Chapter 3

SHADOW

One moment, I was in the elevator for a run, and the next thing I knew, I was drugged and found myself locked up in a solitary by the most arrogant, feral, and ruthless Alpha I had ever met. My last Alpha had no match to this son of a bitch, and I still didn’t know his name.

I felt like I’d been in this four-corner room for eternity. I lost track of time when I didn’t see the sun or moon but darkness.

The Alpha was true to his word. I was left without food and water to starve me to death and no lights. It wasn’t a problem, though. A werewolf could see clearly in the dark, but not in a human form. And Kent trained me to control hardship and stress, but not against this man. He went beyond what I had prepared for.

I knew that Alphas were the last people you disrespected because their words were their rules, but his men took me forcibly, and I would be damned if they could force me to do what they desired.

Something about him made me want to bend the rules, get down on my knees, and submit to him. Maybe it was his voice, his command, or his unapologetic power oozing in his aura. And I must admit, he was more gorgeous up close, uptight, and dominant, which had me wondering if he was the kind who let his women kneel before him and do as he pleased before he took them to bed.

I started to feel the hunger. My mouth was parched. I felt dizzy as I tried to sit up. I also couldn’t help but think of Kent. He must be worried, searching for me.

I blew a deep breath before I stood up, ignoring the room spinning around me. My knees were shaky, and my breathing was shallow, but I managed to reach the door and bang it.

Moments later, the lights went on.

“Can I talk to anyone? I want to make sure Kent is safe. Please?” That was my first mistake, telling them my weakness and letting them know about my human adopted father, but it was too late to take it back. They already knew.

I leaned against the door and dragged myself on the cold, tiled floor. I could have just wolfed out and shown them what I was, but that was not an option.

They couldn’t know. No one should.

“Are you ready to answer questions?” It was the Beta talking.

“I answered your questions. I want to make sure Kent is safe. He’s human. He has nothing to do with the world we live in.” I licked my dry lips, dragging my breath.

“Then we can’t help you.”

“Is killing me softly will satisfy your Alpha? He could just snap my neck and be done with it. Then he can use this room for another rogue he wishes to torture because I’m telling you, I won’t submit to him. I won’t be forced to do what I don’t believe in.”

The door unlocked and pushed me forward, leaving me no choice but to sit down. I didn’t have to lift my gaze to see who just walked in. I felt his powerful presence and his annoying but delicious scent. Somehow, he gave me a little bit of his strength. And it just pissed me off.

“You will change your mind when you see this.” A mocking sneer was in place. His shiny, expensive shoes were the first thing I saw, and then the picture he dropped.

Swallowing hard, I picked it up with my shaky fingers since the white side was the one facing. My sight instantly blurred as the picture revealed. “No! No, no, no! What did you do?” My harsh tone was accusatory, and I had no intention of being sorry for it.

How did I stand up? I didn’t know, but my heart and body were filled with anger and rage, fueling me with enough strength. My eyes narrowed as I saw red. No matter how weak I was, I could still feel my wolf coming out. My fangs ached. My claws grew.

“Calm your wolf down, or you will get your wish in an instant.” He didn’t even move or flinch. He just met my glare because I was challenging him.

I drew a draggy breath despite my rage. I wanted to claw his eyes out and his handsome face, but I needed to know that truth.

“You hurt the only person I care about most in this world. For an alpha, that’s even low. You wanna kill me, do it,” I said through clenched teeth.

“I thought that image would motivate you, but I didn’t do it. I wouldn’t hurt a human if he didn’t do anything wrong to me and my clan,” he said in a forbidding tone. Clan? How many were they exactly?

“Who did this? Who would hurt him? This is not the work of a human.” I saw the patches, probably claw marks, on his chest. Kent was attacked, and they intended to show their true nature to a human, which was against the Werewolf Council.

“You are right. Who would hurt him? The people after you? And if they found out my men knocked them down three days ago, they would come after my pack. Tell me, who are they, Shadow?”

I slightly shook my head. “I’ve been telling you that I don’t have any idea. I walked out of that life a long time ago. It just happened I was with Kent in that hotel, and you were there as well.” I wiped my tears. I was not a crier, but I felt terrible for the only family I had left.

“Do you think your old pack will come after you?”

“If they did, they should have done it long ago. I don’t have any idea who would hurt him.” I met his gaze. He had no remorse. I couldn’t see humane in those icy gray eyes, or this was his way of intimidating a poor, helpless rogue to make him submit. “Please, just let me go. I wanna bring him home and take care of him.”

“No.” One word— just one word made my world crumble.

“What do you want from me then?” My tone was stern, but I didn’t give a shit right now.

“Who are those people?”