Prologue

She watched as her family’s pack burnt to the ground and yet, no matter how much she wanted to, she knew not to break her promise to her mother.

“Stay here, Scarlett, and no matter what you see, don’t come out of this place until they’re gone” she had told her right before she went to fight the Russian Pakhan, Alexei Volkov and his pack alongside her mate, Scarlett’s father. 

She closed her eyes, trying to block out what she was hearing. The pain she was feeling was bad enough; she didn’t want to keep the image in her mind. However, her hiding spot wasn’t as concealing as she had hoped that it would be, and it was minutes before she was lifted in a man’s arms. Sparks coursed through her veins, distracting her momentarily. 

However, her calmness didn’t last for long before she processed what was happening. She screamed and thrashed, trying to break free from his tight grasp, but the man wouldn’t budge, instead, he simply walked out of the hiding spot, ignoring all her attempts of breaking free.

“You need to calm down, malyshka, whatever you’re doing is not going to do you any good” Alexei said, his voice deep and calm despite the scene before their eyes, her racing heartbeat calming at the sound of his voice. He kept walking in the shadows, as if concealing her from everyone’s vision, and for a second, she feared that he would use her for his pleasure like the other wolves have been doing to the other female Lycans. 

“Please let me go” she begged, punching his back to no avail. The girl was no older than fifteen and she couldn’t summon her wolf to shift if she tried. The best she could do was feel her canines grow in size; however, the man’s low growl prevented her from trying to use them. 

“I don’t want to hurt you, malyshka; therefore, I suggest that you calm down” he said, as he pushed her inside a car. He closed the door before she could object, and her eyes widened in surprise when she felt something sharp piercing her neck, her vision blurring as she felt her head spin.

“This should calm her down, boss” another man, Ivan Volkov, his beta and best mate, said from beside her, his voice calm as he spoke despite the dangerous aura she felt around the men. Scarlett’s head throbbed as she felt the vehicle move and she struggled to keep her eyes open; however, she knew better than to let the darkness engulf her.

“Good, a little peace at last” Alexei said, rolling his silver blue eyes as he looked back at the forest green eyed Lycan. His eyes softened at her state and he found himself shaking his head at himself for doing so; he was not the type to soften for an enemy, but this was different, the girl intrigued him.

“What are you going to do with her?”

“For now, she would be going to the facility to be trained, it would be safer for her there anyway” Alexei said, looking back at Scarlett whose eyes were glaring daggers at him as the driver drove them off to their new destination, her new home. Her heart throbbed and despite being under a drug’s effect, she wanted nothing more than to rip the Pakhan’s head off his body.

“Then what?” Ivan asked, snapping his boss from the trance he fell into. Alexei was about to respond when the car came to a stop in front of the facility. His eyes darkened before he nodded at Ivan to follow him out of the car. 

Opening the car’s door, Scarlett fought against the drug to squirm away from the Pakhan; however, she wasn’t stupid as not to realize that she couldn’t move a muscle. He lifted her with ease, and this time, she couldn’t fight as he walked into the facility, whatever that was, setting her on a stretcher that was already waiting for her.

“I want her trained and untouched when I come and get her” he said, coldly, his eyes refusing to look down at the girl who now had tears in her eyes, his heart aching for her despite his hard expression. He watched as she looked away from the men who were scanning her. She could see other girls walking through the hall, their heads down as they wore black dresses that looked like a uniform.

“Would there be a specific date, boss?” A man asked, looking down at Scarlett with hungry eyes. Her heart hammered against her ribcage as she was cuffed on the stretcher, the men who were working on the metal pieces looked down at her body, their bulges in clear view for her eyes to see. 

“I’ll be here when I believe that it is time” he said, taking a step back, heading toward the door “and until I am here to claim what is mine, I want no one to touch her”

“Why?” Arnold, their manager, asked, walking toward the Pakhan. Their eyes meeting crossed his arms over his chest. He nodded at the men who had their eyes on her to take her away. She would need to be checked before she was sent to the dorm with the other girls.

“She my mate, and you are to treat her accordingly”