Chapter 1

NATALIA

            I push my plump bottom lip out in a little pout and stomp my foot on the ground.  I can’t believe he is telling me no.  Alexander never tells me no.  He watches me with a smirk on his face as I throw my little tantrum, almost like he is enjoying my displeasure.  “Please…” I beg.  “It is just so hot outside.”

            “My beautiful Little Queen,” Alexander says as he cups my cheek in his hand and rubs his thumb over my lip.  My breathing hitches a little bit at his touch, but I refuse to give in.  I want to go swimming.  “It isn’t a good day today.”  Alexander says shortly.

            Gently I run my fingers over the stiff collar of his shirt.  A shirt that just a few months ago I would have had to iron myself.  “I am sure you could use a break today.  You are always working.”

            Alexander groans impatiently under my touch.  His crystal blue eyes darken as I run my fingers over the beautiful mark that sits on his neck, my mark.  “I will send you with Raphael,” his voice is suddenly thick as he speaks. 

            “No!” I yell out in protest.  “Not Raphael.”  There is something that I don’t trust about the King’s Beta.  Something in my gut tells me he doesn’t like or trust me either. Alexander glares in my direction.

            Raising my hands in defeat I turn to head back to my bedroom.  “I understand,” I try to say as sweetly as I can.  “But there is one thing you should know,” I say as I throw a look over my shoulder.  “I swim naked,” I sing out as I head out of Alexander’s room towards my own. 

            A loud growl fills the silence behind me, and I can’t help but smirk to myself.  There is no way he will let another male see me naked.  “Fine, fine,” he groans in frustration.  “I will take you.  But for no more than an hour.” 

            Spinning on my heels, I let out a little squeal!  I rush over to Alexander and wrap my arms around him while I bounce up and down.  “I’ll go make us a picnic basket.  It is going to be such an exciting day!”

            “Only for an hour,” I hear him yell behind me as I run out of his room and down the main stairs of the castle. 

            Bounding into the kitchen I say hello to all of the kitchen staff as I get to work on the picnic basket.  I cannot help but to hum a little song to myself as I make some tiny sandwiches for my day out with the King.  Today will be the happiest of days.  I woke up in Alexander's arms as his Queen.  I still have to pinch myself to believe that it is all true.  When I came out of the Labyrinth without my mate I thought that my life was over.  Forced to become the King’s personal slave, my life was hell.  But then Alexander and I became closer and closer.  Eventually he took me as his chosen second mate and everything since has been like a beautiful dream.  “Last week I was nothing more than a slave.  Now, I am his Queen.”  I think as I gently touch the mark that lays in the nape of my neck.   

            Just as I finish packing the picnic basket, Alexander appears in the kitchen with a solemn look on his face.  All of the kitchen staff bow quickly and scatter out of the kitchen.  “My beautiful Little Queen,” he says, trying to butter me up. 

            “No!”  I pout.  “You promised.”

            “Something of great importance has come up,” he says quietly.  Before I let Alexander mark me he had all the time in the world for me.  Now spending time with me always seems like a bother.  

            Looking down at my feet I mumble some curse words under my breath.  As I lift my eyes to look at him, I see his crystal blue eyes are filled with concern.  “I understand,” I say through gritted teeth.  

            “That’s a good Little Queen,” he says as he presses his lips to my forehead before he walks out of the kitchen leaving me with tears filling my eyes. 

            “So much for the happiest of days,” I whisper to myself as I sneak out of the back door and head to the spring alone.  “I will just go for a quick swim,” I tell myself.  “No one will even know I am gone.”  I try to justify my actions even though I know they are wrong.  But I go anyway, the cool water of the spring is calling my name.

Swimming alone without Alexander just wasn’t as fun.  I pull myself out of the cool spring water and let the hot rays of the sun dry my body.  Pulling my dress back over my head, I grab my shoes and walk back towards the castle barefoot.  As I find the trail that is hidden in the forest the sound of a twig snapping behind me gets my attention.  Looking over my shoulder I see the shadow of a wolf amongst the trees.  Dropping my shoes and hiking up the hem of my dress I take off running through the forest.        

            The sound of wolves howling echoes in the distance behind me as I run.  I hadn’t counted on the fact that the rogues have been watching me.  I am Alexander’s one weakness, and they knew that.  The mighty Alpha King has become soft since he found his Slave Queen. 

            I can hear the footsteps drawing closer behind me and I know that I will have no choice but to shift.  Not caring about my clothes, I allow my wolf to come forward as I run towards the pack house.  My clothes rip from my body as my body elongates and white fur sprouts along my skin.  My wolf, Adeline, takes over running faster than ever.  Dirt springs up behind my paws as they dig into the earth with each step I take. 

            The edge of the tree line is just a few meters away.  I am almost to safety.  The Beta of our pack, Raphael, steps in front of me and I skid to a stop.  A feeling of relief washes over me knowing that I am now safe.  Shifting back into my human form I try to step past Raphael’s wolf, but he only growls in my direction. 

            “Raph,” I say, confused by his actions.  “There are like twenty rogues coming this way.  I need to get to safety.”

            Instead of moving out of my way Raphael stalks me like I am his prey, growling at me with his hackles raised, pushing me back into the forest.  I can hear the sound of the rogues getting closer and closer to my location.  “Raph,” I beg.  “Please don’t do this.”  But it is too late.  I hear the sliding of paws coming to a stop behind me. 

            Turning my back on Raphael I turn towards the rogue werewolves that are quickly approaching me.  Several of the rogues are stalking me in a circle, surrounding me.  Raphael nudges me with his nose, pushing me into the center of the circle.  My hands hit the ground with a thud, and I hear the sounds of wolves snarling and growling surrounding me.  Raising my head I look towards Raphael, and I see him looking at me with a smirk on his face.

            “Raph,” I cry out to him as the wolves continue to surround me.  

            Raphael shifts back into himself and begins to circle me along with the Rogues.  “Well, well, well.  What do we have here?  The Slave Queen all alone in the forest.”  

            Holding my head high I stare at the man, trying not to look at the circle of wolves growling around me.  “I am the Queen,” I say proudly. 

            “You are nothing more than the sex slave you have always been,” Raphael growls at me and I try my best not to cower under the power that is radiating off of him.  “Do me a favor and let your King know that Victor sends his regards.”       

 “Tell him yourself,” I try to sound brave but my voice comes out meek and small.  The circle of wolves closes in around me as I spin in circles trying not to keep my back to one of them for too long.  

              “If you will excuse me, Slave Queen,” Raphael says as he excuses himself from the circle.  “As much as I would love to watch you die, I have important business to attend to.”  

 Raphael turns and leaves me to the mercy of the rogue wolves.  Opening the mind link with Alexander I try to warn him about Raphael and Victor but before I can the rogues begin to pounce on me one by one.  Each one taking their time torturing me as I scream.  I feel their teeth sink into my flesh over and over again as I scream for help through the mind link, but no one answers my call.

            Darkness consumes my mind, and it feels as if I am floating in the middle of nothing.  I look from my right and to my left and there is nothing.  Closing my eyes I try imagining something, anything, to drive the nothingness from my mind but it refuses to budge.  Tears prickle at the corners of my eyes but they refuse to fall from my eyes and the dark void finally consumes me. 

            Just when it feels like nothing of me will be left, a tiny blip of light flickers behind my eyelids.  My body surges backwards like it is being pulled by a rope.  Visions flicker past me like I am traveling through time.  Suddenly my body comes halting to a stop and my back hits something hard.  Slowly opening my eyes I stare at the world around me that I once knew. 

            I squeeze my eyes closed trying to understand the world that is before me.  Opening my eyes one at a time I look around at the room I am in and the clothes that are on my body.  Flopping back down on the cot that I used to call a bed I groan loudly to myself.  I am nothing more than Omega again.  Was it all nothing more than a weird dream?  But it all seemed so real.  I have to get that life back.