by Jess Bryant
Her stomach roiled at the words. Wedding. Night. She’d agreed to do the mating ceremony and he wanted it done as soon as possible despite the tradition of waiting until a new moon. He wanted to seal his claim on her. In a matter of hours, when the moon was as high as it could get in the sky, she’d have to stand beneath it and abandon everything she’d ever believed in, lie about her intention to honor and respect her new mate, even as she bound herself to him and made him family.
Family.
A thought hit her and she clung to it desperately. Her sisters, it had been so long since she saw her sisters. Maybe, just maybe, she could convince him to let her see them now. So she could check on them, talk to them, maybe even find a way to get them out of here…
Luna swallowed despite her dry throat, “Maddox, may I… may I ask to have my sisters with me? They’re the only family I have left and, as you said, it’s my wedding night. They should be here with me to help pin my hair and put on my dress.” She saw his eyes narrow suspiciously so she rushed on, “It’s tradition for the younger females to help the bride prepare for her wedding night. Consider it a show of good faith? Our family, welcoming you into it tonight.”
The lies made her tongue feel heavy but she didn’t dare blink. He was staring at her and she could practically see his mind working behind his intensely dark eyes. Pros and cons, whether she would try to escape, how it would look to the pack if he refused her this tradition. Finally, his lips thinned into a frown and he sighed heavily.
“Anything for you love.” He motioned over her shoulder again, “Andre, retrieve Nova. Bryan, Russell, Lamar, you three go and get Maya. If she gives you any trouble, tell her that her sister has requested her presence at our wedding.”
Luna winced. Three Enforcers to get Maya? Oh, her sister must have been hell on wheels to warrant that kind of muscle. Her heart ached at the thought of anyone hurting her headstrong teenage sister and she quickly turned to face the men that had been charged with bringing her here.
“Tell her I said to use honey, not vinegar.”
One of the men snuffled, “Cooking recipes?”
She rolled her eyes at the idiot, “Just do it. She knows what it means and she’ll come, willingly, without putting up a fight.”
“Well, that would be fuckin’ nice.” One of the other men that she recognized as Russell muttered under his breath.
“Go on then.” Maddox dismissed his men with a wave, “Bring the girls here and do it quick.” As the men filed out of the room, Maddox twisted a hand in the back of her hair and pulled her ear close to his mouth, “If this is some sort of scheme to get your sisters away from me, I’ll make you pay for it, Luna. You’re mine. This pack is mine. And after tonight, your family legacy will be all mine too.”
She winced at the pain that shot through her skull, “It’s not a scheme. I just… just want to see my sisters.”
“Sasha is still staying with you so don’t bother trying to escape.” His fist tightened and she could hear the smile in his voice when he continued, “She hates you. Did you know that? Can’t stand that the whole pack adores you just for being born a DeLuca, not when you’re a lowly submissive Beta. She’d kill you and take your spot in a heartbeat if she thought I’d let her get away with it.”
“Sounds like you two murderous psychos would make a great pair. You should mate her instead.” Luna hissed, trying to get out of his grip.
Instead of getting angry, he only chuckled, “Trust me, if she was the one with Alpha blood like yours running through her veins, it would’ve saved me a shitload of trouble.” He released her so quickly she stumbled before catching herself, “Now, stop trying to rile me into making a mistake and take off those dirty clothes.”
Bile filled her throat and she shook her head, “No.”
His dark eyes narrowed, “No? You still think you get to tell me no?”
Luna took a step back from him even though she knew there was no escaping. She thought she’d prepared herself for this, for him, but the idea of him seeing her naked hadn’t even entered her thoughts. She wasn’t sure why. Maybe her subconscious mind had been trying to protect her. She’d been so focused on the end game, on getting through the ceremony and to the part where she’d be able to take her revenge that she hadn’t thought about what it would mean to actually mate the man.
Maddox seeing her naked was just the tip of the iceberg. He’d want to touch her with his hands, the same hands he’d used to kill her father. He’d want to bite her, mark her, and claim her body. And the very thought of him sinking inside of her, his teeth, his cock, it made her physically ill.
“You think you have some kind of power here?” He stepped towards her, backing her into a corner, “You don’t. I’m Pack Alpha. I’m your Alpha. If I order you to take your clothes off, you’ll take them off, Luna. If I say jump, you don’t ask how high, you just get maximum altitude.”
“No.”
“Yes, ” He sneered at her, “and if you need a show of power to prove it, I’ll gladly give it to you.”
She cringed, “No. Please… don’t.”
“Luna,” He reached out to touch her cheek and she flinched even though there was nowhere to go and his rough fingers stroked over her skin, “take your clothes off.”
She felt it instantly. The power in his voice. The Alpha tone that vibrated through her and sank down beneath her skin made her wolf whine. Her wolf scratched and clawed, not wanting to give in but feeling the pressure from a stronger Alpha wolf.
She bit her lip and tried to hold onto her skin, onto her willpower, onto her independence. Her body shuddered and shook as she tried to resist but she knew it was useless. She wasn’t strong enough. She was a Beta. He was an Alpha. Tears welled in her eyes as he stripped her of her free will and her shaking hands went to the hem of her shirt of his accord.
“That’s it, Luna. You’re mine and…”
A howl went up somewhere outside the house, loud and pained. It was a sharp, keening cry that startled them both. Maddox jerked his head to the door and Luna curled in on herself. Her hands dropped, the power of his order fading with the shift of his attention. A second howl followed, closer, and then another and another, until it became clear that something was wrong.
Maddox stepped in front of her when the door flew open and smashed into the wall. She didn’t give the protective gesture even a thought. She didn’t have time because Terrance and Sasha came barreling through it and the man had a gash over his chest that was gushing blood.
“We’re under attack!” Sasha shouted as she slammed the door shut behind her and helped a limping Terrance to the couch, “They’re here!”
“Who’s here?” Maddox cursed under his breath, “What the fuck is going on?”
“They’re here.” Sasha whirled on them, her eyes flashing gold with her wolf and her fangs elongating, “For her!”
Luna tried to get out of the way but Sasha was fast. She grabbed Luna by the arm, her nails sinking into flesh and ripping it open. Luna screamed until she was whipped against the wall and all the air exploded from her lungs. Sasha pinned her there with an arm to her throat, nearly cutting her air supply off but no matter how much Luna struggled she couldn’t get free.
“You should’ve just let me kill her, Mad.” She hissed, her breath hot in Luna’s face.
“Get your fucking hands off her.” Maddox growled as he ripped Sasha off of her and all but flung her across the room. “You don’t touch her. Ever!”
Sasha found her footing and snarled at him, “Get your head out of your ass, Mad! You attacked the Moirae pack for her and now they’re here. They’re here for her!”
Luna slid to the floor as air rushed back into her lungs. She put her hand to her bicep and winced when it came away bloody. Oh God, so much blood. Her head spun and she felt nauseous. Blood was running down her arm in rivers, pooling around her where she sat in a heap on the floor.
“What’re we going to do?” Sasha hissed.
“Shut u
p!” Maddox screamed, “Just, shut up and let me think!”
“Maddox…”
“I said, shut up!” He kicked a chair and it splintered into pieces, “It’s the Moirae? You’re sure?” Luna didn’t hear Sasha reply but she assumed the other woman must’ve given him a fucking duh look because he growled, “That lying little bitch. The Seer lied to me. She said they weren’t coming for three days!”
Luna blinked and looked up when he stomped back towards her. The look on his face was murderous. His eyes were gold with his wolf. His teeth and claws were elongated as well. He looked on the verge of shifting and ripping her apart.
She crawled, trying to get away from him but he yanked her up by her hair so hard she screamed again. He wrestled her up to her feet and shoved, pushing her back towards the door to the basement. She fought, her feet dancing across the floor, trying to find purchase, but she was too weak and he manhandled her easily.
“No. No! No, no no!”
“Sorry love. Wedding postponed.” He hissed as he shoved her through the dark doorway, “I’ve gotta go kill your mate and then that lying little bitch sister of yours. Be back soon.”
Luna shrieked and tried to bolt for the door but he slammed it in her face. She threw herself against it again and again in a desperate bid to break through it as his words settled deep inside her and fractured her heart.
Nova had lied to him. She’d told him that the pack wouldn’t retaliate for three days. He’d thought he had more time. Her sister, the Seer, had lied for her, for Luna, and now Maddox would likely kill her for it.
Hot tears streamed down her cheeks and blood gushed from her arm. She was too weak too heal. She felt powerless. She was powerless. She was useless.
She couldn’t escape. Couldn’t save her family. She couldn’t even save herself.
Chapter 3
“Let me out! Let me out! Let! Me! Out!” Luna banged on the door until her fists bled but nobody acknowledged her.
On the other side, she could hear Maddox cursing and spouting orders. She thought Terrance spoke but it was too low for her to make out what he said. Sasha was still hissing about killing her and her entire family and Luna vowed that if she escaped this room, if she escaped this situation, that she would kill that bitch right along with Maddox. Pretty soon though, the sound of wolves howling, crying and fighting drowned out the voices until she couldn’t hear anything but the fighting that was going on.
It sounded bloody. Painful. Dangerous. Deadly. And she had no idea who was winning.
She didn’t even know who was fighting or why. All she knew was that whoever was out there, they were her only hope. They’d stalled the mating ceremony and if they could beat Maddox, she just might get out of this basement with some shred of herself still intact. She might be able to save her sisters.
Nova, her heart ached and her stomach roiled. Had Nova really known the Moirae would be coming to retaliate so quickly and lied? Or had the future changed after she saw them coming in three days? Did it matter? Maddox believed Nova had known and lied to him and he would make her pay for it if he made it out of this fight alive.
Luna forced her weak and bleeding body down the stairs when she realized there was no clawing her way through the door. For once, Maddox hadn’t chained her with silver. She could move around the basement and look for ways out. The longer she was unchained, the stronger she would get too. She would start to heal, eventually. If she gave herself time to rest, time to recover, she would start to feel better, but she didn’t have time. She forced herself on, her feet dragging and her head spinning from the blood loss and lack of nutrition.
She was injured. She was weak. But she wasn’t a quitter.
She stumbled on the bottom step, fell to her knees and cried out as she collapsed to the hard, concrete floor. Her forehead banged into the floor so hard she saw stars and when she raised her hand she winced at the gash she found there.
Tears welled in her eyes again but she wiped them away along with the blood. She couldn’t mope and cry and feel sorry for herself. Her sisters were counting on her. This was the first time she’d been free in this basement since Maddox tossed her down here. It was her first opportunity to look around and try to find a way out and she wouldn’t waste it. She couldn’t.
It took every ounce of her strength to pull herself up and get moving. She stumbled and knocked over a shelf of junk but managed to steady herself before she fell again. She leaned against the wall, inching herself towards the one window in the entire room. It was high up and would be hard to reach but it was her only hope of escape.
The stool that Maddox sometimes used as a chair when he came to taunt and threaten her was in her path and she collapsed against it, using it to hold herself up. Deep breath and then another and she forced herself on, pushing it beneath the ray of light from the small window. She wasn’t sure she could get through the thing it was so small and she had no idea what she would do if she did. She wasn’t strong enough to run but maybe she could get far enough away someone would find her, someone that wasn’t allied with Maddox. Maybe for the first time in what felt like forever, she would get lucky.
Luna swayed on her feet, worried more and more that she wasn’t healing as she forced herself on. She’d known she was weak from the silver. Maddox had kept her from shifting on the full moon last night. Her wolf should have been pushing forward now, making her stronger, wanting out, but there was nothing there. No sign of her at all. Luna couldn’t let what that might mean detour her though so she pushed on.
She climbed unsteadily onto the stool and used the window ledge to hold herself up. Closer to the window she could hear the wolves fighting again. They were louder here, as if they were on this side of the house. She questioned the wisdom of trying to escape when more of Maddox’s friends could be outside but she knew she had to try.
She used her hands, gripping in the dark, trying to find the lip with the lock. It wasn’t barred in silver but of course it wasn’t. Maddox had never intended for her to be free to move around down here. After some fumbling her shaking hands found the seam and her bottom lip trembled.
The window was painted shut.
Luna let out a pitiful moan and scraped at the hardened edges. She needed her claws but her wolf didn’t rise to give her any assistance. Her human hands were battered and bruised from her fall and blood still trickled down her arm and soaked her fingers making them wet and slick. She used her nails, trying to pry the lock up and when her fingernails broke she screamed and jerked back out of instinct.
She lost her balance and the stool tilted precariously. Luna scrambled to right herself but it was useless. She was going down and she knew it. Her body twisted, trying to find a way out of the sudden drop but the floor came up too fast and she slammed into the concrete on her side.
Her head cracked against the floor again and she moaned as she closed her eyes. It was no use. Tears streamed down her cheeks again. She shivered and shook as her stomach wrenched. The pain was so intense she thought she might vomit. Her shoulder radiated pain throughout her body from the fall. Her bicep was still bleeding from the slash. Her head was spinning and she couldn’t find the strength to pull herself up again.
She wanted to. She knew she needed to get up. But she just… couldn’t.
It was over, she realized as she curled in on herself. She had to stop. She couldn’t fight anymore. She didn’t have any fight left in her. Her body was malnourished. There was something wrong with her wolf. She needed to rest and give herself a chance to heal or else she risked never healing.
Luna closed her eyes and focused on her breathing. She couldn’t die here. Not on the concrete floor of this awful basement. There were people out there looking for her. She had to believe that. She just had to keep herself alive long enough for them to find her.
They were coming. Sasha had said so. They were…
Luna’s world went dark. Soundless. Dim at the edges. She was losing consciousness and she didn’t bother fig
hting it. Her eyes rolled back and she let the world slip away from her. Only, an instant before she was engulfed in the nothingness a sharp growl cut into the silence, startling her into opening her eyes again.
The door at the top of the stairs jerked open so hard it smashed into the wall with a splintering sound and Luna’s heart all but stopped. He was back. It had gone quiet because he won. She shrank backwards into the shadows, shrinking as small as she could, knowing there was no way she could fight him right now.
She listened as heavy boots came down the stairs. The cadence of the steps was familiar. It was so familiar. And yet, somewhere in the back of her frightened and woozy mind, she recognized that something was different.
The steps were… slower. Was he hurt? She could only hope. But she didn’t smell his blood. Then again, she couldn’t smell much of anything aside from her own blood right now. She’d lost so much of it, further proof of her weakness. She felt covered in it and her brain sloshed as she tried to keep her head up, keep her eyes on the spot where he would have to step out of the shadows.
Maybe her blood was like a mask and she could hide underneath it.
She almost giggled, almost, but she wasn’t sure she knew how anymore. What she did know was that the loss of blood was affecting her in horrible ways. Her limbs were going numb and her brain was clearly slowing down if she thought anything in her world warranted laughter these days. Had she hit her head when she fell? She couldn’t remember.
Footsteps approached. Oh God… Luna bit her tongue to keep back a scream. Reality came rushing back in just that fast.
Maddox was coming. He’d won the battle and he was coming to claim her like a prize. Or maybe he’d be merciful and simply kill her now that his plans had gone to hell. But no, she shook that thought aside, she wasn’t ready to die. There was more for her out there in the world than this, more than a dusty basement and a life of pain and despair. She was meant for something more, someone more than…
Him.
