Chapter 10

Loretta's Pov

His name.

Alpha Lorenzo.

The sound of his name in my head filled me with fear and anxiety. I was in dread at the image of him rose inside of my mind. I loathed the condescending way in which he always looked at me and that his cold and relentless stare. His words were always foul and cruel.

How had my father expected me to live with such a man, to be married to him. I did not want to live like that, with a man who saw me as an unwanted pest. I did not want to be bound to a man who saw me as nothing but an object to control.

Even thinking his name filled me with a new surge of adrenaline. His cold, relentless stare, his cruel words. I didn’t want to live like this, bound to someone who saw me as nothing more than an object to control.

And so I had run.

That was all that I remembered doing after I had scaled my bedroom window with precision and care. I was a master of escape. My mind replayed the exact moment that I had slipped out of the bedroom that they had assigned to me earlier on.

The guards had been patrolling at their usual intervals while I sneaked around. But in the little time that I have been there, I had studied their moving  patterns. I knew of a part of the fence that was low enough for me to scale and to make my escape.

Well, it had actually worked.

I had successfully skipped the guards and left the palace grounds and into the forest that acted as a border. I ran into the forest without a single care in the world. I ran as quickly as I could as the cold forest air bit into my skin. My breath came in pants as I ran past tall trees. I went further and further away from Alpha Lorenzo and his pack with each step that I took. I was nearer to freedom the more I ran.

I could almost taste freedom on my tongue with a hint of hope flickering in my chest as I reached the southern edge of the territory. The rogue lands were just beyond that marker. And if I happened to make it past them, I would finally be free. My mate would not pursue me into the territory if I took refuge there.

The thought gave me the strength that I needed to push harder, even as my legs burned with pain from running a distance and the cold bit into my skin. The trees became denser as I moved further into the forest, the shadows deepening as I neared my destination. If I could just get beyond the patrol boundaries, I would be completely out of Lorenzo’s reach.

Suddenly, a faint sound behind me broke through the silence. It was the unmistakable crunch of footsteps on dry leaves, moving with precision and purpose that reached me and caused my heart to come up to my chest. My stomach twisted with dread. I instantly had a feeling that I was being followed. I picked up my pace, adrenaline running through me, giving me the strength to dash towards the rogue's border, grateful for the cover of the trees.

“Stop!” a voice shouted behind me, echoing through the trees. My breath came in quick gasps as panic surge through me. I ignored it, running, desperately trying to stay out of their sight. But they were right behind me, too fast, closing in too quickly. The voices multiplied as more of them joined the chase. My foot caught on a tree root and I stumbled, barely managing to catch myself before I could completely hit the ground. I caught my body with one knee to the floor and one hand on the ground. A

Their footsteps drew closer, grew louder as I staggered to my feet.

"Stop right there!" A deep baritone ordered me as that feeling of hopeless began to sink in. I still pushed, forcing myself to keep going because I could not let them catch me, not after I had come this far. And just as I told myself that I might lose them, a hand grabbed me roughly by the hair, yanking me backwards with such force that I cried out in pain. I lashed out with my hands, trying so hard to break free. But more hands seized me, holding me down in a rough way. And despite my desperate and unyielding trashing, I could not shake them off.

“Let go of me!” I screamed as hot tears flew down my cheeks while I  struggled against their grip.

“Well, the Alpha has ordered us to bring you back to the palace Lady Loretta," one of the guards said to me with a hard and unfeeling look on his face. "So do yourself a favor and stop fighting,” he snapped as he tightened his hold around my forearm.

"Unhand me!" I yelled at him in fury and raw fear. “I do not belong to him! I do not belong here!”

The other guard who was holding unto my other arm glared at me to keep still while I fought even as my energy dwindled, fading away with  each passing second. "That is enough woman!” he growled at me in a voice that was firm. “We have received orders to use force if necessary.”

"I will not allow that!" I snapped at them with fiery eyes. But, my defiance only seemed to amuse them. They said nothing before he dragged me back, my feet barely touching the ground as I fought against their grip. But the further they hauled me, the clearer it became that my escape was a total failure. I realized that I was being taken back to him, to that cold man who lived in such an unforgiving place with a dreadful aura.