4 - Humiliated

Marcus and I appeared on the screen.

And then the video cut to him slapping the plate across my face. The video played on a loop, mocking me for challenging an alpha like a damn fool.

His cruel words echoed through the hall, seeping into my very core once again. My legs shook beneath me, and I could feel the weight of humiliation settling upon me once again. 

I had barely set foot in this pack, and already I had become a target for mockery.

My heart pounded so hard that I got dizzy. The anxiety, the panic taking over my senses. 

He had to do it to show me who ruled? To show me that I should know my place and never challenge him…?

That fucking bastard.

That god damn bastard! 

My fingers clenched around the railing of the stairs, my vision getting blurred with fury.

He had the audacity to humiliate me, to dump food on my face. He didn’t even know me, yet he acted as if he had the right to control me.

He had no right!

I stormed right inside the pack hall, my entire body shaking with rage.

I didn’t have to go far. My eyes locked onto him, standing by the couches with his three buddies flanking him.

“Hey Asshole!” I called out, my voice filled with seething anger.

He turned around, his eyebrow quirking up the sight of me but the look on his face turned from relaxed to majorly pissed off. Returning his gaze with a fake, stretched out smile on my face, I lifted my fist high in the air and brought it crashing across his face.

Gasps filled the air.

Marcus stumbled back, his body colliding with the edge of the couch. Blood trickled down his cheek from the cut inflicted by the ring on my index finger.

Without giving him another moment of my time, I pivoted on my heel and stormed out of the pack house, my head held high and my heart pulsating, but this time with a smug, satisfied happiness.

There were fast, heavy footsteps behind me.

I recognized those footsteps.

I knew that Alpha Marcus’ revenge would be swift and severe. He will either murder me right here, right now or banish me from the pack.

There was no in between.

But then something happened. 

A resounding thud echoed through the air.

Someone screamed.

My heart raced as I spun around to face the source of the commotion, my eyes widening in disbelief.

There, just a few steps away from me, lay Marcus, his face planted on the ground. He was motionless, unconscious.

The side of his face had started turning an alarming shade of blue, starting from the wound that my ring had left on his cheek.

And then the shrill voice of a girl shook the pack hall,

“Milli poisoned Alpha Marcus!”

***

“You should have told me that there was poison in the ring! How was I supposed to know that?!” I shouted, my voice strained with anxiety and frustration. 

I paced back and forth in the small room that Zack had thrown me into, feeling trapped, both physically and mentally.

My fingers unconsciously traced the surface of the silver ring. Its intricate patterns of delicate vines and blossoms, adorned with gemstones, made it look so innocent and pretty. But the poison that it contained was anything but that.

My mind raced, unable to focus on anything other than the fact that I had just unwittingly poisoned the alpha of this pack. 

Now everyone out there was ready to find ways to give me a torturous death!

“Am I going to get kicked out?” I blurted out, my voice trembling with fear and uncertainty.

Nyx chimed in, “Try something more realistic, babe. Like getting tortured to death by needles piercing your skin.”

“Stop freaking me out, Nyx!” 

“You fucked up bigggggg time.” 

“Stop scaring the life out of her, you evil spawn.” Uncle growled at Nyx before turning toward me, frustration replacing his concern. Locking his eyes with mine, he huffed out, “It was a stupid, STUPID thing to do, Loonyhead! What even compelled you to even think that you can just go ahead and punch an alpha?! And punching Alpha Marcus?! Have you lost your goddamn mind?!”

“Lost my mind?! Uncle, it was you who gave me this ring and told me to wear it all the time, even in the shower!” I shot back. “How can you forget to mention that this ring has silver and you gave it to me just to keep the rogues away. AND that it is POISONOUS to werewolves?!” 

He took a deep breaths, his nostrils flaring with frustration as he stared down at me like looking at the most annoying child born on the entire planet,

“Just a whiff of silver can scare the rogues away. How would I have known that you were gonna go and punch an alpha in the face?! I gave you the ring to protect you from a sudden attack if I’m not there. Not to practise jiu-jitsu on the alphas, you little moron!”

Nyx rolled her eyes and walked over to me.

“How about I pack your bags and we run?” she suggested in all seriousness.

“Run where?” I leaned in, very interested.

Uncle Hector growled in warning. “Stop giving her shitty ideas, Evil Spawn. I am warning you.”

Nyx had already earned herself a place on his bad side, and she was clearly adding more negative points to her score.

Unfazed, Nyx continued, “Literally anywhere. Out of this pack.”

Uncle Hector snapped, losing his patience quickly. “You are not running anywhere!”

Undeterred, Nyx continued, “I’ll just tell Stephan to take care of our parents, and then I’ll be out in a minute with my bag.”

“Where are you thinking we should go?”

“I have an aunt in Hawaii,” Nyx said eagerly. “She lives with humans. I think we can go there first and then find jobs as bartenders. We don’t need a college degree for that!”

Uncle Hector looked like he was about to explode.

Uncle Hector received a call and reluctantly had to leave, his work demanding his attention. I reassured him, albeit with difficulty, that I would contact him as soon as I heard anything.

Soon after, Nyx was summoned by her parents after Stephan accidentally spilled the beans about her stealing and breaking the super rich, annoying neighbour’s car a week ago.

Despite her cursing under her breath, she had no choice but to go home.

I didn’t blame them for leaving, even though fear gnawed at my mind. It had been nine long hours since the incident, and darkness had already enveloped the outside world.

Yet, there was still no news.

Ignoring the command I was given in the morning to stay in this room at all costs, I marched out, determined to find out what was happening.

If I was about to be tortured and killed, I at least needed to have some time to prepare my soul!

As I entered the hospital corridor a few minutes later, I noticed guards stationed outside a specific room, vigilant and watchful.

As I approached, their expressions turned into a mix of disapproval and fury.

"What are you doing here? We confined you to that room for a reason!" The older guard's voice was laced with annoyance as he stomped over to me.

Ignoring his words, I pressed forward, heading toward the room. 

The other guard, much younger than the older one, with a firm grip on my arm, forcibly dragged me back.

“Get back to your room, criminal. This is not your human fucking zoo!”

My fists clenched tightly, frustration surging through every fiber of my being. 

This pack was everything to me, the only place where I could be close to my uncle, my only living family. If I were sent away, I knew I wouldn't survive out there, especially considering the looming threat of those who had already taken the lives of my family. 

Leaving this pack meant I was fucking doomed.

Determined, I lunged towards the door, but before my hand could grasp the handle, both guards seized me, their strength overpowering mine. 

They began dragging me away, my futile attempts to break free only causing me more pain.

And just as I was being yanked away from the corridor like a spoiled child in the most humiliating way, the door of the hospital room swung open, revealing Alpha Ares as he stepped out.

Ares's intense gaze shifted to the guards, his eyes narrowing as he took in their tight grip on my arms. 

"Let her go," Ares said, his voice quiet but his expression betrayed the deep displeasure that simmered beneath the surface. 

As if struck by lightning, the guards released their hold on my arms.

Grateful but still flustered, I stammered out a barely audible "Thank you," feeling a tinge of embarrassment at the way he had seen me being dragged away earlier. 

Tentatively, I took steps to close the distance between us, my steps hesitant.

"I'm sorry," I murmured, my voice laced with genuine remorse. "I didn't mean to create a scene. I was just worried. Is Alpha Marcus okay?"

He looked calm. Like he was not freaking out that I almost- or completely killed his best friend.

That was a good sign, right?

But he looked calm all the time, so I wouldn’t really know.

Meeting my gaze with his piercing eyes, he posed a question that hung in the air like a delicate thread. "Did you poison him?" 

“No, I didn’t." I gulped. "I swear, I didn’t know that the ring would hurt him. I didn’t even know that silver is harmful to you guys. I just wanted to punch him because he acted like an asshole. Not that punching is a good thing, but I didn't want to—"

His hand lifted up, and I instinctively flinched, bracing myself for the impact. 

He put that hand on the top of my head, his fingers sliding through my hair, soothing me. 

“It’s going to be alright. Calm down." 

“You think so?” I whispered.

His eyes melted, a tender look replacing the stiffness.

He nodded, “Come with me.”

I followed him obediently, my feet carrying me into the sterile confines of the hospital room. The scent of sanitizer hit my nostrils at once.

And there he was, seated on the hospital bed, a small, white bandaid adorning his cheek. 

“You are okay.” I whispered in relief and stunned silence.

He looked up and in that moment, I understood why everyone held a healthy dose of fear for Alpha Marcus. His eyes were alert and sharp, he was emanating pure, brutal energy and he was clearly, obviously pissed off.

“You wished I weren’t? Wanted me to die by your hands today?" His words cut through the air like a sharp blade, striking at the core of my being.

I scrambled closer to him, my desperation evident in my actions.

"No, no," I rambled, my words spilling out in a rush of panicked honesty. "I meant I was worried. I didn't know I would hurt you. I'm so sorry."

“You didn’t think a punch would hurt me?” 

I approached his bed, my hands trembling as I continued blabbering,

“That- is not what I meant. I wouldn’t blame you if you want to punish me for it. I was angry at you for humiliating me at the college, then spreading that video to insult me even more. But I shouldn’t have hit you.”

“What video?” Marcus asked shortly, his brows set in grim frown.

I took in a breath.

“The video of you hitting me in the face with that food tray?”

“You hit her in the face with a food tray?”

It was Ares who talked. And he didn’t sound very calm anymore.

“No, don’t worry about it. It didn’t really hurt.” I was quick to explain, at least it physically didn’t. It’s not anywhere near equal to getting poisoned, though. 

Ares did not look convinced by my assurance. His gaze remained fixated on Marcus. The nerve on his forehead was flickering. I was beginning to fear he would march over any second and punch Marcus in the face. 

“We will talk about it later,” Marcus said to Ares, “can you handle this?”

A muscle in Ares’ cheek jumped. 

His gaze came back to rest on my face. He searched for something, but soon enough, he cut his gaze to Marcus again.

Wordlessly, he nodded, turned around, and walked out of the hospital room.

Marcus saw that my meltdown was now over, he stood up, took a step toward me, and got closer.

"I didn't spread any video. I'm not that childish," Marcus muttered, his tone filled with annoyance.

“Then who did?”

“We will find that out soon enough.”

He straightened on his feet and took a step back, “As for your punishment for hitting me, get ready. You will be acting as my assistant for the next two weeks to pay for it.”

It took me a moment to let his words enter my brain properly to make sure I was not mistaking his words.

“What? Just that? Just an assistant?”

He raised an eyebrow, amusement dancing in his eyes. "Why? You want something more intimate and harder?"

I quickly shook my head. God knows what runs through this man’s mind but lord, if it was just to take his files from point A to B, stuff some coffee in his mouth, and wipe his table, I was good. I could take that. It was in fact so much better than being on the death row or getting kicked out.

“Sure.” I said at once. 

A wide smile spread across Marcus' face, but there was something dangerous lurking in his gaze that made me uneasy. Why did I have a feeling that I had signed up for more than I had intended?