Chapter 1- Roslyn's POV

The moon was full and bright and shone down on the totality of the wolves present, their faces rather caved in as they turned their attention towards me. 

I stood at the side, my hands tucked into my skinny body, shaking as if losing a battle with gravity.

Their gazes were piercing deep into me. Well, none of these were new to me.

I had seen worse in the course of the months since she figured that Alpha Dane was my mate.

Technically, I had been sold to him by my parents. I have always been considered a weak Luna. 

Ever since I can remember, no one has ever taken me seriously. The fact that I was a princess didn't make a difference.

I thought maybe since I had found my destined mate, everything would be different.

At least, I would be different, but I was wrong because I was only treated worse. I wasn't even treated like a person. 

I was a slave in the hands of Dane, my mates. He didn't consider me his mate. He only saw me as a slave.

Today wasn't going to be any different. It was just one of the days when Dane felt like he could do whatever he wanted with me since I was his, whenever he wished.

In the middle of the open space, Dane was standing in an aggressive posture with his hands firmly placed against his waist. 

And his presence was hard to ignore because he exuded an aura of danger and authority even when he did not speak.

 His eyes, dark and cruel, moved over the crowd until they came to rest on me.

“Step forward,” he commanded and added a growl to the last two words that made the murmurs of the pack die down instantly.

I felt the instinct to resist, the wolf within me cringing from the command. “You have to do this. You have to respect him. He is our mate.”

I strolled towards the front as a space was created within the audience for me to pass. Their murmurs trailed behind me as I walked. 

“That’s the thing about her; she’s so pathetic,” a voice whispered.

“Of course, she is just a wasted effort,” another blasted.

I managed to keep my chin up even though my heart was racing inside my chest. 

When I got to Dane, he was looking down at me, his cruel smile breaking all my barriers. 

I thought I had always been confident, but somehow, he always found a way to make me think less of myself.

“What a shocker!” he said, looking down at me. “You came up.”

“I am here to assist the pack. That entitles you to respect me as my mate,” I said.

I heard Dane’s laugh. It was loud and cruel. “Serve the pack?” he repeated with incredulity. 

“You can't even be able to stand on your own two feet. You can't even survive on your own, not to mention serving the park.”

Laughter echoed around me and the sound was even more than any of their insults could have been. 

I clenched my hands on either side of my body, struggling with all my might to stop myself from moving.

Dane stepped in closer, towering over me. “You’re the worst, Roslyn,” he muttered so low only I could hear his words. “You always were. No wonder your parents sold you to me.”

My wolf whimpered, and the connection between them was a painful reminder of the mate that he could never be.

“Why was he doing this? Why was he doing this?” I thought to myself.

“Demonstrate your loyalty,” Dane said out of nowhere, his voice raised enough to reach everyone in the clearing.

I frowned, clearly confused by what I was being told. “Pardon?”

“You heard me,” he said, narrowing his eyes, his lips moving to a thin line. “Demonstrate your loyalty to the pack. To me.”

Before I could answer, he seized me by the arm and his grip was like a vice. The onlookers went quiet as he leaned in, one hand crushing my arm, the other heading for my neck.

“No,” she breathed. "Not this way.”

"You've been quite the letdown,” he muttered, low enough that only I could hear him. “So weak as ever. You are a worthless piece.”

His words sent pain through my chest, but I bit my lip, a way to control my emotions, as I would not give him the satisfaction of seeing tears in my eyes.

He was a constant reminder of how much of a failure I was.

Dane tilted his head to the side and asked in a voice that was suddenly louder and directed at me. “What do you think is the fate of feeble wolves in this pack?”

“They are thrown away,” a voice answered back from the audience. As usual, the pack members burst into laughter.

Dane grinned. “Perfectly right. But you, Roslyn, are fortunate. You possess a unique character trait which none of them have.”

He moved closer, his lips grazing my ear. “You are my mate.”

My wolf stirred within me at the proclamation, some kind of disgust.

But I knew that this wouldn't end well, so proclaiming me as his mate could mean there was some kind of hope left

But that was all too fleeting as soon as Dane’s smile transformed into a menacing one.

“However, there are times when even a mate bond doesn’t work out,” he stated in a chilling tone. “I don’t want a weak Omega as my mate, nobody does!”

Before I could respond, he bared his fangs at me and bit me deeply on the neck. The mark was painful as it caused burning feelings throughout the entire body and made my wolf yelp in pain.

wever, he retreated a little, his gaze devoid of any emotions. “I, Dane, publicly reject you, Roslyn,” he said in a loud but composed tone.

The rejection cut through me like a knife and made the bond start tearing as my wolf screamed.

 I swayed as my legs gave out, and Dane reached for my arm and held me.

“Don’t you dare think this is over,” I heard him say and the annoying smile expanded on his face. 

He bit me again, this time covering the designed mark with his fresh one. 

“I reject you,” he repeated, his tone filled with contempt.

It felt as if someone was ripping me inside out. Every single refusal added a new layer of hurt that made my wolf more injured.

There was something seriously wrong with him. He derived joy from putting people in pain.

For the third time, Dane marked and threw me off, and I was on her last legs already. 

Being on the verge of tears and struggling to hold myself up, my vision became clouded.

Dane withdrew, grinning from ear to ear. “There,” he simply said. “Now everyone is aware of the current status of things.”

I lost my balance, my knees buckling involuntarily. My hand flew to my neck, where the recent bruise was.

I felt excruciating pain. The crowd’s laughter was deafening, and the faces of the onlookers were made up of nothing but judgment

“Enough,” Dane’s voice pierced the noise. “I want you to leave my sight.”

I complied, my legs propelling her away from the clearing even before I could fully process what had just happened.

I began to run into the pack house until the sounds of the pack became distant and I could no longer hear their cruel laughter

Hours passed and I was now in the packhouse kitchen. 

As one of the many slaves of Dane, I was expected to do some chores around the house. 

Which included doing the dishes and preparing meals.

I was still injured but my wolf had calmed down a little.

The sound of clattering utensils was heard as I washed the silvery sink. My hands were almost robotic in motion as the action of scrubbing the dishes had become a usual thing to me.

It was also the only thing that was holding me together against the emotional turmoil within me.

Suddenly, the kitchen door swung open with a loud bang.

 I saw Alice’s face and quickly concluded that more trouble was coming her way.

Alice was Dane's mistress. I would say she was his favourite one. She had much authority over him and he pondered like a slave when it came to her.

We had never been on good terms. She was the type who saw me as a challenge for some reason.

“You this wrench!” shouted Alice in a high-pitched tone.

For a brief moment, I stared at her, her eyes wide open. 

“What?” 

What did I do this time? Actually, what didn’t I do this time?

“Stop pretending to be the good girl that you are not!” Alice spat and walked towards me with clenched teeth and a deepened forehead crease. “

You did it out of spite, you wicked witch.”

“What's that supposed to mean? What do you mean? I am confused,” 

It was then I realised the red stain coming down from her leg. She was bleeding.

"Oh my! What happened?” I asked in shock.

“You were jealous of the fact that I was pregnant with Dane’s child,” Alice said sharply. “So you went on ahead and poisoned my food, just to cause me a miscarriage. I have lost my child because of you!”

The words struck me in the chest. I stepped back, my mind in awe.

“You are pregnant?” I muttered in shock. I had no idea about that.

"I  was pregnant! I am no longer pregnant because you got rid of the baby, drop the act already.”

”That’s not true,” I replied, my eyes raised as I shot a glare at Alice. “I would never. I had no idea you were pregnant to begin with.”

This was a strong allegation and if Dane happened to hear it, who knew what he would do to her?

“YOU ARE JUST A LIAR!” Alice shrieked. “You have always hated me, you have always been jealous of the fact that Dane chose me over you. Own up to it!”

Dane walked in just in between Alice’s rant and stopped two steps behind his wife, looking at her like he had no idea of what was going on.

“What’s going on here?” he asked and Alice cried out immediately,

“My baby, Dane. It's gone.” She cried out.

“What baby?” He asked.

It seemed that he wasn't also aware of the baby.

“It's your evil mate! She killed my baby.”

“i said what baby are you talking about?”Dane thundered.

“I found out I was pregnant a few days ago and I planned on telling you today. But guess who found out first. She did. And now my baby is gone.”

“She’s lying. Please believe me,” 8 said, shaking her head from side to side. ”I didn’t do it.”

Dane took some time to process what he had just heard before finally talking.

“You killed my child? You’ve always been bad news, what makes you think I’ll believe you over Alice?” Dane asked, narrowing his gaze at me 

"I didn't do it," I repeated with a quaver in my voice. "Please believe me."

Alice moved in towards Dane with a grin. “Don’t let her manipulate you, she’s a blatant liar.”

“She has always hated us and she couldn’t bear that I was offering you something that she couldn’t, so she chose to make us suffer by killing our unborn baby.”

Dane hardened his jaw as he faced me with another glare. “You have been trying for years to get yourself in the family way.” He spat icily. “Now all of a sudden, Alice loses our child, and I’m supposed to think that’s all just a coincidence? You didn't even let me hear the good news first.”

Fast tears coursed down my cheeks as I endured the burning words.

“I didn’t do it,” I murmured again.

“Then what’s the evidence?” Dane retorted.

“Convince me that you’re not the pathetic wolf everyone believes you to be.”

I opened my lips as if to give a reply, but no sound came out.

The fact was clear that I could not

clear her name. Especially when it involved people who were hell-bent on thinking the worst of me.

Alice grinned as she closed the distance between herself and Dane and held him close. 

“That ungrateful b**ch deserves a punishment. My poor child has to get justice,” she said as tears began rolling down her eyes.

Dane directed all his focus on me, who still looked shocked at everything that was happening.