*Abi POV*
It’s Thursday morning when I wake up to find Omario smiling at me. That smile literally takes my breath away.
“Morning sleepy head.”
I look suspiciously at him. He is definitely up to something. but I can’t quite figure out what. With Terrence gone, I don’t have anyone to search what he is up to. I can’t even ask Teresa because he won’t let me return to the servants quarters. Apparently he does not trust any other servant around me besides Terrence. Since the dog incident, he has become very protective of me and I don’t know what to make of it.
“Stop overthinking things. I have something for you,” he says and pushes a bag towards me.
I sit up and open it and my heart sinks. I hate turning him down when he is just being kind.
“I really appreciate your help but I told you that I am not…”
“It’s the castle’s new servant’s uniform,”he interjects.
I shake my head and take out four cotton dresses, tekkies and tracksuits. They look simple and very comfortable. The Lilly town kingdom logo on each one of them support his point.
“You got this for everyone, didn’t you?”
I don’t think Brenda or Blake would care enough to get us new clothes.
“You bet.”
His breathtaking smile says it all.
“Is this you taming me?”
He grins and nods his head. “Am I winning?”
I am suddenly emotional. This is probably the first new pair of clothing most of my fellow servants have had since Alpha Theo killed our parents and took over the packs. He is definitely winning.
“Are you okay?”
“I…I…” I choke on my tears, his gentle voice is making this worse. I impatiently wipe the tears away but as soon as he pulls me to his arms, my tears start pouring out.
“Hey, it’s okay. You are welcomed.” Omario says and quietly pats my back until I recollect myself. He must think I am very lame but this is the best gift I have ever had.
“You did not have to do any of this. It’s not..”
“I wanted to. I am taming you, remember?” he teases and I smile through my tears. This man is quiet something.
A few minutes later, I am bathing when he walks in and sits next to the bath and plays with my water. I have gotten so used to this, I don’t even feel self conscious anymore nor do I have the urge to cover myself.
“You do know that this is weird, right?”
“Everything is weird about us, Abigail.”
I can’t argue with that. Even if it were to come out that we are not really sleeping together, I still would not know how to categorise our relationship.
“Do you trust me, Abigail?”
I wonder what’s up with him using my full name today. I look at him and nod. He has sacrificed and risked a lot for me. What’s there not to trust?
“I need to take your blood. A lot of it and I can’t tell you what its for.”
I nod again. Maybe he wants to analyse my blood and try figure out how to defeat my supposedly powerful wolf. I should be concerned about that but my wolf hurting him or worse, terrifies me more than anything. I am also terrified of needles but for him I will do it.
.
A day later, at half past six in the evening, I get myself prepared to be hunted. I am however more worried about the second phase when Prophet Rufus looks into my soul. What will he reveal this time? Will he expose the truth about Omario and I? Will I be handed over to the monstrous Blake?
At exactly seven o’clock, I pass the group that will be hunting me and run towards the woods. I’m a bit disappointed that I did not see Omario since morning. I have gotten used to seeing him every day and almost every hour. Teresa told me that she overheard the Alpha sending him to attend some royal business in Ruber city. I was hoping he would be back by now.
I take deep breaths and try to appreciate the nature around me. My pace increases when my eyes adjust to the dark forest.
Ten kilometres, eleven, twelve, I can’t believe that this is me! I can feel some strain on my legs but I’m still going. I can hear the hauling a distance from me. Come on Abi, eight more kilometres and you are on the human side. Maybe next week I will bid Omario farewell and try to escape this hell he has done his best to make bearable.
I am still counting my every step when I get rolled up and lifted above the trees in a net like a real prey. I am about to to scream when a hand comes around my face to shut my mouth. This is definitely not part of the Alpha’s stupid hunting game. Maybe I am some rogue’s real prey. It might be my way out of this place, but I heard horrific stories of what rogues can do to helpless girls.
“Shhhh! It’s me,” a familiar voice whispers, hushing my pounding heart and fears.
“Omario?”
“Hi, Abigail.”
I don’t even have to turn and look at him to know that he is grinning at me.
“You should be in Ruber city. What are you doing?”
His father will definitely take this as an offence. The evil idiot and his friends take this hunting thing very seriously.
“You ask too many questions for someone I am trying to help escape father and his skunks.”
I can’t help but laugh at his statement.
“Those are your uncles.”
“Still skunks,” he insists.
“You can’t save me, Omario. They will sniff me out eventually.”
Unfortunately, I am being hunted by skilled hunters, who happen to have very good sense of smell.
“No, they won’t,” he says and sprays some sort of odourless perfume on me.
“What’s that?”
“It’s a scent they can’t smell.”
“I have never heard of it. Does it really work?”
“We will find out soon enough. Here they come,”he says and place his hand over my mouth.
I hold my breath when a pack of twenty wolves approach and run past the tree.
“I guess it works, huh?”
I nod my head. “Thank you, but what’s the plan?”
“You will see. Come, let’s go.”
There’s that mysterious thing again. I climb down behind him.
“Where are we going?”
I am really curious and anxious.
“You are so inquisitive and predictable, Abigail.”
“So?”
“Away from here. When I shift into Titan, don’t play, get on him and hold on for your dear life.”
I nod and ask no more questions until he shifts. I have seen him do this so many times but it’s still so… enticing. I am tempted to hug and run my hands on Titan’s beautiful fur but Omario was clear on the urgency of the situation. Titan knows too because he does not try to lick my face as usual but lowers himself down for me to get on him. He sprints westwards at the fastest pace I have ever seen. I hold on around his neck and keep my eyes shut until he comes to a stop and shift back. That’s when I see Terrence sprinkling a lot of blood on the forest floor.
“That’s what you wanted my blood for?”
Everything is starting to come together now. This is what he has been planning all along.
“What else can I do with your blood, Abigail? Become a vampire perhaps?”
Terrence laughs while I roll my eyes at him. I leave Omario and walk towards Terrence, who is a meter away. It’s only been few days but I have really missed him. I stop halfway, repelled by an offensive smell and block my nostrils.
“What the hell is that smell?”
They both laugh at me.
“I’m the rogue that got you. Gotta go, so long Abi,” Terrence says and in a twinkling of an eye, he is gone.
Okay, so I have been attacked and taken by a rogue. It’s not unheard of in this forest. It’s a genius plan.
I turn back to face Omario and find him right behind me. “Now what?”
He lifts my jaw with his finger and my heart flutters right before our lips meet.
“Now you run straight to the human side. There is a man in a white van less than a kilometre away. He will take you away from here.”
“I…”
“Yes, we are weird. Go! Now!”
I turn around and run. There’s so much I want to say to him but I don’t know where to start. He has just committed treason for a mere slave. Will I ever be able to repay him?