MADELINE'S POV
PRESENT DAY.
"The shameless bitch of a servant lost my baby. I instructed her to be very careful. Yet, she disobeyed me and interfered with—”
I heard him hit something so loud that it shattered.
“She gobbled down poison, and she tells me it was out of carelessness? For disobeying me and killing my pup. For that, I will punish her dearly for it."
"Dan!" Alpha Konan’s voice bellowed, smitten with pure anger and fury. "Bring Madeline to the execution room."
And I heard his footsteps sauntering angrily out of the hallway.
My blood turned to ice.
From my room enclosed with brick walls, Alpha Konan’s voice kept resonating even after he had left. It made my heart sink further into despair.
Alpha Konan had never known sympathy. Fear followed him everywhere; compassion simply didn’t exist in his world. Even the crack of shattering glass seemed more tender than his heart.
I huddled myself together on the tiny bed in my room, my gaze fixed on the wall opposite me. Despite his uncompassionate nature, he was still the father of the unborn baby. At some point, I had dared to hope the child might change our fate, his disdain for me and my helplessness in this world.
Now, everything I had hoped for was going down the drain, scattering with the wind. I knew this was going to make me suffer more hardships, disrespect, and scorn from him and every trusted ally around him.
My room door opened ajar, and a warrior werewolf came in. His eyes held no pity as he forced me to stand. He kept jeering and jabbing me with the stick he held in his hands, and I stumbled on my feet, enduring the rough treatment silently till I got to the execution room. I was still in the dress, the dress I was wearing when I miscarried my baby.
The execution room was like a courtroom, but it was Oceanwolf’s Pack's most feared place. It was colder and darker than any prison cell would ever be. The air had a sour tang of fear and death. Even my dress carried the brand of my iniquity.
It was stained with blood—dry blood. I could still perceive the faint smell of blood that had travelled from my womanhood, trickled down my thighs, and formed a river of blood on the ground below me. I hoped I would be pinched by someone and be told it was all a dream.
Alpha Konan stood up from his seat, dragged me from where I was standing, and threw me to the ground mercilessly, making me wince in pain.
The execution room held Alpha Konan, and faces that mirrored his scorn. I have never loved to be pitied, but seeing no hint of pity on their faces, my knees became weaker.
With my vision becoming blurrier, I huddled myself together on the cold floor, gathering together my blood-stained clothes to cover the dried blood on my thighs and legs, waiting patiently for Alpha Konan's judgment. His rage–filled voice followed.
"For killing my pup, out of your undue carelessness, I sentence you to hard labor."
My once gloomy eyes widened more than normal. I hoped it wasn’t what I heard.
In Oceanwolf Pack, hard labor was for heavy criminals and traitors. It was brutal work designed to break your remaining will to live.
I jolted up instantly, supporting myself on all fours, pleading. “Alpha Konan. Temper justice with mercy. I didn’t kill the child. I would never commit murder,” I cried.
He walked up to me with full-length angry strides, crouched to my level, and squeezed my jaw, whispering venomously into my ear.
"Listen, Madeline. This is the start of the hell you are going to see. You will regret crossing paths with me in this life. For killing my child, I am going to kill you a thousand times. You will crave death, and you won't find it anywhere.”
He chuckled angrily and continued. “You are not even allowed to take your own life, because if you do, I will go to the ends of the earth to revive you. I only have the right to kill you in this life." Then he pushed me back harshly.
"Drag her out of here!" Alpha Konan commanded, and two warrior wolves came and dragged me out. I struggled under their grip, and kept pleading repeatedly.
Who was I playing with here?
This was the true nature of the iron-fisted Alpha Konan. Once he made up his mind, nothing could move him.
All my pleas fell on deaf ears. When I got to my room, a servant lady was already there waiting to escort me to my new hellhole.
There was no time to bid the room that had seen most of my tears' goodbye. With my blood-stained clothes, I trudged behind the servant lady to my new hellhole. As the chains dragging me forward clinked with every step, memories rushed in, each one a step, leading to this moment.
*******
FLASHBACK
My name is Madeline, born and raised in Oceanwolf Pack. My family was among the poorest living in the pack, and surviving every day was frustrating. We moved from house to house, begging to see if we could get something to eat and get by daily. Hunger was always with us, like a shadow we couldn't escape.
My life fell apart when I was twelve. My parents couldn't take it anymore, and out of desperation, they sold me to the Alpha family of the pack. I was forced to go work for them and serve them. I didn’t hate my parents—but I couldn’t forgive them either.
The Alpha household was no home, but I learned quickly: keep quiet, keep working, and never look anyone in the eye. Speaking up earned me a slap or worse. The other servants avoided me. They whispered "the girl was sold by her own family," as if that made me less than them.
Alpha Konan noticed me early. Not because he cared, but because he saw me as an easy target. Even as a teenager, he had this sharp, dangerous edge that made everyone fear him.
He started with little things: spilling water and blaming me, hiding things I needed to finish my chores. But one day, it got worse. He forced me to drink wolfsbane.
I will never forget the burning. It felt like fire crawling through my body, stealing my breath. I collapsed, gasping on the cold marble floor. He just stood there, watching, like he wanted to see what would happen. He didn’t call for help. Not until his father walked in and found me nearly clinging to life.
Alpha Konan was punished severely that day, and that was the last I saw of him for a while. In the years that followed, I worked until my hands bled and my body ached. I swallowed my pride and hoped that one day, I would escape. Little did I know that his absence was the calm before the storm started raging.
*******
SIX MONTHS AGO
Konan's installation as the new Alpha was approaching, and preparations were at their highest. Everyone and everywhere was in a hustle and bustle trying to make the ceremony grand and perfect, befitting the new upcoming Alpha.
Top leaders from other packs were all invited to grace the ceremony, and everyone was on their tippy-toes because it was also a time to drink and eat without constraints.
I prepared the best dress I had. It was a white flowing dress, closely and neatly knitted to cinch my upper body and accentuate the curves of my lower body.
As the ceremony began—the moment everyone was waiting for—Alpha Konan made his grand entrance. Draped in leather attire, complemented by a regal purple cape adorned with gleaming stones.
It was a custom-made dress well befitting for royalty. He walked with confidence and well-composed strides, the dim light in the great hall well addressing his manly features.
He had grown into his strength, and was now strikingly handsome. Well-leaned muscles and a face ready to cut through anything clean.
The dark tattoos on his body snaked over his arms and neck, feeding his every dark aura.
Looking at him up close, I could attest to it. The rumors were all true.
Everyone clapped in appreciation and approval. The grand ceremony to welcome the new Alpha ended, and it was time to make merry. Every servant and guard were all given the night off to join in the bliss of enjoyment. Everyone I saw around had a bottle of alcohol in hand. I wasn’t much of an alcoholic person, but I decided to follow the crowd and unwind a little.
One drink turned to two, then three, until a particular drink caught me off guard. Its effect was immediate. A wave of dizziness and heat consumed me, making it hard for me to think or move coherently.
Disoriented, I staggered myself into a semi–lit room.
"Who is there?!"
A thick, rich voice of a male, filled with threat thundered from somewhere within. I flinched. At that moment, a shadow which I could barely recognize came forth from the corners with hairs matted on his face.
In my intoxicated, curious state, I moved deeper into the room. But my steps were halted abruptly when I met with the most mesmerizing, icy blue stare that made me unflinch under his gaze. His scent was so musky with a mixture of cedar so alluring that it tingled my sense of smell.
Before I could even process everything, he wrapped his hands around my neck and pinned me to the wall behind me. His hot breath fanned my face, making the hairs on my neck stand. I could smell the alcohol from him too. I could see it in his wild, unrestrained gaze.
Whatever followed next blurred into something sensual, intoxicating, and dangerous.
That was the first taste of intimacy I ever had, and also one that sent my life rolling down into the great abyss.