Eden pov
I came to my senses in the cell. Perhaps thinking they would allow me to stay in the hospital room until I wake up was yet another delusion, but it still stings to know they threw me in here after what they did.
Worse of all, I didn’t sleep on my bed - I was tossed inside the cell and woke up on the ground. This place didn’t even have a floor, so my body was covered in dirt.
Groaning, I sat up and a wave of pain instantly shot though my lower belly, forcing a sharp hiss to escape my lips.
My hand shook as I gripped the shirt I was wearing and slightly pulled it up. Surely, everything they did was hidden under bandages, but I didn’t need anyone to come here and explain to me what had happened.
I knew a year ago she was planning this, but I never thought she could be that heartless to actually go through with the plan.
“Happy birthday, halfbreed,” someone chuckled.
I didn’t dare to look around or speak up. Unless I was asked a question, talking was a punishable offense.
“Enjoying your gift, ey? Don’t worry, the doc stitched you up pretty nicely so the scars won’t be as ugly as your face. Let’s go, unlike you, our Luna is a woman of grace and beauty, she is the only one who still insists your pathetic existence is of use. It’s your lucky day, she lined up all of the pack’s unmated men and some of our guests to find your mate.”
At the strangers' words, I couldn’t help but feel how hope blossomed within me. My chest felt warm and my heart started beating a little stronger.
Although I didn’t hear a voice in my head, which was supposed to be there if I had a wolf, I didn’t let that thought drag me down. Even without a wolf I had a chance to meet a mate. After all, my father was a very well-known and powerful shifter, I had some of his blood in my veins too.
Burying the pain within me for later, I rose to my feet and tried to dust off the dirt from my clothes.
“As if that will help you,” the stranger snickered. “Have you seen yourself in the mirror?”
The insults didn’t move me anymore. Hadn’t for years, hence why the pack decided to stick to physical abuse when I didn’t react to words anymore.
I didn’t care about the time I had lost unconscious after the procedure. Finally, the day was here. I survived, endured and fought for a better future.
The man that walked in front of me kept laughing under his breath, but I didn’t pay mind to his behavior. And true to his words, when he led me out of the pack house, rows of young men stood in front of the building.
As soon as I appeared in their sight, the men started hollering insults.
I held my breath when my step-mother suddenly appeared next to me and spoke up.
“Gentlemen, please approach us one at a time so it’s easier for mates to recognise each other.”
My eyes were cast down, I didn’t dare to meet anyone’s gaze. Even if my wolf wasn’t present, or didn’t exist, they could still tell if we were mates using their senses. Scent, in particular. Although I was sure I reeked of blood, hospital and dirt, they should be able to tell my scent apart from others.
One by one, the men approached us. After the first twenty, I was slowly losing hope and letting my mind drag me deeper into the abyss of misery. He wasn’t here…
That is, until a hand grabbed my chin and forced my face up. My eyes met the most mesmerizing brown eyes I had ever seen. My breath hitched and I could feel sparks rush over my skin.
It was him. I had a mate. The Goddess didn’t punish me for being birthed by a human. She never hated me, she had a mate in mind to prove I was worth something! Oh, thank you, Goddess.
We stared at each other for a moment until the chatter around us died down. My step-mother was laughing about something, but once she noticed the intensive way the stranger was staring at me, she gasped.
“Impossible. No Alpha should be mated to the runt of the litter!” She hissed and slapped his hand away.
Right in front of my eyes, I watched this man go through so many emotions, my head was spinning. The hint of adoration I saw in his eyes before faded and now, I looked at an emotionless face.
“Indeed. If anything, I was thinking Kayla would be my mate, not this servant,” he grumbled.
I averted my gaze again and stared at my feet, blinking away the tears. Of course, this stranger hoped it would be my step-sister he would be mated to. I couldn’t blame him even if I wanted to, she really was everything I couldn’t be.
But more than that thought hurt his words. He thought of me as the pack’s servant, not Luna's step daughter. If only he knew why I was here, what they did to me and how they ridiculed my existence, maybe he would understand he wanted no ties with this pack.
“The show is over, everyone,” my step-mother shouted, startling everyone, including me. I stood frozen, unsure of what I was supposed to do or if I had to speak up.
I should be able to talk freely to the man if he was my mate, right?
My step-mother’s hand grabbed my shoulder and she didn’t shy away from extending her claw to pierce my skin. As soon as the sharp nails sunk in my flesh, I wanted to scream in pain, but I refused to give her the satisfaction of hearing my cries.
The man growled at her. “I think we should discuss this first.” She said in a sweet voice. “There are a few things you don’t know about our precious little Eden, Alpha. Trust me, you will want to hear me out before you make a decision. After all, marking a mate is a lifelong commitment and I wouldn’t forgive myself if I let you do so without knowing all the details."
Eden povI was taken back to the cell and for safe measure, thrown against the wall. The man laughed and locked the metal bars to ensure I won’t try to escape. My mind was racing. What was my step-mother telling that man? Was he really an Alpha? Would he believe her words without listening to my side of the story? Would someone, sent by the Goddess, disregard my pain and walk away from me? Was he already planning to leave me behind so I can rot in here? I sat in the corner of my so-called room and silently sobbed. My emotions were all over the place and I couldn’t fight off the tears anymore. Years of abuse, pain and suffering. All that, for what? For her to block the last chance in happiness and freedom I had? I had no idea how much time had passed, but by the time I heard someone open the door to the cells, I almost dozed off. Heavy footsteps echoed against the walls as someone walked down the stairs. I didn’t pay much attention, thinking it was another guard on his way to the
Eden povThere were no words in my vocabulary I could use to describe the pain I felt while my so-called mate stood there with a grin across his lips. Didn’t he feel the pain? Why didn't it affect him like it did me?As I stood there, everyone’s eyes on me, I felt like a claw was forced though my ribcage, clutched my heart and set it on fire. I could feel the invisible thread that connected us weaken. The kind stranger’s words echoed in my head. He saw it coming, I kind of did too, but I had nowhere near enough time to prepare myself for the moment of disaster. Although my initial reaction was complete shock, something within me moved and I nearly gave into the instinct to drop to my knees and beg him. Beg him to reconsider and take me away from this awful place. The sad part was that my pleas wouldn’t do anything but make me look weak in their eyes. Weaker than they already taught me to be, definitely not a woman worthy to become one’s Luna. So, I closed my eyes and sucked in a s
Eden povThe day I have been waiting for ever since I had to move in with my step-mother turned out to be a nightmare, not a scenario of a fairytale I was hoping for. When the Alpha left, my step-mother came downstairs to berate me. She did her best to come up with every excuse under the sun to blame me for what happened. Before she left me, she made it a point that Kayla was the best option for the Alpha and I had to stay out of their lives so I don’t ruin the beautiful relationship those two had. According to her, the Moon Goddess had no idea what she was doing when she paired souls and I had to grow up and face reality as it was. I didn’t react to the insults, didn’t answer questions and didn’t acknowledge her words. All I did was stare in the distance and let her have it. There was no point in telling her anything about the Alpha’s words because I knew I was leaving before he returned and dragged me from one hell to another. Besides, she wouldn’t believe me even if I had a r
Eden povAs promised, once midnight rolled around, I snuck out of my cell and went to the old man at the end of the hall. I spent hours pondering ideas how to unlock his cell just to be met with the surprise that his cell had never been locked. I helped him out and led him to my little space to grab the backpack. He was right, the poor man really was old and had difficulty moving, but since I promised to get him out of here, I didn’t let him convince me to leave him behind. The pack was sound asleep when we got to the top of the stairs and opened the door to the main area of the building. Not everyone, though, as we heard some voices in the distance. I glanced at the old man and nodded towards a darker corner. “You stay here, I’ll sneak into the kitchen and grab some food for us. Don’t question me, I know what I’m doing,” I whispered. He didn’t look too pleased, but did as I told him. As I snuck into the kitchen and grabbed some fruits from the pantry along with dry foods we could
Eden pov“Leave me and run. You have a bigger chance to get out of here alone. Head to North, that’s where you will find a safe shelter. Run and don’t look back.” Although his words were barely louder than a whisper, they held so much power, bravery and selflessness I knew I couldn’t leave him behind. A person, who was willing to put his own safety in jeopardy deserved salvation as much as I did. I knew we couldn’t outrun the patrol or fight them off, but what we could do was use anything we could to our advantage. I looked around and tried to figure out which route would be the best. So far nothing worked like I had planned, but somehow, the very thing I feared the most turned out to be the distraction I needed. The growl I expected was so powerful, it might have shaken the ground around the pack house. The sound alerted the patrol and they instantly took off towards the building, leaving us behind. I glanced at the old man and grinned. “Think you could run until we get over the
Eden povWhat was the chance that two people who managed to escape hell kept running into more danger? Seriously, fate? Ever since I turned twenty-one, every step I took brought more danger. Like a never ending tale of misery.And now, I was fearing that the misfortune of my life might stick to Richard. He was a nice old man who didn’t bother anyone, and because of me, he was in danger. I had no idea how he was treated by the pack members, but if it weren’t for my insistence to run away, Richard would have a roof over his head. Oh, yeah, and he wouldn’t stand near a forest fire, a detail I shouldn’t forget. “Where?” I asked once I got back to my senses. Unlike me, although old, Richard was a werewolf and his senses were way better. I bet he could smell the smoke from miles away while I could notice that only if the fire was very close. “Close,” he muttered and scrunched up his nose. I watched Richard as he closed his eyes and let out a silent ‘shh’ sound. I held my breath while R
Lucius povFrom the moment we stepped on this territory, I knew the underground market was worse than my spies reported. Every building we passed was another orphanage or hospital. There was no way that a pack with such wealth and infrastructure as this one claimed to have had nothing but abandoned children and injured warriors. “They lied,” Titus, my second in command, whispered. I nodded my head, letting my eyes roam the surroundings. All suspicions aside, what had my senses alerted was that by now, I had counted thirteen orphanages, but no schools and there wasn’t even one playground for the pups they claimed lived here. Not only did this place look suspicious, but it also had a stench of something I couldn’t put in words. I felt like I stood in the center of everything wicked, cruel and malicious.Worst of all, the feeling sunk deeper and rooted itself when a very pregnant looking woman wobbled her way towards us. She had a wide smile across her lips, but her eyes were empty,
Lucius povThe moment Titus ran away, the so-called Luna slowed down until we walked side by side. She did her best to rub herself against me. When she tried to place her hand in mine, I took a step to the side and glared at her. Maybe she understood me, maybe not, but once she opened her mouth, I realized she was very well aware of everything she was doing. “Oh, don’t be like that. I’m somewhat human and loneliness without my Alpha around has its toll on me. I just want some company.” Sure, to someone else, she might sound like a lonely woman, but in my eyes, she was nothing but a power-hungry mutt. She didn’t have an Alpha, she wasn’t a Luna and there was no saying whose child she was carrying. If she was carrying any. “I will show you the Alpha suite. You will fall in love with the bed, it’s so comfortable, like clouds,” she beamed as she opened the door to the massive building and let me inside first. Just like in the rest of the territory, I didn’t hear any sounds. If there w