3: Cold punishment

Elaine’s POV

“What happened?” Leah stepped forward with the twins behind her and her best friend, Olivia.

“She tried to seduce Killian,” someone whispered not so subtly from her side, and she narrowed her eyes at me.

She had managed to change from her dress to a golden one, but that was not my concern right now. My half-sisters giggled when they heard the blatant lie. I was sure no one had seen Killian and me kissing, but they just assumed.

Leah's eyes bore into mine, her expression a mix of accusation and amusement. "Is that true?" she demanded, her voice laced with scorn.

"No, it's not!" I protested inside my head, hurt and frustrated.

I opened my mouth to respond but no sound came out. Instead I shook my head vigorously making my light blonde hair get in my eyes but I still pleaded for them to understand through my expression. They didn’t.

The woods erupted into laughter, all of them knowing I was mute and mocking my inability to speak. Tears continue to rush down my face, my chest hurting at their cruel taunts. I felt so small, so helpless, unable to defend myself against them.

I have been bullied my entire life even in my home but none of it has ever hurt me as much as this one did. They are lying. Killian knows that but he is not even looking my way instead talking to the guards probably about how they should punish me. I felt betrayed.

Leah's smirk widened as she closed the distance between us, her steps deliberate and filled with malice. The twins were closely behind her and they have the guts to look disgusted knowing this is not who I was. It hurts so bad.

"I knew there was something off about you," Leah sneered, her voice dripping with contempt. "You're nothing but a mute whore, trying to sink your claws into anyone who crosses your path."

I wanted to scream, to defend myself against her baseless accusations, but my voice remained trapped within me. Leah's words cut deep, tearing at the fragile threads of my self-worth. I felt exposed and vulnerable, powerless to stop her relentless assault on my dignity.

From my peripheral vision, I saw Killian stopped from whatever he was doing when she called me a mute. Now he knows I didn’t try to disrespect him, he might let me go. Yes. But my relief was short-lived when he gave a nod to the guards to take me.

"Make sure she knows to never cross me in her miserable life again," she commanded, her voice cutting like a whip.

"Oh, I'm sure she'll learn her lesson in the dungeon," Halle, the other twin, chimed in, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "It'll give her plenty of time to rethink her entire existence."

I stood there, helpless and mute, as their taunts pierced through me like arrows. The weight of their disdain pressed down on me, suffocating any sort of hope or dignity. I felt like nothing more than a pawn in their twisted game of power and cruelty.

My eyes remained fixated on Killian as the guard yanked me away from the woods. His were narrowed, his stance straight and powerful like he knew he was going to crush me like I was nothing. I am nothing to them.

“You are a monster.” I said in my head hoping he would read my face.

His eyes twitched like he heard me but I didn’t get to see much before we rounded a corner and I couldn’t see him anymore. The laughter though, the students were still mocking me for being a human whore.

*<>*

Shivers racked my body relentlessly as the wicked guards continued their torment, pouring ice water over me ruthlessly. Each frigid round drenched me from head to toe, leaving me trembling uncontrollably in the cold, damp darkness of the dungeon.

I had lost consciousness for what felt like an eternity ago, but still, they showed no mercy, their cruel laughter echoing off the stone walls as they persisted in their cruel task. Enjoying their cruel torment like their alpha.

Despite the numbness that had settled over my senses, I could feel every icy drop seeping into my bones, draining what little strength remained within me. I started plunging deeper into a nightmare from which there seemed to be no escape.

Just when I thought I was going to finally die and escape these cruel realities, the door to my dark cell opened and a large figure I now know too well stepped in. I tried opening my eyes all the way but couldn’t. Everything was blurry, cold and numb.

I hung there –yes they hanged me like he did that man– barely able to move or speak, a sense of dread washed over me as I recognized the familiar silhouette looming over me. Killian. His presence filled the small cell, suffocating me with its intensity.

“Leave,” he commanded, his voice dripping with barely contained anger as he stared at me with eyes that burned with fury.

The guards obeyed without question, leaving me alone with him in the dimly lit dungeon. I struggled to focus, my vision blurred and my body wracked with pain from the relentless torture.

His words hit me like a physical blow, each syllable a dagger plunged into my already battered heart. I could only lie there, helpless and silent, as the weight of his anger crushed me further into the depths of despair.

Killian's expression twisted into a scowl, his anger palpable in the air, he leaned down tugged my wet hair in a fist that made my scalp hurt. His lips roughly descended pressing against my cold, damp ones. The frigid darkness of the dungeon seemed to fade away, replaced by a warmth that radiated from his touch.

After what felt like forever, he broke away from the kiss and I panted. I wanted him to keep going because I love kissing him. He makes me warm but stares down at me with a mixture of fury and frustration and hatred.

"She gave me a pathetic mute human as my mate?" He spat, his voice laced with venom.

Mate. Mate???

I know what that means in the werewolf world. If you are given a mate regardless whether you like them or not, the mating bond keeps bringing you closer. But some can reject their soulmates and kill the bond by doing so.

Does it mean I am Killian’s mate?

His words hung heavy in the air, filling me with a sense of dread as I struggled to comprehend the gravity of my situation. Caught between his anger and the cruel hand fate had dealt me, I knew I was doomed in this monstrous place with this monster.

“If you dare think about telling anyone…” he trailed off with a wicked ghost smile that made me shiver, “Oh, you are a pathetic mute. But regardless, if you tell anyone about you being my mate, I won’t be responsible for your death.”

I shivered and it was not from the cold. Seeing the effect his words had on me, he leaned forward and took my lips in his in a bruising kiss that I shouldn’t like. It was painful but I loved every second of it that when I pulled away I whispered.

Without another word or second glance, he left the dungeon and my punishment continued.