Chapter 5: The Selection

Rose

The Lycan’s chief warrior unlocks the chains binding our wrists immediately after we arrive at the north guard base.

I look around me, noticing how strikingly tall and tatted most of them are.

They may have removed our bonds, but the saying goes, you can never escape the Lycan King’s territory without a pass.

And if you are seen wandering alone, you’ll be tried and killed.

Twenty-five of us line up in five columns. I’m at the back of the line, where I hope to not draw any attention to myself.

“From this day, your past is no more.” The chief warrior says with menace, burly, tattooed arms crossed over his chest as he paces. “Your life is now to serve—”

My eyes snap to where the cry we all hear suddenly is. Everyone looks, but not them.

A warrior is pounding mercilessly into his slave from behind in broad daylight.

Lycans are wild. They hold tradition close to their hearts, even closer than werewolves. But this is just horrible.

Belonging to a warrior is the worst slave rank possible, because almost all warriors use their slaves for sex.

I know enough about Lycans to know this is the part where they share us amongst different authorities.

“When night falls, I will present a number of you to the Lycan King, and only one will have the privilege of being picked as his slave,” the chief warrior continues, and some of us mumble in agreement.

“Do you know?” A girl whispers to her friend next to me, “Becoming the King’s slave is the only way to survive. You’ll own fine things. I want it.” It seems everyone else wants it, too.

Slaves of the Lycan King can CONTROL slaves of warriors and even of the Beta.

But being in the spotlight can be a curse.

Goal one: Avoid the least rank. Goal two: Avoid the least rank so I won’t be anyone’s sex doll. The last thing I want after these is to be the King’s slave.

“Get some rest, and then gather here.” He claps, closing the meeting.

All of us move in a single file to the apartment duplex for visitors. I follow the line until I hear someone talking about the Raven pack’s Alpha.

I act without thinking, drawing close and hiding behind a bush.

Did Jacob survive? I have to know.

A tall blonde with a chiseled jaw is the one who just mentioned him.

“Alpha Jacob and his Luna had already fled when we arrived,” a man tells the blonde, who calls him Beta. “The Lycan King was furious that we couldn’t capture him after what he did.”

My face falls, my chest constricting. Jacob escaped without a thought of what would happen to me. I can’t believe he abandoned me.

I blink back tears. Even if it wasn’t love, Jacob felt nothing for me, not even an ounce of care.

I was just the mate duty forced on him for four years, nothing more.

A smiling woman taps Beta’s back. She’s holding a fruit bowl, and he thanks her for the apple she gives him.

I notice the bracelet on her wrist, realizing that she’s one of his slaves.

If I wasn’t already planning my escape, the Beta would have been my choice. I can see he’s kind.

Who knows what kind of barbarian the Lycan King they are all fawning over is? If his warriors are like this, then he must be the same.

Later that night, when the time comes for the selection, everyone is eager to make it outside where the chief warrior can see them and pick them.

But the more time I waste here, the slimmer my chances of saving Rhi. What if she’s still alive and terribly wounded? What if she’s on her last breath and needs my help?

I have to escape this place. I have to find my best friend.

The chief warrior will take some of us to meet the Lycan King, and the base will no longer be heavily guarded. That’s when I’ll make it out.

We line up in the same way as when we first arrived, and the selection begins.

I keep my head down, holding my breath and waiting for it to be over.

“You.” He pulls out the girl beside me.

I exhale when he walks to the front of the line afterwards, counting the number he has. I stifle a smile. It’s done.

But suddenly, a hand grabs my shoulder, roughly pulling me, and I stumble to the ground. I gasped, staring at the warrior who pushed me through; my black hair spilled over my face.

To my shock, it’s the Beta, and with a clouded expression on his face, he says, “Take this one to meet the Lycan King.”