009.

Hailey’s POV

“You know she’s not meant to be touched,” Chad stated in a matter of fact tone as he stepped into the room, and all the while, his eyes never left my face.

I dropped my head and fisted my sweaty hands into my dress and while he spoke, I tried not to pay any attention to him because my heart was beating so fast, and I was trying so hard to calm the raging organ.

“Do we have to follow Hades' rules all the time?” Trent answered, sounding pissed. He opened his mouth as if to continue but before he could get the words out of his mouth, Chad beat him to it. Chad snapped;

“It’s not about following rules. This is his slave… he bought her.”

“And she’s my mate.”

“She’s also my mate too but you don’t see me trying to jump her or do you?” Chad spat, which immediately made Trent seal his mouth shut.

I couldn’t look up. I couldn’t look at any of them, especially after knowing what I would find. Trent would be looking sorry and would have regret painted all over his face and Chad, Chad would be disappointed. And I didn’t need to see that.

They talked some more but I was too lost in my thoughts, too distracted by my demons to pay any attention to them, and it wasn’t until after they left that I allowed myself to release the breath I had been holding. My heart was pounding relentlessly against my chest and my eyes burned with unshed tears.

Deciding that I should ignore these negative feelings they’ve managed to elicit from within me, I went off into the shower and after a very long bath, I came out to find that my food was already waiting for me in a tray close to the bed, and after devouring it, I went to bed.

It was late afternoon, I know. But right now, a peaceful sleep was all I needed to clear my mind.

*

My peaceful slumber came to an abrupt end when I heard a sound not so far from me. At first, I had thought that it was from my dreams and so I stared into the darkness, unmoving until I heard it again, this time, closer than the last time. I blinked into the darkness as I tried to make out what it was that must’ve made the sound, and at the same time, I tried to be as stiff as I could in order to deceive the intruder, just in case it was one, into thinking that I was still fast asleep.

A shadow not so far from the doorway caught my attention and the size of the person had my eyes widening in fear. They were big, so big, they could easily pass for a giant. And right now, there was no time to think as I wrapped my hands around the first thing I could, which was the base of the bedside lamp.

As the person advanced into the room, I gripped the lamp even tighter until I was sure that my knuckles must’ve turned white by now from the force.

Suddenly, the bed dipped bedside me as the person plopped their weight into it and just when I had begun to hyperventilate, while thinking the absolute worst, they spoke;

“Let go of the lamp, Hailey. You’ll break it.”

I blinked. That sounded a lot like… Hades.

Wondering why he was in my room by this time of the night, I moved further away from him and sat up, pretending to rub my eyes. “You woke me up.”

“I know.” He muttered, his voice sounding rough.

A lot of reasons as to why he was here flew past my mind and while none of them seemed to be good reasons, I couldn’t help but be curious. Another thing that surprised me was the fact that he was gentle. He was never like that with me… leave that for Trent.

Without a word, he put on the light which had at first been my almost weapon and then crossed his arms around his chest while he regarded me. “I came to speak to you.” He said.

“What about?”

I gulped when he leaned closer to tuck a stray strand of my hair behind my ear and then gazed at me with a look that- if I didn’t know better- I would’ve thought it was of care, and whispered; “About my brothers.”

My breath hitched. Even my heart that had once been beating frantically against my chest stopped beating for a nanosecond. Not trusting my voice, I nodded as once again, I moved away from him until my back hit the wall. Hades probably noticed that I was moving away from him because then he frowned. He eyed between me and the space now on the bed and then rose to his feet, scowling.

“I figured that you’ve been spreading your tentacles around here and latching onto my brothers as well but you need to stop. Do not force me to do what I do not want to.”

“Which is?”

“Condemn you to the servants’ quarters.” He answered quickly, without doing as much as batting an eye. “And while you think staying here is torture, a day down there would show you what real torture is… especially as you are not a member of this pack.”

That was a threat, I could sense it. However, what I wasn’t sure of was why he would go to these lengths just to warn me off his brothers when he could as well just take me to the servants’ quarters. I mean, this is his pack, I am his slave and he had every right to do to me what he wanted without being chastised. My brows furrowed as I looked up at him and when I still wouldn’t say anything, he grunted, sitting back on the bed.

“You see, Hailey, I do not hate you…”

“It sure feels like you do.” I answered, interrupting him.

As soon as the words left my mouth, I instantly regretted it because then his face fell as a frown creased his features. I leaned away when he leaned closer. He was too close, so close that I could smell the aftershave on his face, so close that the tips of our noses were almost touching. His eyes went from mine to my lips and after staring at it for a while too long, he moved away.

“Do you know where your father is?” He asked suddenly, causing my eyes to widen at the sudden direction the conversation was headed.

“No,” I answered, shaking my head. “I don't even know who he is.”

At the sound of my words, Hades stiffened. He looked at me for a long minute as if trying to decide if I was lying or not, and when he probably came up with his answer, he blinked. Once. Then twice. “You don’t mean that, do you?”

“I do.” I replied slowly, “I do not know who he is.”

“What about your mother? Your pack… do you remember anything from there?”

“No.” I said again and this time, Hades made a sound from the back of his throat that closely resembled frustration as he rose to his feet. “I don’t.”

“Stop making this harder than it already is!” He snarled, “… if you know something, say it! I need to know!”

“Why?!” I shouted back. I still do not know where I got the courage to raise my voice at Alpha Hades but I did. He seemed not to mind and I wouldn’t be the one to point that out to him.

“Because there’s this way I feel for you… and judging from our past, I shouldn’t. I shouldn’t be feeling this way for the enemy’s daughter!” He growled, making the words that had initially formed in my mouth disappear.

I looked up at him in a mixture of shock and bewilderment and when he probably realized the words he had uttered, he shook his head and stormed out of the room, leaving me to stare behind him in shock.

It was midnight, that I was sure of but at this point, I was certain that I wouldn’t find sleep. Not after that.