3. Surprise Surprise

~Lucienne~

"With me," the stranger replied before I could and Daniel hissed before whipping his head back to see who responded to his question. He eyed the man, sizing him up before replying. "I don't think so."

"With all due respect Crown Prince Daniel, you have no say in this. You already gave her to me as compensation, it was witnessed by a lot of people."

"I don't remember doing that!" Daniel retorted in a loud tone almost immediately and that caused people to gather so they could watch what was going on.

I saw the corner of the stranger's lips form a smile and a man walked forward with a tablet in his arms. Showing it to me and Daniel, it seemed to be the footage of me running away, red in embarrassment then Daniel and my brothers happily giving me to him without any conditions attached.

"So you see, you have no reason to stop me from taking her. Now if you would please step aside," The stranger said and for the first time in history, I saw someone shut Daniel up.

Daniel didn't want to move so the man pushed him aside, grabbing my wrists then pulling me to follow him. The people outside began to murmur, everyone whispering unknown words to each other.

All of a sudden, I felt a strong and painful pull from behind, tearing me from the man's grip. A second later, I was multiple steps away from the man and Daniel was in my place, about to lay a blow on him.

My mouth opened in shock due to this and a scream escaped my lips. Before the blow could land on the man, he dodged it, and a wave of relief spread through my body but it was soon cut short by Daniel once again.

"She would not be going with you!" He yelled, then took some money from his back pocket and threw it at the man like it was nothing. "Take your money and leave."

The man looked at the money on the ground, looked at Daniel then at me, and at this point, I was desperately praying he wouldn't rethink his decision. If he should leave me here, death would be just one knock away as it was written all over Daniel's face.

His hands were clenched by his side and he continued looking for a moment before speaking. "She is coming with me, Daniel," he replied, dropping the honorifics and Daniel's anger multiplied due to this. "If you can't keep your word, don't bother making promises. You gave me the girl and I wouldn't be leaving here without her. And if you dare use violence or lay a finger on any of us, I can assure you that you'd regret it." The man's warning came in a low and collected tone unlike Daniel's which was loud and out of control.

"You wouldn't dare!” Daniel growled, snarling at the man, ready to engage in a fight. The stranger was not ready to back down either and I looked around, trying to find safety as I didn't want to get caught up in this. One blow from either of them would be the end of me.

Just as Daniel was about to deliver his first attack, another voice filled the area, one with much more authority than both men.

"Daniel!" He called and immediately Daniel froze in the air, his fist inches away from the man's jaw. "Don't lay a finger on him!" The Alpha who I was just seeing for the third time in my life ordered. The Alpha arrived at the scene accompanied by his Beta and my brother, Gamma Ezekiel. From the way they were dressed, they seemed to be heading to the arena but the commotion made them detour.

It took Daniel a few seconds to recollect himself and when he did, his father asked why there was a commotion here. Since the question was directed to Daniel, the thoughts of leaving this pack immediately shattered because I knew Daniel would twist the situation to make him get the upper hand. It was all he always does.

Fortunately, before he could speak, the man stepped forward and explained everything that happened, also showing him the footage from last night as proof.

The Alpha looked at me, then at the two men. The Alpha motioned for me to come forward before asking if it was true and I replied with a nod.

The Alpha then apologized to the man then begged him to take the money. The Alpha even promised to triple the money for peace to reign but no, that wasn't an option. The stranger wanted me by all means.

The Alpha's gaze shifted between Daniel and the stranger, his expression unreadable. "Lucienne, the decision now lies in your hands. Who do you choose to go with?"

The question thrown at me left me completely speechless even though I knew what I wanted. I looked around, the annoying voices of pack members who gathered, filling my eardrums. Their hatred for me knew no bounds, even my family felt the same not to mention Daniel who never wanted me as his mate but forced me to accept him and would always find ways to maltreat me at any given chance. I thought of everything I went through once again and it solidified my thoughts. Staying here only meant death and if truly there was a way for this sinner to be happy out there, I would take it.

"I'd go with the man, Alpha," came my response and I heard everyone around sigh in relief, happy to get rid of me, this cursed girl.

Finally, the Alpha spoke in a tone that brooked no argument. "Son, you made a deal. Honor it."

Daniel's jaw and fists clenched in frustration, but he knew better than to defy his father's direct order, especially in public. With a final glare at the stranger, he reluctantly stepped back, seething with anger and I could swear he wanted to rip him apart.

The stranger extended his hand towards me, a silent invitation to leave. My heart pounded with a mix of fear and hope as I stepped forward, hesitantly placing my hand in his. The Alpha nodded in approval, acknowledging the resolution of the matter.

As we made our way towards the car, I couldn't shake off the feeling of unease. Despite the stranger's assurances to provide a better life for me, I couldn't help but wonder what awaited me in this new chapter of my life and if he was truly telling the truth or if I was jumping from one mild furnace to an even hotter one.

Once inside the car, a wave of relief washed over me and I glanced at the stranger, gratitude swelling within me.

"Thank you," I murmured, my voice barely above a whisper. "For standing up for me, for giving me a chance."

He flashed me a reassuring smile, his amber eyes warm and comforting. "You don't have to thank me. It's the least I could do."

The rest of the drive was filled with silence but the tranquility was shattered by the sound of a gunshot, which seemed to have been aimed at the car tyres. This caused the car to screech and the driver lost control, sending us straight into the huge trees by the side.

By the time I was able to open my eyes, the air was thick with the scent of burning rubber, and the surroundings were hazy. I looked around and found myself stuck in my seat with blood oozing out of my body.

"Are you okay?" I heard the stranger's voice even though I was a bit disoriented. The impact on his side wasn't that bad so he was able to get himself out of the car and helped the driver who was in worse condition than I was before heading to me.

With all of his strength, he pushed away the front seat which was trapping me in, and carried me out of the car.

A few steps away, he dropped me on the floor, checking if the driver and I got any major injuries. The driver had a few so he ran back to the car, looked for his phone, grabbed it, and placed a phone call to someone, ordering them to send help immediately. While he was doing this, my hazy eyes were fixed on the sky, wondering if this was how everyone who died years ago, felt when it all happened.

"Hey, help is on the way," the stranger said, but I was too lost to focus. Lost in thoughts, I never even noticed the approaching footsteps until I heard a loud thud and groan of pain from behind. Immediately, the stranger fell knee first before landing on the ground, totally unconscious and this jolted me back to reality. It was an ambush!