VALERIE
I stepped back, gasping loudly in dismay. My eyes gapped at him in fright and disbelief. "What did you just say?" I blurted out. He tilted his head sideways, ignoring my question as he twitched his lips in disgust. Before I could part my lips to say another word, two young men trudged into the room and gripped my arm, pulling me out of the large room roughly. "Stop it! Stop it!" I screamed, trying to break free from their grip which proved futile in the end. "Tell Margaret to get her ready for tonight!" I heard him snap at the guards before spinning around and heading up the stairs. "No, please, hear me out, please!" I screamed for mercy to no avail. The men got to a door and paused; one of them pushed the door open while the other flung me into the damp, cold room. "Wait!" I bellowed and staggered up to my feet, racing for the door. But it was slammed shut before I could touch it. I crouched down to the ground and buried my face in it, sobbing bitterly. “Get her ready!” I heard a rough voice snap at someone outside the closed door. Soon, the echo of shuffling feet filtered into my ear and the door clicked open. I raised my head, staring helplessly at the middle-aged woman standing beside the door jamb. “Please, help me. Get me away from here, please,” I cried, hoping that she'd have pity on me and help me escape from the Pack. “I need to go to college, I don't want to be your Alpha’s sex slave.” Her lips pursed out as a wave of sympathy flashed across her brown eyes. “I'm sorry, but I can't help you,” she muttered, and my heart shrank. I had to get out of here as soon as I could but finding a way was the problem. I looked at the woman again, pain written clearly in my eyes. “Please, ma'am, I know you can help me out of this place. You can tell him that I ran away, tell him anything.” I pleaded, but the helplessly still stuck to her features. “Come with me; that way, he won't be able to catch any of us,” I said, but she scoffed. The pity in her eyes slowly dissolved into a glare of disgust. “I told you that I can't help you! Just accept your fate and obey Alpha Jonas!” She snapped and I cringed back. The fear that bubbled in me wasn't because of the way she spoke to me but because of the name she spat out. “Al-Alpha Jonas?” I stammered, my heart constricted as the name echoed in my mind. My father sold me to Alpha Jonas. The most dangerous and feared Alpha in the wolf kingdom? The woman saw the shock in my eyes and understood the reason for my reaction. She squatted before me and stroked my hair slowly. “If you obey the Alpha then you'll be safe,” she muttered and smiled warmly at me. The warm smile I received from her reduced the fear tightening my heart. “Come,” she extended her hand. I stared at it before clasping mine in it, hoping that everything would work out in my favor. She took me to another room full of girls who should be the same age as me. “What is your name?” She asked as we stood before the group of girls that had their curious yet not surprised eyes on me. “I'm… I'm…” I stuttered and gulped, tears clouding my eyes. The thought of becoming a slave mocked me. I wanted to become a doctor but now all my dreams seemed to have been crushed to pieces. “Hey,” the woman's voice seeped into my mind, forcing me to look at her. “Your name?” She repeated. “She must be dumb,” a girl laughed and the older woman threw her a glare that made her slam her parched lips together. I took a deep breath and faced the girls. “My name is Valerie Garrett. I am from the Blue Moon Pack,” I said and they exchanged glances wordlessly. “You are welcome,” a brunette-haired girl finally spoke up in the silent room. “Julian, get her ready for the Alpha tonight and make sure you show her around the Pack tomorrow,” the woman said to the brunette-haired girl, and she nodded. She forced a smile into her face and approached me then took my clammy hands and led me to the bathroom. I had the best bath that night; the hot water washed through my broken body, making me sigh in relief. However, it didn't do any good in comforting me. Instead, it reminded me that it wasn't for nothing. I was being made comfortable because I belonged to the Alpha for the night just like Julian had earlier said. I sobbed and closed my eyes, sliding down into the large tub till the water covered my head. The hotness stung me mercilessly, and the water slipped into my body through every opening in my face. I didn't care about the pain, I deserved it. I couldn't accept such a ridiculous fate staring mockingly at me. I couldn't accept the fact that I was going to become a sex slave to a ruthless monster. It felt better to die and end the suffering within a night. My throat knotted, and I found myself swallowing lots of water, which kept choking me. The tears that slipped out of my eyes mixed up with the water. I wanted to stay still and die but I couldn't. I wriggled in the water, struggling with death instead of letting it take over my soul and take it away. Somehow, I couldn't keep struggling. My body weakened, and I couldn't help but pull my head out of the water, panting heavily. I had the opportunity to kill myself before facing the pain but I couldn't. It felt like a force was pushing me up and out of the dreadful hands of death. I shook my head, wondering what I had done. I swallowed hard and made to dip myself in again, but the door that burst open behind me stopped me from attempting to drown myself again. “Do you like this dress?” Julian's voice echoed in the large bathroom. I glanced at the red skimpy dress in her hand and turned up my lips in disgust. “The Alpha loves his women in these kinds of dresses; I know it looks exposing, but that's what the Alpha likes,” she said. His woman? I scoffed at the words, wondering who the women were. The thought of me becoming part of those women made me shudder in the bathtub. “It's time for you to come out,” she quickly added and I sighed out, my heart twitching in pain. I stepped out of the tub and avoided her eyes in embarrassment as I stood naked before her. She hummed and wrapped a bathrobe around my body before leading me into a dressing room that was filled with other girls. My eyes widened and my cheeks heated up as all eyes in the room fell on me. I tightened my grip on the hem of my bathrobe, staring at the marble floor. “Here,” Julian said, shoving a red lacy thong at my face. My heart skipped and I shook my head in disagreement. “Sorry, I don't wear that,” I muttered in a low voice but the girls standing close to me heard what I said. “You don't wear that?” A girl chipped in a mocking tone and the other ones burst into laughter. My throat knotted and I sank my teeth into my bottom lip, tears gathered in my eyes. Julian wrapped her hand around my shoulders and forced me to look into her eyes. “Look, you should be confident. Don't be afraid of anyone,” she said and leaned closer to me. “Not even the Alpha,” she muttered and my brows raised in surprise. “What?” I gasped out, staring shockingly at me. “Get ready,” she said, shoved the clothes into my shaking hands, and moved back, smiling warmly as she watched me dress up. After I was done dressing up, she pulled me into a chair and began to apply some makeup on my face. Several thoughts ran in my head as Julian's words resounded in my head. Should I defy the Alpha and run away? What if he finds me and kills me? Isn't it better to die than become a plaything to Alpha Jonas? But when I thought about my mom and what might happen if I ran away, I withdrew from the thought and accepted my fate in defeat. “Done,” I heard Julian say and I snapped my eyes open. My belly knotted as I stared at the beautiful girl staring back at me. A girl once filled with dreams and happiness, a girl that once looked further to a better future. That girl was gone, it was replaced by a girl entirely broken. Abandoned in a place that had no way out, left without her dreams or future. “Valerie?” The older woman's voice snapped behind me and I shuddered slightly. Julian squeezed my shoulder reassuringly and helped me up to my feet. I turned slowly and looked at the woman whom everyone called Madam Margaret. “You look extremely beautiful,” she muttered, running her dazzling eyes around my body. I gulped in embarrassment and tugged on the dress as discomfort washed over me. She smiled at my naivety and waved her hand towards the door. “Come with me,” she spun around and began to lead the way out. I hesitated for a moment before following her out of the servant quarters. With my heart thumping loudly in my chest, I looked forward to an uncertain fate with the Alpha.VALERIEMy breath hitched when we got to the large oak doors, madam Margaret stepped back and jerked her head towards the door. “Go in,” she muttered and my heart shrank. My feet froze as I struggled to move closer and push the door open. “Valerie?” Margaret snapped impatiently. “The Alpha doesn't like to be kept waiting,” she added, but no matter how hard I tried, my paralyzed feet wouldn't budge from the spot. I gasped out, my heart thumping loudly in my chest. “Go in!” Margaret repeated, her voice louder than before. I gulped hard and bit my lips before pushing my feet forward. I reached out to open the door, but it pulled open, and Alpha Jonas's face popped out, to my dismay. Anger flickered across his sharp brown eyes as he ran his eyes around my trembling body. “Why is she late?” He sneered in a voice that made me cringe. “Forgive me, Alpha. She is a naive girl,” I heard Margaret reply behind me. “Naive?” He scoffed with disdain laced in his voice. He snapped his
VALERIEMy racing heart only stilled with Alpha Jonas dropped to the ground, unhurt. “Follow me!” He snapped in a hoarse voice, briskly walking into a dark tunnel. Why does he want me to come with him? Why doesn't he let me go and save himself instead? Does he… does he value me? I shook my head at the absurd thought. Not after what he did to me in his room. “Walk faster!” His snap jolted me out of my thoughts. I increased my pace, running at some point to catch up with his fast strides. The body was lying on the floor, and the shadows stuck to my mind, haunting me. The man's face has a striking resemblance to someone that I've come across, but I can't seem to place where I have seen it or who it was. But one thing is certain, he's dead. We kept walking through the dark tunnel till we stopped in front of a door. I stared in astonishment as he dug out a bunch of keys and slipped an old rusting key into the almost invincible keyhole on the door. The door clicked open and h
VALERIE “Walk faster!” I glanced back at my mother’s pale face as my stepfather dragged me roughly to the car parked in the driveway. I wanted to part my parched lips and inquire from him where we were going with my bags but the fear that tightened my heart didn’t let me speak a word. Instead, I followed him sheepishly like a sheep being led to the slaughterhouse. Ever since my father died and my mother remarried, my life has turned upside-down. I turned into a servant overnight at his arrival, and my helpless mother did nothing but watch me do his bidding. Every day, I wished and hoped that I would finally get out of the house and find a life for myself, the life that I was destined for. And sometimes, when I understand how helpless my mother is, I refrain from the thought of running away. But what can one do? I am confused, helpless, and stuck with a monster my mother brought into our lives. My stepfather shoved me into the passenger's seat and slammed the door