“What difference does it make? I am a prisoner either way.”
“Aye.” He runs a hand over the back of his neck. “And I can’t promise you it won’t be dangerous up in the Northlands. My people don’t much care for humans. But I promise you that I’ll protect you.” He swallows. “And I’ll give you the choice. Run now, and I won’t follow. Come with me, and no one will touch you. I swear it on the Moon Goddess.”
He holds out his hand for me to take. I am trembling as the decision builds in my chest. My soul is rattling against its prison, wild and screaming.
The alpha’s gaze is unwavering. It’s as though there is no doubt in his mind what I will do.
“What do you want with me?” I ask.
He drags his teeth over his bottom lip, as if deciding whether to tell me. “Sebastian has something of ours. We want it back.”
I let out a bitter laugh. “You want to hold me ransom. You think he will make a trade.”
“Aye,” he says.
And there it is. My “choice”. The two paths that lie before me.
A choice between two men. Two killers. Two monsters.
Only it is not much of a choice at all, is it? Again, I am nothing more than a prize—an object—to be passed between men. A burst of hysteria builds up inside me and spills out of my mouth in a manic giggle.
“There it is,” I say. “That’s what this is all about! Well, you heard what the lord said. If I am defiled then I am of no value to anyone.”
“That’s not why I’ll keep you safe.”
I stare at his open palm, then I look down the corridor in the direction that Lord Sebastian went in.
“I heard what he said to you,” says the alpha, his voice quiet. “At the dog fight.” When I meet his eyes, there is a surprising amount of anger contained within them. “I will keep you safe. Then I will set you free. I swear it.”
I do not know if it is that word—free—that makes my heart beat faster, or whether it is the look on his face. Even though I am a statue, and statues don’t move, my fingers twitch at my sides.
“I swear it, Princess,” he says.
And somewhere beyond the adrenaline that’s pumping through me, a thought begins to form.
If I can gather intelligence on the Wolves, perhaps I can finally prove to my father that I am more than just a prize to be won.
And, if I help my father win his war, he will have no use for Sebastian.
Perhaps I can escape my fate on my own terms.
“What does Sebastian have that belongs to you?” I ask.
There’s a click behind me and the alpha looks over my shoulder.
“Step back, my lady.” A guard grabs my arm and pushes me behind him, his musket trained on the alpha. “They’re silver bullets, so don’t do anything stupid. Hands behind your head.”
Slowly, the alpha raises his hands and clasps them behind his neck.
“On your knees, dog.”
“Wait—” I start.
“It’s okay, my lady. He’ll be punished. I can take it from here—”
The decision, the choice, that has been rattling around in my chest since I laid eyes on the alpha, erupts out of me.
I grab a torch from the wall, and smack the guard in the head with it.