Chapter 2: First Meeting~

The Lycan Enforcer~

~Annabeth’s POV~

The air around me felt heavy, charged with a static electricity that made the fine hairs on my arms stand up. I looked at the Lycan Enforcer, Kael, and for a split second, I saw death. He wasn't just a man, he looked like a mountain of muscle, staring at me with the cold, calculating gaze of a predator who had found a new, interesting toy.

I sucked in a shaky breath and took a step forward, breaking past the wall of wolves in front of me. I stopped the moment I saw his face up close. He didn't look like the older, Lycan Enforcer I vividly remembered. He looked young, his features sharp and aristocratic even, but his eyes... they were a piercing, light blue that seemed to bore right through my skin, threatening to snap my neck if I gave him the slightest reason.

Before I could process the fear I was feeling, his entourage surged forward. Two massive men, their hands like iron shackles, grabbed my arms. They didn't lead me, they dragged me. My sandals skidded over the ground, my knees buckling as I struggled to keep up with their giant strides.

With a rough shove, they threw me at the Enforcer's feet.

I hit the ground hard, my palms stinging as they scraped against the dirt. I scrambled into a crouch, my hands and knees trembling, and looked up. The Enforcer squatted down, invading my personal space until I could smell the sharp, manly scent of his cologne.

He reached out, his fingers hooking under my jaw with a grip that was surprisingly steady.

"A human girl," he mused. His voice a low, sweet purr that sent a fresh wave of shiver through my veins. "It's been a while I met one. I thought your kind had been bred out of these territories a while back."

My lower lip wobbled. I hated it. I had spent seventeen years watching wolves look strong, and I wanted to mirror that strength now, but my human biology was betraying me. It took everything in me not to look him in the eyes. I kept looking elsewhere.

In the wild, looking away from an Alpha was a sign of submission, but looking at one was a challenge. I didn't want him to think I was challenging him. I was trapped in a paradox of fear.

"How intriguing," Kael’s voice drifted upward as he stood, his hand shifting from my chin to a bruising grip on my upper arm. He yanked me up with him, the force of it nearly dislocating my shoulder.

He shoved me back toward Tommy. I didn't wait, I scrambled to Tommy’s side, my fingers digging into his forearm. Tommy was fuming with a silent, lethal fury. I could feel the heat radiating off his skin. His wolf was at the surface, wanting nothing more than to shred the Enforcer’s throat for touching me.

"What is she to you?" Kael asked, his eyes never leaving us.

"Her parents were killed," Alpha Dorian interjected again, stepping forward to smooth things over. "We allowed her to be a companion for young Thomas. A charity case, really."

Kael turned his head slightly, a dangerous glint in his eyes. "I asked your nephew, Dorian."

He took a step closer, the framed painting between them now feeling like a flimsy shield. "What is she to you?"

Tommy lowered his eyes to me, his gaze softening for a fraction of a second before he looked back at the Enforcer. "She is my friend. My best friend in everything."

Kael’s eyebrows rose. "Is she your mate? I’ve never heard of a human mating with a high blooded wolf like yourself, you are Alpha Dorian's nephew, are you not?."

"I am. And no she is not my mate," Tommy murmured, the words coming out unsteadily.

"A servant, perhaps?"

"No."

"Does she provide a service here?"

"She does her share," Tommy said, his voice suddenly gaining a hard edge. "She’s one of us."

"But she provides no purpose being human," Kael countered. His gaze moved back to me, cold and clinical. "Why have you not turned her? Why leave her so... fragile?"

"Sir, only a mated human could survive the turn," Tommy said, sounding confused. "To bite her without mating would be to kill her."

"So," Kael said, and the finality in his tone made my stomach drop. "She is of no further use to this pack. She is a liability. A drain on your resources."

I stiffened. This is it, I thought. He’s going to execute me here in the dirt. I looked at my feet, watching a small ant crawl over the strap of my sandal. It had more of a future than I did.

"Girl," Kael addressed me. He stepped into my shadow, his presence overwhelming. "Do you not speak?"

I opened my mouth, but my throat felt like it was filled with dry sand. I managed a tiny, pathetic croak.

"Tell me why you should stay here, little girl."

"I... I’ve lived here since I was two," I whispered. "This is my home."

"And because you have lived here, you believe you have a right to continue living?" Kael leaned down, his face inches from mine. I could see a faint of silver around his pupils. "In my world, survival isn't a right. It’s a privilege granted by the strong."

I looked at Tommy, a silent plea for help, but I saw the agony in his eyes. He couldn't help me. Disrespecting the King's Enforcer meant the execution of the entire family. In this case, the whole pack.

"Don't look at him," Kael growled. "Look at me. Tell me why I shouldn't end your struggle right now."

"I don't know," I said, the honesty breaking through my terror. Tears finally blurred my vision. "I don't know why I'm still here. I just want to live."

Kael studied me for a long beat, his expression unreadable. Then, he straightened his navy suit and turned back to Dorian.

"I really must be on my way, I suddenly remembered something I must do," he said, his tone suddenly light, as if he hadn't just been debating my death.

"You won't stay even for the festivities?" Dorian offered, desperate to stay in Kael's good graces.

"The old Enforcer left me with my work cut out for me. You were my last stop anyway." Kael nodded to his men, and the SUVs began to roar to life, the sound like a pack of metal beasts.

"Thank you for the hospitality, Dorian." Kael grasped the Alpha's arm, then gestured to the painting. "The art is impressive. Load it."

The men moved quickly, sliding the canvas into the back of a car. Kael paused at the door of the lead SUV, a dark, smug grin playing on his lips. It was the first time his stone mask had slipped.

"Oh and," he added, his eyes locking onto mine. "The human girl comes with me, as well."

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