I felt that air again.

Chapter 3 

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I felt that familiar air. No… this was supposed to be heaven, some kind of paradise, but the more I breathed it in, the more familiar it became. Even though my eyes were tightly shut, I could sense it, my wolf could. And slowly, I forced my eyes open, only to realize… I was still very much alive.

My pupils contracted as they struggled to adjust to the brightness of the room. That was when it hit me, a pounding headache so intense it weighed me down instantly. A low groan escaped my lips, the pain vibrating through every nerve. But before the sound fully left my mouth, an awful stench filled my nostrils, sharp and nauseating, making me instinctively cover my nose.

But that didn’t help. The smell was overwhelming, suffocating even. It was too much for me to handle. My stomach churned, and the urge to throw up slammed into me with full force. The headache blurred my vision further, and by then, hot tears were already welling in my eyes.

I shot up from the bed, ignoring the stabbing pain in my head. My legs stumbled over something. It was a large bowl carelessly dumped on the floor. It rolled aside with a loud clatter.

That was it. I bent over and threw up right there, unable to hold it back.

Disgust flooded me, but I knew it wasn’t over. I could feel it, if I stayed in that room a second longer, I was going to throw up again. The smell wasn’t from me this time. It was the room itself. The whole place reeked of filth and sickness. I needed to get out. The real problem now wasn’t just the vomiting, it was being trapped here.

Without wasting a second, I staggered to the door, my trembling hands gripping the knob. I twisted it frantically—locked.

Panic set in. I banged on the door, pushed it, pulled it, hoping, praying someone would open it. But it was pointless. The door didn’t budge, and no one came.

I could feel my body weakening, the room spinning. I was going to pass out again, I could sense it creeping in, the dizziness, the helplessness. Tears streamed down my face as I kept trying, kept fighting.

I hated myself. I hated this life. I hated everything.

Just as I was about to give in to the darkness, I heard a faint click from the door. The lock twisted.

Without thinking, I flung it open and stumbled out, collapsing onto the cold floor outside. Gasping for air, I slammed the door shut behind me, desperate to shut out that cursed room, and everything it represented.

“I told you… this was the perfect punishment for her.”

That voice. That haunting, familiar voice sliced through my ears while I was still on the floor, gasping for breath—breathing in something far different from the filthy air I had been suffocating on earlier.

My eyes slowly lifted, my body still trembling, only to see them, my worst nightmares standing side by side. Elyra… and Alpha Kael.

The next thing that caught my eyes was their hands, intertwined like some sick display of unity. And their faces… smiling, full of twisted satisfaction, like watching me this way filled them with pure delight.

“You’re not wrong, darling,” Alpha Kael responded, his voice as smooth as ever, laced with arrogance. “It’s only been two days, and she’s already crawling out of that room.”

Two days?

My heart sank. I was trapped in that hellhole… for two whole days?

“H-How… how could you let this happen?” I finally managed to say, my voice shaky but laced with the tiniest spark of defiance as I forced myself to meet his cold, blue eyes.

My heart still beats for him. Despite everything, despite the humiliation, the pain… my stupid heart clung to him. How could I still feel anything for him? Did I really hate myself that much?

“Look at this pathetic creature asking me such ridiculous questions,” he sneered, his words laced with mockery. “What was I even expecting from a dumb girl like you?”

His voice… the same voice I had once fantasized about. That deep, commanding voice that used to make my insides melt, it sounded like poison now. It disgusted me, yet deep down, I still felt something. It was messed up, but I couldn’t help it.

“How does this make you any different from my father? The very tyrant you all despised so much?” I snapped, louder this time, my voice fueled by all the pain, betrayal, and frustration inside me.

Silence.

It washed over the room, heavy and sharp. Their expressions faltered, their eyes twitched ever so slightly. For a fleeting second, it looked like my words hit something… struck a nerve.

But before I could process it, Elyra was already standing over me. Her hand flew across my cheek, the sting sharp and immediate, followed by a wave of dizziness.

“How dare you speak to our Alpha like that?!” she yelled, her voice shrill, vibrating with anger.

“Enough, Elyra,” Alpha Kael’s voice cut through the room like ice.

He pulled her away from me. I caught a flicker of confusion flash across Elyra’s face, but his expression remained cold… distant… unreadable. Gone was the charming Alpha I used to admire, standing there now was someone else entirely.

“Take this,” he ordered, his tone low but commanding as he handed me a sheet of paper. His eyes never left mine.

My hand trembled as I took it. Despite the pounding in my head, my eyes managed to focus on the bold letters at the top: CONTRACT MARRIAGE.

I froze.

Confusion, disbelief, and something else, something far stronger and more dangerous, rushed through me all at once. My name was printed on the paper. My fate… sealed with ink.

“That’s a contract marriage,” he began, his voice dripping with amusement. Beside him, Elyra clutched his arm tighter, possessive… jealous even.

I wasn’t stupid. I knew what this was. A contract. A trap disguised as an opportunity. I wanted to scream, to laugh, to curse them both. But instead, I internally rolled my eyes and lowered my gaze, scanning the words on the paper, my stomach twisting.

“Since you’ve always wanted me so badly… daughter of an ex-tyrant… why shouldn’t I finally give you what you want?” he teased, wearing that smug smile that made me hate him more.

My mouth opened before I could stop myself. “I… I don’t want this.”

The words came out weak, barely above a whisper. Pathetic. I hated how frail I sounded. I wanted to sound bold, fierce, a full rejection, but all I managed was that miserable mutter.

“What did you say?” His voice dropped lower, dangerous now.

Before I could react, his hand cupped my face, his fingers trailing lightly across my cheek, the same one Elyra had slapped. His touch was gentle… too gentle, and that terrified me more than his cruelty.

I can swear on anything right now—Ava, my wolf, is the biggest damn betrayal of my life.

How else do you explain the fact that the moment his hands touched my face, creasing my cheeks like he cared… Ava practically rolled over like some love-sick pup? She forgot everything, the pain, the humiliation, the locked room, the fucking headache, and all she could feel was him.

But it wasn’t just her. My body? Betrayal number two. It reacted to his touch like it had been starving for it, like his fingers were the sweetest damn thing to ever graze my skin. And I hated it. I hated that I loved it.

Then his lips moved, closer hovering near my ear, his breath brushing against my skin. A shiver shot down my spine so fast I nearly collapsed again.

This was the closest we’d been in… I don’t even know how long, and my body? Acting like I was some untouched virgin melting under a stranger’s gaze. It was humiliating… pathetic… but also terrifyingly addictive.

“You dare not back off, Alera.” His voice, low and lethal, slithered into my ear like a dangerous promise. “This is a six-month contract… I’m offering you a life you’ve never even dreamed of… and you dare not reject it.”

The threat was crystal clear, buried beneath his honeyed words. His voice alone sent another round of shivers through me, but not the good kind this time, the fear kind. The bone-deep realization that if I defied him, I was going to face consequences I wasn’t ready for.

I knew him. I knew how his words weren’t empty. He didn’t bluff. He followed through, with ruthlessness.

And before I could even steady my breaths or gather my scattered pride, they were gone. Just like that. Left me there, alone, on the cold, unforgiving floor.

Tears slipped down my cheeks. Silent. Angry. Exhausted.

How did I ever fall for this man?

How damn dumb was I? How blind? How pathetically naive? Did I not see the monster beneath the charm? The cruelty buried under the smooth words and the pretty face?

“He’s crazy,” I muttered under my breath, wiping my face with the back of my hand. “Absolutely fucking insane.”

“Well… you can’t really blame the heart, can you?”

The voice startled me.

Wait. Did I….did I say that out loud?

Oh, for fuck’s sake.

“Alpha Rex…” I whispered, barely loud enough for him to hear, but I knew he did.

His piercing grey eyes locked onto mine, sharp and unreadable. He stood there, towering, then extended his hand towards me, waiting. Expecting.

I didn’t know what to do. My body was frozen, my mind spiraling, my heart still aching from Kael’s mess. I just… stared at him, blank.

“Do you plan on keeping me waiting, Alera?”

That voice. That damn voice. Smooth, confident, dangerous… but it still sounded like music to my ears.

Ugh… fuck my life.