Chapter six

ADELINE

“Your father was a heartless man, and I am going to make you pay,” The alpha said, stopping in front of me; he was so close I could perceive the raw maleness exuding from him. He put his hand under my chin and raised my head to meet his eyes; we stared at each other. My eyes widened at the amount of hate and disgust I saw within the depths of his, but there was another emotion within them: lust.

His eyes travelled to my lips as if he was tracing the lines on them, I swallowed nervously while I continued to watch him. His pupils dilated, and for a moment, I thought he would kiss me. I closed my eyes in anticipation of the kiss, but he let me go, taking his warmness as well.

I brought my hands to my cheek to calm the hotness there while I chided myself mentally for even harbouring the thought of kissing my enemy.

His face twisted in contempt as he sneered at me “ Your father was a monster.”

My eyes flashed with anger "My father was a hero. He protected people from your kind."

The Alpha snarled, baring his teeth. "Your father was a butcher. He slaughtered my family, my pack. He took everything from me.

My jaw clenched, and my voice trembled, but I stood my ground “My father did what was necessary to keep humans safe."

His eyes blazed with fury. "Defending humans? He was a murderer, and you're no better. You're just a weak, pathetic human who thinks they can stand against the likes of me."

"I won't back down. My father's legacy lives on through me." I replied as I tried my best to keep my voice firm.

"My father did what he felt was right," I replied defiantly, but He let out a roar of menacing laughter, and I took a step back.

"What did I expect? You are no different from your father and surely you'll pay for his sins. By the time I'm done with you, you'll hate your father and his name," He spat, his face turning deathly cold with no trace of the laughter from before.

I was about to let him know that nothing he would do would make me hate my father when he called for the guards outside his chambers.

"Take her to the dark room and torture her," The Alpha commanded and my blood ran cold. I looked at him with horror.

The grim-looking guard who had caught me stealing came up behind me and cuffed my hands to my back before leading me away from the Alpha’s room.

I knew I should beg, I should probably run to him and cower before him and plead for mercy but I refused to even spare him a glance and stubbornly followed the guards without a sound of protest. My parents were brave werewolf hunters, and their blood ran in my veins; I was no coward; I was a Roosevelt.

The guards led me out of the Royal wing, and they placed a dirty blindfold over my eyes. They held me on both sides and we continued walking.

I heard the rattling of an iron gate and they pushed me into a chair and bound my hands and feet.

"Take the blindfold off," one of the guards ordered.

The torture room was a dark room with a fire burning from a pot in the middle of the room. I turned around to take in my surroundings, but I let out a low gasp; on the walls were different types of angry-looking weapons, which I guessed were torture weapons.

The guard from before walked to one of the weapons and put it on fire. I watched in horror as the iron turned orange before he picked it up and walked toward me. He nodded at one of the guards, and a cloth was put in between my mouth and tied to the back.

I struggled against the guards behind me while the guard with the hot iron walked toward me. I pleaded with my eyes, but it was too late. He placed the iron on my right thigh, and I let out a blood-curdling scream. My soul screamed and I felt it would leave my body. The pain felt like a living thing, writhing beneath my skin, burying itself deeper into my skin. Tears sprang to my eyes and I looked down at the throbbing skin where the iron had touched my skin.

The guard picked up the iron again, and I struggled, but two other guards were holding me from behind. The iron landed on my left thigh, and I screamed again at the searing sensation, and sweat dropped from my scalp down to my collarbone. The guard showed no mercy; at the third iron contact, the pain exploded in my leg, and I screamed so loud that I fainted.

Caddel

"I want to enquire about a young woman, one I have vowed to hate," I said to the seer, a wispy woman with eyes that saw beyond the present. I had summoned her to explain why I had a connection to the Roosevelt spawn.

"Alpha," the Seer's voice was low and mystical, "the human you've sworn to despise holds the key to the pack's future."

My scowl deepened. "You speak of the one who's brought nothing but strife to our doorstep? Whose family had caused so much pain to me and our kind?"

The Seer nodded, her gaze piercing. "Yes, the same. She is the one prophesied to bring peace to our lands, to heal the wounds of the past."

I looked at her incredulously, she must be seeing wrong. "How can this be?"

The Seer looked up, her eyes seemed to see into my soul. "Because, Alpha, she is your second chance mate." She announced, confirming a suspicion I had struggled to accept.

"But...how?" I asked as I struggled to comprehend. "I thought my chance at true mating was lost forever since Ruby is dead"

The Seer's expression was mysterious. "Fate often surprises us, Alpha. This human, though imperfect, holds the power to balance your rage and bring harmony to our pack and the world."

My mind was in turmoil as I tried to make meaning of the cruel joke fate had made for me, the daughter of my worst enemy? It had to be a big joke.

"Tell me, Seer," I said my voice laced with scepticism, "what makes you so certain?"

The Seer's eyes became blank as her eyes drifted into the unknown. "I see visions of a united pack, of laughter and warmth, of the human's hand calming the beast within you. The threads of fate are complex, Alpha, but this I know: she is your path forward."

I heard the blood-curdling scream and I jumped up, the scream had come from her.

“What have I done?” I asked aloud as dread filled me, and I ran out of my chambers, leaving the seer.