blood and decay flooded the room. Dark liquid seeped into the deep grooves carved by countless generations who had made similar offerings at this very table. The sight sent a thrill through my veins. Would she finally see my worth?
Her voice cut through the silence like winter wind. "How certain are you about this claim?"
