Chapter 4

As I left my audience with the King of idiots my head was spinning. I had way more questions than answers and I had no idea when, or if, I’d ever get a real explanation. Clearly Mr ‘Obey Me’ didn’t think I was worth giving any answers to, and there was no way I was going to try and ask my escort as I was sure he considered it ‘not my business’. Of course, why would the direction of my life be my business? I hated werewolves.

I silently followed Jace through the corridors of the massive house. Through open doorways that we passed I could see groups of people watching me with open curiosity, obviously they had no idea what was going on either. I wish that made me feel slightly better, but at this point there was nothing short of waking up and finding out this was all a nightmare that would help. We reached a sweeping staircase, with polished wooden bannisters and thick, deep, red carpet running up the centre.

Propped up against one of the posts was yet another large, male werewolf. He wasn’t as big as his ruler, but I still wouldn’t want to meet him on a dark night. His brown hair was slightly wavy and it looked like he used a bit too much product to keep it in place. There was a sneer on his face and a look of contempt in his eyes. I was guessing he wasn’t a fan of humans.

“Reduced to shepherding a human, Jace? I didn’t realise your job description was so varied.” The new wolf’s voice was slightly grating, nothing like the deep rumble of the King’s.

“At least I’m not hovering at the bottom of the stairs hoping to catch a glimpse of her, Alexander.” Jace dismissed him without even looking in his direction.

“We should all be concerned about anything that affects our great King. I’m simply making sure I have all the information available.”

This guy made my skin crawl, there was something about him that unsettled me. Following Jace’s example I avoided all eye contact and made my way up the stairs. I could feel Alexander’s gaze following my every move. I guess there were creeps in both human and werewolf society.

I was so lost in thought that I didn’t notice that Jace had come to a stop in front of a large wooden door and was unlocking it. He pushed it open and nodded that I should go in, he really was a man of few words. Moving past him into the room I held my breath, unsure what I would be walking into. What kind of room would they put the unimportant human in? Before I could even take in what was in front of me the door behind me slammed shut and I heard the lock click. I was a prisoner, no matter what the room was like.

***********

The house was completely silent, but still, I couldn’t fall asleep. The room, my prison, turned out to be pretty nice. It was large, almost as big as my apartment back home, with big windows that overlooked the gardens at the back of the house. The big bed was as soft as a cloud and the hot shower I’d taken in the en-suite bathroom earlier had been heaven. If I had space in my brain I was sure I’d feel guilty for enjoying these small luxuries that most of my friends never would.

For the first time in hours I was alone and everything from earlier came rushing back. The disgusting bar, the crowd pushing in, the enforcers circling the room. Had it really only been hours ago? It felt like a lifetime. One of the worst thoughts swirling around my head was worry for Corrine. What had happened to her? Was she fined or arrested? I knew she’d be out of her mind with worry for me. I’d have to try and find a way to contact her, to let her know I was alive and okay. I needed to know she was okay too.

The next thought that spiralled through my brain was the King’s pronouncement that I was his mate. I didn’t know what that meant, but it didn’t sound like something I was interested in being. Figuring out what it meant was definitely on my to-do list and then working out how to fix it was next. If being his mate was what was keeping me here then I needed to un-mate myself. Anything else was just too scary to think about. To be tied to that man in any way would be impossible, he seemed to take up all the space in any room he was in, and there never seemed to be enough oxygen when he was around.

As I lay there, in the most comfortable bed ever made, I felt so completely alone. I was completely cut off from my friends, from my home, from everything that was familiar to me. I was literally stuck in a den of wolves with no way out.

**********

I hadn’t realised how right I’d been that first night, there was no way out of this place. I’d been locked in this room for the last two weeks, I hadn’t seen anyone, except a maid who would come in three times a day to bring food. She didn’t say a word to me, and after the first few days I gave up trying to get her to talk to me. I could only guess that she’d been instructed not to talk to the human. Maybe they thought I’d corrupt her somehow, although I doubt they’d give me that much credit.

At first, I’d pounded on the door, yelling for someone to come and tell me what was happening. I shouted until my voice went hoarse, but still no one came. I felt completely forgotten, not important enough to acknowledge or speak to. For most of my life I’d been a pretty confident person, I knew my worth to myself and to my friends but right now insecurities were popping up left and right. It wasn’t natural to be alone for this long with no outside contact, it would drive anyone to live in a constant state of anxiety.

Nights were the worst, when the darkness closed in, and the house fell silent. I lie in bed just letting my thoughts wander, imagining that this was it, this was my life from now on. I would be alone and lonely forever. I was pretty sure I was also becoming paranoid. I could swear that in the deepest part of the night I could hear footsteps outside my door. I would see shadows moving as though someone was pacing out on the landing. When that happened, I’d pull the cover-up over my head and lie as still as possible. I didn’t want whoever was out there to hear me moving and come in.

That was my life in the mansion of the Wolf King. He’d stolen me from my life and then abandoned me in this room. Only he had the power to release me and I didn’t think that would be happening, he seemed pretty adamant that I’d be living here from now on. Only a selfish, unfeeling, uncaring monster could desert another living being like this. I may want out of this room, but more than that, I never want to see his face ever again.