Chapter 1

Alina:The first thing I tasted was blood.It coated my tongue as my knees hit the marble, but I refused to cry out. The man behind me shoved hard enough that my palms scraped the cold stone.“Get up,” my father hissed.I lifted my head slowly, Ivan Morozov, my father, stood beside me in his expensive coat, sweating like a man who had already sold his soul and was only now afraid of the price. But he didn’t look at me. Men like my father were brave only when they were hurting someone weaker.The men in the room looked at me, prying whatever they could as my father stood at my side. Their scents filled my nostrils, and as much as I loathed it, the smell of danger made my wolf tremble.At the far end of the room three men sat behind a long table. One leaned back, eyes sliding over me.“She is prettier than I expected,” he said. “When I heard that she was your daughter, I didn’t have any expectations.”My father rushed forward and bowed his head. “She is untouched. Young. Healthy. She ca

Last Updated : 2026-07-02

Chapter 2

Dimitri:I should have been angry at her statement.Any man who raised a weapon at me in my own house would have lost the hand holding it before he took his next breath. My men had seen me do worse for less.Alina Morozova stood barefoot in the middle of my guest room, bruised and bleeding, gripping a lamp as if it were a blade forged for war.And my wolf liked her.That was the problem.Mine.The word clawed through my skull, violent and certain. But I forced it down, knowing well that she wasn’t mine. She was a debt that was dragged into my house by a coward who had chosen his own skin over his daughter.I looked at the lamp in her hands. “If you were going to hit me, little wolf, you should have done it the moment I walked in.”“Maybe I was waiting for a better angle.” She said, glaring at me.Something dangerous moved in my chest.I had to admit, I was amused.It had been years since a woman spoke to me like that without trembling. Years since anyone looked at me and saw a man ins

Last Updated : 2026-07-03

Chapter 3

Alina:The lamp stayed where I had dropped it, and I stared at the bronze base for a long time, my hands still trembling from how tightly I had held it.I looked at the key, and for one foolish second I wanted to snatch it and run. Then I remembered the men downstairs.My wolf stirred weakly inside me.Mate.“Don’t,” I whispered. “You have no right to call him mate right now.”She quieted, knowing that I was right. Dimitri Volkov was not mine. I was not his. I would never be his, and given that I couldn’t even shift, I didn’t expect him to accept me anyway.The door was knocked, and I glared at it. “I don’t want anything from any of you.”The door opened anyway, and Anya, the maid who had guided me here earlier, walked in carrying a tray. The smell of food hit me, warm bread, soup, roasted meat, tea. My stomach twisted. I had not eaten since morning, but I still turned away, refusing to allow them to have that sense of satisfaction. “I said I don’t want anything.”“You said that befo

Last Updated : 2026-07-04

Chapter 4

Alina:Anya left me with food, warnings, and a door that did not lock. And the key that Dimitri left for me on the table.That should have comforted me. I still felt like I was in a cage. I mean, you couldn’t technically tell me that it wasn’t even if the door was open. It made me wonder how far they would let me run before they dragged me back.I sat by the fireplace long after she left, the tray half full beside me. I had eaten enough to stop my hands from shaking. I knew that despite my anger, I needed strength, and I hated that I was going to need to depend on them for it.My father’s voice kept replaying: Take her. She is yours. I closed my eyes and saw him kneeling, begging for his life, offering me like a coin. The memory made my stomach twist. I stood abruptly, needing to move before the walls pressed in.The key still sat on the small table where Dimitri had left it. And for a foolish second I wanted to snatch it and run. My wolf pressed at my ribs, restless and weak.Mate.“

Last Updated : 2026-07-05

Chapter 5

Dimitri:Alina Morozova was going to be a problem. I knew that, and yet, I still found myself enjoying her presence as she walked beside me wearing my coat, her chin lifted, and her eyes fixed ahead as she refused to look my way.“You are going to stay inside this time,” I said, watching as she annoyingly looked at me.“You are insulting me by simply speaking the way that you are to me.” She said, making me raise an eyebrow.“You know, most people don’t dare look me in the eye, let alone talk back at me… especially after trying to run away.” I said, crossing my arms over my chest. Alina watched me like she was deciding which part of me would break first if she swung hard enough.And the worst part was my wolf admired her for it.Mine.I pushed the word down as we reached the bottom of the stairs.“Well, I am glad that I am failing your expectations about being like most of those people.” She said, making me shake my head at her.Anya stood in the hall with the same controlled expressi

Last Updated : 2026-07-06

Chapter 6

Alina:The sun hit my eyes, waking me up, making me frown. And for one foolish moment, I genuinely forgot where I was as a small smile formed on my lips. I curled up against the soft bedding, allowing myself to rest for a second before everything came back to me.My father. The Bratva mansion. Dimitri Volkov. Mate.I sat up so fast that my head felt like it had been hit with a hammer.Anya stood by the windows, yanking the curtains wide with no mercy, and that explained how I got light coming into my room.“What are you doing?” I snapped, my voice rough from sleep.“Waking you,” she said. “It seems to me that you’ve taken the place as a vacation escape.”“You wouldn’t say,” I muttered, rolling my eyes at her.“It seems to me that you are not as slow as you look.” She said, making me frown.She did not even glance back. My torn dress was still on me, wrinkled from sleep. I had refused the nightclothes she left on the chair, partly out of pride, partly because wearing anything chosen by

Last Updated : 2026-07-08