Rhianna's POV
(Two weeks later)"F*ck. So tight, my Queen. You are beautiful."Helpless tears streamed down my face. I was angry at myself. Disgusted with myself. My body felt like it was ripping apart from the inside out.I hate you, moon goddess, for doing this to me.Even after everything, his touch still brought tingles, and I hated it. I wish the fucking mate bond would just break. I had said the words so many time, inside, but before he accepted and before the mark was broken, we would still be connected by the fucking mate bond. I hated it.Once upon a time, I believed it to be the best blessing a girl like I could have asked for. Now I realized it was only a curse."Nia..."She hadn't been talking with me for a week, and I was so scared. I wondered if Theo's betrayal had broken her completely.My poor wolf. She was the one who suffered more.Little by little, the pieces of me I had built were broken once again, and this time, my mate was the one who did it to me.Slowly. Cruelly. His actions become more calculated, designed to keep me off balance and submissive. And I was alone in this island, and I had nowhere to go.Sometimes I hated myself so much. He made me doubting my own reality and sanity. His twisted truths were made to imprison me.He didn't care. I realized he had never cared, not really. It was all just a game to maintain his facade, his good guy act, but once it was broken, and once the truth came out, everything stopped.The kindness. The love. The adoration.There was only his darkness. Cruel and vile. He was so fucking insane. Why hadn't I seen that?The women in the secret became common sense. I knew now. There was Louise. She was the main bitch. And then there was Amalie. There was Kendra and Lauren and Sophia."Look at me, Rhia, when I make you scream my name." He moved faster inside me. His body trembled. His groan grew louder, like a dirty, broken song.Oh. Yes. And then there was me. His VIP Queen bitch.Two weeks. I could have run away, but I knew I wouldn't survive the wild without Nia. That would be impossible. Also, I couldn't protect Peyton, my little darling, without a wolf.A rogue ex-mate of the Alpha King? That would be a hard position to be in.They would kill me as soon as they catch me.I just prayed Nia would come back. Without her, everything was bleak and dark and desperate. I didn't want to live without my wolf. Despite everything she put me through, she was my anchor. She was the brave voice in me that told me that I was good enough.I would have still chosen to run away even without Nia, if it wasn't for Peyton.And Theo didn't just threaten me. He threatened her too. How could a father do that to his own blood? But then again, he was the one who laughed when Louise said she would abort the child again if she got pregnant. It was a game to them."Ah. No matter who I was with, you are the one who make me all of this."His voice was a faint echo. I would rather lose consciousness than hear him or see him.Payton. I hoped she was sleeping peacefully.I wouldn't leave my precious little girl in this hellhole and that was another reason I was trapped here. I couldn't do that to a little girl who came to the world, depending on me, trusting me to take care of her until she could do it by herself.She was only two years old and I couldn't bring her out into the wild world. And so here I was, stuck.This was my prison.He knew I hated it when he touched me, when he kissed me, but he didn't care.I thought he was my angel, answers to my every prayer. My KING. He was just a nightmare, fancily dressed in a mask. Now that the mask was gone, I saw him for who he was. A demon. A predator who used me, preyed on my weakness and trust."Do you like it?""I hate it," I said as tears trailed down, and I hated myself for this."Why couldn't you just accept it? You are still my queen, are you not?""I didn't want to be your queen. You threatened me with pain and death and suffering and I could have taken it, but you threatened our daughter... and you forced me to stay here. Do you want me to accept all of that? That you are a monster hiding from the world?" I hissed as he pulled out and thrust again, grunting, moaning.I gritted my teeth."Yes. Yes. Yes. Accept all of it. I was only trying to spare you of the pain. I need what I need and-""Your needs are not wrong. But your ways are. You just don't go around fucking other women..."He crashed his lips against mine and bit me hard, swallowing my angry grunts."Don't talk too much, little Luna. I don't like it. You are my mate and you will do as I say. I am a king. A king is only stronger with his fated mate by his side, and you are my fated mate. You know, if it hadn't been me, and any other wolf, you would have been rejected instantly. I didn't reject you. I chose you, despite your weak wolf. Where is she again?"I pushed him out of me and he cursed and grabbed me by my arms. "Don't defy me, Rhia.""She is gone, because of you. You and your wolf betrayed her, and now I don't have her."He looked at me with pity for a second before his face morphed into frustration. "She will be back once she is done sulking. She has always been more fierce than you," Theo said, with an indulgent smile, as if he was amused by Nia and her antics. This wasn't funny. I wasn't enjoying this."I am still not done, Rhia.""Why don't you call one of your many wh*res, Theo? I am done. I am done with everything.""You know, I am the king and you will obey everything I will-"I walked out and slammed the door shut. I pulled my dress down. Theo and I lived in fourth floor of the castle, and nobody came here without our permission. My room was opposite to his and Peyton's nursery was just a few doors down. It also had two empty rooms. The twins' rooms. But they were rarely there anyway, and they avoided me like I was a plague. They wouldn't even look at me.At first, I tried to talk with them, to find some kind of common ground, but after a while, I realized they wouldn't talk with me, or even look at me, because I was so beneath their Alpha status.In the past, it made me fall for Theo even more, because he was the only one who never cared for my title as the runt of the pack. He treated me like a Queen, but it was all just a f*cking lie.Adjusting my dress, I didn't know where I was going and slammed against a solid chest. I looked up to see Forrest looking at me with a scowl.What did I do now?"I am sorry. I didn't mean to-"He grabbed me by my shoulder and pulled me away from him. The look in his eyes made me want to bury myself under the ground. He looked pained, as if being closer to a weak omega was physically hurting me.I usually wouldn't mind. I would tell myself they were some elitist pricks, and I was fine with only Theo. I didn't need anyone's acceptance or approval. I knew everyone wished I wasn't Theo's mate, that they had a Queen who was worthy of the title. I only had very few people in the palace who liked me, who considered me a queen, and most of them were our working staff.Everyone else thought Theo made a mistake when he brought me into the castle. They wouldn't hesitate to kick me out.Now, his disgusted look hurt me more."Yeah. Watch where you are going, and don't go crashing into people."+++Rhianna's POVIt wasn't like I wanted to bump into him or anything. I always hated being so close to the twins. They brought some kind of feelings in me that I didn't very much like.They were like danger lights, and I wanted to stay far, far away. I looked up into Forrest's bright green eyes. They glowed. So bright. He was handsome. No, women would call him hot as hell. He was also a Playboy and a devil. Hell. All the three brothers were handsome, even though they were all a*sholes."You weren't looking either," I snapped at him, suddenly angry with him, with everything and everyone in the world.What the hell did I do to be cursed like this? For the infinite times, I wished I had my parents, I wished they hadn't died. He growled under his breath and glared down at me. He was shocked, and angry. Of course. I was shocked too when those words left my lips. Usually Nia was the one who did things like this. But now here I was, staring into the eyes of the man who was called The devi
Rhianna's POVI AM F*CKED. I was screaming inside my head at myself. It was Nia. My wolf was a bad influence. She was the one who corrupted me. I kicked the floor in anger and hissed when I accidentally hit the leg of Peyton's crib. "You still haven't opened the door, Adams." H sounded more than just irritated. "What is wrong with you? Just open the damn door." Anne gulped and walked to the door. "If I die today, take care of Peyton for me, Anne?" I mind-linkd her and she rolled her eyes as if to say I was being dramatic. "I am sure he doesn't want to kill you. Just open the door," Anne replied. From the sound of a boot kicking against the door, I was sure he was going to do as he promised. Kicking the door down. This guy was f*cking insane. This whole family was insane. It was my bad luck that I was saddled with the King of assholes, my freaking mate. Moon Goddess was an idiot. Sorry, but we both know it is the truth, goddess. Anne's eyes widened as I thrust Peyton to her. Sh
Rhianna's POV "Why are you suddenly apologizing to me?" I was really curious to know what changed all of a sudden. Did they know about Theo and me? "I mean, why now after all these years?" He didn't answer. He just stalked the entire length of the room like a caged animal and grunted and growled. Of course, why would he answer to some lowly Omega? Huh?I gritted my teeth and shrugged."Because..." Fabian tried, but he had no excuse, as well. "Of course, it is not new to me. I mean, I have been here for what... two years and you guys barely even look at me or talk to me. When you talk, it is only to snap at me about some mistake I do, and I do a lot of mistakes, don't I?""Adams... it is not-" Fabian once again trailed off as he met his brother's eyes with desperation. Forrest was still stalking back and forth. He shook his head and let out a low growl. "I know you don't consider me your equal. Of course, I am some lowly Omega who came out of nowhere into your home. You also don't
Rhianna's POV "Are they telling me the truth? Can I trust them? What do you think, Nia?" Shit. I almost forgot she wasn't here anymore. I miss Nia right now more so than before. She would know what to say to me, say to them. She would help me find out if they were really telling me the truth. "Yes. Forrest is right. We will stay until you trust us enough to say what is really wrong. Rhianna... Deep in our hearts, we knew something was wrong and that you were hurting. We came back from Venice when we-" Fabian stopped again, and gave me a conflicted look. My heart... it didn't feel so painful anymore, and I didn't feel so lonely. They came for me? But how? Why would they do it for someone they barely knew? "What do you mean? Did you come from Venice for me? Why?" It made me even more befuddled... to learn more about them. "Just..." Fabian trailed off, looking uncomfortable. I could see that he wanted to say so much, but he was hesitating. Maybe he didn't know whether to trust me
Rhianna's POV "I don't enjoy hurting you, Rhianna. You just have to learn your place." I snarled and pushed him away from me. Just his closeness felt like a vile mark on my skin, burning me from within. Touches disgusted me, touches that had once been my reprieve. My mate stumbled back and fell. "NO." An ugly look twisted his face. I could see his anger. He wanted to bury me in his wrath for doing this to him, but... he wouldn't. He didn't want to kill me yet. But I did not understand what exactly he wanted from me. He growled as he stood up, his body covered with fur, his eyes glowing red from his rage. I ran to the door, but before I could open the door, he grabbed me by the back of my dress and pulled me forward before throwing me on the floor. "I told you that you have to learn your place with me. I don't feel happy about your transgressions, Rhianna. You are being an absolute brat." His voice was condescending. He talked with me like I was a five-years-old screaming for ch
Rhianna's POV "I would rather you kill me than f*ck me. Because... when you touch me, I feel like I am dying slowly. I will choose to die instantly, then," I said without backing off. He snarled at me, his eyes flashing murderously and punched the wall. I didn't even flinch away from him. I just stood there, my eyes cold, unwavering. I was even surprised at myself right now. Nia would have appreciated this, appreciated what I was doing now. The last two weeks had finally caught up to me. I had done everything he asked, I had f*cked him because I was so scared... and I was DONE. He looked at me like I had lost my mind and gone completely crazy. Maybe I had, because this wasn't like myself, this was strange. I wasn't this woman. I had never talked back at anyone, let alone my strong, powerful mate. He was the king. If he wanted, he could do everything he had promised to do, but... "Peyton. What about Peyton? You will die and leave her? How can you-" He suddenly looked almost scar
Forrest's POV "Do you think Theo is hurting her or something?" Fabian asked, still unconvinced by what she said. I wasn't convinced, either."I don't think. I know. He pretended to be a good man with her, but we know he is not the man he was with Rhianna."I knew it wasn't just my wishful thinking that she finally saw Theo for what he was. I had seen the pain in her eyes and I knew it was more than just me shouting at her and being a jerk to her.When she stumbled into me in the hallway, everything in me begged to wrap my arms around her and pull her into my embrace and never let go. It made me angry that I could never do that, never touch her like that, because she belonged to someone else, that she loved someone else. So I did what I always did. I snapped at her like a f*cking jerk. It was not an excuse for being a jerk all the time, but I didn't know how else to do that. I was a desperate fool."You are. We are, and even though we were being an a*s to her... we did it because we h
Fabian's POV We walked to Peyton's room and knocked on the door. My heart was thundering. I truly wanted to know what was wrong with Rhianna. I didn't want anyone to hurt her. When Theo came back with her, I was ready to be her hero and save her, but then I realized she came here to the castle with him willingly. The only option I had was... staying away and pining for her from a distance, heart breaking everytime I saw her with Theodore, looking so in love. While Forrest was angry, I was sad. I just couldn't imagine how she was his mate, and how the feelings we had for her was not something more meaningful. I knocked on Peyton's door, and a woman opened the door. I had seen her around in the castle, but she was definitely not Anne. She looked nervous and twitchy. I had a feeling something was absolutely wrong. What was going on here? "Something bad. Your brother is a manipulative twat, and you know that. It is your fault to have trusted that he was anything but a jerk to Rhianna
Rhianna's POVHe was so f*cking smug. I hated this man like I had never hated anything or anyone in my life. Not even Louisa or the bullies. He was the biggest f*cking bully ever.I stared at Theodore, my eyes full of fire."Stop looking like you want to kill me, Rhianna. You can't. Now, put a smile on and come be pretty. That is the only good thing about you - your beauty. Hmm... and you do know what you do in bed," he said with a leer as he studied me up and down. The dress was as beautiful as it was revealing and when he looked at me, I felt dirty. "Now, let's go say hi to the Alphas, and Lunas, okay. Be a good girl, Rhianna. If you want your friend to live, you will be a good girl." Every word coming out of him was patronizing, demeaning.The more he talked, the more I wanted to defy him, deny him of his demands.I hissed.My anger simmered beneath the surface like a smoldering ember, intense and consuming. The betrayal had ignited a fiery rage within me, and every fiber of my bei
Fabian's POV I stormed out when Theo slammed the door shut, my heart pounding in my chest. The image of Theo's cold and uncaring expression replayed over and over in my mind, fueling the flames of anger that consumed me. There was no regret in his brother's eyes...The look in Rhianna's eyes, one of gratefulness and dispair made me want to smash the castle down until I found her friend."I think it is Beyden," Forrest said as soon as I walked into Peyton's room. I growled in response and stopped when I saw Peyton looking at me with wide eyes.I expected her to cry, but instead she miled at me, making my heart melt at the sight of her smile. She was the most beautiful little girl and I hated that Theodore was such a bastard to this precious darling's mother. I smiled and sighed as I picked her up when she waved her hands up and down."Come here, princess." I lifted her up. "So what were you playing?"She babbled something and I laughed and Forrest stood up.The room crackled with tens
Rhianna's POV "Feel what?" I asked, completely confused by what he was saying. "He is your fated mate and he has marked and claimed you, and now your bond is sealed and your souls are connected. When he makes love to someone else..." I scoffed. What Theo did was not making love. He sighed as if he understood me. "...you will feel it, feel the pain of the betrayal. It will hurt your heart, it will feel like you are being repeatedly punched in your soul. You will feel like you are dying," he said in a voice that sounded so desperate. Why did I not feel anything when Theo cheated on me? Did he do something to hide it? I wondered if his deception ran deeper than I initially thought, if his cruelty had started the moment he met me? But why me? What did I do to deserve this? Did he choose me because he thought I would be easy enough to kick and then calm me down? "No. I didn't even feel a pinch of it. I found out he was cheating only because I was trying to surprise him like a fuc
Rhianna's POV "Don't add anymore fuel, Theo, or I might just burn you down in your sleep," I hissed at him. Even though my heart was shaking from fear and desperation, I wouldn't show it to them. Louisa and Theodore looked stunned by my words. How could this spineless b*tch be suddenly so bold? I could almost read their minds. What kind of sadistic, selfish monster would do something like this to his own mate? I understood that he was cruel, but was this really necessary? I would repay all his debt with interest. I just had to find Anne first. Hatred grew inside me like poisonous vine, begging to kill. Darkness twisted and turned and spread, like vile veins of black and misery, corrupting my brokenness. Theo didn't get it, he didn't understand how everything he was doing was pushing me more and more to the edge. The thread of patience had finally snapped, and I could feel the loud thunder of it in my head. My animal was gone, but I truly felt like an animal right now, thirsting
Fabian's POV We walked to Peyton's room and knocked on the door. My heart was thundering. I truly wanted to know what was wrong with Rhianna. I didn't want anyone to hurt her. When Theo came back with her, I was ready to be her hero and save her, but then I realized she came here to the castle with him willingly. The only option I had was... staying away and pining for her from a distance, heart breaking everytime I saw her with Theodore, looking so in love. While Forrest was angry, I was sad. I just couldn't imagine how she was his mate, and how the feelings we had for her was not something more meaningful. I knocked on Peyton's door, and a woman opened the door. I had seen her around in the castle, but she was definitely not Anne. She looked nervous and twitchy. I had a feeling something was absolutely wrong. What was going on here? "Something bad. Your brother is a manipulative twat, and you know that. It is your fault to have trusted that he was anything but a jerk to Rhianna
Forrest's POV "Do you think Theo is hurting her or something?" Fabian asked, still unconvinced by what she said. I wasn't convinced, either."I don't think. I know. He pretended to be a good man with her, but we know he is not the man he was with Rhianna."I knew it wasn't just my wishful thinking that she finally saw Theo for what he was. I had seen the pain in her eyes and I knew it was more than just me shouting at her and being a jerk to her.When she stumbled into me in the hallway, everything in me begged to wrap my arms around her and pull her into my embrace and never let go. It made me angry that I could never do that, never touch her like that, because she belonged to someone else, that she loved someone else. So I did what I always did. I snapped at her like a f*cking jerk. It was not an excuse for being a jerk all the time, but I didn't know how else to do that. I was a desperate fool."You are. We are, and even though we were being an a*s to her... we did it because we h
Rhianna's POV "I would rather you kill me than f*ck me. Because... when you touch me, I feel like I am dying slowly. I will choose to die instantly, then," I said without backing off. He snarled at me, his eyes flashing murderously and punched the wall. I didn't even flinch away from him. I just stood there, my eyes cold, unwavering. I was even surprised at myself right now. Nia would have appreciated this, appreciated what I was doing now. The last two weeks had finally caught up to me. I had done everything he asked, I had f*cked him because I was so scared... and I was DONE. He looked at me like I had lost my mind and gone completely crazy. Maybe I had, because this wasn't like myself, this was strange. I wasn't this woman. I had never talked back at anyone, let alone my strong, powerful mate. He was the king. If he wanted, he could do everything he had promised to do, but... "Peyton. What about Peyton? You will die and leave her? How can you-" He suddenly looked almost scar
Rhianna's POV "I don't enjoy hurting you, Rhianna. You just have to learn your place." I snarled and pushed him away from me. Just his closeness felt like a vile mark on my skin, burning me from within. Touches disgusted me, touches that had once been my reprieve. My mate stumbled back and fell. "NO." An ugly look twisted his face. I could see his anger. He wanted to bury me in his wrath for doing this to him, but... he wouldn't. He didn't want to kill me yet. But I did not understand what exactly he wanted from me. He growled as he stood up, his body covered with fur, his eyes glowing red from his rage. I ran to the door, but before I could open the door, he grabbed me by the back of my dress and pulled me forward before throwing me on the floor. "I told you that you have to learn your place with me. I don't feel happy about your transgressions, Rhianna. You are being an absolute brat." His voice was condescending. He talked with me like I was a five-years-old screaming for ch
Rhianna's POV "Are they telling me the truth? Can I trust them? What do you think, Nia?" Shit. I almost forgot she wasn't here anymore. I miss Nia right now more so than before. She would know what to say to me, say to them. She would help me find out if they were really telling me the truth. "Yes. Forrest is right. We will stay until you trust us enough to say what is really wrong. Rhianna... Deep in our hearts, we knew something was wrong and that you were hurting. We came back from Venice when we-" Fabian stopped again, and gave me a conflicted look. My heart... it didn't feel so painful anymore, and I didn't feel so lonely. They came for me? But how? Why would they do it for someone they barely knew? "What do you mean? Did you come from Venice for me? Why?" It made me even more befuddled... to learn more about them. "Just..." Fabian trailed off, looking uncomfortable. I could see that he wanted to say so much, but he was hesitating. Maybe he didn't know whether to trust me