Chapter 5

FANE’S POV

“Get up!” A foot connected to my side. I had little time to process what was happening when he grabbed me by the hair and yanked me up to my feet.

“Colt!” I cried from pain.

“Shut up!” He slapped me hard across the face. “You are nothing but a disgrace and a curse to this pack!” He sneered, veins popping out on his face.

“If it weren’t for you, my mother would still be here, in fact, I’m sure she would have given birth to normal children.”

I swallowed, cold piercing into my skin. I had the same clothes on from two days ago. The same clothes that they caught me in. I was shivering and angry.

“How could I have controlled that, not killing her!” I snapped, seething. They blamed me as if I had control over that.

I was hungry, thirsty, cold, and exhausted from all the blame. Yes, our mummy died, but at least he was a mother to her, not to me. I never met her. Did I not have a right to be angry as well?

“By not being born!” He yelled and then kicked me forward. I fell on my chin and blood exploded inside my mouth.

“You never should have been born. You should have gone, turned to blood instead of taking my mother from me,” he spat.

I scrambled to my feet, holding my blood-filled mouth.

“You did not just cause the death of my mother, but father’s mate and the pack’s true Luna!”

The pain from biting myself was nothing compared to the emotional torture. Every time he spoke about our mother and blamed me for killing her I took the blame.

But sometimes I wondered if my mother would have stood by and watched as I was blamed for her death. While he blamed me for everything he didn’t see that it wasn’t only him that was in desperate need of a mother, but I was as well.

The mother and daughter relationship went deep because she was a woman. I found myself wondering if things could have been different, if she could have shown me all the love in the world that I would not look for it from elsewhere. Colt made her seem like an angel, I really wished I could have met her.

But I killed her and this was my punishment

I wobbled on, I paused, and looked at the path we were taking. I couldn’t help but ask, “Where are we going, Colt?”

In the same manner, the familiar hallway led to the grand wind ahead.

“To receive your punishment for disgracing this family’s name,”

I swallowed and asked, “How? What do you mean?”

“Keep moving!” He shoved me forward when I realized I had stopped. “You’ll see.”

I’ll see? I was in nothing but my shorts and top that I wore to sleep. Was his plan to show my body to the entire pack as punishment

The grand hall was a general hall for everyone. It was where judgment, punishment, and law were passed. It was usually jam-packed with werewolves who came to get daily updates.

Before I could Colt what ye meant, he opened the door and the number of eyes that swerved at us was enough to send heat down my spine. In an instant, the cold I’d been feeling disappeared.

Their eyes moved over every part of my body then landed on my eyes with a look strong as granite.

“Move!”

So lost in the number of people present, I stopped again which caused Colt to kick me in the back with his black leather boots. I fell and gasps went up

“I’ll take it from here,” I saw a hand stretched in front of me, when I lifted my gaze I saw Alpha Rhyan. The side of his lips was lifted into a smirk that only I could see.

I was about to ignore him when he grabbed my arms and pulled me up forcefully.

“Remember our plan?” He whispered, too low and only for my ears. “Behave.” He ordered then proceeded to send me forward.

“Don’t worry, Alpha Rhyan.” Colt stepped forward, standing beside the alpha. “I can do it, you don’t want to get your hands dirty with her filth from the dungeon.”

I felt Alpha Rhyan face ok me and it lit up. “Very well, if you insist.”

The Alpha let go and handed my hand over to Colt. He walked forward and went to stand beside my father. His eyes were on me as Colt dragged me forward.

I was conscious of their eyes on me and I held my breath when I met my father’s eyes. They were hard and angry, very angry.

“Father,” I immediately got on my knees, “please I’m sorry, show mercy,” I begged, but from behind me, Colt’s boot connected once more with my back and I stifled a cry.

“How dare you call him that after the despicable thing you’ve done,” Colt demanded.

My father didn’t pay me any heed, he waved a hand and guards approached me. “Hold her down.” He instructed.

Lead formed immediately in my stomach. “W-what?”

Hands trampled on my shoulder before I could understand what was going on. The hands fastened around my wrist. When I looked down, I saw that they had ropes around my wrist already.

My stomach fell and tears, hot and scalding filled my eyes. My lips trembled as I tried to mutter out an apology, a plea, anything really. My words got stuck when the guards who tied my hands secured the ropes around the pillars in the grand hall.

“Grab the cane. Fane is going to be punished for lying and tarnishing the name of Alpha Rhyan,” my father commanded. Fear ripped me in half.

“Father please.” I didn’t hold the tears back anymore.

“She’ll be lashed with 50 strokes of the cane,” he said, “it should have been a hundred, but we need her in good condition to serve the Alpha.” My father turned to Colt.

“Start,” he ordered.

I saw Colt approach with a cane that was woven together. My scream was muffled when the first whip landed on my back. It cut through everything inside of me with a snap and then everywhere fell dead silent, before in a rush, I found my voice, and my shout pierced through my ears.

It didn’t stop, it just kept coming. My vision turned white, blurry, and at some point, I couldn’t breathe. My lungs closed together and burned tight.

“That’s enough!” I heard the voice like a boom in a storm just as the last whip split cut through flesh. I could barely look where the order came from.

I didn’t have to look to know who it was, Azriel. They didn’t stop, the whip kept coming till I heard a grunt.

“Stay out of this, Azriel!” Colt snapped, raising the whip once more but Azriel pushed him out of the way.

Before anyone could say anything else I heard Azriel yell to my shock. “Why is she the one getting punished when Casteel, her supposed mate, cheated as well!”

My eyes widened even as my back flamed hot.

There was a long silence that followed his announcement before stepmother broke it and said, “That’s impossible! Casteel will never cheat!”

I could not drop down lower than I’d gone. I was on my knees, my arms outstretched by the ropes with my joints burning tremendously. Overwhelmed by pain, I started sobbing.

“He did!” Azriel spat, “If she cheated on him it’s only because he cheated as well. And it is not the first time either!” Azriel was not holding back.

“If she’s getting punished, he should as well!”

“That is enough, Azriel!” Azriel’s father and beta to the pack ordered but my best friend just kept going.

“Fane disgraced the honor of this pack and she’ll pay the price for it,” my father’s voice silenced the entire hall. “For that, she’ll follow Alpha Rhyan to his pack to show respect and work to restore the honor of this pack.”

My heart sank further.

“What? You can’t be serious!” It was Azriel once again.

“Mind your language, Azriel!” His father instructed coldly, “You are speaking to your alpha and as beta-to-be of this pack you’ll always stand by your Alpha and pack’s side.”

“If Fane is leaving, I’m leaving with her,” Azriel said to the shock of everyone.

Before I realized what was happening, a fabric went over me, covering my body.

“Please forgive him, Alpha.” Azriel’s father turned to the alpha, “he’s young and stupid and has no clue what he’s doing.”

Azriel did not pay his father any heed to my fear. He began to untie the rope around my wrist before I heard the deep baritone voice of Alpha Rhyan.

“I’ll take it from here,” the Alpha said.

Azriel was moving like he had no care for the world, he locked eyes with the Alpha and said, “Do not worry Alpha, she’s my friend.”

He was moving to reach for me when suddenly Alpha Rhyan grabbed him by the arm.

“I said that enough,” the alpha commanded evenly, every word dripping with power.

“She’s my property now and I will do with her as I like and you will not interfere.” Every word was enunciated slowly that chills ran down my battered back.