The slave

“Stop it, Andrew!” My mother yelled. She appeared by my side and started prying my father’s hands from my neck. After some time, my father let go of me and I staggered back, afraid to look at him.

“I’m giving you until tomorrow,” my father said. “After that, I don’t want to see your face around here again.”

Tears were falling down my cheeks as my mother hugged me. 

“Take my son inside,” he ordered the men and walked away from there. My mother led me away from everyone, towards a tree. 

“What happened?” she asked as we sat on a wooden bench under the tree. Lights from the security poles spread light to where we were. Amidst terrible sobs, I told her everything that had happened in the forest, and how I had managed to escape. When I finished, she pulled me close and held me tight.

“Do you hate me?”

“No, what you did was terrible but I have lost one child already. I can’t lose you and your other brother as well. I’ll send you to my brother. His pack will take care of you.”

I pulled away and sat up straight. “Are you on dad’s side as well? Mum, please don’t let them take me away.”

My mother stood up. “I’m sorry but there’s nothing I can do. You know your father. When he makes up his mind, nothing can change it. You’ll have to leave. Go and rest now. I’ll plan everything and make sure my brother takes good care of you.”

“I can’t leave, this place is all I’ve ever known.”

“Go and rest, dear.” My mother said before walking away from me. I broke down into fresh sobs. Most people had gone back inside, leaving me all alone. I couldn’t believe even my friends had turned against me without trying to find out what had happened. Did they think I had killed my own brother?

I couldn’t sleep that night because I was angry. I may have encouraged Edmund to go to the forest but the real cause of the problems we were facing as a region was Alpha Jackson King. Having my brother die in my arms was something I would never forget. It would haunt me for the rest of my life. For that reason, I promised myself to not rest until I had avenged his death. 

Many people and packs in the island had tried to bring down Jackson since he took over leadership of Midnight Pack five years back, but they had failed. He had the biggest army of guards and also had a vast amount of resources. Most of those who had tried to go to battle with him had ended up having to surrender.

I figured it was time to change strategy. I planned to infiltrate the pack as a slave and destroy it from the inside. My friends said it was a bad idea for me to sacrifice myself like that, but I did not want to see anyone I loved die because of Jackson King. I was tired of having to attend funerals every week because of one man who fancied himself a god. 

The first step of my plan was selling myself over to his pack as a slave. I bribed a slave trader to sell me to Midnight Pack without revealing where I came from. Slavery was illegal, but slave trade was done on the black market. Slave traders were not easy to find because they kept switching headquarters to avoid human authorities who called them trafficking rings.

Slaves were also very expensive, so many of the small packs did not have slaves. Most people did not support the practice. However, the bigger packs did not care about public opinion. They bought slaves and used them for work and other things. Midnight Pack was one of those well known for buying and keeping wolves and humans as slaves.

Two days later, I was in a minivan with four other women who were also getting sold as slaves. It was night time and our limbs were tied together so tightly that we could barely move. 

Of all the ladies, I was the only one who was there willingly, but no one knew that except Howard, the head trader I had confided in. To everyone else, I was a girl who had got captured after failing to pay off my debt to one of the traders. 

As the van got closer to Fine Meadows, my heart started to race faster as I wondered if I was ready for what was to come. I was sure being a slave of Midnight Pack for a year was not going to be a walk in the park.

Eventually, the van stopped. Only two of us were to be sold to Midnight Pack, and there was a man seated with us in the back. When the van stopped, he undid the ropes tying our legs together and ordered us to get out. Outside, the driver and another trader were waiting. I noticed we were outside a small cabin in the woods. I looked around the forest, and was disappointed to see there were no buildings around, except the small cabin.

“Where are we?” I asked.

The men ignored me. 

Midnight Pack was the biggest pack in the region. What I was seeing was nothing compared to the glory that surrounded that name. I was pretty sure that was not all there was to it.

“Is this part of Midnight Pack?” I asked again.

The man who had been at the back with us glared at me. “Shut up, slave.”

“I need to know where I am,” I insisted. I had paid all my savings to their boss. I didn’t do all that to end up becoming some random man’s slave. The man raised his hand and slapped me hard. Pain rippled through my head, making me rub my stinging cheeks. I noticed the other woman rolling her eyes.

“Such fine beauties,” the man who had come out of the cabin said. He was fat and smelled like stale food. “Gentlemen, why don’t we get inside and finish the transaction?”

We were taken to the cabin. There were three women inside, and all looked like they had given up on life. No sooner had we sat down than a breathless young man rushed in and bent down, placing his hands on his knees and panting.

“What the hell is your problem?” the stinky man asked. “One day you’ll kill yourself running around like that.”

“Grandpa, Alpha Jackson is furious. Two of the slaves ran away and he has gone mad. He needs replacements as soon as possible or he’ll kill everyone around him.”

“Don’t be dramatic,” the older man said. “It’s a good thing that happened. Now we’ll get a good price for these ones.” The man turned to us. “It’s a lucky day for two of you. You’ll get to serve Alpha Jackson directly. Gentlemen, which of these beauties are the most beautiful?”

I looked around and noticed all the women were very beautiful. I wanted to work in the pack house because it would make it easier for me to destroy the alpha. My heart raced as the men walked around us, studying us in order to make a choice. Although the odds were against me, I hoped that a miracle would happen.