Chapter 6: Palace Rules

Noah

I woke up the next morning with my body aching all over. Fresh bite marks and bruises covered my neck, shoulders and hips.

I swung my legs down from the bed and hissed in pain. Every small movement reminded me of how Adrian had taken me the night before.

I laid back on the bed, staring at the ceiling for a long moment, feeling sore between my legs and deeply ashamed. The mate bond still hummed beneath my skin, warm and demanding.

Different thoughts ran through my mind. Last night was a mistake and I wasn't going to let it repeat itself.

I felt deep regret. I let the man who rejected me in front of my pack, touch me. How was I going to face him now?

A soft knock sounded at the door, pulling me out of my thoughts. An older woman with kind hazel eyes entered as I quickly pulled the sheets to cover the lower part of my body.

“I am Elena Moore, the palace healer” she said gently, offering me a kind smile which I returned.

She checked my wounds and the lingering effect of wolfsbane from before.

While applying strange lotions on the wound, she spoke in a calm voice, offering quiet support “ You're safe here for now” she whispered. “But be careful who you trust”

I didn't fully understand what she was trying to say and I didn't ask her to explain. I couldn't care less of what would happen to me from here onwards anyway.

My life had practically been stripped from me the moment my pack sold me off to HIM.

I felt a sense of small relief talking to her. She was the first person in the palace who didn't look at me with disgust, anger or lust.

After Elena left, I quickly made my way to the bathroom to take my back. I tried to scrub Adrian scent off me but it wasn't working, and in the end the scrubbing only made my skin so red.

I decided to go out, receive fresh air and distract myself from thinking about him—about what happened last night.

Royal guards followed me everywhere I went and when I told them I was fine on my own, I discovered that I wasn't to leave the royal wing without permission. 

Servants brought me find clothes that showed too much skin and I was expecting to stay close whenever the king called.

Adrian summoned me several times and I wasn't allowed to disobey or else I'll be punished. I didn't want to be punished.

Our meetings were tense and charged. Sometimes he will simply stare at me without speaking, his eyes roaming around my body shamelessly. Other times he will pull me close, kissing me hard but stopping before things go further.

Adrian seemed to be fighting with himself.

Later that afternoon, while taking a walk around the garden under guard, I met Alpha Elias Carter of the Redfang pack. It seemed like he visited the palace for a political meeting with Adrian.

The Alpha was a tall confident man, with ash brown hair and sharp green eyes. He carried himself with ease and had a dangerous smile on his face.

The moment his eyes met mine, something flickered in his eyes but I wasn't fast enough to catch what it was. But I was sure it wasn't disgust.

“You must be the one everyone is whispering about” he said with a teasing grin.

He spoke to me with respect, asking questions and listening to my answers carefully. Unlike others, he did not treat me like a cursed omega.

He flirted openly with me, calling me beautiful and saying Adrian was lucky. Well, Adrian might be lucky but I wasn't lucky.

I stayed guarded but I couldn't help the feeling of liking the complements he gave me. Aside from Tyrene, no one else had ever complimented me.

As we talked, the servant serving us tea accidentally slipped. Everything happened so fast, one minute I was talking to Elias, the next minute he was pulling me into his arms.

I was about to question his behavior when I noticed that he had saved me from getting burned. The servant quickly went on her knees and begged for mercy.

I wasn't sure of what to do, I had never been in such a situation before. Actually, I've been in the opposite situation.

“You should thank your lucky stars that nothing happened to him. Leave.” Elias' voice came out low and dangerous.

Suddenly I felt like someone was watching me. I looked at the balcony above and my eyes met with Adrian’s.

He looked like he was angry. His eyes moved from mine and now he was looking at Elias. I watched his jaw tighten as his deep blue eyes drilled an invisible hole in Elias' head.