ADRIANA

The pain was blinding. My hand felt like it was on fire, the skin already blistering. My leg throbbed where the coffee had soaked through. Blood mixed with coffee on the floor where the broken ceramic had sliced deep into my palm.

"Oops." Lisa smiled. "My hand slipped."

She turned and walked out, her laughter echoing behind her.

I was shaking, staring at my burned hand as blood dripped steadily onto the white tiles. The pain was nothing compared to what I'd felt at Landon's apartment, but somehow it was the final straw. Physical pain on top of emotional devastation.

Everything hurts. Everything.

I stumbled to the sink and turned on the tap, shoving my burnt and injured hand under the cold water.

I stared out the window, my vision blurred by tears and pain. My free hand grabbed the necklace around my neck-the only reminder I had of my mother, since my father had burnt everything she owned the moment she died.

"I wish you were here, mum," I whispered through the tears. "I wouldn't be treated like this. I hate being alone."

The words barely made it past the lump in my throat. My hand was still bleeding into the sink, the burn marks angry and red.

"You're not alone."

I turned around sharply, looking for who was behind me, but the kitchen was empty.

I blinked and continued staring blankly at my hand under the running water. Maybe I was losing my mind. Or the pain was making me hear things.

"My name is Yara."

I paused, my heart beating faster. The voice was soft, feminine, and seemed to come from... inside my head?

"Who are you?" I finally asked, my voice shaky.

"I'm your wolf, silly."

A wolf. My wolf. After three years of waiting, after being mocked and ridiculed, after giving up hope-

I sighed. How stupid did Lisa think I was to pull this prank? This had to be another one of her cruel games.

"Lisa isn't smart enough to pull this off. I'm really your wolf."

"Oh yeah, prove it."

"Look at your hand."

I pulled my hand from under the water and stared.

My mouth dropped open. The burns were... fading. The blisters were smoothing out. The deep cuts in my palm were knitting themselves back together, the blood flow stopping. Within seconds, my hand looked almost normal, just slightly pink where the worst of the damage had been.

"H-how did you do that?"

She giggled, the sound warm in my mind.

"I'm kinda special. Listen, I don't have a lot of time to talk but I need to tell you this. You can't tell anyone about me."

I frowned, staring at my now-healed hand in wonder. After three years of nothing, I finally had my wolf.

"What? What're you saying?"

"I'm saying you have to keep this to yourself. Just follow your heart and I'll explain everything later."

"What? No, explain it now. Hello?"

Silence.

"Hello?!"

A guard walked past the kitchen door and I suddenly remembered why I was here in the first place.

I quickly grabbed new cups and prepared more coffee, my mind reeling. I had a wolf. I had Yara. Everything could change now. Maybe-

I placed the coffee cups on the tray and practically ran to the office. I stood outside the door, readying myself to enter, wondering how I was going to hide Yara without my father sensing her. He was the Alpha, he knew everything.

The voices from inside made me pause.

"But he's the Lycan King." My dad's voice was filled with the authority only alphas seemed to possess.

"All the more reason why we should offer Adriana to him." Lisa said after.

Offer Adriana? Me?

I stood there, listening keenly to them as they decided my future like it was up to them. I gripped the tray nervously, making sure that I didn't make a sound.

"B-but Lisa, I don't think that's a good deal." Landon stammered.

"What do you mean?" I could imagine that ugly frown on her face right now.

"I mean, I've heard things. The Lycan King... he's cruel to women. My brother says he's seen with a different one every night. He uses them and throws them away like trash. Some of them are never seen again."

"That's nonsense. Those are just rumors." Lisa scoffed.

"My brother works the border, Lisa. He sees things. He hears things. The Lycan King is dangerous."

I didn't even know who to believe. Nobody had ever been to the Lycans lands because it was forbidden. Wolves and Lycans shared nothing in common except a border.

"So what if it's true?" Lisa's voice was cold. "She's wolfless. She's weak. She's an embarrassment to this pack. At least this way, Father gets his treaty and we get rid of her. It's perfect."

So this was the meeting Lisa wanted to have. They were planning on selling me off to the Lycan King. Making my life hell wasn't enough-they wanted me gone for good. To be used and discarded by a monster.

I knew Lisa hated me and she would do anything to see that I suffered. I wasn't putting much hope on Landon either because he was a coward and a cheater.

The only person I could hope on now was my father. Although he had cast me aside as soon as my mother died, I was still his daughter, and I hoped that fact alone would save me from Lisa's evil plan.

There was silence in the room and I bit my lip, waiting for someone to say something.

My eyes burned the longer I stayed there. Realization settling in me that dad would never say no to Lisa.

"But who cares if he's dangerous? She's the one who'll have to deal with him. Dad, all that matters to us is that we get to have a relationship with them. Wouldn't that be good for us?"

The man I call father sighed.

"Yes it will, but I think there are other ways to make peace with them."

Lisa slammed the table.

"No! There is no other way. The best way is to make sure she marries him-that way, he would think you gave your most prized possession to him. You really need him to sign the treaty. Else, there would never be peace."

So she wanted me to be the sacrificial lamb and be shipped off to a foreign land to marry a man who hurt women for sport?

No way. There was no way my dad would agree to this.

I heard another sigh and my heart dropped.

"Fine. But you get to break the news to her."

The tray almost slipped out of my hand. I stood there in utter shock, recounting those words over and over again. He had just agreed to it.

Tears gathered in my eyes as though called on, and I felt the dull ache in my heart at the betrayal. The people I had thought would be there for me were the ones plotting my downfall.

I stepped back from the door quietly and ran.

ADRIANA

I dropped the tray in the kitchen and sprinted to my room. As soon as I closed the door, I let out the tears I had been holding back, collapsing to the floor in defeat.

"Yara! Yara!" I called for her but there was no response.

I would take any comfort I could receive right now but there was none. The pain was too much to bear. The people I had thought would be by my side were happily planning against me behind my back.

Lisa, my own sister. She may have never acted like it but she was still my sister.

My father.

My boyfriend. I had trusted him more than anyone.

And now, Yara. Had I really thought someone I had met just today would be faithful to me when the people I'd known all my life hated me?

They'd all left me, to deal with life myself.

The only person who could have helped me was long gone.

My mind flashed back to the last time I'd spoken to mum, just moments before she passed.

"Always be yourself, Adriana. Never shed tears for unworthy people. Your heart would tell you where to go, it would lead you to the right place."

Sometimes, I wonder if my mum knew how much I was going to suffer and cry but her words were enough to get me on my feet.

If they could plan, so could I.

I have had enough of Lisa and her evil doings. This was the last straw. I stood up from the floor, brushing the dust off and looked at myself in the mirror.

Lisa and the rest weren't worthy of my tears.

I reached under my bed and pulled out my small bag of money. I'd been hiding it for a long time, hoping for the day I'd be in an emergency and get to use it.

Today was that day.

Quickly stuffing the few things I had into a bag, I put together essentials that would help me on my mission. I was finally going to take the bold step and run away.

I won't let Lisa's bitterness ruin my life as she saw fit. In the meantime, I mapped out my escape route, taking into account every factor that may try to ruin the plan.

I heard footsteps in the hallway.

"Adriana!"

Lisa's voice, shrill and angry.

She must have found the abandoned coffee tray in the kitchen.

My heart hammered in my chest. I looked around frantically. I paused when I saw the window. I could go through the window.

The footsteps got closer.

I grabbed my bag and ran to the window, opening it as quietly as I could. There was a tree close enough to reach.

The door handle rattled.

"Adriana! Open this door right now!"

I didn't hesitate. I climbed out the window, my hands shaking, and reached for the nearest branch. My bag made it awkward, but I managed to grab hold and swing myself toward the trunk.

I heard the door slam open.

"Where the hell-"

I didn't wait to hear the rest. I half-climbed, half-fell down the tree, hitting the ground hard. Pain shot through my ankle but I didn't stop.

"FIND HER!" Lisa's scream echoed behind me. "DON'T LET HER GET AWAY!"

Then when it was time, I made my move.

It was evening and I knew that at this time, the back door to the house would be left open because this was when the guards changed shifts.

The first thing was to pass through the living room without anyone seeing me. With that successfully done, I looked behind me one last time before stepping into the cold evening breeze.

This was it, I was finally doing it but I couldn't fully celebrate because the major obstacle was getting over the border.

I began running as soon as I gained some distance from the house. Despite being out of breath and carrying a heavy bag, I didn't stop.

It won't take long for someone to notice I was gone because Lisa was always calling for me to do one thing or the other. And as soon as she realized I was gone, she would send out every guard to look for me. I had to get away, and fast.

My breath comes in ragged gasps as my feet pound against the earth, pushing me forward through the dense forest, leaves rustling with each hurried step.

My heart raced in my chest. Fear mixed with thrill at the possibility of getting away was what drove me to keep moving.

I can hear the wind whistling in my ears, carrying the scent of damp earth and pine. My muscles burn, but I ignore the pain, focusing instead on the rhythm of my stride, the thud of my heartbeat, and the sound of my breath as it blends with the rustling leaves and distant bird calls.

I feel the roughness of the ground beneath my shoes, every root and stone a challenge to overcome, but I'm driven by a force I can't quite name, something that urges me to push harder, run faster, and leave everything behind.

Night had fallen and the moon was nowhere to be found so I was basically walking in the darkness. I couldn't see the ground before me properly but I pushed forward anyway, my hand brushing against trees to guide me.

Then I tripped.

A root, a rock-I didn't know what it was. But I went down hard, my hands scraping against the forest floor. My palm split open again on a sharp stone.

I scrambled to my feet, pressing my hand against my shirt to try to stop the bleeding, but it was too late. Drops of blood marked the ground behind me.

No. No, no, no.

I kept running, but I knew. I knew they'd be able to track me now. The blood would lead them right to me like a beacon.

"Yara!" I called desperately in my mind. "Yara, please! I need you!"

Silence.

I pushed harder, my lungs burning, but my cut hand left blood on every tree I grabbed for balance. God, I was being so stupid.

My legs were giving out. I couldn't keep running like this.

I saw something. A structure. A cottage?

I didn't have a choice. I ran toward it, praying I could hide, could find something to bandage my hand with, could-

Strong hands grabbed me from behind.

I screamed.

"Got her!"

ADRIANA

I was thrown to the ground, the air knocked out of my lungs. Before I could scramble away, they were on me. Three of them. Guards I recognized.

"Stupid bitch." One of them grabbed my hair, yanking my head back. "Did you really think you could run? You left a blood trail a blind wolf could follow."

"Please-"

"Shut up."

They dragged me toward the cottage. One of them kicked the door open and they hauled me inside.

There was an old wooden chair in the middle of the room.

"Tie her up."

"No! No, please-"

One of them backhanded me across the face. Stars exploded in my vision.

"I said shut up."

They forced me into the chair. Rough rope bit into my wrists as they tied my hands behind the chair back. More rope around my ankles, binding them to the chair legs. I thrashed and fought, but it was useless. No wolf strength. No Yara. Just me, weak and helpless.

"That should hold her." One of them stepped back, admiring their work. "Alpha said to bring her back. He didn't say she had to be comfortable."

They laughed.

The door opened again and I knew who it was before she even spoke.

"Well, well, well." Lisa walked in, that cruel smile on her face. "Look at you now."

I didn't respond. Staring at her with a blank expression. I didn't want to believe I was actually related to her.

She walked closer, circling me like a predator. "Did you really think you could run? Leaving a literal blood trail behind you? You're even more stupid than I thought."

"Let me go, Lisa."

"Let you go?" She laughed. "Oh, Adriana. You still don't understand, do you? You're mine. You've always been mine to do with as I please."

She stopped in front of me, leaning down so her face was inches from mine.

"Do you know what Father's going to do when we bring you back? He's going to give you to the Lycan King just like we planned. And that monster is going to use you until there's nothing left."

"At least I'll be away from you."

The words were out before I could stop them.

Lisa's eyes flashed with rage. Her hand moved so fast I only felt it when the slap cracked across my face, snapping my head to the side. Pain exploded across my cheek.

"You ungrateful bitch!" She slapped me again, harder. "After everything I've done-"

"What have you done?" I spit blood from my mouth. "Besides torture me and take everything from me?"

Another slap. This one split my lip.

"Shut up! Shut up, shut up, shut up!" She was hitting me with every word now, open-handed slaps that left my face burning. "You took everything from me! Mother loved you more! Everyone always loved you more! Poor little Adriana, so sweet, so perfect-"

"That's not true-"

"YES IT IS!" She grabbed my face, her nails digging into my cheeks. "And now you have a wolf, don't you? I can smell it on you. You finally got your precious wolf while I had to work for everything!"

How did she know? How could she tell?

"I... I don't know what you're talking about."

She slapped me again, this time with the back of her hand. I felt my tooth cut into my inner cheek.

"Don't lie to me!" She hit me again. And again. "I can smell the change! You finally shifted and you thought you could run away? Thought you were strong enough now?"

My vision was blurring from the pain. My face felt like it was on fire. But I refused to cry. Refused to give her that satisfaction.

"I'm going to enjoy watching the Lycan King break you," Lisa hissed in my ear. "I'm going to enjoy knowing you're suffering. Maybe I'll even visit, just to see what's left of you."

She raised her hand to hit me again.

A growl echoed through the cottage.

Lisa froze, her hand still raised.

The growl came again, closer this time. The windows rattled with the force of it.

"What the hell-" One of the guards started.

The door exploded inward.

It actually splintered off its hinges as a massive black wolf burst through it.

The guards didn't even hesitate. They shifted and ran, crashing through windows in their panic to escape.

Lisa stumbled backward, her face pale. "No, no, no-"

The black wolf's eyes locked onto her. She ran.

The wolf let her go, his attention turning to me.

I pressed myself back against the chair as much as the ropes would allow, my heart hammering. He was huge. Bigger than any wolf I had ever seen, including my father. His black fur shone even in the dim light, and his eyes were focused and lethal.

He circled me slowly, taking very slow steps, studying me.

"P-please don't k-kill me. Please." I didn't know when the stuttered words left my mouth.

I had never had to beg for my life before but I was sure I was doing a very lousy job. I froze and even stopped breathing when he moved closer to me and sniffed me.

Maybe if he knew I was a werewolf just like him, he would let me go.

"I'm a wolf too. I'm the Alpha's daughter."

He moved back a little, his head tilting as if considering this.

Then he shifted. And whatever I was going to say next got stuck in my throat because I could see everything.

His perfectly shaped body, his outlined abs, every muscle and every vein and then also him, down below.

I turned my head away quickly, my face burning despite everything. That was the biggest I had ever seen, not that I had seen my fair share.

He must have noticed my plight because he shrugged.

"I thought you said you were a wolf? No wolf minds being naked. You should be used to it by now."

I fought with my eyes to stop them from going down there as he moved behind me.

I felt his hands on the ropes binding my wrists. One sharp tug and they snapped.

"Who really are you?" I asked as he moved to untie my ankles.

"Someone who heard you scream." He finished with the ropes and stepped back. "Can you stand?"

I tried. My legs were shaking, and between the running, the beating, and the fear, I barely made it upright before my knees buckled.

He caught me before I hit the ground.

"Easy now." His voice was surprisingly gentle. "You're safe. They're gone."

"Who... who are you?"

He looked down at me, those green eyes intense.

"My name is Elijah."