#Chapter 3 Trapped

Anila POV

“Gina!!! Get in here and help me!” Claire yelled throughout the house to my sister.

I struggled against Claire’s stronghold, trying desperately to get to the door. But every time I tried to rip my arm out of her grip, her nails would dig into my flesh.

Gina was rushing down the stairs and when she saw me, her eyes grew large and round.

“What the—” She began to ask.

“Help me get her to her room,” Claire growled, grabbing onto my other arm and making it impossible for me to move.

Gina nodded and rushed toward me, grabbing a hold of my feet, and causing me to become airborne.

I screamed loudly for them to release me. I screamed for help. I screamed for Xaden. I screamed until my throat had gone raw. But it was no use. Nobody could hear me. I was all alone and as Claire said, I was never going to leave. I was never going to be free.

I was a true prisoner.

They took me upstairs and they threw me onto the floor in my small bedroom. I hit the hardwood with a thump, and I was too weak from fighting to stand once they released me.

With a hollow laugh, Claire stared down at me, shaking her head with disgust on her face.

“You thought it was going to be that easy?” She asked, her tone dark. “You are nothing more than a mortal disappointment. You aren’t special, Anila. You never were and you never will be. You aren’t worthy enough for that school. You’ll embarrass yourself. I did you a favor by ripping that letter.”

“You won’t get away with this, Claire,” I said through my teeth, surprised by how strong my voice sounded despite my current situation.

She laughed loudly this time.

“Oh, sweetheart. I already got away with it. Do you really think anybody would care if you went missing?” Claire asked. “Nobody cares, or ever cared, about you, not even your own father.”

“You’re wrong,” I said, lifting my head off the ground so I could stare daggers at my stepmother. “Xaden Gresham gave me this invitation. He cares. He will come for me.”

This made Claire and Gina both laugh.

“THE Xaden Gresham?” Gina asked between chuckles. “Now I know you are lying. Xaden Gresham is the hottest guy in the entire world. There’s no way he’d pay you any attention.”

Fury boiled through me.

“If anything, it was probably just a joke,” Gina added.

Claire bent and grabbed my face with her hands, forcing me to look at her.

“Your father would be so disappointed in you; as always,” she murmured before releasing me.

Her words left me broken as she turned and left the room with Gina following after her, still chuckling at the thought of Xaden Gresham paying me any attention.

I heard the latching of the lock outside the door, and I knew before checking the door that it was locked. She had a lock installed on my door when I was 7, and she had locked me in here before.

But now it felt different. Now I felt suffocated.

I was truly stuck, and I don’t even think Xaden could get me out of here.

The only thing I could do was crawl into bed and close my eyes, wishing that this terrible day could just come to an end.

By the time night fell, I was emotionally, mentally, and physically exhausted.

I was heartbroken and disappointed.

As the night went on, I was starting to doubt that Xaden would ever find me. My heart squeezed painfully in my chest, but I shouldn’t have been surprised.

Maybe Claire and Gina were right; maybe it was just a cruel joke.

I curled up in bed, wondering to myself if this was truly the life I was meant to have. Xaden was convinced when he said I was a werewolf. It’s the only way I’d be able to be his mate.

This was something that I could only ever dream of.

I should have known that it was too good to be true.

I closed my eyes and allowed sleep to chase away my raddled thoughts. But I was awoken around 11:30 pm with a loud knocking on the front door.

The scent of citrus and blackberries assaulted my nose and the familiar feeling of tightness formed in my chest. I sat up in bed quickly.

Xaden.

He was here.

I heard Claire muttering something as she walked out of her room. I quickly got out of bed and rushed to my bedroom door. My room was practically a closet with a twin-sized bed, so it didn’t take long to reach the door. It was still locked, but if I pressed my ear to the door, I might be able to hear what was going on downstairs.

“Do you have any idea what time it is?” Claire hissed as she yanked the door open. I was glad she spoke loud enough for me to hear. “Whatever you are selling we are not interested.”

“I apologize, mam. I’m not selling anything,” Xaden’s voice was like a warm blanket that wrapped around my frigid body and soothed away all the anxieties I had felt in my lifetime. “My name is Xaden Gresham and I’m here to pick up Anila Montgomery.”

“Anila isn’t going anywhere with you,” Claire shot back.

“She has been accepted to the Lunar Academy,” Xaden said in return. “She’s expected to arrive at the school tomorrow night.”

His voice was calm, and I knew that alone was driving Claire crazy.

“I don’t care. She’s not going,” Claire argued. “You have it all wrong. She’s not special.”

“We don’t make mistakes—”

“She’s not even home,” Claire lied, interrupting him. “So, you are wasting your time here.”

I heard the creaking of the door as she attempted to shut it, but it quickly stopped. I knew Xaden must have put his hand or foot on the door, preventing it from clothing all the way.

“I know you are lying,” Xaden said simply. “I can smell her.”

“You can what??” Claire asked, her eyes narrowing.

Before she could get another word out, I heard footsteps walking into the house and they didn’t stop. They were getting closer, and my entire heart was beating rapidly against my ribcage. I stepped away from my bedroom door as the footsteps neared.

“You can’t just barge into my house!” Claire growled, chasing after him. “You need to leave Mr. Gresham!!”

I heard Gina gasping loudly as Xaden walked past her bedroom and neared mine.

He truly could smell me.

Excitement boiled in my chest as he paused outside my door and tried the door handle before realizing it was locked.

With little effort, Xaden kicked my door, and it swung open with force; I watched as the lock crumbled to the ground.

My mouth fell open in shock.

Xaden’s eyes met mine and his gaze softened.

“Told you I’d find you,” he said, giving me a lopsided grin that made my heart skip a beat.

I opened my mouth to speak, but Claire’s voice stopped me.

“I will call the police if you take her!!” Claire whined. “This is kidnapping.”

Xaden took hold of my hand, his eyes pouring into mine. Then, he winked at me, and he turned to face Claire with his hand still tucked into mine.

“Anila is an adult,” he told her simply. “They would care more about you keeping her prisoner than me taking her away.”

The color in Claire’s face drained and her mouth hung open in shock.

“You have no right…” Claire growled.

She raised her hand and for a second, I thought she was going to slap him. I wouldn’t put it past her to try something stupid like that. But just as her hand neared his face, she completely froze.

Her eyes widened and I saw panic consuming her face.

“I… I can’t move,” she said in a strained voice. “What did you do??”