onstant torture, weeks of forced intimacy. Thankf

eak. I felt as though I was dying from the inside out, as though

everything beyond dry. Just as the Alpha ha

feed me, and forced me to be intimate

tle girl who lost her mom to his cold hands. My life seem

only light filtering through the tiny barred window high on the wall. My body ache

stomach, and I barely made it to the corner of t

teps approaching, and the door creaked open. Two of th

nded. "You're seein

....

e other guard snarled. "The pa

and yanked me to my feet. Then they half-carried, half-dragged me down a long,

th sharp eyes, stood waiting. She motioned for the guards to leave us alone, and

d, pointing to an

ble. She asked a series of questions-how I felt, any pain, any unusual symp

n. "We'll need to run some tests," she said

ood, and uncomfortable examinations. Finally, sh

aid, leaving the r

Minutes stretched into what felt like hours. When

her voice softer now, "t

t retching pitifully again. "Have t

eyes like those of a h

physical blow, knocking

gna

comprehend. "How... how far

n mine. "Given your....condition, this pregnancy will

gnant. By the monster who had kept me in chains, who had beaten and humiliated me.

le. "I'll inform the Alpha," she said, and

m. My hands moved instinctively to my abdomen, where a n

my room, where I collapsed onto the bed, tears flowing freely. How cou

part of me, a tiny spark of life in my bleak existence. But it was a

cent life growing inside me. Despite the darkness, despite the

**

let my child be born into this life, only to be taken away by an Alpha who saw me as nothing more tha

to e

the far end of the hall. With my heart pounding in my chest, I quietly slipped out of bed and cr

and after what felt like an eternity, I managed to create a gap just wide enough to squeeze through. T

edge. I had to be careful. Moving stealthily, I made my way through the compound, avoiding the patrols and keeping t

stumbled into the woods, my mind focused on one thing: gett

from the darkness. My breath caught in my throa

en from Den

them soon saw me. Cries of "Stop there!" e

iron, and despite my struggles, t

My heart pounded in my chest as I was thrown to the ground at his feet, dirt

owering over me in

my first shift, I could sen

my mate

g I couldn't quite place as he looked at me. H

you?" he

e asked one of the men who caught me. "Hope she i

n seeing me only for pleasure, but somehow, I expected

ady. Who are yo

ce trembling. "I escaped from the Al

n of Dendrick, and he looked at

o one of the guest rooms. Clean her up and see that she is

ng me away from the hall. I followed the maid

d, a private bathroom, and a wardrobe full of clot

found a place where my chil