45. Kaylee
45
Kaylee
The sound of the hidden door opening forces me to stop what I am doing, and I wait to see what Alpha Jordan wants. By my estimate, and with how much of the poison I have been able to burn with my power, an hour has passed since I woke up. To my surprise, a blonde she-wolf wearing a black collar walks in with a tray of food. By her small, shaking frame, I would put her as an omega, but it is not the fact she is in the room that surprises me, more the fact that she has bruises on her that indicate she has been used for sex.
“He did it to you, didn’t he?” I ask, watching her stiff form become even stiffer. I can tell she is terrified of saying anything to me, so I do not ask anything further, allowing the girl to do her job. She tidies the room in a robotic fashion as I look at the tray of food she left beside me—a bowl of soup and some bread. Lifting the bowl, I sniff the contents, trying to find any trace of wolfsbane, and let out a sigh of relief. It seems Alpha Jordan kept his word of not tampering with my food.
Skipping on the spoon set on the tray, I drink the soup straight from the bowl and feel some strength return to me, thanks to the food. The omega watches me curiously as I silently eat my meal. After the soup is done, I set the bowl down before taking the bread and sniffing it. Once I am sure it hasn’t been tampered with as well, I tear into it.
“Ask it,” I state, watching the hesitation and fear as she flinches from my small command.
“You…are you really going to mate with the alpha?” she asks, both hope and worry in her gaze and voice. I hesitate to answer, watching the girl for a moment before deciding I can be honest.
“I am not sure yet,” I shrug, taking a bite of the nearly finished bread.
“I asked for a week to get to know Jordan more and decide then. Can’t build a relationship on distrust and lies,” I continue, addressing Alpha Jordan informally to keep up my charade, before popping the last of the bread into my mouth.
“E-even if he has been with other she-wolves.” It’s a statement, not a question, and once again I take my time to answer. I know most wolves decide not to wait for their mate, and that is fine. Heck, even I knew Lucas had slept with others before me. But after we found out we were mates, I never felt the pain of him sleeping with another, which made me secretly happy. He respected the bond at least enough not to cause further pain until he was married to Marilyn—which I know now will never happen.
“Everyone has a past, even me. So, if he slept with others before, that’s fine,” I state, looking into the omega’s eyes, feeling like she is relaying this information to him.
“But if he is sleeping with someone else now that I asked for seven days to get to know him, then he isn’t worthy of being with me.” Seeing a look of relief and gratitude pass through this omega makes me believe she was kept around as a bed warmer for Alpha Jordan. If she is relaying information to her alpha, then hopefully this will help end the abuse she is going through.
With my piece said, the omega tells me I can shower, and helps me out of my room. As I suspected, the hidden entrance is in a closet, and judging by the scent, this closet belongs to Alpha Jordan. She leads me past the clothes to another door that leads to Alpha Jordan’s actual room, before nudging me to the only other open door. I spot the bathroom through it and thank the omega before I slowly waddle towards the door. She tells me there are clean clothes and towels, and that if I try to leave the room, the guards will stop me. I wave in acknowledgment before shutting the door, enjoying the small privacy the bathroom brings.
Feeling grimy from working on getting the wolfsbane from my system, I make my way to the shower and quickly undress. The warm water is welcome to my sore body, and I stand for a moment under the spray. After some time passes, I find a set of brand-new shampoo, conditioner, and body wash that I immediately sniff, searching for any other drugs. Thankfully the bottles aren’t tampered with, and I begin scrubbing myself clean. Once showered, I stay under the spray a little longer, using this privacy to burn more wolfsbane from my body and grit my teeth from the pain. I need to be able to contact Amelia and David by tomorrow if we are to form a plan and get me out.
“Are you in there, Miss Kaylee!?” A knock on the door followed by Alpha Jordan’s voice causes me to jump, and I stop what I am doing. Turning off the shower, I step into the now-humid bathroom and wrap a towel around myself.
“Just getting dressed,” I call out, glad I locked the door when I entered the room.
“You don’t have to,” Alpha Jordan replies, a flirtatious tone to his words. I roll my eyes and move fast, quickly dressing in a t-shirt, shorts, and a matching undergarment set. Deciding not to ponder how they got my size, I throw the wet towel into the hamper and, after pausing, throw my clothes in there as well. I have a feeling the omega I met earlier will make sure they are returned to me after the help I gave her earlier, and decide to focus on entertaining Alpha Jordan once again.
Taking a deep breath, I move towards the door and put on a pitiful act before opening the small barrier keeping the insane man away from me—can’t have my captor believing I can expel wolfsbane from my body. He is waiting patiently, his eyes taking in my body from head to toe, and I smile weakly at him. I can tell he is buying my act as he offers me his arm, and I take it, pretending to weakly cling to him.
“Sorry about the wolfsbane, Kaylee. I didn’t realize you would be so amicable,” he apologizes, with guilt in his eyes.
“I understand. It’s hard finding a loyal mate these days.” I shrug my shoulder, trying to play it off as no big deal.
“Do you have enough strength to play a few rounds of chess?” Alpha Jordan asks, changing the subject. I nod, allowing him to lead me to the other side of the room, where I spy a chess board waiting to be played. Two chairs sit on opposing sides, and I voluntarily take the black pieces as I sit on the chair, feigning that it’s not a problem while pretending to be out of breath. Before I went to the bathroom, I took a quick glance around the room to find anything useful, and this table was not there before. He must have set it up while I was showering.
I wait for him to play the first move, moving his pawn from in front of his queen. I place my move next, waiting to see what this man wants.
“I see you met Kacey,” he states nonchalantly. Taking a guess that Kacey is the blonde omega, I move my rook and watch as he takes one of my pawns. I smirk, taking the chance to capture his knight.
“I did. She seems like a lovely girl,” I say with a smile, eyes moving between the game and his face. I can tell his jaw is clenched and inwardly scoff.
“She tells me that you would not consider being with me if I am currently sleeping with another she-wolf.” I can see the questioning gaze he sends me as he forces out these words, and I nod, watching as he makes a mistake and I take his queen with my bishop.
“That’s true. If you truly want me, you will give up all others.” I make a move, watching the play come together before looking up and staring into Alpha Jordan’s eyes.
“I have already had a mate choose someone else over me once, I won’t allow it again.” I watch the surprise and slight anger radiate off of him from my challenging him. He pauses before he moves his next piece, clearly understanding he is losing the game.
“And if I don’t stop, will you refuse me?” A challenge for a challenge. Leaning back in my chair, I continue to stare into his eyes before I move my final piece.
“Yes. I would refuse you if you continue to sleep with others.” He bristles at my words, no longer focusing on the game, and I smile. I have him in the palm of my hand right now.
“Why be a Luna, when I get no respect from my so-called partner?” I ask, watching as he looks down at the game in surprise and comes to realize I have won both this match and our debate.
“Checkmate.” With that, I stand and slowly walk back through the closet and into the hidden room.