Chapter Seven: Trapped

…Three Years Later…

Three years had gone by, yet, it still felt like yesterday when I’d received the news of my child’s death.

I wanted revenge, wanted to make Rosalia pay for what she’d done, but each day met me further away from my goal.

I’d woken up from yet another nightmare. Covered in sweat and barely able to breath, I stumbled into the bathroom, rummaging through the cabinets, until I found the pills.

The Stabilizer pills had been prescribed to me by the healers after the near-death experience I’d faced three years ago. One pill daily was the prescription—and I was only to use it for the first few weeks.

Now, with shaky hands, I emptied what was left of the pill bottle into my mouth, swallowing it dry.

It was killing me slowly. I could tell by how weak my wolf had grown in the past years, but how else would I survive without it?

There was a rap on the door.

I quickly rinsed the tears off my face, and ran my wet hands through my hair, before heading for the door.

It was Grace, my ‘mother’.

After her cold words at the hospital, I’d done everything possible to remain as far away from her as I could possibly be. Yet, here she was.

I couldn’t even believe I’d once longed for this woman’s attention.

“What do you want?” I snapped.

All these years, and she hadn’t changed one bit. I’d accepted the fact that she never would.

“So, you’re not even going to let me in?”

“If you aren’t ready to state your business, then you might as well get lost.”

“Is that anyway to speak to your mother?” she spat, irritation written all over her face, but we’d played this game a thousand times, and I no longer cared what she thought of me.  

“You’ve never been a mother to me, Grace.”

I was better off assuming I never had a mother.

“Your father wants to speak to you—don’t keep him waiting.”

“Well, he could go to hell for all I care,” I spat.

From the twitch of her fingers, I could tell she itched to hit me. But the strike never came. 

  

My father hadn’t spoken a word to me in three years; I wondered what was so important that he had to set aside his ‘grudge’ to speak with me. 

“I should remind you,” she said through clenched teeth, “He’s not just your father, he is also the Beta.”

I understood the unspoken words. A single command from him would have my wolf complying, and the thought of having him control me against my will left me sick to the guts.

“I’ll be there in a moment,” I responded curtly, before slamming the door shut.

~

Beta Idris, my father, had gotten much older than I remembered. His face had more wrinkles now, and his blonde hair was going fully grey. Though his cold eyes hadn’t changed one bit.

“Beatrix,” he called, “It’s good to see you.

A lie, and one he didn’t care to conceal.

“Why have you sent for me?” I said, not in the mood for games.

“Take a seat.”

“I’d rather stand.”

He gave me a long look, and then let out a breath—just like mother, he was trying to contain his anger, and I couldn’t help but grow more curious.

He motioned to the gift box on his table.

“Open it,” he ordered.

“What is in it?”

“It’s not a bomb, Bellatrix. Open it.”

“Well, we can never be too sure, can we now?”

That thing again. Where he seemed just on the verge of losing it, but takes a deep breath like an argument wasn’t worth it.

I walked to the gift box, undid the bow, then I slid the cover aside and inside was a… dress?

The last time I’d received a gift from my parents was on my fifth birthday, so this was beyond strange.

“What is this?”

“A dress—for you,” he said, rising to his feet. “And to be specific, it’s a wedding dress.”

I cocked a brow in confusion.

Two weeks ago, my sister had gotten married to Asher—yes, the very same man I’d had an unhealthy crush on for years.

I’d not been invited.

The ‘new-couples’ were currently on a honeymoon, and the pack eagerly awaited pregnancy news.

Now, I was being gifted a wedding dress, probably Rosalia’s hand-me-down, and I couldn’t help but wonder what the point was exactly.

“Brimstone pack has been our rivals for more time than I can remember, but we’ve done something we never thought possible; we’ve come to an agreement.”

“How does the wedding dress add up into this?” I questioned, but realization dawned on me as soon as the words left my lips.

“Alpha Clinton had agreed to take a bride from this pack, and in exchange, the long-standing rivalry would be brought to an end. By tonight, you’d no longer bear this family name.”

There was a long moment of silence, and then…

I burst into laughter.

It didn’t stop, not even when the frown on my father’s face deepened. I laughed till I was out of breath and wheezing for air.

I wiped the tears off the corner of my eyes.

“And you were delusional enough to believe I’d agree to marry this Alpha?” I asked, incredulous. First, it was a General, and now this?

Alpha Clinton was a man with a reputation, and not a good one. I’d never met him before, but I’d heard stories. Years ago, he’d lost his wife, and with it he’d lost every ounce of humanity he’d had left.  

“Think about it,” my father went on, “marrying him will mean you’d be the Luna of one of the most feared packs in the world—isn’t that what you’ve always wanted?”

What I wanted?

I snorted. The only thing I wanted was Rosalia dead.

“You don’t know a thing about what I want, so don’t pretend like you do,”

His eyes, cold as steel met mine. “You will marry him, and that is final.”

“I will not. And ‘that’ is final.”

I turned around, and headed for the door.

“Don’t you dare walk away from me, Beatrix!”

“Watch me.”

“Take one more step,” he threatened, “And I will make you pay.”

I turned to face him.  “What would you do dear father? Hit me? lock me up? You’ve done all that, you’ve taken everything, and now, I have nothing else to lose. Nothing.”

“You forget,” he called after me, “that your friend—Audrey, is also a member of this pack.”

I came to an abrupt stop, “And I happen to be good at making up sad stories.”

My mouth went dry.

“You won’t dare,” I said, but the fear was written all over my face, even though I’d tried to hide it.

“There’s only little I cannot do, Bellatrix,” he said with a smile, knowing fully well that he finally had me.  “The marriage stands, else, your innocent friend would be the one paying the price.”

It seems every time I thought he couldn’t stoop any lower, he proved me wrong by doing just that.

Once again, I was trapped.