Two.

Aria's POV

The man that I had been deeply in love with was not the man standing in front of me. He was cruel, he was evil and he was still refusing to look directly at me.

“It’s time to make a decision Aria,” 

I could tell he was losing his patience with me as I refused to answer, his hands raking through his hair as I keep my mouth clamped shut. Death was staring me in the face but I no longer cared. I knew that I would never see my parents again, chances of me seeing my brother and sister alive were long gone. At this point, it would be better if he just killed me.

“ARIA, answer me!”, 

The  commanding voice runs through me, and in that moment I realise that Ryan isn’t just anyone, he was the Alpha of Crimson Pack. 

My jaw drops as his eyes bore into mine, fighting back the tears as he rips me up to my feet, he pulls me across the grounds but we were not heading back towards the dungeon.

My feet move quickly as I try to keep up with Ryan, but because of his height, I end up being half dragged as I try to run. When I trip, Ryan stops me from hitting the ground and hoists me over his shoulder, moving towards my family home, the packhouse. 

Charging through the hallway of the first floor, he throws me into my old bedroom, sending me crashing into the bed. Looking around, I see that it's not the same, that nothing in here was mine anymore. It all belonged to him, he had made it his personal bedroom, erasing any essence of me. The door slams shut, quickly diving to it, I find it locked. It had never been locked in my entire life.

As I look around the room, I couldn’t believe how much of it had changed, my twin bed was no longer shoved up against the wall under the window. Instead, a large king sized bed sat in the middle of the room. The purple walls had been repainted white, even her purple coloured curtains had been replaced with white ones that hung to the floor. All my childhood memories had been wiped from the room, like I had never existed.

Seren’s scream pierces the air and I rush to the window. Throwing it open, I could see the same man that had dragged me from the cell was now dragging Seren across the damp grass.

She was fighting him, screaming and cursing at him until he suddenly stopped. From here, I hear him mutter that single word. The one word that Seren had been longing to hear since she had turned eighteen almost two years ago, “MATE!”, she had found her mate and he was from the pack that had slaughtered our parents.

My stomach turns, I couldn’t believe my eyes when I see Seren plant her lips on him. The guy pulls my sister towards our family home, the both of them all giddy with happiness. Surely she couldn’t be doing this, surely she wouldn’t betray her own pack for a mate!

Dropping to the floor, my head starts to shake, denial washing over me. My eyes wide in complete shock. I was completely alone in my battle against Ryan. 

Remaining in my spot on the plush blue carpet, I refuse to move, even when I hear the click of the lock. The rush of cold air as it hits me as the door swings open. I didn't need to look up to know that it was Ryan, somehow, I could sense it was him before he opened the door. His woody scent, plaguing my senses.

“GET UP!” he screams at me, but I still refuse to move. I was tired, my stomach growled from the lack of food, and if I stood up, I’m pretty sure I will be on the floor. My body was weak, I felt light headed, but I still glance up into his amber eyes but just like before he wasn’t looking directly at me.

“No!”, it was a simple word, a word that Ryan clearly didn’t want to hear and he rips me up like I weigh nothing. His hands firmly on my jumper, a far cry from how he used to be.

The deep throaty laugh ripples from him and I gaze into his amber eyes, searching for something. The feeling I had felt in the cell was growing, but I didn’t understand what it was, I just knew that I had never felt anything like it before. 

“Aria, I will give you two options”, Ryan lets go of me to look at himself in the mirror while I try to steady myself, the light headedness was slowly taking over.  “You can be a slave for Crimson pack or you can be my whore.”

“What?!” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

He repeats the choices and I completely lose it. Flinging myself across the room at him, I start pummeling my hands against his chest, swearing at him for calling me a whore. My fists didn’t create any damage, I fell to the floor, gasping for air in complete exhaustion.

“Fucking stupid whore” he mutters as he looks down at me. 

“I am not a whore!” I mutter, not understanding how he could call me such a horrid thing.

Ryan shakes his head at me, “You women are all the same. I have changed my mind, you won’t be a slave. Your body will just be for me and I will make sure I am the only man that you will ever be with.”

“You can’t do that”  I was grossed out by the man standing in front of me. “What if I meet my mate?”

“Then I shall kill him!” The confidence in Ryan was new to me, he had never been one to stand up for himself against others, he would always do as everyone asked, yet he had always stood up for me.

“Why are you doing this Ryan? What happened to you?” I ask quietly as I still try to suck in oxygen. The man in front of me had changed so much and I just didn’t understand how it could be the same guy.

“ALPHA” he snarls at me “Say it Aria!”

“Alpha Ryan” I mutter, fighting back the tears

“Good girl. I will be holding a Moon Ball in three days. You will attend Aria. You will find your mate so that I can kill them. You are mine now and mine only. Do you understand!”

“What if your mate is there?”

“It is none of your business Aria, all you need to know is that you are mine and when I return in one hour, I expect you to have cleaned yourself up and be waiting in the bed for me.” he still doesn’t look at me directly, and leaves. The door is locked before I have a chance to try the handle. One hour and he would be back, one hour, I need to come up with an escape plan and quick!