“Kneel, dog.”Two words spoken in my mother’s voice and the dormant memories come hurtling toward me at full speed. I can clearly feel the lick of the whip on my back, the cigarettes put out on my skin, the way her dagger separated my flesh…And the guilt coursing through me when one of her clients brought my body to climax./“Get to your feet, Nikolaos! You cannot let her win!”/ Knox urges me, but his voice becomes fainter and fainter until I can see his mouth moving with no sound coming out.Shameful thoughts keep me prisoner even as I hear Mia call to me, begging me to get to my feet. But how do I tell her these thoughts are like silver chains holding me down and forcing my submission? How do I explain that I can clearly remember - no I FEEL everything I went through at her hands?I thought I was over the fear; I thought Mia’s love had pulled me out of the depths, but I was so, so wrong. My soul is still ruined and my mind is still trapped in the past. Right now, I am not the Alpha
I look over at Niko with a frown on my face. We’ve stopped in front of the gilded gates where the Elders supposedly live and from what he’s told me, they don’t know he’s here. I suspect he’s about to retaliate for what happened, but I cannot be sure. “Are you going to tell me why we’re here?” I ask, a sliver of unease slipping down my back. “You haven’t mentioned a thing and to be honest, this is all freaking me out.” It’s nearly 8 PM; the Gammas are on foot, Maxim is overseeing things back home and Ares is asleep on the backseat in his little chair. Why would he have the Pente out here with us if it wasn’t an infiltration? What does Niko have planned? Niko reaches over and touches my chin. “Do you trust me?” I scoff. “What kind of question is that? Of course, I trust you!” I say, then he leans over to place a kiss on my lips. “Then trust me now. No matter what you see or hear in there, trust me and my words,” he says cryptically and gets out of the car. Walking over to where Are
I don’t know how long I’ve been laughing for, but I can no longer feel my cheeks. My sides ache from trying to breathe while laughing, one side of my face is smeared with frosting and the glitter bombs they shoot at me have my hair all tangled up. Doubled over, full of cake, and laughing at Niko looking confused at the sight in front of him. It’s the afternoon of the autumnal Equinox, and I along with the Pente brides have decided to get to know each other better. They’ve moved onto the pack lands and are staying in the mansion with us until they’re married to their partners. Maxim still hasn’t returned after going out to look for his missing bride, but Niko doesn’t seem worried about it. Me, on the other hand, I am not sure if I’m worried about the bride or Maxim himself. I get up and walk towards him, throwing my arms around his neck. “Hello, my love,” I greet him in a cheery voice. “I didn’t expect you back until later this evening.” “The meetings wrapped up sooner than expect
-Anika/Anya-The blinding lights of the stage hit me even harder than my captor did an hour ago. All eyes are on me as I stand in nothing but a low-cut chiffon dress, barefoot, and with a face full of makeup to cover my cuts and bruises.“Don’t do anything to her face, assholes!” one of my captors had said, but the damage had been done. All because I had been too out of it to notice what had been done to me… What they would still do to me.I landed in Las Vegas yesterday, ready to celebrate my 21st birthday with a few close friends. Everything was perfect until we reached our final hotel bar crawl. We ordered glasses of champagne, and when I got up to head to the bathroom, a hand clamped around my mouth, and darkness took me before I could scream for help from Liev, my personal guard.Guards, you ask? Well, my name is Anya Popov, and before my abduction, I was the only daughter of a Russian Alpha Pakhan - a mafia princess for a better term. The only difference is I’m human - a flaw to
I may be the daughter of an Alpha but I am no one’s sold bride.The second my Papa told me he’ll be giving me to the Alpha in the East, I knew my life would no longer be mine. I started planning my escape; saving money and knowing the only open window will be when I get taken to be paraded in front of the Alpha. I didn’t have a choice in this; I would never have a choice of my own again. I’ll belong to one of his men and there was nothing I could do about it because it’s ‘for the good of the pack.’Does my Papa take me for a fool? I can’t let this happen, I would rather die, and live as a homeless wench than be someone’s little toy. He should have known better since I have my Mama’s rebelliousness. The Herrera fire lives on in me even if he tried to train me to be gentle.Now here I am, hiding in a dingy motel with the hope that the Alpha doesn’t send anyone after me.Not that I think he will; I’m sure he has plenty of other brides he can choose from. I’ll give it about a week or two
How hard can it be to find a fucking woman in a small town?! I’ve scoured all the motels, b&bs, and hotels, but there’s no sign of Xiomara Montesino. It’s been almost two weeks since Niko sent me out to find this woman but I had no idea where to start. After a warrior brought me an item of Xiomara’s clothing I thought it would be easier to find her - how fucking wrong was I?She wanted to disappear and did a good job of it; no scent or sound of her anywhere here and even two towns over, she was nowhere to be found.Her sweet jasmine and lavender scent is nothing but an annoying temptation with no full-bodied woman attached to it. I know how she looks because of a picture Niko sent and I could see the fire and defiance in her hazel eyes. She’s no timid lamb, that’s for sure.But damn, she’s beautiful. Even as I wanted to reject her beauty and what she would come to be once I found her, her scent called to me and what a combination those two were. I don’t want a wife; I don’t want to
The sunlight seems harsher than before as my eyelids flutter open, and my head feels like I drank four bottles of dirt-cheap wine. What happened to me last night? Am I coming down with a cold or something? Must be; I’m smelling sandalwood when I should be smelling mold.Well, something is making this motel’s bed and sheets feel extra soft, and I groan while stretching. Only when I inhale deeply and open my eyes, do I realize that I am, in fact, not back at my shitty motel.¿Qué mierda?I’m in an expensive-looking bedroom; a four-poster bed including lush velvet draping, warm browns, soft reds, and decadent creams. This would be how I’d decorate my room if my Papa didn’t want everything in sterile black and white. But that awe soon gets replaced with terror, because I don’t know where the hell I am. I jump from the bed, throwing off something heavy and gasping when I look down at my ripped t-shirt. Damn it, I don’t remember what happened last night! Did someone…was I raped?I lift u
I move back from Xiomara and lean against the wall. The gravity of what I’ve just said seems to sink in and she crosses her arms over her ample chest. “So, in other words, I am your prisoner,” she says, jutting out her chin in defiance and I can’t help but chuckle.“Are you forgetting that your father gave you away? You’re more like a gift, but one I didn’t exactly ask for,” I say and grit my teeth. This seems to make her eyes narrow at me. “What is that supposed to mean? If you do not want me, there’s always an option to return to sender,” she says, and I’m not sure if she’s actually being serious, but I burst out laughing anyway.“Oh, Bambi, do you think that’s possible in your position? You’re the daughter of an Alpha, an important chess piece that your father needs to move so his pack can advance,” I say and walk towards her. “You can be lucky you were given to me and not some warrior with an affinity for violence.”She sucks in a breath but maintains her defensive position. “Yo