Athdal Haven

Asher’s POV

There was loud screaming and celebration like we had rolled straight into hell.

We had been moving for what felt like forever. Days or weeks, I couldn’t tell anymore in the dark. The iron wheels of the cage cart kept grinding against mountain stone, throwing my bruised body against the wooden floorboards over and over again.

Rough hands suddenly grabbed my shoulders and yanked me forward. Keys rattled outside, then the rusted hinges screeched open.

“Get the fuck out, you filthy animals!” a guard barked, kicking the side of the cart hard.

They forced us out onto cold ground. Heavy iron collars slammed around our necks and bit straight into my throat. A master chain was run through the loops, linking all of us together in one long, stumbling line. We looked like cattle being walked to slaughter.

Only then did someone rip the leather blindfold off my face.

Torchlight exploded in my eyes. Damn it. I groaned and blinked until the blur started to clear. Athdal Haven opened up in front of me like something out of a nightmare.

The air was thick with the smell of wet fur, roasted meat, stale blood, and rusted metal. Jagged black stone buildings rose into the night. Thousands of wolves and mercenaries crowded the muddy streets, shouting, gambling, drinking from carved horns. Drums thundered somewhere in the distance, mixed with the sharp crack of whips and people screaming.

“Move it, bitch!” a Zarithian guard snarled and yanked the lead chain.

The collar slammed against my throat and dragged me off my feet. I hit the mud face first. Gravel tore open the skin on my knees. Laughter broke out from the buyers standing around as I was pulled through the dirt toward the big underground slave blocks under the central arena.

At the entrance they unhooked the master chain and shoved us down a flight of slick stone steps. The temperature dropped fast. Cold damp air sank into my bones. We were pushed deeper into the dark belly of the pens, where the air tasted like rot and pure hopelessness.

A wooden gate swung open. A guard kicked me hard in the spine and sent me tumbling.

“Enjoy your new home, little bird,” he said, slamming the iron bars shut with a loud bang.

I pushed myself up on shaking hands and wiped mud and blood from my mouth. As my eyes adjusted to the single torch outside the bars, my stomach dropped.

I wasn’t alone.

Four big male wolves sat around the edges of the small stone cell. Their bodies were covered in scars, their clothes ripped, and their eyes lit up with dark interest the second they saw me.

“Well, well, well,” one of them said. A scar ran down his jaw as he stood. His boots crunched on the straw. “Look what the scavengers dragged in.”

“He’s soft,” another growled, stepping out of the shadows. His chest was bare and dirty. A mean grin spread across his face as his eyes dragged slowly down my body, stopping on my skin and silver eyes. “Fucking beautiful. Look at those hands and skin. This one hasn’t done a hard day’s work in his life.”

“He smells like pure Omega,” a third one said, moving to block the path to the door. “It’s been months since we had something this sweet in here. Come here, boy. Be good and maybe we won’t break you too hard.”

Panic shot straight through me. I scrambled back until my spine hit the cold stone wall.

“Get the fuck away from me!” I spat, pulling my legs up to my chest. My hands balled into fists even with the iron cuffs locking my wrists. “Touch me and I’ll tear your fucking eyes out!”

“Feisty,” the scar-faced one laughed. He stepped closer and reached out a dirty hand for my ankle. “We like them with a little fight…”

“Touch him, Jaxson, and I’ll drive a snapped rib through your windpipe while you sleep.”

A quiet, cold voice cut through the tension from the back corner of the cell. The four men froze. Jaxson slowly pulled his hand back, jaw tight, and glared toward the darkest corner.

A figure stepped out of the shadows. He was thin, covered in dirt, wearing rags, but his back was straight and his eyes burned with sharp focus. He couldn’t have been much older than me.

My breath caught in my throat.

“Damian?”

He looked at me. For a second something softer crossed his hard face.

“Asher,” he said quietly.

“You know this pathetic piece of trash, kid?” Jaxson growled, stepping back toward his corner. “Keep your little friend quiet, or we won’t wait until nightfall before we fuck him.”

Damian didn’t answer them. He just walked over, chains clanking softly, and slid down the wall to sit right beside me. He pressed his shoulder against mine, putting himself between me and the four men.

“Damian…” My voice shook. Tears burned behind my eyes. “You disappeared three years ago. The pack thought you were dead. Alpha Akoon sent search parties for weeks.”

He let out a short, bitter laugh and stared straight at the bars.

“Your father didn’t look hard enough. The Zarithians grabbed me right off the eastern border patrols. I’ve been rotting in this filthy hole for three years, Asher. Waiting to be sold. Waiting for anyone to buy me just so I can get out of this damn cage.”

“Three years…” The words came out thin. Horror tightened around my chest.

“Don’t look at me like that,” Damian said, keeping his voice low so the others couldn’t hear. “I’m still alive. That’s all that matters out here. Keep your head down. Don’t speak. Don’t make eye contact. And don’t show them you’re scared. The buyers out there are monsters, but inside these cells these wolves will tear you apart just to pass the time.”

“Damian, my brothers…”

A loud brass bell suddenly rang through the stone corridors above us.

CLANG. CLANG. CLANG.

The four men stood up at once, faces hardening as heavy footsteps echoed down the hallway. Guards marched along the row, slamming wooden sticks against the iron bars.

“Up on your feet, meat!” the head guard shouted, unlocking our cell door. “The high-bidders are in the arena!”

My stomach twisted. Damian grabbed my arm.

“Whatever happens,” he whispered, “don’t let them know you’re afraid.”

The guard yanked me toward the door. “The auction starts now!”