Chapter 1

HAYLEY

~Pain has been my constant companion.~

~I lived in denial, thinking there was nothing more to life.~

~If happiness existed, I was sure I didn’t deserve it. I surrendered to the agony.~

~I endured every punch, every lash on my skin, the darkness that followed each blackout.~

~It was my punishment for past sins. Sins I could never undo.~

~Then I met him. The man who changed everything.~

~His dark brown eyes drew me in.~

~His body, a mortal imitation of the mightiest Greek Gods.~

~He inspired me to stand up to my tormentors.~

~I won’t just sit and watch my suffering anymore.~

~I’m ready to fight back.~

~With my Alpha’s support, I will reclaim what’s rightfully mine.~

~***~

Another day dawns. The same light filters into my tiny cage. And once again, I’m consumed by despair. This is all my doing. I’m trapped here because of my actions.

My mother, Ava, died giving birth to me. I never met her, but I miss her every day. I feel lost without her.

After my mom’s death, my dad, Jerry, blamed me. He beat me daily. As the alpha of our pack, the Bloodnight Pack, he was untouchable.

Everyone turned a blind eye to his abuse.

I used to heal from the injuries, but my dad forced me and my wolf to submit to him. My wolf, Aurora, disappeared. I don’t know if she’ll ever return.

I was seven when I lost her. Werewolves have their wolves from birth, so I had seven years of bonding with her before she was taken from me.

Now the beatings are twice as painful because I don’t have her to share them with. She used to help me cope, but now I’m on my own.

It’s a lonely existence. With her gone, my heightened senses are also gone. But I believe she’ll return. Someday.

I pick up my now blunt rock and scrape the wall for the four-thousand-three-hundred-eightieth time since I’ve been here.

Today is my nineteenth birthday.

I’ve been trapped in this hell for exactly twelve years. Twelve long, agonizing years.

I peek out my tiny window and watch my former pack mates greet each other with joy and love. Jealousy washes over me.

The pack believes I don’t belong with them because I no longer have my wolf. To them, I’m just a human who should be locked up for knowing about their species.

The rattling of my cell door signals it’s time.

Every morning, after sunrise, my dad comes down to the prison with his beta, Billy, and the gamma, Luke, to beat me until I pass out.

They both despise me almost as much as my dad does. They knew my mom and had promised to protect her. Especially Luke, who was her guard.

When my mom died, the whole pack mourned their luna and blamed me.

I endure daily beatings, but sometimes Luke is left alone with me. His wolf takes over and rapes me. I’ve lost count of how many times it’s happened. I’m tainted.

I’ve given up on the idea of having a mate out there. I’m never leaving this place.

I’m going to die here, so there’s no point in false hope. Even if I did escape, they wouldn’t want me. I’m damaged goods.

I turn towards them, keeping my head lowered in submission. Fear forces a whimper out of me.

“Shut up, you whore!” Luke yells. His harsh voice makes me close my eyes. Even after all these years, I’m still terrified.

“Come here,” my dad says, his voice eerily calm. I obey. A backhand sends me flying into the cell wall, blurring my vision. “Get up!” I hear my father’s voice. I use the wall for support and manage to stand.

A rough hand wraps around my throat, cutting off my air supply. My eyes snap open to find my father staring at me with a strange longing.

He often gives me this look. It’s as if he sees my mother in me. But it’s gone in an instant, and he slams my head into the wall, splitting it open again.

“This should be fun,” is all I hear before the sound of a whip cracks, and a blade is plunged into my left side.

This goes on for what feels like an eternity but is probably only fifteen minutes.

I’ve blacked out twice. Just when I think I’m free for the day, I see Luke still here, staring at me.

I know what’s coming. Tears start to fall. He smirks menacingly. The sound of his belt buckle echoes in the cells.

I close my eyes and shake my head, as if it would make a difference. But it doesn’t.

“Come on, baby,” Luke says in a sickly sweet voice. “I don’t bite. Well, only a little,” he chuckles.

I scream and flail with the little energy I have left, but it’s useless.

He throws me onto the mattress, which is now torn and springs are hanging out—trying to escape, just like me.

I don’t resist the beatings. I feel like I deserve them for what happened to my mom. But when it comes to being raped, I fight back—as much as I can.

He climbs on top of me and traces his tongue down my neck. I close my eyes and try to think of something better—my mom.

I remember her from a photo on my bedside table. I used to stare at it every night.

I try to imagine her cooking while I watched, or her teaching me how to apply makeup or style my hair.

I try to think of simple, happy times, which I thought I’d never have…

My eyes snap open as Luke begins to undress, and I spot the keycard to my cell dangling from his pocket. It slips out and before it can hit the floor, I snatch it up, tucking it under my mattress before he notices. My heart races, but Luke won’t suspect anything. He’ll just assume it’s because of what he’s about to do to me.

The cell door locks automatically when it’s shut, and right now it’s wide open. He won’t need his keycard until tomorrow morning.

A wave of hope washes over me. I’m going to escape.

I’m going to be free. I just have to endure this…

Suddenly, a punch from Luke connects with my head, and everything goes black.

***

I’m running through the woods, beyond the boundaries of the Pack’s territory.

Aurora, my wolf, is in control, which isn’t like me at all. But I don’t feel joy.

Fear courses through my veins, and for a moment, I can’t understand why.

Then, shouts pierce the silence. “Over here. I smell her.”

It’s Luke’s voice. His wolf’s growl follows.

In a desperate bid to escape, I leap over a log, but my legs give out when I land.

Aurora disappears. I’m human again.

Pain shoots through my leg, making it impossible to stand.

I see them now, their red eyes glowing ominously in the mist.

They’re closing in. I know my life is about to end.

I hear a crack. I spin around, expecting to see Luke’s fangs bared at me.

Instead, I’m lost in a pair of dark brown eyes.

A man, the most handsome I’ve ever seen, stands before me. He radiates the power of an alpha.

I reach out to him, but he’s too far away. “Please,” I beg.

The sounds of Luke and his followers grow louder, closer.

At the same time, the alpha seems to move further away.

He stretches his hand towards me.

“Come to me. You know the way,” he urges.

I open my mouth to tell him I don’t know how to find him.

But then a hand clamps over my mouth.

***

I jolt awake, my heart pounding in my solitary cell.

Was that just a dream? Or was it a sign? If that alpha was real, what did he mean? How does he expect me to find him?

Then, like a gust of wind, the answer hits me.

I reach under my bed, and the feel of the keycard against my fingers sends a shiver down my spine.

It’s time. My escape is near.