“You remind me of her,” Lucas growled, his voice low. “Her name is Lena. A rogue like you. Every time I look at you, I see her face, and I want to burn it to ash—tear you apart, piece by piece.” His fists clenched, veins bulging, his gray eyes blazing with a pain so raw it hit me like a punch. I stood frozen, the choke chain collar making me feel like a dog, its weight still heavy on my neck, my wrists raw from the rope earlier. His scent twisted with the mate bond, making my skin itch, my wolf whimpering at the enmity and hatred his wolf was posing toward her.“What did she do to you?” I asked, voice low, shaky, trying to piece together his hatred. “This Lena—who was she?”He laughed, a harsh, croaking sound that echoed dryly in the vast hall. “She was a liar,” he said, stepping closer, his boots thudding on the polished wood floor. “A rogue who hid what she was. I loved her, marked her, broke every rule for her. And she brought me curse. Curse on my bloodline. No heir, no future.
Fear crept in, but I shoved it back, maintaining a stern look at him. “Keeping me alive till now is a mistake, you know that? Better kill me now because I hate you so much that I won’t hesitate to slit your throat when you sleep!” I spat and he scoffed.“You haven’t felt my cruelty yet,” he said, his voice cold like the iron wall of the cart, no trace of his usual smirk. “There are no chains on you, no broken bones, no poison in your veins like your other two friends. Hate and call me a devil when I make you face hell on earth.” His gray eyes flicked to me, sharp and intense.“I already hate you for killing my people and destroying my home,” I muttered, my voice rough, scraping my throat like glass. My cheek still throbbed from his men’s punch earlier, blood crusted on my arm from his claws when we fought, and the memory of Clara’s groans; how her body jerked under that syringe. They all burned in my chest with rage..“You’ll hate me more soon,” he said with a shrug, picking up a map
The shots never came. Just clicks—empty, hollow sounds from guns with no bullets. I opened my eyes, exhaling a breath I didn’t know I’d trapped, my chest heaving. The air was heavy with tension, the gaze of Lucas sending cold bites on my skin, and the silence after the clicks was louder than the screams that had torn through the night.Lucas stood there, his gray eyes glinting, a smirk curling his lips like he’d won a sick game. “Fifteen of your rats shot at you,” he said, voice low, dripping with venom. “No loyalty. They’d kill my personal toy, their queen, just to save their skins.” His words stung, sharp as the mate bond twisting in my gut, his scent still choking me despite the open air. My wolf whimpered, still clinging to him, but I shoved her down, my blood hot with hate.He snapped his fingers, the sound sharp in the quiet, and five of his men moved, dragging the fifteen rogues who’d pulled the triggers. Clara wasn’t among them. Her gun had hit the dirt when Lucas counted
I glared at Lucas while he pulled me out of the room by the hair, my eyes burning with hate, my fists clenched so tight my nails cut into my palms. His gray eyes glinted back, sharp and mocking, like he was enjoying my anger. The air outside the house was thick with blood and distant cry, the ground slick with mud. My barefoot stuck in it, the cold seeping through.“Keep turning me on with that glare, and I’ll drag you to my pack now and fuck you till you’re sour,” he said, voice low, a smirk curling his lips.I scoffed, my voice rough, scraping my throat. “Touch me, and I’ll cut your hands off,” I spat, but his pine and sandalwood scent hit me again, twisting with the mate bond, making my skin crawl and my wolf whimper in longing. I hated the feeling. I hated him, hated my inner wolf for wanting him. Fuck the moon goddess for this nonsense bond.“You can’t do anything, bitch!” He snickered.“You really don’t know me, Alpha King. I’m not the scared, weak girl called a curse and br
“Mate!” My wolf’s howl tore through my head, raw and desperate, like a cry I couldn’t choke back. I froze, jaw slack, staring at the man in the doorway. His face twisted, nose flaring, and his gray eyes blazed with hatred so sharp it felt like a blade against my throat. The air was thick with my cigar smoke and the bite of vodka, but his sandalwood scent hit harder, soothing and addictive as if he wasn’t a raging storm about to break down on me. His scent tangled with mine, pulling tight, and my gut twisted. The moon goddess was screwing me up, creating a mate bond with my enemy. With the same man destroying my people. He cocked his gun, the click sharp in the quiet, sending a shiver down my spine, cold as the slums’ mud. “What the hell,” he muttered in frustration, wiping his nose with the back of his hand, like my scent was something rotten. I stayed silent, staring up at his six-foot-two height, his broad shoulders straining his black singlet, tattoos curling over his
The forest spat me out into the slums, my legs burning, chest heaving like I had run from the moon itself. For any other wolf, it would have been easier to shift into their wolves and race through but a useless wolf like me only had my legs.The air hit me hard—smoke, sweat, and something sour, like rotting meat left in the sun. My boots sank into the muddy ground, a mix of dirt and who-knows-what, as I stumbled into the new town. My pack had a particular scent that bonds everyone together but not for a place like here. There were most huts with only a few houses built with bricks. Lanterns flickered, casting shadows that danced like ghosts, and the noise was everywhere—shouts, metal clanging, wild howls. This was no pack, no valley with rules and wolves. This was a chaotic place mixed with different kinds of abnormal wolves, and I was just another stray dog in it.I was still Rose, but the name felt like a bruise, like a stupid word to use in a place like this.My jacket was torn,