Dungeons and Unexpected help

Chapter 2 

Kaia's POV 

   I bite back a groan as my body hits the wall. My back throbbing in pain. Brianne was still throwing daggers at me from where she stood beside Aiden, trying to make sure he was okay.

  Resisting the urge to roll my eyes, I slowly got to my feet, assessing the damage caused by my sudden flight. My dress was torn and from the pain on my back, it wasn't hard to tell that a bruise was forming there.

    

   “You bitch! How dare you put your filthy hands on me!” Aiden snarled, his wolf was nowhere to be found.

  I'm done, my hands were trembling on their own. “I'm s-sorry. I don't know what came over me." I apologized, tears streaming down my face. 

   "I knew you were up to no good when I saw you in that dress." Brianne sneered, "You never learn, do you?" She spat, her eyes bulging.

    I shook my head, nothing I said to her would prove that I wasn't just making up stories to get out of the trouble I knew was inevitable. I'm sure Aiden knew the truth and his words were the only thing that could save me.

    Moving towards him, I fell to my knees, "Please, Aiden! I didn't mean to! It was an accident, I swear!" I cried. 

   Tears streamed down my face as I grasped his leg, desperate to get his attention. But he just stood there, his eyes glazed over as he mind-linked someone. 

    “Let him go!" Brianne yelled, her leg kicking into my side, causing me to groan. Using one of my hands to soothe the pain, I kept begging but it was of no use. He didn't even look at me.

   The door barged open, revealing some of the pack warriors, led by Dylan and once he saw me, he paused. A look I couldn't describe appeared on his face but it was soon replaced with anger.

   “What should we do with her, Alpha?" He asked.

 “Take her to the dungeon until after the ceremony." Aiden replied, not sparing me a look. 

  "Honey, she should be there until she has learnt her lesson." Her voice was sickly sweet, making me want to throw up.

     Aiden agreed. The betrayal hit me harder than I wanted it to. I already accepted that he was never going to be mine but punishing me over something we both had no control over killed something in me.

   “Yes Alpha." 

   Soon enough, two warriors were by my side, each dragging me by the arm 

    The trip to the dungeon was filled with begging, but they all turned deaf ears to me. I have never been there, but the stories told by those who had were horrifying.

   “Dylan, I swear I didn't do anything." 

   "Shut your mouth before I do it for you.” He commanded. He didn't have to ask twice. 

  The warriors dragged me down a narrow, dimly lit corridor, the cold stone walls seeming to press in on me. We descended a steep flight of stairs, the air growing thick with the scent of mold and decay.

  At the bottom, a heavy iron door creaked open, revealing a damp, cramped cell. The warriors tossed me inside, and I landed hard on the cold stone floor.

 The door clanged shut behind me, and I heard the sound of rusty hinges and scraping metal as the warriors secured the door.

   I slowly got to my feet, my eyes adjusting to the faint light that filtered through a small, barred window high above me. The cell was tiny, with stone walls, a cold floor, and a ceiling that seemed to press down on me.

   

    Several hours passed, and apart from the warrior guarding the entrance, nothing else happened. Sleep eluded me, and my stomach wouldn't stop growling having had nothing to eat and drink all day.

   I must've passed out after the intense pain I felt earlier. It was already dark out and I could barely make out anything. 

   “Kaia!" The unmistakable voice of Dylan called, the flashlight he was holding producing my only source of light.

   “Yes." I called back weakly.

  “Fuck!" He grunted, finally opening the door and coming to my side. “Can you stand up?" I shook my head.

     He handed me a bottle containing apple juice and it was gone in minutes. He helped me up and out of the cell.

  “Is Aiden going to kill me?" I asked, using the little strength I had.

  “Save your strength, you're going to need it.” He simply replied.

    I nodded again as he led me through the corridor and up the stairs. But instead of the door that led to the pack house, he took me through the back door.

   “What are you doing? W-where are you taking me to?" I stammered.

  “Which part of saving your strength do you not understand?" His voice sounded strained, like he was torn between answering me and just leaving me behind.

    But knowing Dylan, I wouldn't put it past him to be leading me to my death. He did derive pleasure in watching me suffer…I knew he was having a blast right now.

   As we continued on our track, we didn't come across any warriors on patrol. Being a Beta does have it peaks, he knew exactly where they would be patrolling and if the ceremony is ongoing like I suspect it is, then no one would pay attention to–

   I stopped walking.

  “What is it this time?" He was clearly irritated.

 “Are you helping me escape?" I felt a surge of strength I didn't know I possessed.

  “Are you really this slow?” He asked. "You'll be dead within minutes.”

    Way to boost my confidence!

  “Why are you helping me? You hate me." Thanks to the night light, I saw his features softened.

   “If you make it out alive, call me." Before he turned back to leave, he handed me the backpack I hadn't noticed he was carrying.

   “There's food and other shits inside." 

  "Thank you.” My tears were threatening to spill. If someone had told me help was coming, the last person I would expect to see was Dylan but here he was. Before I could stop myself, I threw my arms around him and his body froze under my touch.

   “Go before anyone notices you're gone." 

   I nodded, sniffling because of the amount of crying I had gone through. I held him tighter, I might never get to see him again, I'd want to remember him…if not for anything, for another chance at life.

    “And Kaia,” he called. "listen to the things I'm about to tell you.”

   He gave me three warnings on how to survive on my own and soon, I was looking at his retreating figure. I was finally alone.

   Following the directions Dylan gave me, I kept walking. It was easier since I didn't have a wolf. 

    I spent the whole night walking, only stopping for food and water. There was still a lot of ground to cover if I wanted to get to the city before Aiden realized I was gone.

   Hopefully Dylan doesn't get in trouble for helping me escape.

   

     Hours turned into days, and I was running out of supplies with no idea where I was. How did I think this was easier without my wolf? I would've covered more grounds.

    My legs were killing me, and I could barely see anything. So I decided to end my journey for the day. But I wasn't that lucky.

   “Did you smell something?" I heard someone ask.

  “No. It's probably just some animal." His partner replied.

   I hid myself behind a tree to avoid being seen, but just as I wanted to relax and celebrate my victory, my leg stepped on a branch giving me away.

   “Come out." One of the voices commanded.

  As slowly as my weak body could permit, I revealed myself to the men who towered my height easily. 

  “Who sent you?” They asked.

"N-no one.”

   "I'll give you one last chance to confess or you can…” 

 "I'm telling the truth, I swear.” 

    They looked at each other and murmured something about this being fun. I couldn't see their faces clearly, but I hated the sound of that. 

   Before I could fully comprehend what was going on, the both of them pounced on me, pinning me to the trunk of the tree. One of them ripped my dress off, leaving me in my underwear.

   “P-please, stop." I begged, but they turned deaf ears to me.

   “I'm sure the Alpha would like to know the details of how your patrol went." A new voice, dripping with authority said. And the two men came off me like I suddenly turned into lava. 

   “We're sorry, Beta.”

  "Take her to the dungeon.” He commanded and for the second time in one week, I found myself in a cell.

   I was cold, starving and at this point ready to end everything. I was constantly living in fear of what was going to happen. 

   It wasn't until the next morning that heavy footsteps descended the stairs that jolted me awake.

     “The Alpha is coming, he's angry.” I heard someone say.

  I didn't bother standing up. Whoever he is, he couldn't be worse than my own mate who picked his chosen mate over me. And since I was a rogue on his pack, he could have me killed since rogues were considered a threat to the pack. 

  Suddenly, a low, rumbling growl echoed through my mind. I froze, my heart racing.

  At first, I thought it was just my imagination, but then the growl grew louder, more insistent. It was a voice, a presence I'd never felt before. My wolf. But that wasn't possible, I didn't have one.

  I felt a shiver run down my spine as I heard it speak. The voice was rough, wild, and yet, it felt familiar, like a part of me I'd never known existed.

   A smile appeared on my face, but it was gone as fast as it came when I heard its next word,

   “Mate."