Chapter 001

YEARS AGO.

“No, Mama,” the little girl wails, clinging to her mother. Her tiny fists knot into the folds of her mother's cloak, her voice trembling with terror. “I don't want to stay here.”

The woman's heart shatters, but she swallows the sob clawing its way up her throat. She crouches low, pressing her forehead to Freya’s.

“You must, my love,” she whispers, her voice breaking. “They’ll find you if you stay with me.”

The girl wonders if the “they” has to do with the strange man that got hurt in the fire she accidentally caused when she scrambled from under the bed and knocked over a candle.

She shakes her head violently, tears streaking down her chubby cheeks. “I’ll be quiet, Mama! I’ll hide!”

Her mother stiffens, her heart squeezing painfully. Then with trembling hands, she pries Freya's hands from her cloak.

“Listen to me, Freya,” She tries to keep her voice steady. “You were never meant to be born. You will be safe here.”

She was never meant to be born.

The words sounds like thunderclap in little Freya's ears as her mother shoves her into the waiting Madam's hands.

She screams. “Mama! Please!”

But her mother never looked back.

Not even once.

-------------

PRESENT TIME

*FREYA*

It will soon be over. Just one more day.

A man grunts above me, his weight crushing the air from my lungs.

I stare at the cracked ceiling, my mind far away from the room, from him… from everything.

This isn’t me. It hasn’t been me for a long time.

“Yeah… take it…” he slurs drunkenly.

But I feel nothing.

Not the touch.

Not the disgust clawing at my throat.

Just emptiness.

This has been my life since I turned eighteen.

Madamè Cherie. My captor or my benefactor as she would rather call herself was probably somewhere downstairs, smacking her lips as she counts her profits.

My mother left me in her care — for protection she had claimed. But immediately I turned eighteen, the reality became clearer.

I was sold to become a whore.

Whatever was in that bitter potion Madamé Cheriè forces down my throat before each night somehow keeps me from conceiving.

When it’s finally over, he tosses a few crumpled notes at me like I’m nothing more than what I’ve been reduced to.

Something to use.

He then staggers out of the room, fumbling with his clothes, and the door slams shut behind him.

I gather the money silently and tuck it into my hidden bundle before Madamè Cheriè comes and snatches them away.

This will be useful for the future.

The door creaks open again.

My body stiffens when my eyes land on the next customer.

Silas.

My stomach drops.

Of all nights… why him?

He steps inside slowly, a cruel smile stretching across his face.

“Well… look who I get tonight.”

My pulse spikes.

“Stay away from me,” I whisper, backing up.

He laughs like I just dropped the joke of the century.

“You know I enjoy it when you struggle.”

My fingers curl slightly as I relieve the pain I experienced the last time he was here.

Not tonight.

Then he leans closer, his voice dropping into something darker.

“I paid a lot for tonight.”

My breath catches.

“For what?” I manage to choke out despite the lump forming in my throat.

His smile widens as he traces a finger down my exposed arm making my skin crawl.

“To have you… before the king takes you.”

Everything inside me freezes.

The king.

No.

“No…” I whisper, my pulse racing.

But Silas just chuckles.

“Didn’t they tell you?” he murmurs. “You’ve been chosen.”

Cold dread slams into my chest.

King Orion Hargrove.

He'd buy girls from the Courtesan house to build his harem.

Madamè willingly sells without bating an eyelid.

It was a way she could make some more money and protection in return.

But the girls that were sold—they were never heard of again.

Something inside me snaps.

I’m not dying here.

I’m not going to be dragged into some king’s twisted harem and disappear like the rest.

Not without fighting.

Before Silas can react, I drive my knee into his groin.

He howls in pain, clutching his groin area.

“You bitch!”

I quickly grab my bundle and move to the small window.

It's now or never.

Before I can leap, my skull slams against the wall.

“You stupid bitch,” Silas snarls.

Blood drips down my temple as he drags me back.

Pain explodes in my head as I blink past the dizziness.

“You really think you can escape, huh?!” he spits, his voice full of venom.

“You never learn, do you?!”

He unbuckles his belt and folds it in his hands, his lips curling in a sardonic smirk.

My eyes widen.

The first strike lands.

But I don’t scream.I won’t give him that.

I bite down on my lips tightly till I taste blood to prevent any sound from slipping out.

“You really think you can escape from here? The wolves in the forest will tear you to shreds,” he hiss, his chest heaving.

I squeeze my eyes shut, bracing myself for the second but nothing.

My eyes flutter open and he's standing there—still as a stone, his gaze fixed on my torn sleeve.

I know what's he is looking at.

The ugly scars that snake around my arm like a memory I can't remember.

Madamè Cherié always said to keep them covered — pretty girls don’t have flaws, she’d whisper while tugging my sleeves higher.

Silas stares at them in disgust.

Using that moment, I grab a bottle and smash it against his head with all the strength I can muster.

His eyes roll over and he crumples to the ground with a thud.

The reality of what I have done crashes over me and the bottle slips from my trembling hands, shattering on the floor.

A whimper escapes from my lips.

Did I just murder someone?

Just as panic rise in my throat, I see his chest move slowly.

He's alive.

Barely.

The sound of approaching footsteps fill the hallway and blood drains from my face.

I need to leave. Now.

Throwing my bundle through the window, I jump out and land on my feet.

Pain shoots through my ankle and my knees buckle but I force myself up.

The rough road that leads to the gate stretches ahead before me .

I need to hurry and cross the gate before the first light.

Before the guards at the city gates resume their patrol.

Most of them are regulars at the courtesan's house and would recognize me.

I whip my head around just in time to see Madamè Cheriè 's red face peeking from the broken window of my room as she glares down at me.

“Get her!”

I don't stay to hear the rest of her words as I bolt into the darkness. I race past the line of trees, fully aware of the sounds of boots behind me.

I turn around a path I know so well and the ancient stone walls come into view.

My fingers find the narrow gaps between the bricks as I start to climb.

Halfway up, my hand slips, and the broken bricks clatter to the ground.

Tears of frustration burn the corner of my eyes and I try again.

Suddenly, footsteps echo behind me and flashlight wash over me.

I freeze.

“Who's there?!” a guard hollers.

“Shit,” I mutter under my breath.

Adrenaline surges through me and I push off the last brick, pushing myself over the steep wall just as my muscles scream in protest.

I hit the ground hard on the other side, the pain on my ankle worsens as the world tilts for a moment.

Diving deep into the forest, I push past branches, the ground slick with mud.

Thorns pierce the sole of my feet but the pain doesn't stop me.

After walking for a while, I near a clearing and my legs protest in pain.

I rest against the rough bark of a tree, my hand pressed against my chest to control my laboured breathing.

Something moves in my right followed by a low growl and snap of twigs.

Amber eyes glow in the dark.

My face turns pale, beads of sweat trailing down my back.

I try to move but my legs muscles become stiff. Something shifts behind me and I turn.

Red eyes glare at me.

A huge wolf prowls from the shadows steathily toward me.

A scream claws its way up my throat.

This is it.

I'm going to die.