“Out with it then.”“The bear clan are building their forces just outside of the Riverwood Pack territory. We have every reason to believe the attack will be there.”My heart picks up speed. That’s my pack.“The Riverwood Pack are holding their Alpha succession ceremony soon,” the man continues. “Wi
“And Tristan…” Caleb adds.“Yes, my King?”“Summon the doctors once again. I want to find out exactly what happened to Harper’s wolf.”I try to listen to their continued conversation. Yet even as fear grips my heart, I struggle to keep my eyes open. Whatever is in that IV is good stuff. Too soon, I
Pushing down my pride, just as I did each time with Leah, I lower myself down to my knees.Once I’m settled, Caleb stands. Snatching something off a nearby table he comes toward me. As he comes closer, I can see he’s holding a simple sliver banded collar with a latch on the back. Immediately, I cowe
Slowly, Caleb lifts his fingers and touches his lip. Pulling back, he sees the blood on his fingertips.Panic settles over Harper. She hadn’t meant to actually hurt him. What’s the punishment for this? Is she going to be killed?She still has to warn her pack.Caleb raises his gaze from his bloodied
“Guards!” Veronica calls, her voice shrill.At once, a set of guards rush down the hallway toward us, their rifles in their hands. One has a sword tied to his belt. Another, a whip.Veronica continues to glare at me, even as a smug smile curves her lips. Pointing straight at me, she commands, “This
Quickly, one of the guards procures a whip and places it into Caleb’s outstretched hand.“M-my King,” Veronica says quickly, terror making her voice wobble. “I’m confused. If you intend to honor me by whipping this slave, then why remove me as your favorite…?”Caleb narrows his eyes at Veronica. His
Relieved to be alone, I plop down on the stool and breathe. I can still hear the screaming. I think I’ll hear it even after it stops – definitely it will haunt my nightmares tonight.A moment later, another slave enters the chamber. Her garb is similar to mine, but with an additional halter top unde
I don’t roll my eyes, but I really, really want to. Fortunately, having been a servant to my sister Leah these past three years has helped train me to always present an outward poise, even when inwardly, I am disgusted and annoyed.“Tell me again how you wish to please me,” Caleb says, self-satisfie
My heavy heart persists into the evening. I haven’t talked much since speaking with Kira, retreating to my room soon after. Not even Bethany could encourage me to speak. Kira’s words cut into me, straight down to the bone. I don’t want to believe that Caleb only wants me for sex, and that’s all he’
None of that matters now. Annabelle looks at me sharply. “What are you doing here?” I step into the room, Bethany following along, my silent support. Glancing away from her in my dream gown, I try to stoke my rage again. Remembering the letter, I retrieve it from my pocket. “I’m tired of being th
The next morning, as I lay in bed staring at the ceiling, dreading another day of doing nothing, I hear a swishing sound near my door. Sitting up, I look at the door and find a slip of paper laying near it on the ground. Did someone slide that underneath? Curious, I pull myself out of bed and walk
“I want to apologize to you for how I acted before,” Annabelle says. With her head down, she also droops her shoulders, seeming for all the world like she might drop to her knees at any moment. He really doesn’t need that kind of dramatics, so he’s relieved when she continues to stand. “I let my
She looks away. “While I cannot save those condemned to the coliseum, I can help prepare them to hone the best of their abilities. I give them the best possible fighting chance, so when they step into the ring, they might survive. Many do not, but some succeed.” Looking back at me, she continues, “
I awaken the next morning to a loud, confident knock on my door. Rising up from bed, I pull on my housecoat and walk to the door, opening it. I’m half-expecting Bethany, though she doesn’t usually knock quite that loudly. Instead, I find the Pitmaster there. Her expression is severe as always but d
Much, much later, after Caleb ravaged me on the stairs again and then twice more in my bedroom, once we are relatively cleaned up, though I still carry his scent all over me, Caleb sits on the edge of my bed, staring at me as I recline there, jelly-like and sated. We need to have a talk, and I know
Seeing Caleb rush towards me, fury in his gaze, I already know what’s happened here. Bethany. She might have seemed compliant when I told her to stay behind, but I should have known she wouldn’t just sit idly by while I placed myself in danger, even if I instructed her to do so. She is my friend b
“That is a terrible idea,” Bethany says, not holding back. “What could you even hope to gain by doing that? Best case scenario, Leah has no way of delivering the message. Worst case, Samuel lures you out somewhere and has you killed.” “He won’t kill me,” I say. Despite his threats, he cares for me,