"What did he want her for?" Ethan firmly demands from the bastard that came to deliver the Beta's message, his voice, hard and threatening.
But instead of him answering, he raises an eyebrow and laughs.
"You've also gotten bitten by the Omega's poisonous bug, eh? If you want to know what he wants her for then I'll suggest you don't ask me, go to him. He's your father after all..."
He wink at me when he finish talking
"I'll see you around Omega!" He says before he leaves
I am angry and barely holding on to my wolf. I can literally feel her clawing at the door of my mind, begging to be let out and guts my abuser. Even though I want to give in to my wolf since I hate breathing the same air as this son of a bitch, I still hold on tightly so I don't lose control of her. At least not at the moment when I don't know if I'm in trouble or not.
I didn't realize I was just staring into space until Ethan's voice brought me back…
"C'mon let's go! I'll go with you."
"Who is that guy? For how long has he been a member of this pack?" I ask Ethan
"I don't know him. I've not been around in eight years so anything could have happened within that space"
"He was among those that tied me to a tree and tried to rape me three days ago."
"He was!?... Why didn't you say so before?" He ask, his annoyance directed at me this time as he quickly moved toward the door
"No Ethan, wait!" I stopped him. "You can't do anything to him right now. What if they saw when I shifted that day"
"No, I don't think they did," Martha says while coming toward where we're standing. "I think they ran when they saw you convulsing. If he had seen you, all pack members would have known the kind of wolf you have by now, don't you think?"
"Yes, Martha is right! If they saw you, I think you would have been arrested by now."
"I knew it!" I say when I hear the word arrest. "I knew they will do something to me because my wolf is different
"No, no! I'm sorry. I shouldn't have used the word arrest. They might invite you over to answer some questions, it doesn't necessarily mean they'll do something bad to you. Maybe to find out if you're a hybrid..."
"You think I'm a hybrid!?"
"No!.. I'm not thinking straight, honestly! Hell, I don't know anything. I'm just guessing, okay... Look, your Beta calls and you've already stayed behind too long. I wish I could go with you to see him but it doesn't seem right. I'd just follow behind."
I nod and turn to leave but he stops me...
"Ash, my guess is they're trying to find out about what happened to the Gamma chief. My advice is for you to tell the truth. If they call for you, that means they already know you're tied to this one way or the other. Remember your ripped shirt?...
My breath caught in my throat when he mentioned the shirt the Gamma chief tore off me. I've totally forgotten about that and never thought to go back for it.
"I'll back you up if need be okay? You don't have to look like it's the end of the world." Ethan says
"Of course, you know you can count on me too," Martha added
I nod and manage a weak smile toward them. To anyone, I might look as if I'm in control but I'm not. I leave the kitchen with my heart practically in my throat while Ethan follows behind. I walk towards the front of the building to the administrative place where the Alpha and Beta use as their office when they're in the pack house. I knock and hear the Beta's voice call for me to enter.
I've not been invited into the administrative room before. Not even to clean it and so didn't know what the inside looks like. When I enter, it isn't the Beta that is sitting on the executive chair. It is the Alpha himself. The Beta had the chair that's opposite the Alpha's table while the Luna sits on a couch, glancing through a magazine
"Alpha!... Luna!... Beta!" I respectfully bow deeply to each of them. I don't dare look them in the face. Well, I don't know about the Alpha and Luna since I've never stood before them for anything. I'm always before the Beta since he assigns me my duties and I was told to never look him in the eyes.
I stand before the Beta with my head bowed, waiting for his directive, questions, or whatever his reasons are for calling me to his presence
"Always be on your knees whenever you're before your Alpha, Omega!" The Beta barks out in command and I immediately go down on my knees as he had commanded.
'We bow before no wolf except our mate! You're supposed to know that by now!' I am startled when a voice which I guess belongs to my wolf rings clearly in my head.
'Well, I'm trying to not get us killed here! Can you maybe, be patient until when I'm eighteen and free to decide in front of whom to kneel and whom not to?' I communicate back to her before giving my entire attention to the Shifters with me in the room.
"I learned you were on cleaning duty yesterday morning?" The Beta says questioningly.
I literally fight my wolf to stop her from making me reply to the Beta with a wisecrack like 'Have you suddenly developed amnesia?' kind of reply. He knew I'm always on every duty around here since we're just two maids and Martha is old with a bad hip. He knew there's a limit to what she can do, so what's with the stupid question?
But of course, I can't be flippant with the Beta, not unless I have a death wish, so I answer simply...
"Yes, I was sir!"
"Was the Gamma chief's apartment among those that you cleaned yesterday?"
'So it was about the Gamma chief afterall.' I thought before answering...
"No, It wasn't sir!"
"How dare you lie to me!? And in the presence of your Alpha and Luna!" The Beta shouts as his fist connects with my face, knocking me to the floor.
"No, Hank! Don't do that! We don't know if she's guilty yet!" I hear the Luna say firmly from where I'm lying on the floor.
"But she's clearly lying!"
"Then let her lie! Let her bury herself deeper and deeper in mountains of lies that she cannot pull out from!" The Alpha says his quota
I know I should be grateful to the Luna for speaking up for me but I can't show gratitude because while they talk about me, I'm fighting my demon on the floor where the Beta kicked me to, trying to prevent myself from shifting.
My breathing is like angry, deep growls coming out fast and sharp. I curl my hands into fists as I forcefully hold her in with all my might. Her sharp claws painfully dig into my palms, drawing blood.
"Get up!" The Beta growls in command. Since I can't get up while trying to prevent myself from shifting, I stay down, ignoring his command
"Get the fuck up right now!" He shouts again. I blink several times and slowly get up when I'm sure my eyes would have returned to normal. Blood trickles from my nose into my mouth and I clean it with the sleeves of my shirt, looking down at my feet.
'The witch was right. You're clearly not ready to have me!' My wolf growls before retreating to the back of my mind. I ignore her for the moment
"I ask you once again, was the Gamma chief's apartment among the ones you cleaned yesterday!?" The Beta stiffly asks again
"No, it wasn't sir!... I never got the chance to clean his apartment because he pounced on me as soon as I entered and started hitting me everywhere. Then he tore my shirt and started pawing me. When I resisted he beat me more until I couldn't take anymore and fell unconscious.
"And what happened after you fell conscious?... You tried to kill him then because of what he did to you!?"
"No! I didn't wake up in his apartment because someone saved me!"
"And who might this someone be?"
"I woke up in your apartment. The man that saved me introduced himself as Ethan. When I asked him about the Gamma chief, he told me he didn't see anyone in the apartment when he came in. Said he met only me on the floor when he entered
The Beta stiffens and his eyes glare angrily into mine
"Are you sure about this? You better not be lying to me, otherwise!..." He growls and leaves the rest of his words unsaid
"I'm not lying to you…'' I say shaking my head
The Luna stands up then and removes some tissues from the box on the Alpha's desk before handing them to me
"Thank you," I say and press the tissues to my bleeding nose
"Has he assaulted you before?..." She asks as she returns to her seat
I nod slowly... "Yes, ma'am. This is his third attempt
"Then why haven't you reported him!?... The Alpha banged on his desk in annoyance making me jump. "Or is it that you just enjoyed being assaulted!?"
"Because he promised he would kill me if I did!..." I lie. The Gamma chief never threatened to kill me if I reported him. He was too confident in influence to make threats.
"And also because no one would believe me," I make my voice as meek as possible. I kinda know I'm in trouble right then