2
NAOMI
The sergeant pushed me towards the Captain who stood next to the fallen door, a gun in his right hand.
My mother followed, and I noticed that throughout the chaos, she hadn't left my hand.
"You lied to us." The Captain began, eyeing Mia coldly. "This is what you get for lying."
Without warning, he raised his gun and fired twice. Mia's body dropped noisily to the floor, the red of her blood seeping through the holes on her forehead.
Dumbfounded, I watched the blood begin to spread, too shocked to even cry.
A chill ran down my spine, and without being told, I knew I was staring death in the face.
"You both are beautiful women. Is this your daughter, old woman?"
My mother nodded. The Captain inched forward towards her, and in the most deceptive of moves, slapped her loud on the cheek. I took a step backwards, a gasp escaping my lips.
"When I speak to you, woman, I want to hear your reply. Do you understand?"
"Yes, I do."
I glanced at my mother, wondering how she had been able to withstand the sting of the slap without flinching.
"Now, I ask again, is this your daughter?"
"Yes, she is."
The sergeant raised his gun to shoot, but the captain shook his head, stopping him midway.
"Alpha Lockwood said no survivors, Captain. Allow me the honour to kill them both."
"No. They're coming with us. They're too good to be wasted. Move."
Another shove, and we were out of the store. Another squeeze from my mother and I bit my lip, holding the urge to burst into tears. Tears weren't going to solve anything. Like my mother had said, I needed to be strong.
*
The Captain and the sergeant who had wanted to shoot us took us to the throne room which belonged to my father.
When I saw my father, I sobbed silently, unable to control myself anymore.
He was on the throne, but he had been bound by ropes and was bleeding from each and every part of his body. His face wasn't any different. If it wasn't for the silver hair on his head, I knew I wouldn't have recognized my own father.
"Father!"
I cried out, running to him, eager to comfort him.
I didn't go very far before I bumped into the body of a tall, muscular man whom I recognized immediately from the well known green eyes.
Alpha Lockwood.
He glared down at me, smiling, blocking the path to my father. When I tried to move, he signalled the sergeant to hold me, and just like that, my hands were grasped and I was held fast.
"Well, what a beautiful introduction." Alpha Lockwood's voice boomed, and at that moment, I knew why he commanded so much power. Even in captivity, he sounded so eloquent.
"I almost thought I killed your family, Alpha Joshua Moonbane. Good to see that they're still alive." He eyed me closely before speaking, "And what a beautiful daughter you have here, ripe for the taking."
My eyes burned with tears and my body shook with anger. The sergeant held me close, refusing to leave my hands despite my body protesting of its own accord.
He turned to me, an evil smile on his lips, his eyes glinting.
"Tell me, beautiful girl, what is your name?"
I coughed, grateful for the opportunity to express myself.
Still seething with the anger and hatred of seeing my wounded father on the throne, I opened my mouth and did the first thing that came to my mind. I spat at him, watching the spittle land on his cheek.
Smiling, he walked forward, and out of nowhere, he slapped me with the back of his hand. The room went into a stunned silence as the sound of flesh striking flesh bounced off the walls.
With the wicked smile still plastered on his face, he grabbed the hem of my night gown and tore it. Using the torn hem, he cleaned off the spittle on his face and flung it on the floor next to me.
"Now, I am going to ask you one more time. What is your name, young lady?"
I answered, still reeling from the sting of the slap and the taste of blood in my mouth.
"Naomi."
"Just Naomi?" He raised an eyebrow inquisitively.
"Naomi Moonbane."
He smiled, then turned to my father before he turned around to me again.
"Naomi Moonbane, I suppose you love your father, don't you?"
I nodded, glancing at the pitiful figure of my father, one of the strongest men I had ever known looking so weak on the throne.
"And you'll do anything to save him, won't you?"
I nodded once again.
"The only thing that can save your father, Naomi, is you coming back to the Lockwood pack with me. You are beautiful, and I can have many other uses for you, instead of killing you immediately."
I stared at him, dumbfounded, searching for the right words.
"Oh, don't act so surprised, Naomi. Your father deserves to die. And I won't hesitate to put a bullet and ruin that silver hair of his. But you can be his saving grace."
I turned to my mother, and her eyes didn't help. She looked defeated, tired even. Her face, still reddened by the slap she had received earlier in the old store, was starting to swell.
"Look around you, Naomi. The Moonbane pack is in ruin. You can save your father and your mother by coming with me. You don't have a choice."
I had a choice. I could struggle with the sergeant that was holding me, grab the gun positioned on his hip and shoot Alpha Lockwood. But it was easier said than done. I would never make it in time.
Even if I had a choice, it was an unrealistic one.
I glanced at my father, and saw him shake his head in refusal.
But I would rather see him injured than dead.
"I don't have all day, Naomi. Are you coming with me or not?"
Glancing at the gun in his right hand, I knew my answer already before saying it out.
I nodded, speaking when he raised an eyebrow.
"I am going to come with you."