Chapter 2

All I understood was that I would be a debt offering for the pack.

"No!" The word came out of my mouth before I could stop it. "No, Alpha Finnick. You can't do this to me."

Finnick's face went hard. "I can do whatever is necessary to protect this pack."

"By selling me?" My voice cracked. "By trading me like I'm some kind of animal?"

"You're unmated," Finnick said coldly. "You have no protection, no rights in this pack. Three dead mates prove you're dangerous to everyone around you."

"What do you mean Dead mates, I didn't kill anyone!"

"The result is the same," the lead enforcer said, looking at his tablet again. "What exactly are you offering, Alpha Finnick?"

"Her." Finnick pointed at me. "The girl. She's of breeding age, carries the Thorne bloodline, ancient rare werewolf nobility, Umbralath, The Grimshaw brothers could find valuable uses for her, despite the... complications”

The enforcer studied me with cold eyes. "Explain these complications."

"She's had four mates, three died under mysterious circumstances. The fourth rejected her tonight. Some call her cursed."

"Cursed or killer?" Rebecca stepped forward with a twisted smile on her face. "Tell them the truth, Alpha. Tell them how her mates really died."

""Don't you dare..." I said desperately.

"Afraid? let's talk about it." Rebecca's voice got louder, carrying across the clearing. "Let's talk about how Silas was found torn apart after his first hunt with you. How David's throat was ripped open just weeks after accepting you. How Wesley just collapsed and died, perfectly healthy one day, dead the next."

"Those were accidents!" I shouted. "I wasn't even there when Wesley died!"

"Weren't you?" Rebecca tilted her head. "Funny how death follows you everywhere, Kiera. Funny how convenient all these accidents were."

The pack members started whispering again, louder this time.

"She was there that morning," someone said.

"Saw her near the training grounds right before they found him," another voice added.

"Always around when something bad happens," Thomas said, nodding.

"You're all lying!" I spun around, looking at their faces. "You know you're lying!"

"Am I? Hahaha" Rebecca burst into laughter. "Tell us, Kiera. Tell us exactly where you were when Wesley died."

My mouth opened but no words came out. I had been near the training grounds that morning. I went there looking for him because we were supposed to meet. But when I found him...

"See?" Rebecca's smile got wider. "Can't even deny it. She was there, everyone. Right there when another mate died."

"Monster!" someone whispered.

"Killer!" 

"No!" I screamed. "No, I would never hurt anyone! You all know me!"

"We thought we knew you," Elder Morio said quietly. "But four mates, Kiera. Four."

The enforcer looked between me and Finnick. "And you want to trade this... problem... to settle your debt?"

"She's not my problem anymore," Finnick said. "She'll be theirs."

I felt something break inside my chest. Not the mate bond this time but something deeper.

"Don't you dare," I whispered. "Don't you dare do this to me."

"It's done," Finnick said. He looked at the enforcer. "Will the Grimshaw brothers accept her as payment?"

The enforcer made a phone call, speaking quietly into his phone. I caught pieces of words. "Female." "Breeding age." "Complications." "Four previous bonds."

He hung up and looked at Finnick. "They'll see her. If she's acceptable, the debt is forgiven."

"And if it happens she's not acceptable?" Finnick asked.

The enforcer's smile was cold. "Then we collect the money. Tonight. Plus interest for the delay."

"She'll be acceptable," Finnick said quickly. Too quickly.

Two enforcers moved toward me. I backed away instinctively.

"Dint you dare touch me!" I said, with my voice was shaking.

"Come willingly or don't," the lead enforcer said. "Either way, you're coming."

I looked around the clearing one last time. My pack. My home. Twenty-two years of my life spent here.

Not one person stepped forward to help me.

"Kiera," Tore called out weakly. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Sorry ? What's the use of being sorry. 

"Your sorry doesn't help me now" 

The enforcers reached for my arms. I jerked away from them.

"I can walk by myself!"

"Then walk," the lead enforcer said. "To the car. Now."

I took one step, then another. Each step felt like walking to my own execution.

"Wait," Rebecca called out sweetly. "Shouldn't everyone know the truth before she leaves?"

"Rebecca, enough!" Morio said.

"No, not enough." Rebecca's voice carried across the clearing. "Tell them, Kiera. Tell them how you really killed Wesley."

"I didn't kill him!"

"Then how did you know exactly where to find his body?" Rebecca asked. "How did you know he'd be at the training grounds that morning?"

My blood went cold. "Because we had a meeting planned."

"A meeting?" Rebecca laughed. "Or an ambush? Tell us about the meeting, Kiera. Tell us what you planned to do to him."

"She planned it," Rebecca continued loudly. "Planned to meet him there alone. Planned to…"

"I planned to accept his proposal!" The words exploded out of me. "He was going to ask me to be his chosen mate! That's why we were meeting!"

The clearing went silent.

"But he never got the chance, did he?" Rebecca's voice was poisonous. "Because he died before he could ask."

"I found him dead!" I said desperately. "I found him and I screamed for help. You all know that!"

"We know you were screaming," Thomas said slowly. "But was it for help? Or was it because you enjoyed what you'd done?"

"You're sick," I whispered. "All of you are sick."

The enforcers grabbed my arms. This time I didn't pull away. I was too broken to fight.

"Murderer," someone said as they dragged me toward the car.

"Monster." .

"Killer," Rebecca called out cheerfully. "Don't come back, killer!"

 "Where are you taking me?" I asked desperately as they pulled me towards the car. "What do you want with me?”

They shoved me into the back seat of the first car. The doors slammed shut and I was surrounded by darkness.

I looked back through the rear window as we drove away. The pack was still standing there, watching me disappear. Rebecca was still smiling.

The car was more like a mobile prison than a vehicle. Heavy glass, reinforced doors, no way to escape. I was trapped.

"Where are you taking me?" I asked desperately again. "What do you want from me?"

"Please," I called out, with my voice breaking. "Please just let me go. I won't tell anyone anything. I'll disappear. No one will ever see me again."

" You'll soon find out”