chapter 4

Chapter 4 – The Scent of Sin

Ana

My life was over.

I sat on the splintered cot inside the hut, my knees pulled tightly to my chest, staring blindly at the wall as if it might offer some answers. The intense ache between my thighs pulsed sharply with every heartbeat, a constant, physical reminder of what I had done. Of what we had done.

If the pack ever discovered that I had allowed Desmond inside me—inside my body, inside the last, private piece of me that was still mine—they would drag me publicly through the square. They would treat me exactly as they had treated my mother. Whore. Seducer. Cursed blood.

I would be exiled. Or the punishment would be far worse.

The harsh, unyielding morning bell rang, signaling the start of duty. If I was even slightly late, the whip would surely kiss my back again. I forced my numb, trembling legs to move.

The servants’ courtyard was already crowded when I slipped into the back. Rows of maids stood stiffly, their faces pale and their eyes wide with worry. Something was deeply wrong. The air felt unnaturally heavy, as though the emotion of fear itself had settled heavily over the assembly.

I took my familiar place at the very back, my heart hammering so violently in my chest I was sure everyone around me could hear the frantic rhythm.

The heavy doors suddenly slammed open.

Luna Vera stormed into the courtyard, rage visible in every line of her body. Her blue eyes blazed with fury. Something small, black, and lacy dangled menacingly from her fingers.

My stomach instantly plummeted.

My underwear. The pair I had hastily kicked off in Desmond’s room in the dark. The pair I had been far too panicked and desperate to retrieve when I fled before the first light of dawn.

She held the garment up high like a grotesque prize, and my throat went completely dry.

“Whose are these?” Her voice was an absolute razor, slicing through the courtyard’s tense quiet. “I found this lying directly under Prince Desmond’s bed. Does anyone care to explain this discovery?”

The silence that followed was absolute. A few girls whispered in low fear and confusion. Most stared intently at the ground, too terrified even to breathe deeply.

Vera’s grin was all teeth, sharp, wide, and incredibly cruel. “This is the last time I will ask this nicely. Who is the owner of this?”

I couldn’t force myself to breathe. My tongue felt thick and stuck fast to the roof of my mouth. My hands were frozen rigidly in my lap.

No one dared to speak a word.

“Fine,” she snapped, her patience gone. Her fingers clicked sharply. Two large guards immediately stepped forward. “Every one of you will strip off your undergarments. Now. We are going to resolve this the fun way. My assistant here will compare this against every single one you offer up. The first match found dies screaming.”

Gasps of profound shock spread quickly through the crowd of maids. Someone sobbed uncontrollably. I pressed my numb hands even tighter against my legs.

The assistant, a beta girl whose fingers were visibly trembling and whose eyes were wide with dread, began her awful task. She lifted the black cloth, held it, and sniffed it against each maid’s shaking offering. One by one, there was no match.

My turn came relentlessly closer.

My fingers were completely numb. If the assistant recognized the cut or the brand… if she knew it was me who had been in his bed… I was dead without question.

The girl immediately beside me stepped away, shivering violently. My heart hammered harder than it ever had before. The assistant took a slow, deliberate step.

Directly toward me.

“Next,” Vera commanded, her voice soft and dangerously deadly, her eyes glittering with anticipation.

My hands moved toward my waistband, slow, shaking uncontrollably. Ice ran through my veins, chilling me completely. I desperately wished to disappear. I wanted the cold earth to immediately open up and swallow me whole, right here.

Please, Goddess, no.

The courtyard doors suddenly slammed open with a deafening noise again.

“What the hell is going on in this courtyard?”

The sound made every single head instantly whip toward the doorway.

The voice was cold. Low. Dangerous.

Desmond stood firmly in the doorway. His broad shoulders completely filled the frame. His eyes swept across the courtyard like an inevitable storm about to break.

And for one single, terrifying second, those eyes locked directly on mine.

Time itself seemed to slow to a crawl. My stomach dropped completely. My legs felt like useless lead weights. My hands froze, still positioned weakly at my waistband.

He didn’t move toward me immediately. He simply looked. His eyes scanning the entire scene, sharp and totally aware. The courtyard, the trembling maids, the guards, and even Vera herself seemed to visibly shrink beneath the immense weight of his gaze.

“What… what exactly is this spectacle?” His voice was utterly calm but lethal in its quality. Every syllable made the air surrounding me tighten painfully.

Vera let out a soft, cruel laugh, holding the piece of black lace even higher. “It appears someone has been far too intimate with my future Alpha, darling. Care to explain yourself, Desmond?”

The assistant froze where she stood, the small cloth trembling uncontrollably in her hands.

My mind screamed in silent panic. I wanted to turn and run. I wanted to sink into the dirt and simply vanish from existence without the world knowing what I had done. But I couldn't. I couldn’t stop Desmond’s unwavering gaze from holding mine.

“Vera,” he said slowly, speaking with a dangerous calm, “step back. Now.”

She didn’t move a muscle.

“Desmond,” she hissed, her voice suddenly tight with confusion, “this girl—”

“I said, step back.” His hand moved, and the mere motion carried the entire weight of his supreme authority. Even the powerful guards flinched slightly.

Vera’s cruel grin finally faltered. Her eyes flicked toward me once, and for the very first time, I saw genuine hesitation. And fear.

My knees trembled violently beneath me. The intense ache, the profound shame, the overwhelming fear—they all mixed together, forming a heavy, unbearable knot deep inside me.

I desperately wanted to vanish, to somehow escape this moment without the whole world knowing my secret sin. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t stop Desmond’s gaze from holding mine with an almost terrifying intensity.

And for a single heartbeat, I realized something utterly impossible: he wasn’t angry in the same way everyone else was. Not truly. Not yet.

The courtyard felt impossibly smaller. The silent crowd faded away. Vera’s voice, the assistant’s trembling hands, even the guards’ wide stares—all of it disappeared, completely swallowed by the sheer weight of him standing there in the doorway.

And I knew, in that gut-wrenching instant, that absolutely nothing would ever be the same again.

I swallowed hard, my throat tight and constricted. My hands shook violently. My heart thumped hard in my chest as if it would burst free.

He didn't move any closer yet. But those eyes… those piercing, sharp, intensely alive eyes were more than enough.

To terrify me.

To hold me captive.

To lay claim to me.

And for a moment, I realized just how incredibly powerless I truly was against him.