BENITA.
Staying in the Bloodfang territory bored me day by day. I hated the fact that each scent reminded me that this wasn't my territory. The corridors stretched long and silent, lit only by flickering torches. Wolves bowed when Fred passed but never when I did. Their eyes followed me, some curious, most mocking. I was the Luna they didn't respect. The one forced to wear a crown dipped in someone else's blood.
Fred's voice rolled through the corridor like thunder, low and commanding. "You'll stay here from now on. My people will attend to you."
The sound of his boots echoed off the marble floor, steady and unyielding. I followed behind him, my wrists still raw from the silver cuffs that had only been removed minutes ago.
"I didn't ask for servants," I said, my tone clipped, forcing control I barely had.
He glanced back over his shoulder, his lips curving into that familiar smirk that made my blood boil. "You didn't ask for anything, yet here you are."
The words hit like a blade laced with arrogance. I didn't respond. I'd learned, silence was safer when Fred was in this mood. He wasn't shouting, and that was worse. Calm meant he was dangerous.
We entered the main hall, the air heavy with the scent of cedar and smoke. My gaze drifted across the towering walls lined with trophies, fangs mounted on plaques, claws preserved in glass cases, pelts stretched and framed like art. Each one represented a victory, a conquest, a life he had taken.
Wolves he'd defeated. Packs he'd broken.
Every relic was a warning.
The weight of it pressed down on me as I followed him, my footsteps barely a whisper on the polished stone. My fingers itched to touch the scars beneath my sleeves, reminders of what defiance had already cost me.
Fred stopped at the top of the grand staircase. The chandeliers above flickered faintly, their light catching on his hair and the cold amusement in his eyes. "You'll have freedom within these walls," he said evenly, each word deliberate. "Step outside without permission, and I'll put trackers on your heels again."
The word again struck like a lash. I lifted my chin, forcing my voice not to tremble. "You think I'd run?"
He turned toward me, the corner of his mouth lifting. "You're Silvercrest," he murmured, closing the distance between us with quiet menace. "Defiance runs in your blood."
He leaned closer until his breath brushed my skin. His gloved finger tilted my chin upward, the touch deceptively gentle. "But I'll enjoy taming it."
My heart hammered, but I refused to look away. "You can cage a wolf, Fred," I whispered, meeting his gaze head-on. "You can't kill what's wild."
For a fleeting second, something flickered behind his eyes, something dark and wounded but it vanished as quickly as it came. His expression hardened, his jaw setting like stone.
"Don't test me, Benita."
The warning was quiet, but it carried the weight of a threat that could shatter bones.
He turned away then, his coat brushing against my arm as he descended the staircase. I stood still, listening to the echo of his steps fading into the corridor.
Even after he was gone, his presence lingered, like a shadow clinging to the corners of the room, like the echo of chains that had never truly been removed.
A tall, lean man stepped forward from where he'd been waiting near the stairwell. Dark hair, sharp jaw, and eyes like cold steel.
"Beta Silas," he said with a stiff nod. "The Alpha asked me to oversee your adjustment."
"Adjustment?" I repeated.
He didn't smile. "To live here. To our rules."
"I wasn't aware I needed supervision."
His tone remained flat. "You'll be informed of everything you need to know. Nothing more."
My jaw tightened. "Do you always talk like you're reading from a manual?"
He ignored that. "Your quarters are at the east wing. Meals are served at dawn and dusk. You're expected at the main hall when the Alpha calls for you."
"And if I don't show up?"
His gaze sharpened. "Don't make that mistake."
The warning in his voice wasn't loud, but it carried weight. Fred trusted this man, and that made him dangerous.
I followed him through a narrow hallway lined with portraits of Bloodfang Alphas. All men. All grim. All staring down at me like I didn't belong.
Silas opened a door near the end. "Your room."
The chamber was grand,too grand. Velvet curtains, a golden mirror, a four-poster bed draped in silver cloth. Everything screamed wealth and power, but the air felt stale, watched.
"Is this a room or a prison cell in disguise?" I muttered.
"Depends on how you behave," Silas replied. "You'll find your meals brought here if you're not summoned."
He turned to leave, but I stopped him. "Why do you serve him?"
Silas paused, hand on the doorknob. "Because loyalty keeps you alive."
Then he left, locking the door behind him.
The hours passed slowly. Outside, the moon rose pale against the black sky. From my window, I could see wolves patrolling the courtyard, their eyes glowing faintly in the dark.
Inside, the house never slept. Footsteps echoed in the corridors, some heavy, others light and hurried. Voices whispered. Doors opened and shut.
And laughter.
Women's laughter.
It came from down the hall, muffled but unmistakable. I didn't have to see to know who they were. Fred's lovers.
Each time a door creaked open, their scents drifted through the air, lust, perfume, the faint trace of wine. And always, Fred's scent over it all, dominant and unyielding.
I sat on the edge of my bed, staring at the candle flame until it trembled. Every laugh, every moan that reached my ears carved another crack in the wall I'd built around myself.
He didn't even need to touch me to humiliate me. Just letting me hear was enough.
I rose and paced the room, restless. That was when I noticed it, the faint sound, a low scraping coming from somewhere beyond the hall.
It wasn't laughter.
It was something else.
I pressed my ear against the door, listening. The noise was steady, rhythmic, like chains dragging against stone.
My heart skipped.
I eased the door open, it wasn't locked this time. Strange. I stepped into the hallway. The torches flickered as if protesting my presence.
The sound was clearer now, coming from the far end, near a black door I hadn't seen earlier. It was tucked behind a column, almost hidden.
Curiosity pulled at me. Fear tried to hold me back.
"Don't," my wolf warned inside me.
But I moved anyway.
As I got closer, I saw a symbol carved into the door, a crescent torn in half. The mark of Bloodfang justice.
I reached for the handle. Locked.
Then the sound came again, chains, followed by a faint growl. Not human. Not an animal. Something in between.
"Who's there?" I whispered.
Silence.
Then, bang!
Something slammed against the door from the inside. I stumbled back, pulse racing.
A voice followed, hoarse and broken. "Help me… please."
I froze. Taking a step back I looked towards the hallway to be sure I didn't hear wrong. But just before I could confirm once more, a voice roared from behind.
"Don't you dare enter this room! It's off limits!"
It was Fred. His eyes red like he could kill.
I stepped back in fear.
Whatever was behind that door, was a secret he was willing to protect.