Chapter 4

C4: Wine Cellar…

In the Alpha's mansion, Alice stood outside dressed in a white shirt, black trousers, and a pair of black boots. 

Her black hair was tied neatly in a bun as she impatiently tapped her foot on the ground.

Finally, Raine came out wearing a simple green dress, carrying her small bag carefully against her chest.

“This is my first time training and you are here delaying me,” Alice whined, glaring at her as if Raine had committed a grave offense.

“I'm sorry, let's go,” Raine said softly, lowering her gaze as she climbed into the carriage.

Soon they arrived at the training ground. The warriors greeted Alice warmly, waving and smiling at her as she walked past. Some bowed their heads slightly in respect.

But when their eyes landed on Raine, their expressions changed. Some looked away with indifference while others stared at her with clear scorn.

“Hi, my name is Maya. It's nice to see you,” a blonde girl said as she approached them with a bright smile.

Raine smiled politely, unsure if the girl was speaking to her.

“I'm not referring to you,” Maya scoffed, her eyes flicking dismissively toward Raine.

“I will be your guide today. Come, let me show you around,” she said cheerfully to Alice before leading her away.

Raine remained standing there for a moment, watching them leave.

A quiet sigh escaped her lips as she began to wander on her own.

Maybe… maybe Raphael would be in the inner training ground.

The thought alone made her steps lighter.

When she reached the inner ground, her eyes immediately found him.

Raphael stood under the bright sunlight, training with a sword. His movements were strong and precise, every strike cutting sharply through the air.

Sweat glistened faintly on his skin as the sunlight fell over him.

“Raph…” she called softly, waving her hand.

The young man instantly stopped and turned toward her.

The moment he saw her, a bright smile spread across his face.

He dropped the sword without hesitation and walked toward her.

Raine watched him breathlessly.

His dimples appeared as he smiled, and under the sunlight he somehow looked even more handsome than usual.

Raphael noticed the way she stared at him and chuckled softly.

“How have you been, dear?” he asked gently as he stopped before her.

“Been good… and you? How is your injury?” she asked, her eyes instinctively moving to his stomach where he had once been wounded.

“I'm fine. My wounds are completely healed,” he replied easily. “Besides, I have high healing abilities.”

He flicked her nose playfully.

Raine giggled softly.

“But it was still serious. For you to be injured that way, they must have been rogues… or an Alpha,” she said, her voice turning worried again.

“True,” he admitted with a small shrug. “But I'm completely fine now, so don't worry your pretty head.”

Raine nodded, though she still looked unconvinced.

The sunlight suddenly hit her eyes and she raised a hand to block it.

Raphael noticed immediately.

Without saying a word, he gently took her smaller hands in his and led her to a shaded corner nearby.

The simple gesture made Raine's heart flutter.

She looked down at their intertwined hands, a soft smile forming on her lips.

For a moment, the world around them felt peaceful.

They chatted for a while, laughter occasionally escaping Raine as she watched him train again.

Time passed quickly.

When she realized it was almost time for Alice to leave, she hurried away and went back to meet her at the general training ground.

A few weeks later…

Alice had begun to grow suspicious.

For several weeks now, she had noticed Raine sneaking away to the inner training ground instead of staying with her.

The thought bothered her deeply,

So she reported it to her mother.

Raine was immediately summoned to the sitting room.

The moment she stepped inside, her eyes fell on Luna Indira… and the whip resting in her hand.

Fear gripped her chest.

“You were instructed to accompany your sister to the training ground,” Luna Indira said slowly, her eyes narrowing dangerously.

“So where did you disappear to all this while she trained?”

“I… I went to meet a friend,” Raine answered quickly, her voice trembling slightly.

“I didn't leave the training ground.”

Her eyes kept darting nervously to the whip.

“Mother, ask her who that friend is,” Alice spoke calmly, though there was clear malice in her voice.

“I met her with a warrior in a compromising position the day we went to the training ground to pick my tutor. Last time it was the forest… now the training ground.”

She folded her arms.

“She is slowly ruining our reputation.”

Luna Indira's expression darkened instantly.

“So you've decided to bring shame to this family,” she said coldly, “by sleeping around with different men?”

Raine shook her head frantically.

“No, mother…”

“Kneel.The command struck the air like thunder.

At the same time, Luna Indira released her powerful aura.

Alice staggered slightly even though it wasn't directed at her.

Raine collapsed to the ground instantly.

Her ears rang violently as if thousands of needles were piercing through her body.

Pain surged through her veins, making it difficult to breathe.

Luna Indira raised the whip.

The first strike landed brutally across Raine's back.

The sound echoed through the room.

Raine gasped, her body jerking forward.

The second strike followed immediately.

Then the third.

Each lash was harsher than the last, tearing through the fabric of her dress and into her skin.

Raine tried to remain silent, biting her lip to keep from crying out.

But the pain was unbearable.

Tears streamed uncontrollably down her face.

After what felt like an eternity, Luna Indira finally stopped.

The whip fell from her hand onto the floor.

Alice smirked quietly behind her.

On the ground, Raine had curled into herself, her body trembling weakly.

The back of her dress was torn open, blood slowly trickling down her wounded skin.

Luna Indira looked at her with pure disgust.

“Lock her in the wine cellar,” she ordered the guards coldly.

“She should learn how to behave.” She said and left with Alice.

The cellar door creaked open.

Raine's weak body was thrown inside.

She hit the ground with a heavy thud.

Darkness swallowed the room.

Large wine jars surrounded her on every side, the air thick and cold.

Slowly, painfully, Raine pulled her knees toward her chest and wrapped her arms around them.

Tears rolled silently down her face.

Her body burned with pain.

But what hurts more… was her heart.

She had done nothing wrong,Yet no one believed her.

No one ever did.

Eventually, exhaustion overcame her pain.

Her tears slowed… and she slowly drifted into an uneasy sleep.

Two days later

Raphael couldn't focus.

For two days now, Raine hadn't come to the training ground.

At first he told himself not to worry.

His wolf even tried to calm him.

But the uneasy feeling in his chest refused to go away.

Training felt dull and meaningless.

Every weapon in his hand suddenly felt heavy.

He missed her. He missed that cheerful face.

The way she smiled at him… the way she complimented him after every training session.

With frustration boiling inside him, he swung his sword violently through the air.

“Damn it,” he muttered under his breath.

“If I had known… I wouldn't have told her how I feel.”

He cursed again, swinging his sword sideways.

The blade suddenly stopped just a few centimeters away from someone's neck.

Raphael froze.Slowly, he turned.

Alice stood there.

His expression immediately darkened.

“What are you doing here?” he asked coldly, clearly disappointed to see her.

Alice stared at him in a daze.

Her mind had gone completely blank.

She had only come here to taunt the warrior Raine had been meeting.

But she hadn't expected it to be him.

She had only seen Raphael briefly the first time she visited Silver Pack.

Now, standing this close…

He looked even more handsome.

More muscular and ..perfect.

Exactly like the alphas in the fairytales she adored.

Raphael raised an eyebrow at her silence.

Then he pressed the cold blade lightly against her throat.

The chill snapped her back to reality.

She coughed nervously.

“Umm… I'm here to search for…” she stammered, glancing around quickly.

Suddenly her eyes lit up.

“Maya… I mean my tutor.”

“You mean Beta Mascot?” Raphael asked, loosening his grip slightly.Alice nodded eagerly.

“Yes, he is my tutor. Did you see him?”

“No,” Raphael replied shortly.

“He wouldn't be here. Training period is over.”

He lowered the sword beside him.

After observing her for a moment, recognition finally crossed his face.

“Are you Raine's sister?”

Alice's expression twisted briefly before she quickly forced a smile.

“Yes… she is my sister,” she said, playing with her black braids.

She hated talking about Raine.

But if it meant continuing the conversation with him… she would endure it.

Raphael's eyes narrowed slightly.

“She didn't come to the training ground today. What happened?”

He already knew the pack didn't treat Raine well, even her parents.

And the way Alice's expression darkened at the mention of Raine…

Made a bad feeling settle in his chest.

Something was definitely wrong.