Elyse~
The club's lights burn like dying stars, a sickly yellow glow that twists the sweaty faces in the crowd into ghoulish masks. The air's thick with whiskey, smoke, and desperation, a fog I could choke on. I'm on the stage, my bare feet sticking to the grimy floor, my body swaying to a beat I don't feel. Men's hoots and whistles claw at my skin, their eyes stripping me bare.
I'm not here, not really. I'm with Lila, somewhere safe, where the world doesn't hurt. But Lila's gone, and I'm alone, my tattered dress clinging to my thighs like a second skin. My heart's a trapped bird, fluttering against ribs that ache from years of this hell, each beat screaming one word: survive.
I'm Elyse, though names are worthless when you're a number on Zane's roster. Twenty years I've been his prisoner, since I was one, stolen from a life I can only grasp in fragments. Memories come like lightning—sharp, fleeting, and cruel. A festival, firelight dancing on a crowd, my mother's laugh soft as a summer breeze, her chestnut hair tickling my face as she spun me. My father's strong hands lifted me high, his deep voice promising stars.
Then chaos. Screams pierced the night, a cloaked figure with cold gray eyes loomed, his knife glinting like a fang. Blood sprayed, warm and wet, and my mother's hand fell limp. Lila's tiny fingers slipped from mine, her cry swallowed by the crowd's panic. I see her eyes, hazel like mine, wide with terror as she's torn away. The memory fades, leaving only pain, a wound carved into my soul. I was too young to understand, but the loss is a chain around my heart, binding me to Lila, wherever she is.
I've survived Zane's empire, but survival comes at a cost. They use me, these men, to satisfy their greed, their power, their hunger.
Two years ago, a rogue with a scar splitting his lip dragged me to a private room, his hands rough as sandpaper, his breath sour with ale. I fought, clawed his face until blood welled, but he laughed, said Zane liked his girls with fight. I locked my mind away, counting cracks in the ceiling to escape. Last summer, a merchant with gold rings and a cruel smile paid extra to keep me all night. His eyes gleamed with something darker than want, and I retreated to a corner of my soul, imagining Lila's smirk to keep me breathing.
Each time, I died a little more, but Lila's memory is my anchor. I have to find her, no matter what it costs.
The song ends, and I stumble backstage, my hands trembling as I pull on a threadbare jacket, its seams fraying like my nerves. The other girls avoid my gaze, their own demons silencing them. I'm heading for the alley exit, craving a breath of air that doesn't stink of despair, when Rico, Zane's enforcer, grabs my wrist. His grip's a vice, his beer-soaked breath hot on my face.
"Private client," he grunts, dragging me toward a side room.
My stomach twists, a cold knot of dread.
"Who?" I whisper, my voice barely audible over the club's din.
Rico's smirk is a blade. "Five of 'em. Paid for two girls, but Zane's short tonight. You're it, sweetheart."
Fear spikes, sharp and icy, flooding my veins. Five men, expecting two, and I'm the only one to pay the price. I try to yank free, my nails digging into his arm, but he's stronger, shoving me through the door.
The room's a dungeon, dim and reeking of stale smoke and leather. Five rogues sprawl on ripped couches, their eyes glinting like wolves circling prey. The leader, wiry with a shaved head, grins, his yellowed teeth bared.
"Zane!" he barks as the alpha steps in, his tailored suit a cruel mockery of the filth around us. "We paid for two girls. Where's the other?"
Zane's gray eyes flick to me, cold as frost. "She's enough," he says, his voice smooth but edged with steel. "Take your time. Just don't break her. She's got shows tomorrow."
A broad rogue with a scarred cheek snorts, leaning forward. "One girl for five? That's a damn rip-off, Zane. We dropped good coin for this."
"Then make it worth it," Zane snaps, his smile tight, predatory. "She's durable. Ain't that right, Elyse?"
His gaze pins me, and I want to scream, to spit in his face, but fear locks my jaw. He's the devil in a three-piece suit, and I'm his pawn.
The wiry rogue laughs, his eyes raking over me. "Durable, huh? Let's test that." His buddies chuckle, a low, ugly sound that crawls under my skin.
My breath hitches, my heart pounding so hard I think it'll shatter my ribs.
"Spread out," the broad one says, cracking his knuckles. "She ain't running nowhere."
A lanky rogue with greasy hair, Cal, swigs from a bottle, his grin sloppy. "Hope she's better than the last one. That girl cried the whole damn time."
"Shut up, Cal," the wiry one snaps, stepping closer. "This one's got fire. Look at her eyes."
His hand reaches for me, and my fear surges, a tidal wave drowning every thought. I back against the wall, my legs trembling, my fists clenched. I'm trapped, a rabbit in a wolf's den, and no one's coming. My mind screams for Lila, her fierce smirk my only light in this darkness.
"Gonna make this fun," the broad rogue says, his scarred cheek twitching as he stands.
A squat man with a beard chuckles, tossing a coin that clinks on the floor. "Zane, you sure she's worth the trouble? Looks like she's ready to bolt."
"She won't," Zane says, his voice cold as he turns to leave. "Enjoy your payment, boys."
The door clicks shut behind him, and my heart sinks. I'm alone with them, their laughter a noose tightening around my throat.
The wiry one grabs my arm, his grip bruising, and I swing, my nails catching his cheek. He curses, backhanding me, and I stumble, my cheek stinging.
"Feisty," he growls, his buddies closing in. My vision blurs with panic, my breath shallow, every muscle screaming run. But there's nowhere to go, no escape from their hands, their eyes, their plans to take everything I've fought to keep.
The Broad rogue grabbed my waist in a flash, twisting me like a weightless mannequin, before I could respond, my cloripped from behind.
" Struggles won't help you now dea…..aarhg"
Every thrust painful than the former.
As he ravished me, I can feel my soul tearing away from my body like a withering sunflower.
My head spun out of rage and disgust, I wished I could break free but I was overpowered as my hands were held by each of one of the other rogues.
I had a brief moment to catch my breath
" flip her over Cal, you would enjoy her better" he said as he pulled away.
I was on my back , Cal's whole weight pressing me down like a hammer crushing a nut.
I was begging and crying all along, drowning from my tears.
Their evil laughter is like an eerie sound of an horror scene in Dracula.
I was losing my strength and breathing heavily to the pulse of Cal's thrusts.
At this point I give up hope.
Like a flicker
A blinding light
The door explodes inward, wood splintering like brittle bones. A beast storms in—a man, but massive, a tower of muscle and rage. His green eyes blaze gold, his dark hair streaked with gray, a jagged scar slashing his jaw.
Kael. The name hits me like a pulse, like I've known it forever.
The rogues spin, cursing, but he's a hurricane, unstoppable.
The wiry one lunges, a knife flashing, but Kael's faster, his claws—claws—slicing through the rogue's throat in a single, brutal slash. Blood sprays, hot and coppery, and the man gurgles, collapsing like a broken doll. The broad rogue charges, a pipe swinging, but Kael catches his arm, twisting until it snaps like dry wood. His claws rip across the man's belly, a sickening tear, entrails pouring out, and the rogue screams, crumpling in a heap of red.
Cal, the lanky one, bolts for the door, but Kael grabs his neck, snapping it with a sharp twist, the sound like a cracking branch. The squat rogue swings a chair, but Kael dodges, his claws slashing the man's throat in one fluid motion, blood painting the wall.
The fifth rogue scrambles out, clutching a wound Kael dealt in the chaos, his footsteps fading into the night.
I'm frozen, my breath ragged, my heart pounding so hard it hurts. Blood pools on the floor, the air thick with death.
Kael's chest heaves, his eyes still gold, but they soften as they find me, like a storm calming.
"You're safe now," he says, his voice rough but warm, like a fire after a blizzard.
He steps closer, and I flinch, my body screaming danger even as something deep inside whispers trust.
"Stay back," I choke out, my voice cracked glass. I'm shaking, my knees buckling, the room spinning like a carousel from hell. Men lie. Men hurt. But Kael's not grabbing, not attacking. His hands are raised, palms open, steady.
"I'm Kael," he says, slow, like he's coaxing a scared animal. "I won't hurt you. I swear it on my pack."
"Why me?" I whisper, my vision blurring, tears burning my eyes. My legs tremble, the weight of fear crushing me.
"You're my mate," he says, the word heavy, like a vow carved in stone. "I felt you. I found you."
Mate. It's a fairy tale, nonsense for suckers, but his voice carries a truth I can't shake.
My legs give out, and he catches me, his arms warm, steady, not cruel. I flinch, expecting pain, but it doesn't come. His touch is gentle, and it's too much—too much blood, too much fear, too much hope.
"No such thing as safe," I murmur, my voice fading as darkness creeps in, a cold tide pulling me under.
"Hey, stay with me," Kael says, his voice urgent, but it's distant, like he's shouting from another world.
I try to hold onto Lila's face, her fierce eyes, but the terror's too heavy, a weight I can't carry.
My eyes flutter shut, and the world vanishes, swallowed by black.