Chapter 7
When I get to the dining room, Thane is nowhere to be found.
After a few minutes, I start to feel hopeful that he’s been pulled away for Alpha business, and I’ll be able to enjoy my breakfast in peace.
Of course, that was just wishful thinking, because a minute later, Thane comes sauntering in with a superior attitude.
“Sleep well?” he taunts, pulling his chair out to take a seat.
I don’t respond. Instead, I sit back in my chair and fold my arms. The man in the tux breaks up the tension when he walks in holding two plates. The smell of maple syrup instantly hits my nose, and it makes my mouth water.
Why did it have to be French toast?
On my way down here, I decided to opt out of eating and talking. It’s probably a stupid idea that will get me absolutely nowhere, but after what he did last night, the silent treatment seems like the way to go. I push the plate away from me, hoping the smell will torture me a little less.
“Not hungry?” he asks, leaning back in his chair.
Again, I say nothing, and there’s a slight flutter of satisfaction in my chest when I see his jaw clench.
“I asked you a question,” he rumbles, standing up from his chair to lean on the table in a way that makes me wonder if he’s going to flip the whole thing over.
Silence grows between us while he waits for an answer that is never going to come. He’s used to having control, and it’s obvious he’s not often challenged by others. Certainly not by a little human girl.
In a breath, he has me out of my chair and pinned against the wall next to the fireplace.
The snarl he releases is so loud it feels like my bones are rattling as the two of us stare back at one another with equal loathing.
Two species that should’ve never existed at the same time, face-to-face, waiting to see who will break first.
“Last chance,” he threatens, grabbing a hold of my upper arm. I turn my head to the side defiantly, and he flings me onto the ground. “I guess we’re doing this the hard way.”
He drags me across the rug by my arm and forces it over the fire. I fight to pull away, but he’s got my body pinned with his knee, and his grip is too tight. Heat crawls along my forearm as the flames attempt to lick my skin with the promise of pain.
“Let me go!” I yank my arm, but it barely moves, and my resistance seems to only fuel Thane’s cruelty.
“You’re going to learn to obey your Alpha,” he purrs into my ear, forcing my arm closer to the fire.
“I don’t have an Alpha,” I seethe through clenched teeth.
Thane turns my face to his, and our lips almost touch. “You do now.”
Each second that passes, the burning intensifies, inching its way beneath my flesh. Eventually, the searing pain becomes too much, and I’m unable to stop the scream from escaping.
“Thane, the leaders are going at it in the meeting room again.”
I can’t see who is talking, but he seems to pull Thane’s attention long enough to allow me a chance to get my arm away from the flames for a couple of seconds.
“Can’t you handle it?”
“You know the werewolves won’t respond to me,” the man answers with a bit of a laugh.
Thane mutters something under his breath and pulls my arm away from the fire.
“Take her to Leo,” Thane orders before stalking out of the room without looking back.
The vampire speeds across the room, stopping in front of me with an outstretched hand.
He’s beautiful, as all vampires are, but there’s something different about him.
He’s one of those people you can’t seem to pull your eyes from no matter how badly you want to.
There even seems to be a warmth to him despite his pale skin.
Still, I know better than to fall for some pathetic attempt at a kind gesture. No one here sees me as anything other than Thane’s prisoner, and this guy is no exception. Not even those adorable, childlike dimples can fool me.
I stand up without the assistance of his hand and quickly assess my burn. My forearm is red and hot to the touch, with a few blisters starting to form. The pain continues to radiate as if my arm is still being held over the flames.
“Come on,” the vampire motions. “Leo will be able to help with that.”
“Leo?”
“He’s the in-house doctor.” He pauses and shrugs.
“Or vet, depending on the patient.” I resist the urge to laugh at that last part and follow him out into the hall.
He turns to me, running his hand through his curly white-blonde hair that now looks even lighter with the sun gleaming through the windows. “Grey, right?”
“Fallon, actually.” I turn to him. “And you must be another one of Thane’s lackeys?”
He tosses his head back, releasing a dark laugh.
“Worse,” he says, looking down at me. “I’m his brother.”
I immediately come to a halt, and he stops beside me, glancing over with a grin that is more cheeky than it is menacing.
“How is that possible?”
“Well, technically, I’m his half-brother. Same mom. Different dads.”
He starts walking again, and I follow along, hoping to learn more about the monster who holds me captive.
“How is it that he’s the only hybrid?”
I’m aware that most vampires and werewolves despise each other, but surely there have been other exceptions besides Thane’s parents.
“Only the same species can conceive,” he explains. “That’s why Thane is a miracle.”
“Not how I would describe him,” I mutter to myself.
“And how is it you would describe him?” the vampire asks with a raised brow.
Stupid vampire hearing.
“Vile, cruel, arrogant, evil. Should I keep going?”
He laughs as if he genuinely finds my assessment of his brother amusing. “No, I think you about nailed it.”
I turn to him, surprised by his response, and he tosses me a wink. Apparently, his pale skin, blonde hair, and white irises aren’t the only differences between him and his brother.
“Who’s older?”
“Thane is. But only by ten months, though he never lets me forget it.”
“Ten months?” I blurt out, unable to hide the shock. I suppose both species can just heal themselves after pregnancy, but still. “Scandalous.”
“You have no idea.” He pulls open a door, holding out his arm. “Ladies first.”
The room we walk into looks exactly like a hospital, minus the fluorescent lighting. Medical equipment lines the back wall while six unoccupied hospital beds take up the majority of the space.
“Kole, what can I do for you?” Between his darker complexion and normal colored eyes, I can tell the man walking over to greet us is a werewolf.
“Grey, here, needs some fixing up.” Kole nods to me, and I reach my arm out for the doctor to look at, making a point to glare at Kole for failing to call me by my first name.
“Ah, the human pet.” The doctor’s eyes light up when they land on the burn. “I was wondering when I was going to get a visit from you.”
The way he’s looking at me is unsettling to say the least. It’s like I’m some kind of science experiment he can’t wait to get his hands on. I pull away and head for the door. My arm still stings, but I’d rather suffer than get help from someone who gets off on seeing me in pain.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Kole asks, appearing in the doorway to cut me off.
“Thane did this to me. I’m sure he’ll be more than happy with my decision to refuse treatment.”
I try to move around him, but he blocks my path with his arm.
“Maybe so, but he’s not here, and I have orders.”
“He told you to bring me here, and you have. Mission accomplished.”
“Hmm, clever girl,” Kole purrs, lowering his arm. “But that’s not how this works.”
Before I can make another move, he’s got me handcuffed to one of the beds.
Fucking vampires.
“We’ve got a fighter.” The doctor smirks at Kole while I fail to yank my wrist from the cuffs.
“Just fix her up so we can be done with this,” Kole orders, seeming unamused by Leo’s remark.
I finally give up and stop fighting while the doctor continues without any further comments.
The ointment he covers the burn with immediately alleviates the pain, and part of me is thankful Kole kept me from leaving.
The doctor finishes up by wrapping a thick bandage around my forearm and tells me to come see him in two days for a checkup, but I have no intentions of coming back.
“Do you mind?” I ask Kole, motioning to my wrist that is still cuffed to the bed railing.
“That wasn’t so hard now, was it?” His condescending tone makes me think he might be more like Thane than I originally thought. As we walk back out into the hall, he doesn’t take his eyes off me, not even bothering to be subtle about it.
“Can I help you?”
“What’s the matter, Grey?” He whips around, cutting me off. “Do I make you uncomfortable?”
He takes a step closer, forcing me to retreat with one of my own.
“Uncomfortable? No. Annoyed? Yes.” I move to go around him, but he sidesteps, continuing to block my path.
“Thane said you had some fight in you. I can see now that he was right.”
“Well, he hasn’t seen anything yet.”
Kole shakes his head. “Your resistance is commendable, but this isn’t a game. The more you disobey him, the worse things are going to get for you.”
“Can’t wait,” I deadpan, leaning back on my hip.
A hint of a smile pulls at his lips, but before it fully forms, he turns away, continuing down the hall. The two of us walk the rest of the way in silence as he escorts me back to the pens.
He locks my cage, looking me over one last time like he’s trying to size me up.
“I’ll be seeing you.”
Once Kole is gone, Night says something to me, but I can’t hear him as the feelings I’ve been holding back come rushing to the surface. The pain on my arm may be muted now, but the anger burning inside of me is screaming out through the tears streaming down my face.
The doctor might’ve been an asshole, but he was right about one thing.
I am a fighter.
And I’m going to make sure Thane knows it.
“Let’s go, Grey.”
I wake up in the middle of the night to find Kieran unlocking my cage.
“Looks like you’re moving in,” Night mutters from his enclosure.
Kieran takes me by the arm, but his grip is less forceful this time. I expect him to take me to the dining room, but instead, he takes me back to the bedroom. For the first time since I met him, he doesn’t push me through the double doors.
“Clean clothes are in the drawers,” he says, motioning to the large white-and-gold dresser. “This will be your room. Doors will be locked at all times unless Thane decides otherwise. If you need something, Sienna will be around to assist you.”
He turns to walk out, but I stop him. “That’s it?”
“Don’t be fooled by the arrangements, sweetheart. You’re no more a guest in this house than I am.” With that, he closes the doors behind him, the sound reverberating off the walls.
This time, when I shower, I’m in no rush. I stand under the falling water, soaking in the warmth of it until my fingertips begin to shrivel up. The only pajamas left for me to sleep in are silk gowns, so I make a mental note to ask Sienna for something a bit more practical.
Even though I slept in this bed last night, I was already passed out, so I didn’t get the chance to really appreciate the quality of it.
The mattress molds to my body, and my head sinks into the feathered pillow as if it were quicksand.
It’s unbelievably perfect, and yet, for some reason, my body can’t seem to fully relax.
Maybe it’s because it’s been so long since I’ve slept in a bed.
Or maybe it’s because I’ve never had a room to myself.
Either way, the luxury of it all is uncomfortable.
Hours pass as I toss and turn, trying to adjust. Eventually, I give up and make a spot on the floor with the duvet and pillows.
From down here, I can see the moon bright in the sky.
Something about it reminds me that although the world around me continues to shift and change, I’m still me.
I’m still clever and headstrong. I’m a fighter through and through, and even an Alpha hybrid can’t stop my unrelenting will to survive all the horrors life continues to throw at me.
If he thinks I’m just going to roll over like a good little girl, he’s got another thing coming.