"No," I protested, my voice shaking. "I won't go." Derrick's eyes sparkled with amusement. "Oh, but you will," he said. "In fact, you leave in two days." "You can't make me," I said, my voice trembling. Even if I was bound, I would never give in to his request. I would not be another one of the long line of concubines of the devil himself. Derrick leaned forward, his eyes blazing with intensity. "Oh, but I can," he whispered. "And I will." Ariana's life is shattered when her father is brutally murdered and she's forced into a betrothal with the ruthless Alpha King Ryker, a man cursed to kill any woman who bears his child. But as they work through their unfamiliar bond, secrets and lies threaten to destroy them. Can Ariana uncover the truth behind her father's death and Ryker's curse before it's too late, or will their love become the very thing that destroys them?
View MoreI heard it before I felt it.
The crack of the whip echoed through the backyard, slicing into the silence. I felt the sting of the lash on my back next, the searing pain licking me up like wildfire as I crumpled to the grass. My vision blurred, and for a moment, I saw stars dancing before my eyes. There was a bloodcurdling scream, and it took me a few seconds to realize it had come from my throat. "No, Derrick, please! She’s just a child," my mother's voice pleaded as tears streamed down her cheeks. Her words were filled with raw fear, a fear that had become all too familiar in our household. I heard the sound of heavy footsteps as Derrick approached me. His breath reeked of cheap liquor and cigarettes, the stench making my stomach churn with nausea. "You're nothing but a worthless, wolf-less abomination," he spat, his words dripping with venom. His eyes gleamed with sadistic pleasure, his face twisted in a snarl. My mother's cries grew louder, but I knew she was powerless, just like me. Derrick's iron-grip on our pack was suffocating, and there was nothing she or anyone else could do. The memory of my father's brutal murder flashed before my eyes, the image of his lifeless body etched into my mind like a scar. It had been two years since that fateful night, and Derrick, his younger brother, had taken great pleasure in reducing me to a mere slave in my own home. And my mother, the once respected Luna of our pack? She was no more than his sex slave. Derrick's eyes raked over me, his gaze lingering on my battered body. "You forgot to curtsy to me at breakfast. You forgot your place," he sneered, his voice filled with hatred. "You're nothing but a filthy, insignificant creature. You don't deserve to live in this house, to breathe the same air as me." I flinched, anticipating the next strike. "I'm sorry, Derrick. It won't happen again," I begged, trying to keep my voice steady, and remembering to fix my eyes on the ground, “where I belonged”. But my words only seemed to enrage him further. The whip descended again, and again, each strike making my body spasm. I screamed, the pain searing through me like a branding iron. My back felt like it was on fire, the flames licking at my skin with merciless intensity. My mother's sobs grew louder, and I felt a surge of anger mixed with helplessness. Why couldn't she protect me? Why couldn't she stand up to Derrick? But I knew the answer. Derrick's cruelty had broken her, too. He had taken everything from us – our dignity, our freedom, and our hope. As Derrick finally stopped, I lay on the floor, my back a mass of raw, bleeding flesh. I couldn't even heal, couldn't summon the energy to mend my broken body. Without a wolf, I was no different from a weak human. The last time my mother had helped me heal, Derrick had locked us up without food or water for three days. I'd vowed never to ask for her help again, never to put her through that pain. Derrick's voice cut through my thoughts. "Get up, Ariana. You have a task to complete." I struggled to my wobbly feet, my vision blurring. "W-what is it?" I stuttered, dread seeping through my veins. "You'll be cleaning the pig pen," Derrick sneered. "You're not fit for anything else. That’s where you belong. You're not even fit to be a servant in this house." I felt tears prick at the corners of my eyes, but I refused to cry. I wouldn't give Derrick the satisfaction. Derrick's laughter echoed behind me. "You'll be sleeping with the pigs tonight. You're not worthy of a bed, and don’t even think your mother will help you because she’ll be too busy moaning all night to remember you,” he said with a sardonic smile that made me want to retch my gut out. I stood in the pig pen, the stench of filth and decay overwhelming me. The pigs snorted and squealed, their beady eyes watching me in a way that made me skin crawl. As I began to clean, my back screamed in protest. Every movement, every brushstroke, sent waves of raw pain coursing through my body. I bit my lip, trying to hold back the tears, but they prickled at the corners of my eyes like hot coals. The pigs' enclosure was a mess, the mud and filth caked on the walls and floor. I scrubbed and scraped, my hands raw and bleeding, but the dirt seemed to cling to everything I touched. I felt like I was cleaning my own soul, trying to scrub away the shame and humiliation that Derrick had heaped upon me. But it was no use. The pain and shame only seemed to deepen, seeping into my bones like ice. Starved, dehydrated, and in intense pain, I stumbled and fell, and my hands sank into the mud. I couldn't do this. I couldn't keep going. I felt like I was being devoured, consumed by the very filth I was trying to clean that now clung to my skin and every breath. And then, the dam broke. I sobbed, great, racking cries that shook my entire body. The pigs scattered, frightened by my outburst, but I didn't care. I didn't care about anything anymore. I curled up in the mud, my body wracked with sobs. I cried for my father, for my mother, for the life I once knew. I cried for the girl I used to be, the girl who had been broken and battered beyond recognition. The night closed in around me, and I felt like I was drowning in my own tears, like I was being swallowed whole by the darkness. I don't know how long I cried. Even time seemed to stand still, mocking me as my body shook with sobs. Eventually, exhaustion claimed me, and I fell into a fitful sleep. My dreams were haunted by Derrick's cruel laughter, by the crack of the whip, by the feel of the mud and filth clinging to my skin. I woke up to the sound of my own screams, my body drenched in sweat. The pigs were watching me, their eyes gleaming in the dark. I was trapped in a life worse than a nightmare. And as I lay there, my body aching, my heart heavy with sorrow, I knew I couldn't keep going. I couldn't keep living like this. Something had to change. Something had to break.Arianna’s POVHe didn’t even look back at me.I stood there, frozen on the stairs, staring at the door he’d just walked through. My heart thudded against my ribs, like it was trying to break free from the guilt that was already curling tighter around my lungs and just like it had been happening in the last few days, I couldn’t breathe.Did I really expect him to forgive me just like that?The question bit into my chest and I swallowed hard, willing myself not to cry again. I’d cried enough already. Three days locked in my room, no food, no sleep, just me and the fear of Claire’s death, but now, it was all amplified by every hateful word I’d said to him.Monster.Murderer.I hate you.God.He was right. I didn’t hesitate. I didn’t even try to ask for the truth. I let Claire draw the picture and I colored it in for her.And now he couldn’t even stand to look at me.I sank down onto the bottom step, my hands trembling in my lap. I felt raw. Like someone had peeled back every layer of me
Ryker’s POVI didn’t go far when I left her. I couldn’t. My legs barely carried me past the threshold of Claire’s room before the weight in my chest forced me to stop walking. I gripped the edge of the hallway wall, my knuckles white and my jaw clenched so tightly it ached. Her voice still echoed behind me, and I could still feel his broken it was.“Please, Ryker. Please. I didn’t mean to…I didn’t know—”I closed my eyes.I had to keep walking.But when I finally made it back to my room, it was like I’d entered a tomb. The silence wasn’t comforting. It wasn’t peaceful. It was suffocating. Every inch of space seemed to squeeze the breath out of my lungs.My wolf was pacing inside me, agitated and very unsettled. He didn’t understand. Or maybe he did, and it just hurt too much to accept.She believed everything.His voice growled low inside my head. She chose her.I ripped the shirt from my back, needing something, anything, to tear apart. The fabric split under my hands, but it didn’t
Arianna’s POVI couldn’t breathe.The natural act of breathing suddenly became too difficult with the heavy scent of lavender—Claire— that was still permeated in the air, or the pictures laid bare and staring straight at me. My heart beat like it was trying to break through my ribs. My hand hovered over the photo of myself with the red X slashed through it, trembling so violently I had to ball it into a fist just to stop it. I didn’t even realize when I’d reached the photos.I turned to him.Ryker hadn’t moved. He stood like a statue beside Claire’s bed, his eyes fixed on the collage that had just shattered what was left of my sanity.“Say something,” I said but my voice came out as a hoarse whisper.He didn’t say anything. Just kept looking at the raised bed.“Please,” I begged, the word tasting like blood in my mouth. I honestly didn’t want to believe what I was seeing.And then he looked at me. It wasn’t just a glance, he looked at me like he wanted to search deep into my soul. His
Arianna’s POVI wasn’t sure.Not about him. Not about myself. Not about anything anymore.My hands were still trembling, my fingers cold despite how warm the room was. My lips tasted of salt and copper from chewing them too hard. My legs felt wobbly beneath me, and I wasn’t entirely sure if it was from the three days without food or what Ryker had just said.Claire… leading me to rogues?No. No, she wouldn’t. She couldn’t.But his voice echoed in my head. He didn’t sound angry or defensive. He just sounded very certain. “If you want to see who the real monster is… follow me.”I stood there long after he’d left, staring at the door like it would open itself and swallow me whole. My brain screamed at me to stay. That this was a trap. That I couldn’t trust him, not after everything.For all I knew, he could be luring me out to kill me and finish what where he’d stopped with Claire. Tie up the loose ends because if there was only one thing I knew about Ryker, then it was the fact that he
Arianna’s POVThree days.It had been three full days, and I still couldn’t believe it.Everything felt surreal, like I was suspended in the middle of a nightmare I couldn’t wake from. Time had stopped moving the second Claire’s body hit the ground. My mind kept looping back to that exact moment; her eyes wide in shock, her mouth parted like she was going to say something, the blood that burst out of her head and splattered across the wall behind her.And then the silence.I couldn’t comprehend it. No matter how many times my thoughts circled around it, it just didn’t make sense. Claire—who had held my hand. Claire—who had whispered instructions into my ear. Claire—who told me to run, to live, to never look back.Dead.Shot in the head.By him.I hadn’t left my room since. I hadn’t spoken a word to anyone except when absolutely necessary. I hadn’t eaten. I hadn’t drunk even a drop of water. Not that I hadn’t tried. I had. But everything felt like sand in my mouth. Everything tasted li
Arianna’s POVI let out a strangled breath the moment I saw her.“Claire,” I whispered, stumbling forward, barely able to believe she was real and standing right in front of me. My legs moved before my brain could catch up and I nearly collapsed into her arms, all of my thoughts throughout the last hour crashing over me like a wave.“God, I thought—” My voice broke. I clutched her sleeves. “I thought something happened. You were late. You said ten. I waited. I waited, Claire, and I thought he found you, or—”“I know, I know.” She wrapped her arms around me, pressing her face to my shoulder. Her voice was hushed and hurried. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I had to make sure no one was watching. I couldn’t risk it. Alpha has eyes everywhere and I had to make sure nobody was suspicious.”“No kidding,” I muttered, a little shakier than I meant to sound.She pulled back and looked me over. Her eyes were wild, darting around like we were already being hunted. “Are you okay? Did any
Arianna’s POVThe plan was simple.It was probably too simple, but I held onto it and kept replaying it in my head over and over again.Claire had promised me everything would be ready by ten. That was the deal. That was the one thing I was counting down to. Ten o’clock. All I had to do was be ready. But somehow, something so simple felt so so difficult for all the wrong reasons.And as I sat on the edge of the bed, my fingers twisting the hem of my sweater, I couldn’t stop the flood of doubts that crept in like shadows under the door.The room was too quiet. In fact, the whole house was too quiet. The kind of quiet that screamed at you if you sat still long enough. Every tick of the old clock mounted above the vanity seemed to throb in my ears, syncing with the beat of my racing heart.I glanced at it again. 9:41 p.m.Nineteen minutes.It felt like nineteen hours.My palms were slick with sweat, though the room was cold. A strange, aching chill sat deep in my bones like it was waiti
Ryker’s POVShe was supposed to hate me.That was the goal. That was the plan.It had taken every ounce of strength I had to walk past her in the hallway and not react each time I saw her. Not grab her. Not slam her into the wall and make her feel how painfully hard I got for her. Not pull her close and bury my face in her neck like I used to. But I didn’t. I kept walking. Kept my eyes forward. Kept the mask on my face and shoved the knife twisting in my gut as deep as I could.It didn’t help.Because her scent clung to me long after I passed her. It haunted me. Teased me. And my wolf—fuck, he was barely holding it together. Pacing. Growling. Agitated in a way I couldn’t control.But this was the only way.Before Arianna, my life was simple. I killed when I needed to. I fucked when I wanted to. Women were nothing more than warm holes and needy mouths who were always willing—eager, even—to please their Alpha. Stressful day? Fuck it away. Rage boiling under my skin? Pick the tightest sk
Arianna’s POVIt had been two days.Two days since Ryker looked through me like I wasn’t even there. Since his eyes that were once so wild with fire of desire, had gone completely cold towards me.He hadn’t spoken to me. He hadn’t even said a word. Not even as much as a glance. Not even when I passed him in the hall yesterday morning. I’d rounded the corner, nearly bumping into him. My breath caught in my throat, and I froze like a deer caught in headlights, and to my own disappointment, my heart begged for some kind of reaction.But he just walked past me.He didn’t slow down. Didn’t look back. Nothing. Like a switch had gone off in his head.And I stood there for a good five minutes afterward, trying to make sense of the painful ache blooming in my chest.If anyone should be avoiding anyone, it should be me. I should be the one slamming doors and storming down corridors and spitting venom every time I caught the scent of him. He was the one who killed someone in cold blood. He was t
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