Chapter 6

Cold silver chains bit into my wrists.

I woke up tied to a metal chair in an abandoned warehouse.

Crumbling concrete walls and rusted machinery surrounded me.

My head was splitting.

"She's awake," a rough voice said.

I looked up to see three rogues circling me.

Their eyes glowed with a wild light, their faces twisted into sadistic grins.

"Finally awake, little princess," one of them said, walking toward me. "We've been waiting for you."

"What do you want?" My voice was a weak rasp.

"It's not what we want," another rogue grinned. "It's what your Alpha wants."

Alpha?

"Byron?"

"That's the one." The first rogue pulled a communicator from his pocket. "He said you weren't behaving. That you needed a little... lesson."

The communicator crackled to life.

"She's here, Alpha. Secure."

Byron's voice was a tired rasp on the other end. "Just watch her. Leave her alone for three days. Let her calm down. I'll pick her up after."

The connection went dead. The rogue grinned, a slow, ugly stretch of his lips. "Did you catch that? Your Alpha wants you to 'calm down.' We have plenty of ways to help with that."

My heart stopped beating.

It was really his voice.

My mate.

The man I once loved.

He had actually handed me over to these animals.

"I'll be back with Ariana in three days," he continued. "When I return, I expect to find a much more obedient Luna."

The call ended.

The rogues looked at me, their eyes filled with malice.

"You hear that, little princess?" one of them said. "Your Alpha gave us three days. We're going to have so much fun."

"He is not my Alpha," I hissed.

"Isn't he?" the rogue laughed. "Then why do you still carry his mark? Why is your wolf completely suppressed by him?"

I had no answer.

Because he was right.

"Don't worry," another rogue said, coming closer. "By the time we're done with you, maybe you'll be ready to love him again."

Just then, the warehouse door swung open.

A familiar figure walked in.

Ariana.

She wore an elegant black dress, a triumphant smile on her face.

"Well, well, look what we have here," she purred, crouching in front of me. "I came to admire my handiwork. To see the 'perfect' Sandra brought so low."

"What are you doing here?" I snarled.

"I came to admire my masterpiece," she said, crouching in front of me. "To see what the 'perfect' Sandra looks like now."

"You killer," I stared into her eyes. "Are you happy now that our child is dead?"

"Child?" Ariana laughed. "You mean that little accident? Honestly, I should thank the Moon Goddess for letting me 'lose control' at just the right moment."

She reached out and stroked my cheek.

"You know, Byron never wanted that pup. He told me that if you produced an heir, it would be much harder for him to get rid of you."

Every word was another silver knife in my heart.

"So you planned it all."

"Of course." Ariana stood up and began to pace around me. "But that was just the beginning. Do you want to know how your mother got her curse?"

My blood froze.

"It wasn't hereditary," she said, her voice dripping with venom. "It was 'Soul-Ember Dust,' a little something I bought from an exiled shaman."

"What?"

"It's a clever poison," she said, a mad light in her eyes. "It doesn't touch the body. It goes straight for the soul, severing the connection to her wolf and shredding the mind. It leaves her trapped on the edge of sanity, forever."

I tried to lunge, but the silver chains held me fast.

"You're insane!"

"Insane?" Ariana laughed. "No, I'm just making sure you'll never be a threat to my position. Your mother, your brother, your child, and now you."

She leaned in close, her voice a poisonous hiss.

"And Byron? He knew about all of it. He even helped me cover my tracks."

Endless, mental torture.

My mother wasn't sick. She was living in a hell this woman had designed.

And Byron knew everything.

Something inside me snapped. Primal hatred erased everything else.

I was a cornered animal, throwing every ounce of my strength against the silver chains.

The metal tore deep gashes into my skin, blood pouring down my arms.

I didn't care.

I just wanted to tear this venomous woman apart.

With a guttural roar, I lunged, sinking my teeth into the soft flesh of her throat.