Chapter 3 - Humiliation

Jessica POV    

                  I walked slowly inside the room that had been allocated to me.  We were staying at the pack house so my father, the Alpha, could keep a close eye on me.  If we had been in a hotel, I might have been able to escape or at least avoid him.  He had made me come to this farce of an event.  He had already sold me off to an older Alpha, so I had no idea why he had dragged me here.

                  Actually, I did.  For appearances.  He wanted everyone to believe he was a generous and kind Alpha who cherished his daughter.  I knew differently.  The scars on my back told the tale of my childhood and upbringing.  The pain I still felt from my recent beating was a constant reminder of my life.  Without my wolf, healing took longer for me.  A painful side effect of not having your wolf’s healing abilities.

                  I bitterly started to get ready for the Gala.  I heard a rap on my door before my father walked in.  There was no such thing as personal space or privacy with him.  “Why aren’t you ready yet?” he spit out, moving forward to grab my arm.  “Careful father, I am wearing a sleeveless dress tonight,” I taunted.

                  The truth was I was terrified of my father, but when I was away from the Crescent Moon Pack, I felt a sense of courage I did not always feel in the unsafe pack borders called home.  He quickly released my arm, moving into my personal space.  “Do not think I will forget this insolence,” he cautioned.

                  I knew that meant another beating.  I did not know when or where it might take place, but I knew it would be bad.  He left the room, slamming the door behind him.  I moved forward pulling my hair into a swept-up hair style.  It was the easiest I knew how to do, given that I had very little experience doing my hair or make-up.

                  I slipped the red silk dress on, cringing at how much skin was exposed.  The dress had a plunging cleavage and bare arms, but the back was completely covered.  I knew the Alpha I was being sold to would be here tonight.  I only hoped I would not have to see him.  It was enough to know I had been sold, but much worse to have to face him sooner than later.

                  Once I had the dress on, I slipped on my shoes and waited.  I knew my father would not expect me to exit the room on my own.  He would come for me when he was ready.  I sat there my heart racing at what would happen tonight.  I could only imagine the humiliation that awaited me.

                  Without knocking my father walked into the room once again and grunted at me to come with him.  I moved cautiously as I did not want the wounds on my back to open again.  Even though the infection had been cleared with antibiotics, it took me longer to heal without a wolf.

                  We walked out of the room and made our way down the stairs.  As we landed on the bottom floor, the hosting Alpha and Luna had been waiting for us.  My father, ever the good actor, turned and held out his arm for me to take.  As a good daughter, I did so not wanting to stir up his bad side in front of our hosts. 

                  “Jessica, you look stunning,” the Luna stated, as she looked at my deep plunging dress.  I could not tell if she was sincere or not, but my father quickly interjected, “She is quite beautiful,” he noted as a good father would proudly say about his daughter.

                  I knew the truth and could only imagine how uncomfortable this was making my father.  A small part of me chuckled inside, knowing he would hate having to be kind to me.  “Let us go so we can welcome our guests,” the Alpha said, taking his Luna’s arm.

                  I sighed as I wished I could look forward to that treatment when I found my mate.  But I knew that would not be in the cards for me.  I was being sold off to an old Alpha who sounded like he would also beat me.  “Are you excited at the potential of finding your fated mate?” the Luna asked me kindly.

                  I looked at her in surprise.  Not many people spoke to me willingly and for a moment I had no idea what to say.  My father squeezed my arm, jolting me into the present moment.  “Of course,” I replied softly, as my father released my arm.  “I hope he is as wonderful as you deserve,” she added, before turning back to her mate.

                  I doubted that was possible.  Or perhaps the Moon Goddess believed I deserved this match.  I could only pray this was not the case.  I had no idea what I had done to deserve this life, but I would continue to pray I was able to escape.  Or die.  Those were my only choices.

                  The thoughts of being with an old, nasty Alpha terrified me.  I had known pain and suffering but not knowing what was next made the abuse worse.  As we entered the celebratory hall all decorated for the gala, I turned to the Luna.  “This is beautiful,” I said, genuinely taken away with the celebratory feelings surrounding the room.

                  “Oh, thank you, it took some planning, but we managed to pull it off,” she responded proudly.   I smiled back at her, before I smelled the pungent odor coming from the right of me.  I turned slowly and immediately recognized my worst nightmare coming true.

                  The Alpha leered at me, walking towards me.  His round belly protruding from his unbuttoned suit jacket.  It was as if the jacket was busting at the seams.  And the smell was making me nauseous.  Before I could turn back to the Luna, my father tightened his hold on my arm.

                  The Luna had already turned away to welcome her guests entering the building.   I moved forward slowly as my father spun me around before landing me directly in front of the Alpha.  The Alpha licked his lips as he leered at my body.  “Well, well, well … what do we have here?” he asked softly.

                  “This is my daughter, Jessica,” my father responded.  I noticed he had not said I was the man’s soon to be mate.  I knew this was because it would be frowned upon and questioned by the Alphas in the room.  Nobody was to offer up young wolves to older wolves, particularly as it could destroy the younger wolf’s fated mate.

                  “Let us go somewhere a bit more private,” the Alpha suggested.  My father looked at him in surprise, before dragging me off to a room on the outskirts of the dancefloor.  As the door closed the filthy Alpha looked at me, “I want to see what I am buying,” he commented as he took a chair in the center of the room, panting heavily.

                  “What?” my father questioned, confused by the Alpha.  “I want to see her wounds; I need to know what she can handle,” he said, as my father nodded, understanding taking over.  I felt my heart race.  What did he mean, see my wounds?  Before I could look to my father to plead for protection, he turned my body around and undid the top to my dress.            

                  The top started to fall, as I grabbed at it, embarrassed that this was happening.  “If I do not see it, I will not buy it,” he said, as my father tugged my dress down.

                  I felt tears fill my eyes, as humiliation stirred in my heart.  “Very nice,” the Alpha mumbled, as I heard the excitement in his voice.  “Turn around,” he demanded.  “What?” I asked, clearly not wanting to do anything more for this bastard.

                  “Turn around; is she deaf?” the old man inquired as I hesitated moving.  My father took a hold of my shoulders and turned me around to face the Alpha.  He licked his lips, before nodding, “She will do,” he muttered as he adjusted himself in his pants.  The thoughts of that man anywhere near me made me nauseous and it took all I could to stem the flow of vomit coming to my mouth.

                  “Excellent,” my father exhaled as he released me from his grip.  “Make sure she is not beaten this week.  The marking and mating will take place in a week.  I want her to be able to handle what happens,” the Alpha leered as he walked out of the room, leaving the door open.