Solana

CHAPTER TWO

SOLANA

I tried to run, and they came for me – the Kingsguards. They shoved a dark sack over my head, tied my wrists, dragged me away as I screamed and pushed me into a carriage.

The carriage rattled and lurched, every bump jarring my bruised body. I stopped screaming hours ago when they threatened to gag me. My hands were tied behind my back, and I couldn’t see a thing. No one spoke to me. I was left alone in my misery and paranoia. I’d heard enough about the Supreme Alpha to know I wouldn't survive this. 

My father hadn’t sold me away to pay a debt. He sold me to my death. 

Eventually, the carriage stopped, and they dragged me out like a bag of flour. 

The air here was different from Stormridge. I’d never left the Pack, and now, I was at the Capital. 

“Do not try to run or fight.” One of the guards told me in a sharp voice, and I nodded weakly. 

He ripped the sack off my head, and I sucked in a desperate breath, then stared around. Stone pathways lined with lanterns and buildings rose higher than any tree I had ever climbed. This was very different from Stormridge. The air had a metallic tang of dominant wolves and herbs. For one fleeting second, my wolf stirred at the scent, a weak flicker of hope that I might somehow find work as a healer here.

Then, the guard shoved me forward. “Move,” and the flicker was gone, and so was my wolf, leaving me lonelier than before.

I stumbled after them on unsteady legs, and they led me deeper into the castle, past corridors, past the guards placing wagers, until we stopped before a heavy door.

“For your safety, do not try to fight or scream. Do as you are told, and it will be over soon.” The same guard said, and something like pity flickered in his eyes before it was gone.

The other guard knocked once, and the door opened.

“Go.” He instructed, turning his back to me. 

Three women waited in the large room, maids. The room was large, with a wide bed draped in silk, and the air filled with a floral scent did nothing to calm the terror clawing up my throat. 

They were going to prepare me for him.

“Come on, we do not have all day.” One of them, red-haired, urged impatiently.

They cut the bindings from my wrists and ripped my torn dress away.

“The King doesn’t like delays or jitteriness.” She slapped my hand away as I tried to cover myself.

“And do not try to fight him when the time comes because it’ll only make it worse.” The second pushed me towards the bath chamber.

“You smell like a donkey, and he will not like that either. He hates dirtiness.” The third warned sternly.

Tears streamed down my face, and my chest caved in hard. They scrubbed me in a copper tub filled with steaming water and rose petals until my body was raw. I was an animal, prepared for slaughter. 

While they worked, they spoke as if I were not there.

“It has barely been eight months since the last, and there is another already?” The red-haired murmured, lathering my back with soap. 

The rumours I had only half-believed in Stormridge rose like ghosts – the Supreme Alpha’s wives. 

“He was a beast that could not be controlled.” She tsked, scrubbing my back. “His curse turned his wolf into a monster once every month. No one survived him.”

Despite the water, a cold sweat broke out along my spine and under my arms. 

“The last one lasted a few minutes before the beast took her. We had to clean her up afterwards.” The third scoffed, and my stomach turned, bile rushing up my throat. Nausea rolled in me in slow, greasy waves.

“The beast doesn’t know the difference between woman and prey; it all looks the same to him. The one before tried to run, and the guards found pieces of her in the east wing.” The second had the decency to sound pitiful. My pulse slammed in my throat so loud they probably heard it.

They pulled me out of the bath chamber and dried me with rough towels. I sank my teeth into my lower lip hard, until iron filled my mouth.

“There’s a wager on how long this one will last; some say she won’t make it through the night.” She began to rub ointment on my skin, and I almost passed out. The guards I’d seen earlier … the wagers they were placing … were on me. Fuck. 

“She’s an Omega from Stormridge; what do you expect?” 

Tears kept streaming down my face, and I wiped them off angrily. Screw them, talking about me as if my death was already written, as if I could not escape my fate even if I tried. 

As they droned on, I looked around the room. I felt the brushes of my Wolf in me, still hiding, but there, and that was enough for me to brace on. 

When they finished, they wrapped me in a silk dress and didn’t leave as I’d expected. 

Instead, the oldest maid nodded towards the bed. “Lie down.” 

My body locked up. “What?” 

“Lie down on the bed. Arms out. Be quick.’ She snapped impatiently and reached for the ropes.

I backed away slowly, ice crawling down my spine. I looked at the door, but one of the younger women moved behind me, blocking the path to the door. A violent trembling took over my body, and I glanced at the window, desperate for a way out, but there was none. 

“Don’t make this difficult.” The third one said, grabbing my arms. “This is for your own safety, so you can survive, or at least get an easier death.” 

“No, no.” I cried, hot tears sliding down my face, but there was no fighting it. 

They pushed me onto the mattress. I thrashed in their holds, trying to twist away, but they held me down, strong ropes looping around my wrist.

“Please, please.” I sobbed, tears sliding into my hair. My wolf stayed so tightly curled inside me that I felt hollow, as if she had already abandoned me.

The ropes were fastened to the carved post of the headboard. My ankles followed, spread and bound to the foot of the bed. Goosebumps broke over my skin as the cold air covered me like a thick, stifling blanket. The position left me open, exposed and unable to curl in on myself, unable to hide. 

Satisfied, they stepped away and walked out, leaving me tied down like an offering. There was nothing for me to do but wait for him.