CHAPTER SIX

My eyes are closing.

I can hardly keep them open.

Lucius has killed my mate.

I feel grief like I have never felt before.

I cry out, in pain.

My heart is broken.

I am broken.

I hear Lucius' laughter. It's echoing through the hall.

Suddenly, he grabs me.

"To think I was going to give you all the finest things," he sneers. "A room. Maids. Finery and jewels."

My mind is hazy.

I try to focus on Lucius words, but I am too weak.

"Now I am going to do something far more fitting," Lucius says.

"Get her," he roars.

Two servants appear out of nowhere.

They grab me.

"No!" I scream.

But the blackness is growing inside of me.

I feel myself slipping away.

I feel despair.

I am in the servants' arms.

This can't be happening.

I try to fight.

I try to get to Tanner.

To my dead mate.

To hold him.

But my knees are buckling.

I can't think straight.

My mind is whirring.

I look at Lucius.

"You monster," I choke. "You will pay for this."

He laughs.

The servants begin to drag me down the hall.

I look back at Lucius.

I have nothing to lose.

"I will kill you," I say. "I will kill you, Lucius."

He cackles.

"No, you won't," he says. "You are mine now. From now on, you live to serve me."

I am pulled out of the hall.

Down a long flight of stairs.

It gets darker and colder as we go.

My feet drag.

I look at the servants. They are young.

"Where are you taking me?" I ask.

"Prison."

I barely hear them.

I can hardly stand.

I try to tell them the truth but my words are slurred. I'm too weak.

We reach a door.

The servants open it.

They push me inside.

Suddenly, I am on the ground.

I try to lift myself.

I look around the room.

Dirt and grime are everywhere.

I'm in an old stone cell.

I'm locked in.

I want to cry.

But I can't.

I can barely breathe.

I look around.

All I can see is darkness.

Fading...

Fading...

Fading.

Then a voice.

Sinister. Cruel.

It comes from the bars of my cell.

I squint. I try to focus through the fog in my mind.

It is Lucius.

"You struck me, Kayla," he says, coldly. "You will be punished."

I want to claw out his eyes.

I try to get to my feet. To get to him.

But my knees buckle. I fall back down to the ground.

"You will learn to love me, Kayla," he says. "You will learn to obey me."

I try to speak, but my words slur.

The wolf inside me growls.

I know he is toying with me.

I know he has not killed me.

At least— not yet.

"You are mine," he says. "You will serve me. you will love me."

My heart is pounding.

I can hear my own heartbeat.

But I can't move.

I hear Lucius' cruel laughter.

"Now you belong to me," he says. "You are my prisoner. You are my slave. And you will serve me well."

My throat is so dry.

My mind is blurry.

"I will never love you," I whisper.

Through the bars, Lucius begins to laugh. But I see his face. It is twisted with rage.

"You will obey me!" he roars. "You will be my mate. You will live in this cell. You will bear my child."

My stomach churns.

I feel sick.

"I will die before I give you what you want," I say, trying to sound strong. But my voice is raspy. Weak.

"You will give me everything I want," Lucius says. "You will be my mate. You will obey me. You will bear my child. And when you are no longer useful, I will bury you alive in the dirt. You will rot to nothing."

I look up at Lucius.

His eyes are cruel.

His smile is twisted.

I know I am his prisoner now.

Lucius will make sure I never escape.

Is he insane?

Am I to marry an insane Alpha?

I want to lunge forward and attack him. To rip him to pieces.

But I can't move.

My mind is swirling.

I will live in this cell.

I will be his mate.

I will be his slave.

I will never love him.

The thought fills me with disgust.

"I hate you," I say.

Through the bars, Lucius stares at me.

I can see the hatred in his eyes.

I feel revulsion.

I feel fear.

"You will love me!" he says, finally.

Then he steps away from the bars.

I am alone in the dark.

I begin to weep.

I sit in the dirt.

The chill surrounds me.

All I can do is weep.

Grief consumes me.

I can feel it in my bones.

I can feel it in every pore of my body.

My heart hurts.

It is broken.

I have lost everything.

I have lost myself.

My life is over.

I do not want to give up.

I do not want to let him win.

But I am fading.

I am fading.

Fading.

Weakened by my loss.

My grief.

Tanner is dead.

My true mate.

Lucius has killed him.

He may as well have killed me.

He has broken me.

I stare into the darkness.

I know I must try to focus.

I know I must try to think.

To gather the strength to get to my feet.

But I cannot. I cannot move.

Fear is all around me.

I feel it inside my mind.

I feel like I am floating away.

Away...

Away...

Away.

I close my eyes and give in to the darkness.

I fall into a deep dream.

Tanner is there.

My heart soars to see him.

"You must avenge my spirit," he says.

"How?" I gasp.

"You must kill the Alpha. You must kill Lucius."

"But I am imprisoned," I say. "I am weak. I am injured."

"You must overcome," Tanner says. "You must avenge me. You must kill the Alpha."

His image begins to fade.

"Tanner!" I shout. "Don't leave me! Come back!

I need you!"

I hear his voice.

But I cannot see him.

"I will never leave you, Kayla," he says. "My spirit will always be with you. I will always be by your side."

But he is gone.

I am alone.