Caught

She had walked for a very long time, and although she didn't know where she was heading, she was certain she had gone far from The Mistwood Pack and everyone that lived in it.

The day had broken. She could see clearly.

Walking through the unfamiliar territory, Daphne could not help but think back to a few days ago when she was betrayed by the few people she should call her family.

Thoughts about it weighed her down more than anything would, but then she smiled at the thought of being free—from these same people.

From her past.

As she walked further, there was a noise ahead.

Daphne, immediately, stopped in her tracks.

What was that? Her thoughts raced.

There were voices. Voices of men who moved around the area she was stuck in.

Who else could it be? She thought.

Fear gripped her as she immediately imagined these men to be men from The Mistwood Pack. Perhaps Alpha Edgar had asked them to look for her as she could have been discovered missing.

That old cargo.

Daphne looked around. No one needed to spell it to her that she was stuck, and if she didn't do something about it, she would be screwed.

These men would take her back to Edgar.

Over her dead body would such a thing happen. Daphne moved farther. She caught up with a tree and then held her breath so that no one would sense or see her, but she could not hold it for long, betraying herself in the process.

“There is someone here.”

A man with a thick, steel voice announced.

Daphne froze. “Right there.” The person announced and the men marched in a direction—a direction Daphne wished was not hers.

They walked and walked until their footsteps could no longer be heard.

A sigh of relief ran out of Daphne's mouth and now she released her breath with a wish that she had come from The Mistwood Pack with water at least. She didn't know where she was or where she was going, but she was thirsty and didn't know whether there was a river around.

“No one is there.”

Oh, no—Daphne held her breath again.

She picked up her legs and began to run. These men must not get her, no matter what. She could swear on her life that they were from Alpha Edgar who loved his spoiled daughter more than her.

Heart pounding, Daphne ran faster.

She needed to stop so that she could catch her breath, but she did not care about her breath. As she ran, she could hear footsteps behind her, voices and shouts from men who followed behind.

This was her end.

It looked like it, but she could not give up.

She could not stop, even though she didn't know where she was running to.

Definitely not to The Mistwood Pack.

Despite her efforts, the men were faster.

As she struggled to be out of their sight, strong hands grabbed her, forcing her to the ground. She did not stop struggling, but then, a sharp blow hit her head and everything turned to darkness.

♡

Slowly, Daphne opened her eyes.

The air was damp and her head pounded.

Another thing that pounded was her heart.

A part of her expected to see herself in The Mistwood Pack, maybe tied to a chair and in front of Alpha Edgar and his entire family.

But as she looked around, Daphne realized there was nothing as such and there wouldn't be.

She wasn't in The Mistwood Pack.

She was—somewhere.

A place she didn't recognize.

A room filled with many other women.

Some were asleep and some had their eyes opened, muttering words she did not clearly hear.

They all looked different. Like they were picked from different locations. Some looked like ordinary humans and some looked like werewolves.

Even vampires.

Daphne could not tell.

Where was she?

What was happening?

It was at this moment she realized that her hands were tied. Daphne looked at the other women, confirming that they were tied as well.

The more she tried to think, the more she could not provide answers to the many questions running around in her head.

More women muttered words and some sobbed, but Daphne did not sob or mutter any word.

For all that she knew, it was a relief to be away from Mistwood Pack, even though she needed to know where she was and how she got here.

One by one, she put pieces together, realizing what happened in the wild the last time she was conscious—how those men went after her.

They were not from Alpha Edgar.

Where were they from?

Left with no choice, Daphne turned to look at a woman who lay on the floor next to her. She looked weak and had a dent on her face.

“Where are we?” She summoned courage to ask.

The very weak woman shook her head.

“I don't have the slightest idea. I need to go back to my son. Look what they've done to me. They're very dangerous people. We need to escape.”

As she said the words, Daphne's heart sank.

They were dangerous people.

People worse than Alpha Edgar and his entire family. Maybe. Just maybe she should not have left the pack, or should she? For a moment, she looked at the weak woman whose eyes were shut while she thought of a possible way of escape.

This was impossible.

Her hands were tied and so were the other women in the room with her.

She should have stayed back in The Mistwood Pack. She would not be here with other women if she didn't make that move. Regret washed through Daphne and fear rushed through her veins like blood finding their next joint.

A sudden noise took place.

The entrance gate pushed open.

Two men stepped in and they each held the sides of the gate, bowing at the same time.

The noise in the room was reduced.

The air grew tense. The women no longer muttered nor cried and those that lay on the floor all these while were forced to sit up.

Heavy footsteps echoed as a man stepped in.

He looked around the room and gave a nod, walking further until he was standing at the center of the large room.

No one moved.

No one said a word.

Everyone was silent like there never was noise in the same room where women cried, cursed, and even shouted. What was happening?

Did anyone here recognize the man?

As Daphne wondered, she tried to shift farther.

The man scared her.

She didn't know why but it looked like they had met before, even though they hadn't.

Why on the face of the earth would she meet such a dangerous-looking man? She had never left The Mistwood Pack until now.

As Daphne looked at him, she realized he was looking in her direction and it scared her so much. She should be the least of the many women in the room that should be looked at.

Her heart stopped beating when he did not take his gaze off her. And now, she studied him.

He was a strong-looking man who exuded danger, power, strength, and terror all at the same time. She looked away, facing the ground, but she could not help but want to look at him.

However, when Daphne looked up again, the dangerous-looking man was gone from her sight. He paced the space of the large room with a smile on his face and a nod from his head.

Who was he? She did not stop wondering, realizing this face was one of the faces she would see in a dream and wake up crying.

Torture.

Nightmare.

“Good job, boys.”

The man walked back to the center of the room. “But these are not enough women—” he turned to look at the men who stood behind him. “Tell me you plan on going on another hunt. We need more meat, didn't I make you understand that?”

Although he spoke once, words resounded in the room. One of the men who stood behind walked to the front and bowed.

“My lord.” He bowed again.

“We tried so hard to find more women but there weren't many today. We'll certainly return to hunting before the week runs out.”

“That would be better.”

Daphne, and maybe the rest of the women wondered what these men were talking about.

Women.

Meat.

Hunt.

What the hell did that even mean?

As she wondered, she tried to adjust on the ground where she still sat, hurt from the sharp pain entering into her bone.

“You can't bring us here and leave us here!”

The weak woman who was seated right next to Daphne shouted. “Who do you think you are to do something like this?” She shouted again, hitting the ground with her strong, steel-like hand.

“You don't know where you are—” the strange man laughed and turned around so that he could look at his men before turning back around to face the woman who exuded rage.

“I'll tell you about it.”

Silence ruled the space.

Everyone was waiting. They waited for him to say something but he didn't.

Or maybe he was not ready.

When it looked like he was ready, he walked to the entrance of the large room and stood there so that he could see the women's faces.

“You are welcome to The Howling Abyss Pack. Standing before you is the Alpha of this humble Pack, Alpha Caius. Welcome, ladies.” He mocked.

Daphne, shocked by this revelation, choked on her saliva. What did this man just say?