Chapter Three

Aria's Pov 

I spent my time in the tent rearranging what'd happen to me in the past few hours :

First, my family treats me like I'm the unwanted extra in their perfect little pack.

Then, they force me into a marriage with a man who probably thinks emotions are a disease. 

And now? I wake up in Xavier BlackWood rogue-infested camp, only this time, I'm not tied up.

Small victories.

But that didn't mean I was free. I was still trapped.

I was held hostage in a place where everyone was supposed to be a bloodthirsty, merciless beast. 

Except… they weren't, which was super annoying, by the way.

All my life, I'd been raised my entire life to believe that rogues were nothing but wild animals with no morals, no honour, and so sense of hygiene. (Okay, maybe that last part was still up for debate.)

But what I saw here was very… very… normal.

Too normal.

Where was the chaos? 

Where were the random murders? 

The complete and total anarchy? 

Where was it?

There was none of that.

I squinted suspiciously at the group of warriors sparring in the training area. They weren't tearing at each other. They were helping each other. 

The other rogues were talking, laughing. The kids ran past me, playing while a woman scolded her children for not washing the dishes and clothes. 

Rogues do dishes and laundry?

Weird. Super weird.

Almost as weird as the way my traitorous heart skipped a beat whenever Xavier looked at me.

That was totally unfair to me because hey, I'm supposed to hate him. He kidnapped me. He is my enemy but then he had to go and be respectful by cutting me loose and having his maids bathe me and give me clean clothes. 

He didn't let anyone treat me like a useless weakling. 

He'd let them bring me food and wait to make sure I ate it. 

I was conflicted. Rogues weren't supposed to care. 

Yet here I was, at a dinner table, eating a freshly cooked meal while the big bad Alpha himself sat across from me, watching me closely.

It was making me very uncomfortable.

“Could you please not stare at me like that?” I muttered, shoving a piece of bread into my mouth.

Xavier raised a brow. “Why not? You're exotic.” 

I choked.

Xavier had the audacity to smirk. “You walked into that one, sweetheart.”

I shot him a glare. “You still haven't told me why I'm here. And don't say it's because I'm your mate, because I already rejected you.” 

Xavier didn't even flinch. “And I already told you that it doesn't matter.”

I groaned. “You kidnapped me.”

He tilted his head slightly. “Did I?”

I blinked. “Uh… yes?”

“You don't remember how you got here, do you?” 

I opened my mouth — then snapped it shut because not I thought about it.

I didn't even remember.

I remember sneaking out of the pack,

I remember sensing something off, 

And then — nothing.

Just darkness.

My blood ran cold.

Xavier leaned back. “If I truly kidnapped you, you'd remember it.”

A chill ran down my spine. 

Why was my gut telling me he was right?

Why was I even terrified?

If he didn't take me then how the hell did I — 

My blood froze.

I had assumed that Xavier kidnapped me because he was a rogue but … what if it wasn't true… What if… someone had taken me and dumped me here?

You have got to be kidding me.

Was this all planned?

Did someone want me here?

Did someone from my own pack do this to me?

I grabbed the edge of my chair so hard my fingers ached.

Someone probably thought Xavier would kill me when he found me.

Someone would go to this extent to get rid of me.

Was it father?

My step mom? 

My half-brother?

It might be anyone because all of them saw me as nothing but a burden. The only reason I was valuable enough to start with was because of my engagement.

My engagement to the man I didn't want to marry. 

My engagement to a man whose only real benefit to my pack was the alliance he brought.

My engagement was an alliance that wouldn't happen if I disappeared.

Unholy shit!

Someone planned this.

The realization sent a violent shiver through me.

I had been handed over to my enemy on a silver platter.

My own family had betrayed me.

Xavier must have seen the horror on my face because he spoke. “Did you remember something?” 

I swallowed hard. “ I ….”

I want to say something but the words wouldn't form in my mouth. 

I couldn't tell him. I couldn't trust him.

I shouldn't but it was ironic how the rogues treated me better than my own family.

“I think…” I licked my lips. “I think…”

“Someone wants you gone?” He took the words right out of my lips. 

I looked down.

“Don't worry. You're safe here.” he said, startling me.

“What?” I looked up, blinking.

“Yes.” he smiled.

I reached for a goblet of water. 

A tiny, stupid, traitorous part of me believed him.

*****

You know that feeling when you wake up and just know it's going to be a terrible day?

It turned out I'd been living with that feeling since birth.

Because, apparently, being born an Omega in the mighty RedMoon pack was the equivalent of being a defective product. 

A mistake. 

A disappointment.

But instead of just returning me to the Moon Goddess for a refund, my dear, wonderful family decided to use me for breeding purposes. 

And just like that, my future was decided before I could even walk. 

I remember the day father said those words to me when I turned ten :

“You will marry the Alpha of the CrescentMoon pack. And you will do your duty for this pack.”

For years, I had lived under the constant reminder that I was nothing but a bargaining chip. 

The only reason they even acknowledged my existence was because my body had value. 

It was not my thoughts, not even my skills, not even my very soul. 

They acknowledged my existence was because of my ability to pop out little CrescentMoon heirs like some kind of baby factory.

So, naturally, when Tristian Drakos, the Alpha I was promised to — finally came to claim me, I threw in the towel.

And then I was kidnapped —

By rogues.

And worse? 

I was mated to their leader — The beast, the terror and the one everyone whispered about like he was the devil — Xavier BlackWood.

Honestly, I didn't understand the part where Moon Goddess looked at my miserable little life and make me mate to the terrifying rogue alive. 

And the worst part?

I was starting to think the rogues were a better pack than mine ever was.