Page 10 of The Wolf King

The man grunts, thrusting harder, his face twisted and ugly. The woman’s hair swishes in front of her face as her whole body jerks. Her hands slide through the dirt and her knees scrape against the cold hard ground. She must be in pain. And the sounds she’s making...

Dots dance in front of my eyes.

Tomorrow night. Tomorrow night this will happen to me.

The shadows tighten around me, bind me. I can’t move. I can’t breathe. I am trapped. A prisoner. I’m always a prisoner. I cannot escape this.

Who knows, perhaps I will throw you into the kennels afterwards.

The woman’s moans become louder, high-pitched.

“That’s it,” snarls the wolf. “Take it, you dirty little bitch.”

“Yes,” she cries back. “Yes.”

Perhaps I will even let this alpha have a go with you, seeing as you have denied him his kill.

My throat tightens. I can’t swallow. I can’t breathe. I clutch my chest. The darkness swims around me. The air is liquid and I’m drowning in it.

“Princess,” the alpha barks. “Look at me.” His rough voice cuts through the swirling whirlpool that is sucking me under—strong and demanding obedience.

Slowly, I turn my head.

“That’s it. Keep your eyes on me.” He’s crouching down so he’s almost at my level, big hands curling around the bars between us. I don’t know when he moved. “Deep breaths.”

I do as he says, and some of the tightening of my chest loosens.

“That’s it. Breathe in. Breathe out.” The raging waters become lapping waves as his voice washes over me. “Breathe in. Breathe out.”

Everything feels far away. Horrible sounds echo around the cells, but I keep my gaze fixed on the face in front of mine. I keep breathing. His expression is unreadable.

“That’s it. Easy now.” His voice is surprisingly gentle. “Good lass.” I snap back into my body. “Are you okay?”

“Fine,” I say, my tone clipped, my voice hoarse. Because I’m not, and he knows it, and now I am weak. I avert my gaze, but something pulls it back again. “I’m fine.”

He studies my face, and I study his. He is younger than I first thought. Beyond the warrior physique, the layers of grime, and unkempt hair, there is brightness in his eyes and a youthful glow to his skin. I think he may be in his mid-twenties at most.

The noises behind him get louder and faster. “You’d best be taking your leave now, Princess. The lad’s okay. You did a brave thing coming here.”

I turn to Ryan, who is watching me with a strange expression.

The horrible wolf roars.

Ryan’s nose wrinkles. “I wish I’d never fucking come here,” he mutters again.

I take a deep breath, then stuff the spare bandages and the water flask back in my satchel. I throw on my cloak, pulling the hood over my head. It takes me two attempts to do up the fastening due to my trembling fingers.

I hurry out of the cell and lock it behind me.

The alpha stalks across his cell as I pass, his eyes dark. I’m only a few paces away when he says something.

I halt. “What?”

For a moment, all I can hear is the horrible panting sound from the next cell.

“He won’t touch you,” says the alpha—his voice barely audible.

“Who?”

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