Page 11 of Bonded Beyond Lies

Yet here we are.

Samuel looks up from whatever he’s working on and sneers at me. His voice drips with venom, “What are you doing here, mutt?”

“I’ve been tasked with cleaning today,” I keep my voice soft and gentle even though everything in me wants to scream at him.

It wouldn’t do me any good if I did. It would only enrage him, and I’m not going to risk it.

He scoffs but doesn’t say anything else. I’m frozen for what feels like forever but is only seconds before I start to clean on the other side of the room. I force myself to focus on my task. The sooner I get this over with the sooner I can leave and go onto the next office. Hopefully, if the Moon Goddess is on my side, the Luna won’t be in her office this morning.

I find myself zoning out, making quiet plans with my wolf about leaving and how to go about it when I’m pulled back to reality by my brother’s cold voice, “I heard Todd was saddled with you as a mate, but he did the smart thing and rejected you.”

I turn toward him slowly, keeping my face neutral instead of showing the deep hurt his words have caused. I never want to show weakness and especially not to him. He’ll exploit it, he’s done it before.

“Todd was my goddess-given mate, and he did reject me,” my voice sounds dull and bland, but Samuel’s eyes still light up like he won something.

I guess when you’re a bully every barb is a victory.

I study my brother and wonder where the sweet boy he used to be went. He was awful before and then when he mated with Kathy it got so much worse. An itchy feeling under my skin makes me want to run.

“You’d make a horrible Luna. We really dodged a bullet with Todd rejecting you,” he snarls, and my heart skips a beat.

“Is that really what you think of me? My own brother?” With every word, my voice gets louder, I can’t stop it as rage starts to fill every crack in my soul. “You were supposed to protect me,” I accuse, my words lashing against his skin if the way he flinches is any indication. “When I’ve needed you the most, where have you been? My own brother hates me and treats me like garbage, and I have no idea why.”

Hurt and shame flash across my brother’s face. It sends a feeling of relief through me. I doubt we’ll ever be close again, but it’s good to know he’s not without remorse.

“Because you are trash,” Kathy spits the words as she walks into the room. She scowls at me and my heart sinks because whatever progress I made at getting through to Samuel is gone now. It wouldn’t have changed anything anyway, I’m sure. “You’re lower than that, really.”

“Kathy,” my voice is tired. I’m tired. I’m just so done with everything.

“That’s Beta Female Kathy to you,” she shrieks before stepping closer to me.

Before I can stop it from happening, she slaps me so hard that my head whips around and I taste a little blood in my mouth. It’s not the first time she’s hit me, but surprise rushes through me all the same. I think it’s my wolf’s surprise.

We’ve been avoiding anything and everything that has brought physical pain to us for a week, and she hasn’t had the chance to witness, firsthand, how awful everyone can be. I take a deep breath, trying to hold my wolf back from shifting and tearing out Kathy’s throat. It takes a considerable amount of focus because my wolf is snarling and growling in my head while clawing at my insides, begging me to give control over to her.

“You’re nothing,” Kathy spits.

I haven’t calmed down and I’m not paying attention when the punches start. Kathy is the Alpha’s daughter and she’s been allowed to train when I haven’t. She was always strong. It was something I admired in my friend, but now I loathe it because it’s directed at me.

When she lands a punch to my gut, I double over and get a knee to my face which has me crashing to the floor. I gasp for air as I feel blood coating my face. I stare up at Kathy and the wicked smirk twisting her face. It’s hard to believe I ever found her beautiful.

“Give me control and I’ll rip her throat out,” my wolf growls.

“Not fucking helping,” I snarl back and try to push her a little farther back into my mind. “If we attack her, who knows what they’ll do to me then. I might be able to take Kathy down, but what about Samuel? He has a lot more training than I do and he’s going to be the Beta soon.”

My wolf calms a little, but it’s not by much. As Kathy continues to punch and kick me, I curl up into a ball and try to protect the weakest parts of myself. It’s a move I’ve had to do with her before and, just like every other time, it seems she’s not willing to stop beating me any time soon. Just as I take a breath, she kicks my ribs and I swear I hear something crack. My wolf growls in anger and the sound bubbles out of me as I try and keep her under control.

Kathy’s beating falters for a moment, but when I don’t shift or make any other sound, she kicks me again. I grunt out in pain and almost give up the fight with my wolf. Maybe the punishment would be worth it. It would make the pain stop and isn’t that exactly what I’ve wanted for years?

“What the hell is going on here?”

The Alpha’s voice fills the office, and everyone freezes. Well, except for me because I’m trembling with how much effort it’s taking to keep my wolf under control as I’m fighting to breathe. I swear I can hear my bones making a sound they should not be making as I uncurl my body. The ache which has been ever present in my life, the one I’ve been able to avoid for almost a week, is back.

It’s not just the pain of the beating Kathy just gave me, it’s so much deeper than that. It’s something close to heartbreak. I’m reminded, yet again, that this is not my pack. These wolves are not my family.

I need to get the fuck out of here as soon as possible.

“Kathy,” the Alpha’s voice is calm and level, but I can hear the threat underneath it, “what are you doing beating on Serenity?”

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