6

Nymeria

I had no idea which part of this whole situation was more weird to me. Was it the fact that Alpha Zaran seemed really invested in my miserable life or that I was standing right in front of him almost naked?

He furrowed his brows and shake his head before looking down at me. "No," he said. "I do not believe for a second that you killed your parents."

I swallowed, and forced my eyes up to look at him. "You have to believe it," I said even though I do not like from the words. "I do not remember anything else from back then, but I remember that.... I remember trying to help them when that strange power burst out of me... and then they died in my own hands.."

He let out a low scoff as he crossed his arms on his broad chest. "And you did not find it strange at all? Out of every single childhood memory you have lost, that is the only one you remember?"

I did not know what to answer so i turned my head, as stared out of the window instead.

I was still trying to wrap my mind around everything that happened today.

I have just been sold like a piece of meat to a man I did not even know. And Kael, my own brother did not even hesitate for a single second before handing me over.

I let out a bitter smile. Who was I kidding anyway?

Kael never saw me as his sister. To him, I was just a wolfless murderer, who murdered his parents. It was no surprise he wanted to sell me off the very first chance he got.

"Nymeria, are you even listening to me?"

Zaran's voice snapped me right out of my head.

I blinked and turned back to him. "Huh?"

He let out a sigh and gestured toward my body. "Put your clothes back on, I am going to show you our room before we head out to see Maria."

My stomach did a quick flip. Our... room?

I frowned as a small cold shiver ran straight down my body.

I was going to be sharing a bedroom with a total stranger?

Damn you, Kael.

"I... I thought this was my room," I stammered out quickly as i pulled my dress back up around my chest to hide myself.

"No," Zaran said simply as he already turned towards the door and walking. "Follow me."

I did not waste a second. I pulled my clothes up, tied the fabric as tight as I could around my waist, and jogged to catch up with his fast walking.

If there was one tiny thing I was thankful for right now, it was that the ugly wound on my body from my dream was healed when I woke up.

If I were still back in my old pack, Kael and his mate would have forced me to work with it until I collapsed, worse, they probably would have just left me to die.

Zaran stopped outside a big double doors that was at the end of the hallway and pushed them open.

When I stepped inside behind him, my eyes nearly popped out of my head.

Compared to the cell I was sleeping in back in my pack, this place was pure heaven.

My old room was hell, but this... this was fascinating..

The room was huge with massive floor-to-ceiling glass windows covering the entire wall.

Right in the center was a bed, it was damn big and it looked like five people could sleep on it comfortably.

Everything looked perfect.

"The bathroom is right through there," Zaran said, his voice snapping me out of my day dream.

He pointed toward a door on the right. "Hit the hot water pipe a little if you want it warm. I'm going to go get you something neat to change into."

Before I could even answer, he turned and left, and closed the door behind him.

I stood there for a moment as I tried to process all this. Everyone in this world said Alpha Zaran was a cold monster who had killed his own mate, yet here he was putting in so much effort for a wolfless girl like me.

Was it luck? Perhaps a trap?

Shaking the thoughts away, I walked over to the bathroom door and pushed it open.

I scanned the inside carefully to see that it has a huge white bathtub close to the wall.

I quickly stripped off my clothes and stepped in to the tub. I turned the handles and the water started to fill the basin.

I let out a small gasp as the the hot water touched my sore body. I could not even remember the last time I had a proper bath. Back home, I was barely allowed to bath myself, let alone sit in warm water like this. It felt so good I almost wanted to cry.

Bang!

I heard the bedroom door kicked open.

"Ah!" I gasped, instantly as i wrapped my arms tightly over my chest and knees before pulling myself as low as I could in the water.

"Who is that?!"

"It is me," Zaran's voice called out from the bedroom. "I brought you some clothes to change in to. They are on the bed. I will be waiting outside."

I hold my breath, and only lowered my arms when I heard the bedroom door shut back close.

I did not stay in the water much longer after that..

There were soft, fluffy towels hanging on the rack, but I was too afraid to use something so nice, so I ended up using my dress to wipe the water off my skin.

Before stepping fully into the bedroom, I peeped through the small crack of the door to make sure Zaran was actually gone.

Seeing that the room was empty, I hurried over to the bed.

The clothes and underwear he left were completely brand new and still sealed inside the package.

I tore the nylon open and quickly put everything on.

The panties were way too big for my tiny body, so I had to tie the sides tightly so they would not slide off. The joggers were baggy too, but they had a drawstring I pull it tight around my waist.

The hoodie cov me, but it was warm and soft on my body.

"Are you done in there?" Zaran's voice sounded from outside the door.

"Yes!" I said back.

The door was pushed open and Zaran stepped inside.

The moment he entered, his eyes scanned me from head to toe. I immediately became nervous under his gaze, and i was just shifting my feet and tugging at the long sleeves.

Zaran paused and i saw his his eyes softened slightly as he noticed how huge the cloth looked on me.

"They are a little big for you," he said quietly. "Tomorrow, I will have someone bring you clothes in your exact size."

He did not wait for me to response, he turned and said, "Come on," over his shoulder.

I followed closely behind him. Out in the corridors, I finally had the chance to look at the environment. It was big and neat.

Every time a maid passed us in the hallway, they immediately stopped and bowed their heads respectfully.

It was odd to me because back in my old pack, I was treated worse than a slave, but here, nobody was throwing insults or garbage at me as I walked by.

We made our way to a clinic at the side of the house. Inside was a woman who looked to be in her late thirties. She was busy mixing small vials on a desk.

The moment she sensed us, she turned around. "Ah, she is awake," the woman said with a smile on her face.

Zaran nudged me forward toward her.

"Maria, she has marks all over her body."

"Binding marks," Zaran added as he looked at Maria. "They show up every single time she wakes up from a dream about her past and she can not remember a thing."

Maria stopped what she was doing instantly as her eyes snapped to mine, and her expression was serious. "Come inside, child. Let me have a look."

I followed Maria into a smaller, private examination room. I hesitated for a second before lifting the hoodie up to my shoulders.

Maria let out a gasp the moment she saw my skin. "Moon Goddess... this is far more serious than I thought."

She walked quickly back to her table ad she grabbed a different herbs and liquids and mixed them together into a small glass bottle. She then picked up a silver necklace with a black stone attached to it from a shelf.

She walked back and handed me the bottle. "You will use this oil to rub directly on the marks every night and we will see if it will clear them."

Then, Maria raised the silver necklace in her hands.

I instantly understood what she wanted. I turned around and pulled my hair out of the way, as i positioned my neck so she could clasp it behind me.

"This necklace won't stop whoever that is invading your dreams," Maria warned softly. "But it will stop the physical attacks from manifesting as marks on your real body while you sleep."

"Thank you..." I murmured softly as let my hoodie drop back down.

"That will be all for now," Maria said, giving me a reassuring nod.

I nodded and stepped out of the room.

Zaran was standing right outside in the hallway.

His eyes were closed and he was clearly mind-linking someone, and his face was filled in anger.

The veins on his neck were bulging.

I swallowed hard and stepped back in fear.

It was as if he felt my anxiety, because his eyes snapped open and he immediately relaxed his aggressive posture.

He walked over to me, and stepped down to my eye level.

"What did Maria say?"

I hold up the small glass bottle in my hand and pointed to the new necklace around my neck, repeating everything Maria had just told me.

As I spoke, Zaran's face looked more annoyed. His eyes turned a dangerous, glowing gold as he stared at the bottle in my hand.

"I swear on my life," Zaran growled. "if I find out your brother had a hand in putting these binding marks on you... I will fu*king kill him."