Chapter 5

Apphia

On my way outside, I see Gavin in the common area. He's making out with the pack slut, Calla. I almost puke at the sight, and the pain in my chest intensifies.

"Hey, slut, stop," Calla calls me in her nasal voice. I don't stop walking. 

"Apphia!" she shouts. I stop and cock my head to look at her. 

"Did you not hear me call you?" she asks, getting off Gavi's lap and walks to me. 

"You said slut, and the only slut I see in this room is you," I say, making Nalani and Vivian burst into laughter. The two girls are never mean to me. Nalani tries to make conversation with me, and even go as far as to defend me from bullies. 

Calla gasps and attempts to slap me, but a growl from Gavin stops her hand in mid-air. I stare at my ex-mate; he has a blank expression.

"Don't fucking dare hit my- her, Calla," 

"I won't fight her. Apphia needs to reserve her energy for Amir. He is taking her to his pack tomorrow, "Calla laughs. My eyes widen with fear. 

"What?!" Gavin, and Nalani boom, they exchange brief glance, shocked by their outburst. 

"Yes, baby. Didn't you hear? Alpha Amir wants her as a maid, but we all know the real reason," Calla winks at me. 

"Damn, he will fuck her every night," Rory adds, making the guys chortle 

 The boys continue to comment about sex styles to try and what Amir will do to me. Gavin furiously growls at them, and suddenly bolts out of the room.

"In all honesty, Apphia's hot and can be a supermodel. She possesses natural beauty with good bone structure," Orson, another pack member, says, raking his eyes on me. I shudder from his predatory gaze. They're talking about me like I'm not in the room with them. 

"She is tall and thin, with flawless skin and long legs. Her face card game is fire,"

Calla glares at the men and then at me. "Yeah, if freaks became supermodels. She'd be the top," she sneers. 

"Go kill yourself, freak. Oops, you have been promoted you to a sex slave,"

 I curl my hands in a fist. I feel anger blaze within me. I turn towards Calla and punch her in the face, giving her a bloody nose, and bolt out. I've been wanting to do it for a while now. 

"Catch that bitch. We are going to show her today," I hear her scream.

 I run as fast as I can from the packhouse. They will beat me black and blue if they catch me.

I run in the woods, towards the pack's border near the lake I like to visit.

I stop running after I notice they have gone back. They were scaring me. 

I sit by the lake, catching my breath. I look up at the sky; thunderclouds are rolling in, obscuring the stars in the sky moments ago. It looks like a good night to die.

I grab a razor from my pale blue dress pocket and stare at it. I grip it, ready to slice my wrist. It won't be as painful to end my life if I bleed out. My heart has been ripped out and stomped on. I've tried my hardest to survive, but I can't anymore. I need to free myself from the burden of the world. Once I die, I will meet my mother on the other side, and we'll be happy together. 

I dig the razor in my skin and slowly move it across my wrist. I gasp as blood; so much blood comes out of my cut. I panic and throw it to the ground, burying it with the dead leaves with my foot. I need to stop the bleeding. I tear a part of my dress and tie my wound tightly. 

Deciding I should continue running, I freeze when I hear Rory's voice. 

"I know you are still here," He must have stayed when the others left, "I know your mate rejected you tonight. It must suck to be you. No one to love you; let me help you," I clutch my lips with my hand, trying to stabilize my heartbeat, but I'm failing.  

"Your brother and father abhor you; your mate thinks you are an ugly skank. He is embarrassed by you, his words, not mine." he sings. He is enjoying the hunting game while I'm shaking with fear. 

"Gotcha!" he wraps his arms around me from behind and says in my ear, "Your breathing is so loud," 

I try to elbow him, but Rory doesn't bulge. He untangles his arms around me and faces me. He gazes at me with a victorious smile. 

"I like hunting. I like it when you are the prey," Rory smirks. However, a scowl plasters his face when he notices blood from my wrist, and then an ear-splitting smile spreads across his face. 

"You tried to kill yourself but backed out such a chicken," he laughs like a deranged man. 

"Leave me alone, Rory," my voice trembles. I hide my hands behind my back; I don't want him to see me shake. However, I have never been so scared of Rory before. 

"No," He steps closer to me. I'm scared shitless right now. I trip as I back away from him. 

"Why don't we have some fun? Everyone was right, you know. You are hot," he muses. 

Ziora. Ziora. I call unto my wolf, but she doesn't come. It's like she doesn't exist.

 My skin crawls in disgust when Rory kisses my neck. I whimper and attempt to push him away, but he is so strong. 

"My father will kill you," 

"Your father doesn't care about you. The man wants you to go with Amir. Do you know what he does to innocent girls like you? So, I'm just preparing you," Rory grabs my hair and yanks me to a tree.  

"Help me!" I scream.

He connects his fist to my cheek, knocking me to the ground. Blood pools in my mouth, and I whimper, spitting out some blood. 

Rory gets on his knees and covers my mouth with his hand. I bite his disgusting hand hard. He loses focus momentarily, and I use this chance to crawl away on my hands and knees, but he quickly tackles me and turns me on my back, straddling me. Something in his eyes makes him look crazy. I kick him with my knees and struggle, biting and scratching him with my nails to no avail. 

He grabs my throat,

"Stop it, please," I beg as he asphyxiates me. Rory punches me again and again until I lose consciousness.

Unknown pov

I avoided attending social events. They were so tiring, yet here I was because my father, King Leondre Lavista, insisted I attend. I hate socializing primarily because I know how people feel about me. 

They fear me. No one says it, but I know it. I can smell their fear for miles. I was born with untamed power. 

However, that doesn't stop the annoying alphas from clinging to me and begging me to take their daughters as my mates. I have no desire to mate with any of their daughters. I only want to mate with the one destined for me, my true mate. I get a strong drink and gulp it. 

I'm feeling restless this evening. My lycan, Nico, is growling incessantly in my head. I don't know what's causing this. He doesn't talk, only that he wants to leave the party. 

" Alpha Prince Nicholas, you're here," Daisy Zhang says, distracting me from my thoughts and turmoil. Daisy is the daughter of the Sunrise Lycan pack alpha female, and her beta mate. They are a wealthy, strong, and powerful pack. 

Daisy believes we should be together because my father and her mother didn't work out. Her mother, Alaiah Martin, was obsessed with my father before she found her mate and had tried multiple times to destroy my parents' relationship. 

" Hello, Daisy," She blushes and coyly gazes at me through her lashes. Why does she always do this?

" Hi, handsome. May I ask why you rejected my invitation to attend the alpha ball with me?" 

" Excuse me, i should find my beta," I say, and walk away. I reject all her invitations, yet she continues to send them. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I spot my friend and beta Blade Barret. He is flirting with three women. Blade is a player. He walks towards me, a woman clinging on each arm. 

" Alpha, here you are. We've been looking for you," he says, grinning at the woman batting her eyes at me. I dismiss the women beside him with a flick of my hand, and they frown before leaving. 

" Why are you not mingling with the ladies? You will need to pick a Luna soon, Nicholas," he sighs in exasperation, " I hear the elder council mentioned it, too," 

 I narrow my gaze. The elder council is the pillar of the realm. They ensure the pack regulations are upheld.

The elder council is wise beyond their age. Most importantly, they believe an alpha is most potent and tamed when they have a Luna. If the commission talks about me needing a Luna now, all eyes will be on me.

 

Blade continues to notify me about the women at the party and their families, but I'm exhausted already. I glare at him, but he doesn't flinch. Apart from my family, he's the only one who can withstand my temper. That is why he is my beta; he is rational and intelligent. 

" I'm going home. I've had enough interaction for one night," I growl. 

" No, look at those women swooning over us. We can't disappoint them by leaving so soon," he begs, following me closely. 

" Stay then, Blade," 

" Argh, you have a way of blocking me," he sighs, getting in the car after me. 

We arrive at the castle in ten minutes. I climb out of the car and walk towards the door, but suddenly, I feel an abnormal pain in my chest. 

' No. Help me, please,' I hear a whimper in my head. 

I freeze in my tracks; who is that?