Chapter 3

I woke up with a throbbing head. My body was aching and I was bruised, long purple bruises on the side of my thigh like I was dragged against gravel. My stomach was grumbling for food and my right heel was missing. 

I quickly sat up from my spot on the cold floor and looked around, I realized I was in a cell, a cell in what looked like a dungeon. There was not a single window in sight, only a huge iron door.

It suddenly clicked to me that we were kidnapped. I was scared thinking about the shock my sister and Nana would be going through by now.

A broken whimper had me turning my neck. Someone was here with me. And I only hoped it was one person. 

I crawled to the side of my cell and whispered. "Eve? Is that you?"

I heard sniffling before a croaky female voice responded. "I'm Lenny, I think your friend was taken to the other dungeon."

I held onto the cell railings that separated us. "My name is Akira. Do you have any idea where we are and who took us?"

She moved a little and I realized she was shuffling closer to me, whimpering as she did so.

"We are in the Coldcrest pack and we were taken by the shapeshifters." 

I frowned, confused. "Shapeshifters? Coldcrest pack? What does that mean?"

Lenny sighed. "I also don't know what they are. But what I do know is, these people are dangerous."

"How many days have you been here?" I softly asked. 

"Four days. You and your friend were brought here two days ago."

I couldn't believe it. I was knocked out for two days. 

I quickly shook my head. "You said these people are dangerous. What people?"

"The people who whipped me." She replied, coughing a bit. 

My heart stopped, "W-Whipped you? Jesus Christ, we have to get out of here."

"We can't. I tried to, but it's impossible." 

She sounded like she was crying.  

"W-Was that why they whipped you?"

"Yeah. This isn't the first time either. I was whipped once when I refused to be their human slave."

I was terrified. I couldn't imagine the type of pain she was in. I had a feeling that being whipped twice in four days was a different type of pain. 

"And now?" I slowly asked. 

"I called their Alpha's mistress a whore." Lenny replied and I could hear a smile in her tone for the first time. 

"What do you mean by -" 

The huge iron door was roughly pushed open, halting my next question. I watched as two tall and massive men, walked in, smirks on their faces.

"Who are they?" I whispered to Lenny.

"Guards." She swiftly answered as they got closer.

"Are you ready to behave now, Lenny?" The biggest one out of them asked a whip in his hand. His stare was cruel. 

"Fuck you." Lenny harshly whispered as he walked to the front of her cell. 

"It would give me such great pleasure to watch your little human cunt tear into two as I thrust deep inside you." He said, with a disgusting lust-filled tone as he opened the gate to her cell.

He did not just say what I heard him say. I was suddenly pissed on her behalf.

"You're fucking disgusting and you make my stomach want to spill its guts out," I spoke harshly, and immediately, both heads spun in my direction. I was shocked at my behaviour, it was rare for me to cuss.

The second guard walked to the front of my cell. "Oh look, the second bitch is up. Humans are so weak and pathetic, you were knocked out for two days."

"Let us go." I spat out, my hands clenched themselves tightly, I didn't know where this profound courage was coming from.

They both laughed like I said something silly.

My cell gate was suddenly thrown open.

 "Come on. The both of you, get out!" One of them shouted. His voice booming around the vast dungeon.

I looked beside me to find Lenny slowly walking out. I immediately copied her actions and I walked out of my cell. 

My arm was grabbed harshly by one of them and he began to tug me out of the door. I struggled to walk with just one heel.

I looked back to find Lenny out too. Now that there was light, I took a good look at her. She had shoulder-length midnight black hair, with the prettiest honey brown eyes and caramel skin.

"Hi." She smiled, sending me a small wave with her free hand.

I chuckled at her antic, sending her a small wave of my own.

"This isn't time for some girl-on-girl action," The man beside me grunted, a lustful grin on his face, "You have all the time in the world for that, humans. Get moving!"

I watched, stunned, as his black eyes flashed blue for some seconds. 

"What the hell -" 

He harshly tugged me up the short flight of stairs. Fire torches hung on each side of the wall. 

Once at the top of the stairs, I was tugged to the right hallway while Lenny was tugged to the left.

"Hey! Where are you taking her to?" Lenny yelled, trying to set herself free.

"She needs to take a bath and change. She stinks." The guard next to me answered, his nose twitched.

He collected the whip from his colleague and without waiting for her reply, he began to drag me again. We made a sharp turn to the right and we walked down another flight of stairs. 

Taking a few more turns, it finally occurred to me that where we were was enormous. With grand stairs and ancient paintings hung on the walls, it was breathtaking and I knew I haven't seen the rest of the house yet. 

We passed a few other guards and slaves, whose eyes were downcast, we passed through a large kitchen with several other maids who engaged themselves in one activity or the other. 

Soon, we arrived at a door, a maid was standing there with another maid attire draped on her arm. Her head was bowed and she stood in a submissive stance. 

 The door led the three of us to what was a backyard. It was broad, with a large fountain right at the end of it and a vast field to the left. After the fountain, was an endless land of tall trees and forests. 

We arrived at the foot of the mountain and I was roughly pushed to the ground.

"Come on! Take your dress off." The guard barked at me. 

I waited for him to burst out in laughter and tell me it was a joke and I could go home. I waited for him to tell me that I was being punk'd and Nana and Ama were behind the cameras watching me. 

But it never came. 

I suddenly cracked up, fully realizing that this was real. I didn't know what was funny but I laughed.

"No."

He turned beet red at my answer. "No?"

"No. I won't take off my clothes. Get me the fuck out of here." I rose to my full height and folded my hands, a sham smile on my lips.

The sudden smirk he gave me, chilled me to the bones but my stance didn't falter. 

"Well then, I guess you leave me no choice but to whip you."

That, that made my facade falter, I snapped my gaze to the maid beside me, but she gave me none of her attention. "W-What?"

He couldn't possibly think of whipping me, could he? I looked around to find out that we had the attention of other guards and maids close by. 

He beamed. "I have always enjoyed mixing pleasure and pain. But I must say, the pain I inflict on innocent humans as you gives me so much pleasure."

He looked at the maid beside me. "Hold her down."

The next few seconds were a complete blur to me. The next thing I knew, she bounded both of my wrists with her hand. I was shocked at the amount of strength a feeble girl like her had. 

The guard harshly ripped my gown into two from the back, baring my back and ass to him. The only thing stopping my breast from the eyes of others was the front of my gown. 

I heard the sound of the whip in the air before I felt it and it burned. I screamed nonstop in anguish as he whipped me three more times in the same spot. All attempts to free myself from the maid's grip were futile and all I could do was stand there and take it. 

By the time he was done, my face was red from all the tears and pain and the throbbing in my head intensified.

The maid gently steadied me and I watched with blurry eyes as the guard glared at her. 

"Bath her and give her what to change into. When you're done, take her to Yelena who will assign her duties to her." He barked out the order before storming off. 

She pursed her lips and inhaled before loudly exhaling. She softly helped me out of the gown and my heel, leaving me in just my black pair of panties.

I wrapped my arms around my chest– inwardly cursing myself for refusing to wear a bra– as she walked me to the other edge of the fountain, which was far from the leering eyes of others. 

"Wait here." She ordered before walking away. I looked into the forest, a few metres away, wondering what would happen if I tried to run away. 

I shivered when the feeling of being watched washed over me, I quickly looked back at the mansion and my eyes caught a glimpse of a retreating figure in the shadows of the window right at the top floor of the building. My cheeks flushed at the thought of someone watching me.

"This should help for now."

Carla's voice startled me and she looked at where my gaze was before looking down at me.

I looked at her hands to find her holding a washcloth and a small bottle of oil. 

"This is for your wound." She announced, shaking the bottle of oil. 

She giggled when she saw the sceptical look on my face. "Don't worry, it's safe. You aren't the first girl to be whipped."

Her smile warmed my heart and I felt the need to introduce myself. "I'm Akira."

She made me sit on the tiled edge of the fountain and I winced at the chilliness. "I know. Your friend told me about you." 

I gasped, surprised. "Eve? I thought she was placed in the other cell." 

She nodded as she placed the washcloth in the water before wringing the water out. "She was, until last night. She isn't as stubborn as you are."

I chuckled, the chuckle turned into a whimper as she placed the surprisingly soft and warm cloth on my back. The water from the fountain was also warm, immediately alleviating the pain on my back.

"What do you mean?" I asked her desperately trying to choke back a sob as she gently wiped the cuts on my back. 

"She didn't put up a fight. Unlike you and the other girl." She responded, wringing out the mixture of blood and water from the cloth. 

Eve was the fiercest one out of both of us. I was confused as to why she hadn't put up a fight. 

"What's your name?" I asked, recalling that I forgot to ask her name. 

"Carla." She smiled. 

She added a black substance to the washcloth and when it began to lather, she started wiping the makeup off my face. 

"That's a beautiful name," I murmured with my eyes closed as she rinsed the dirt off my face. 

She finished washing me up in silence and I gently changed into the maid gown after she applied the oil on my back. 

It was a black dress with white trim, with a full skirt. She then gave me a pair of simple black loafers and styled my red hair in a loosed ponytail. 

Once I was dressed to her content, we both walked to the house with my ripped dress, thong and heel long forgotten.

~

Madam Yelena was a short greying older woman, with a permanent frown etched on her face. After Carla had introduced me as 'another' new maid, she had looked at me with a scowl on her pouty lips before shoving a; broom, mop and metal bucket in my hands and assigned me to the Beta's mistress bedroom. 

Each cleaning maid had to go with a guard just in case they wanted to try anything funny. Those were Madam Yelena's words. 

After long and strenuous hours of scrubbing the bathroom and thoroughly cleaning the bedroom, I and two other girls of my age were asked to trim the trees in the garden before I was finally shown my room.

It was a small room, with a twin post bed, which meant I had a roommate. I looked around for her belonging but I found none.

It didn't take long for me to fall asleep, although the mattress was hard and the sheets were cold, I drifted off within minutes, with Eve in my thoughts.

A few minutes into my sleep, I felt someone lightly tap my shoulders. "Wake up, Akira, Madam Yelena wants to speak to us." A familiar feminine voice spoke.

I groaned as I slowly opened my eyes. My head pounded hard and I was thirsty. 

"Heyyy." I yawned with a smile when I saw Lenny.

She grinned back, it almost felt like all that happened was a nightmare until she spoke.

"Thank heavens we're roommates. We have to go."

I quickly followed her to the enormous kitchen, where all the maids were gathered and madam Yelena was already speaking with a scowl on her face.  

She was talking about the annual ball coming in a few days and how we needed to please the Alpha with our arrangements when I heard someone gasp beside me. 

"Akira!" Eve's girly voice rang through my ears. 

My eyes filled with tears and I immediately rushed to hug her. 

I quickly rambled off questions to her, mainly about what the hell we were doing here.

And she answered them all in one breath, allowing me to ask questions and giving me the right answers. 

"So you're telling me that werewolves are real, ninety percent of the people living here are werewolves and this is a 'wolf pack'?" I asked dryly, my arms folded across my chest.

Although she answered my questions as well as she could, I still thought she was lying, none of it was making sense. 

She nodded.

Lenny and I stared at her like she was out of her mind. 

"And their Alpha is the infamous Alpha Ares?"

She nodded, once again.

"So Nana's stories were true?" My jaw was almost touching the ground. 

I had occasionally told Eve about the stories Nana told Ama and I. The thought of Nana and Ama had my heart clenching and my eyes teary.

"Why the hell are you still calm? I can't stay here, Eve!" I whispered, looking around the whole place. And in my peripheral view, Lenny nodded in agreement.

Eve looked at the floor, then I knew something was wrong. "My father is a werewolf and was a member of this pack, he was among the wolves who were exiled." She exhaled loudly. "Look, I want to leave, but I can't. If I get caught trying to escape, my punishment will be grave because I am a werewolf."

"What?!" I cried out, gaining the attention of the girls closer to us.

Madam Yelena suddenly interrupted us. "Except you all want to be whipped by the guards, again, I strongly suggest you shut up."