Angela POV
The next morning is much like the morning before, except this morning, Aspen comes straight to me first. I watch him walking over to me, smiling. It is a tad bit awkward, but in a way, it makes me hot. I should be thinking about things like that right now.
"You, Angela, you are with me today, come on," he says as he points to me with his strange smile. That smile, wow.
I follow him out of the cabin and down the steps. I glance back at Deanne. Archie chose her. She does not look happy. Aspen gathers a few more women, and we start walking toward the woods. Damn, my big mouth has gotten me in trouble this time; they are going to kill me or worse.
As we walk toward the wooded area, Aspen makes his way close to me. "Are you scared? You are awfully quiet today, for someone with such a big mouth," Aspen says to me.
"I am trying to stay alive, and I promised Deanne I would not get into any more trouble, " I answer him.
"You will be fine. I plan on keeping my eyes on you, little one. You are mine now," Aspen says to me.
"And why is that, big bad wolf?" I ask him.
"I don't know, and I guess I got a soft spot for big-mouthed women. Especially ones as sexy as you," Aspen says.
He leads us to a row of old cottages. "We are cleaning these cabins and getting them ready for our guests. They need to be spotless. All of the curtains need to be replaced with darker curtains. The bedrooms and bathrooms are the priority; our guests will not use the kitchen. Let's get to work," Aspen says to us.
Aspen guides different women to different cabins, and then he guides me to the last one. The cabin was probably once really nice but it looks kind of dilapidated now. I dread seeing the inside of this thing. I step up on the porch and the porch creeks. This scares me and I take shorter steps as I make my way to the door. I step on the last board close to the door and one of the boards in the porch breaks under my foot and I almost fall.
"Be careful, little one," Aspen hollers at me.
I go into the cabin alone. I doubt any of the women would help me even if Aspen told them to come to help me. It is okay, I think I would rather be alone anyway. I start by taking the old curtains down. They are dusty as I pull them down. I wrap all of the curtains up and throw them in the outside bin. I carefully go back onto the porch, stepping over the broken board on the porch. I will hang the dark curtains last. There is no light in here and the last thing I need is to be stuck in here in the dark.
I go into the bathroom and start cleaning. The smell almost makes me sick, but I push through it. I can do this today without causing any problems. I go into the bedroom and start cleaning. I pull the stained sheets off of the bed. Who in the hell stayed her last? This cabin is gross. As I am changing the sheets on the bed, Aspen comes into the bedroom with me. He stands at the door watching me and smiling at me. I try to ignore him, but it is hard to avoid making eye contact with him.
"Do you need any help?" Aspen asks me, smiling. That devilish smile, I hope he does not think that smile will get him into my pants.
"No, you must be trying to make those other women hate me. If you help me, I will never hear the end of it," I snap at him.
"I was only trying to be nice since you are working all alone," Aspen says.
"Well, I do not need any more trouble from anyone," I say to him.
"Okay, one thing, little one," Aspen says.
"What?" I bark at him.
Aspen grabs me and pulls me to him, and kisses me. I pull back from him. "Why did you do that?" I ask him.
I take a step back from him. I cannot pretend that I did not like it because I did, but I do not want any more trouble. If the other women saw this they would definitely hate me more than they do now.
"Because I wanted to kiss you. Don't tell anyone. It would get us both killed. I will make sure you are taken care of here. You do not have to worry, little one," Aspen says. He steps closer to me.
"I guess in return, you want me to hop on this bed and spread my legs and say what take me, big bad wolf," I say to him, patting the bed.
"No, don't be stupid; I would never ask you to fuck me for favors. I am being nice to you because I want to be, don't make me regret it," Aspen says as he storms out of the cabin.
Well, that went really well. Me and my big mouth are always getting into trouble,even when someone is trying to be nice to me. I continue working in the cabin alone. I can hear some of the other women laughing and talking. I wonder if they heard me talking to Aspen. I hope not. That is all I need. I have only been here a few days, and I do not need any more trouble.
As I finish up and start hanging the dark curtains. Someone comes into the cabin. I look over to see the Alpha. Just great! He stands behind me as I hang the first set and then follows me to hang the next set.
"Do you need something, Alpha?" I ask him as I struggle to hang the curtain with a spectator.
Alpha growls at me. "I am watching you and enjoying the view," Alpha says. Other wolves start coming into the cabin as watching me hang the curtains. I continue working and ignore them. When I get to the last curtain, I am extremely nervous as they watch me.
I walk past the wolves and go to the front door. One of the wolves rushes in front of me and closes the door, and begins to growl at me. He leans forward to push me back toward the Alpha.
"I think we need to talk, little girl," Alpha growls at me. I swallow hard and try to be brave.
The Alpha touches my face. "About what, Alpha?" I ask him.
The Alpha leans down to me and looks into my eyes. "About you, of course," Alpha says, smacking his lips and making that annoying clicking sound.
"What do you want to know about me?" I ask him.
"Everything, I need to know who I need to talk to about your whereabouts. I can find out on my own, or you can just tell me," Alpha says.
"Oh, there really isn't anyone to worry about looking for me. I am an orphan," I say to him.
"Good," he says. He is so close to me I can feel the heat coming off of his body.
"Leave us," he barks at the other wolves. I begin to shake and tremble as the wolves leave us all alone. "I can smell your fear; you did not smell like this before, Angela. Why are you scared now?" Alpha asks me.
"I am not afraid of you, Alpha," my voice trembles, and I try to remain calm.
"You should be afraid of the big bad wolf, little girl. I could snap you into two pieces and not break a sweat doing it. I can take anything from you I want and enjoy watching you struggle beneath me," Alpha says to me.
"I said I am not afraid," I bark at him. Alpha strikes me across the face. My face stings as I hit the floor. I can feel my eye begin to swell from the force of his strike.
"You will learn to respect me, Angela. I plan to keep you here for a long time. You will be mine forever. So get used to me, little girl. You will be mine in every way I want. You will beg me to stop and I will laugh in your face. You are mine," Alpha growls at me, leaning over my body on the floor.
I curl up into a ball, waiting for him to kick me or hit me again. As I wait for him to hurt me, Aspen comes into the door and sees me lying on the floor. He reaches down and helps me to my feet. "It is time to go back; all the cabins are ready," Aspen says to Alpha.
I walk out of the cabin with Aspen. I trip over the broken board on the porch. Aspen catches me and helps me off the porch. "Are you okay, Angela?" he asks. I look back to see Alpha watching Aspen and me. I jerk away from Aspen.
I rejoin the group. They are all looking at my face. I can hear their whispers. This time I did nothing wrong. We walk back to our cottage. I do not speak to the other women or Aspen as we walk back. I just want to shower and go to sleep.
Draco POVThe vampire authority rushes into the house. Tia and I both go to our knees to await our fate. I wish she would have left, but she stayed behind to be here for me. She feels she still owes me for saving her. So many of the women I helped feel that way. They do not owe me anything. I only want them to thrive and get the hell out of here to live their lives.The big man, the soon to retire vampire over the authority Dominick Billings. He walks into my home and looks down at me. "Draco looks like we have a serious pickle here with you and your little friend," Dominick says. He lifts Tia by the chin and forces her to look at him. "You are very pretty," Dominick hisses at Tia. She pulls her face back. She does not care what he does to her, she will not bend to him, not today or ever."Hello Dominick, what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?" I ask him. I know why he is here and what he wants.Do
Aspen POVI try to comfort Tia, but she is not having any of it. She is in pain and hurting from Emma's rejection. "She is hurting, Tia. She will come around. She went through a lot at the auction house," I say to her.Tia wipes the tears from her face. "I am aware of what goes on in the auction; I was in it, remember. You worked those horrible things. So do not tell me what she went through at the auction. I know, Aspen. I know better than anyone in this house. I saw my sister raped and watched her die," Tia screams at me and then runs away, crying and yelling as she runs to the other side of the house."I see you have not lost your touch," Draco says, sitting down beside me."I hate it for her. How is Emma?" I ask Draco.Draco shakes his head and runs his fingers through his hair. "She is leaving as soon as she is healed. She wants out of this shit, and I do not blame her. Maybe she can convince Tia to get
Emma POVI can feel him touching me, inside me, hitting me. My body moves up and down, and I feel his weight. STOP! I scream, and then I try to open my eyes. I am being moved. No one is hurting me. Where am I? "What is happening?" I whisper. I feel a familiar hand. "We are moving you to a bedroom. Tia called a doctor for you. You will be okay," Angela says. The swelling in my face hurts when I speak, so I give her a slight nod. I want to sleep. I drift into dreaming again. Stop it! I feel him touching me again. Whore, take it, screams from other women. "MAKE IT STOP!" I scream out. All I can see and hear is him, his breath on me, his friends taking me. I cannot live with this. I thought I would be okay, but I cannot do this. How did Tia live after the auction?I hear the door open and something moving. I feel a soft bed and then someone covering me. "I am going to use a cool washcloth on your face," Angela says. I jerk away. "Stop fucking touc
Tia POVI wait for Angela and Aspen to return with Emma. It hurts, everything hurts, my heart feels as if it will explode. I am afraid for her. I know what it is like being inside the auction, but Emma she does not know. She knows now, and the pain, the agony will have helped so many heal will be her pain now too. "Tia!" Draco calls out to me. I take a deep breath and get out of the bed. I just want to lie here and hurt. I want to wait alone, but Draco always has a way of making you feel your pain and finding a way to accept him. Draco believes that if you do not accept the pain, you cannot move on from where you are. How do I help Emma accept her pain? What if this changes her? I am afraid for her. "I am coming," I say as I finally force myself out of the bedroom. I walk down the hall. I stop at the room where my sister, Fia died, that is not a memory I want to relive right now. I touch the door, and then I lean my head on it. I start crying, but I am not sure why.
Emma POVThe door opens, and I hear someone get into the seat beside me. I hear the truck start, and then it moves. I try to see who is in the truck. Is it Aspen? I wait to see Angela or at least feel her."My arm is broken, I think," I say. I see some movement from the corner of my eye. Aspen, it is Aspen. He reaches above him and releases a hook or something, but I am unsure what it is. I want to see, but it is so hard through my swollen eyes.I hear something raise, like a door or something. "Emma, It is me. I am here for you," Angela says. I begin to cry."Do not cry, sweetie. It will make your eyes more swollen. Please try to remain calm," Angela says. I nod my head to let her know I am trying. I am a sobbing mess as I feel Angela check me."I need to get a good look at you. I am going to help you back into the space where I am. It is a small cab with a bed and a lot mo
Emma POVHe took me. Joel Lee thought I would tell him where to find Tia. I would never betray her. I love her and she is the only thing that matters to me. If I know she is safe then it is all worth it. I can continue on, no matter what they put me through here. I can be a slave it means Tia is safe and continue working to stop the auctions.I am sure she will make it to Draco, but I have no idea if they will be able to find me soon enough. I will be a slave to one of the wolves or a vampire. They will use me, abuse me and ruin me. I am strong, but surviving the auction, even a controlled auction is not easy. I will not give up on finding her and being with her again, but I have to harden myself to survive just like the others.At least, for me, I am not a hybrid. I will never be forced into a breeding box or tortured in that manner. What they will do to me is make me serve my master, and I will hav