CHAPTER 6
SIX
Aria's POV
I forced myself to sit up on the bed, my whole body aching from the way Alpha Lucien had manhandled me. My arms were covered in angry red marks which was proof of just how rough he'd been.
You might wonder why he didn't just use his Alpha command to make me submit, but that wouldn't work. I'm not from this pack. I'm not bound to him like the others.
Before she died, my mother never told me where my father was from. I don't even know who he is. All I know is, I don't truly belong here.
And Alpha Lucien… he can't be my mate.
He's my stepfather.
"I need help," I whispered, curling back into the bed. My voice trembled from exhaustion and fear.
As soon as the words left my mouth, something strange happened.
"I will save you." A voice which was very clear and certain rang in my mind.
I shot upright, heart pounding. My eyes darted around the room. Nothing. No one. I was alone. Still, the words echoed through me.
Could it be… mindlinking?
The wolves in this pack always talked about how they could connect through a mind link. But my mother once told me I'd never be able to do that because I wasn't truly one of them.
Yet it just happened.
Someone reached out to me. Someone not under Alpha Lucien's control.
Who was it?
I tried to stand, but pain shot through my legs, the same legs that were pierced by arrows earlier. I collapsed back onto the mattress with a groan, then drifted off.
"Ugh…" My stomach growled sharp and painful.
I winced, clutching it. I hadn't eaten all day. I glanced toward the window. The moon hung high, glowing coldly through the glass.
Midnight.
At least my wounds had begun to heal. Freya, my wolf, had been working silently, restoring what strength she could.
"I'm starving," I muttered.
I sat up again, slower this time. Maybe I could sneak to the kitchen. Find scraps or anything to last till morning.
But something felt off. My wolf wasn't responding to me.
"Freya?" I called out softly in my mind.
No response.
Maybe she was tired… just like me. We'd both been through so much today.
As I stepped out of my room, heading toward the pack's kitchen, a voice blared over the speakers coming from Alpha Lucien's apartment.
That's when I remembered that they were celebrating the mating ceremony tonight.
"Tsk," I hissed in annoyance, clenching my fists.
"What are you doing there?" a gruff voice said behind me. A flashlight beam landed on my face, it was one of the guards. Of course, they'd assigned someone to watch me.
"I… I'm hungry," I said, my voice trembling.
"Go back to your room," he growled.
I rubbed my hands together, silently begging him with my eyes.
"Please… I just want to grab something from the kitchen. I'll be quick. I promise."
He sighed, then grunted, "Go. But two minutes."
I nodded quickly and hurried down the hallway. My body and soul longed to run far away, but escaping at midnight was dangerous. Especially with Alpha Lucien's mark still glowing faintly on my neck.
I touched the spot, an invisible burn beneath my skin.
"I might be claimed by him, but that doesn't mean I have to expose myself to danger by running away this midnight," I whispered to myself.
As I entered the kitchen, everywhere was filled with dirty plates. The sour stench made my stomach turn. I suddenly felt Freya stir deep inside me.
She growled, very low and warning. She was trying to take over. She wanted to go another way.
"Freya?" I whispered. But she didn't listen. My stomach twisted painfully.
I needed to eat. That was all I could focus on.
Or… did Freya want us to run away?
Even if that's what she wanted, I needed to eat something first in order to have the strength to escape.
I checked everywhere in the kitchen. Nothing. Not even water to dull the hunger.
Tears rolled down my cheeks.
Why always suffering?
When will I enjoy my life?
Freya still growled within me, trying to take over, but I didn't want her to. Transforming into my wolf was always challenging and extremely exhausting. I hadn't eaten all day. I didn't have the power to shift now.
Besides, I'd been trying to hide her from everyone in the pack.
Freya is a silver wolf with long, flowing fur, tall, graceful, beautiful. Her ethereal glow always left me wondering… how can a wolf be that stunning?
But I can't transform into her now. Not while we're being watched. Not while we're under surveillance.
Suddenly, my eyes drifted to the cupboard hanging above the sink. I opened it, and there it was. A bowl of food.
I rushed and pulled it out, not caring what it was, and began to eat. As I placed the first spoon in my mouth, a figure emerged from the entrance.
I raised my head to see a tall, light-skinned man with a chiseled face. His short brown hair looked like he had just raked his fingers through it. His broad chest stretched the fabric of his shirt; he looked effortlessly powerful and dangerously handsome.
My mind suddenly darted to the warrior I saw earlier, the one who tried to stop Alpha Lucien's guards. The one they called his son.
Something strange curled out of my mouth.
Mate.
"Mate." Freya growled happily within me.
What?
Alpha Lucien's son?!
I hurriedly stood up from where I was sitting and dashed out of the kitchen. In my rush, I collided with him.
His scent hit me instantly: earthy, warm, masculine. Freya growled again, this time with something close to joy.
"Orphan!" I heard Alpha Lucien's voice bellow from down the hall, cutting through the silence like a whip.
Panic seized me.
Without thinking, I turned and sprinted away, back to my room, back to safety. My heart thundered in my chest as my feet pounded the floor.
I didn't stop until the door slammed shut behind me.