Chapter 2 A Sacrifice For An Alliance

Living without parents had never been easy for me. The former Alpha, who was also Caleb's father, once told me they lost their lives during a battle between rival packs.

The man wasn't kind, but he still brought me into his home out of pity. He even let me study at the school meant for the lower-ranking members of the pack, and for a while, I believed I could live like everyone else.

That hope didn't last after his death.

The moment Caleb became the new leader, my life turned upside down. The first thing he did was force me to leave school.

After that, he gave me the role of a servant and pushed every filthy task onto my shoulders. His warning still echoed in my mind. If I wanted to keep living under this roof, then I had to prove I deserved it through work.

Most of the time, he looked at me like I disgusted him. There was always something cold in his stare that made my entire body tense. I tried my best to stay out of his way and avoid meeting his eyes, but nothing changed. No matter what I did, he still treated me like I was nothing more than dirt beneath his feet.

Ever since I was born, there had been a strange mark on my back. It wasn't large, only about the size of a small lemon, but it stood out against my skin.

A golden moon wrapped in black thorns rested there like chains locking it in place.

Years ago, the shaman warned me that the mark carried a curse. Because of that, I had to keep it hidden from everyone. If the wrong person saw it, they might decide I shouldn't stay alive.

A loud bang suddenly ripped through the room and cut my thoughts short.

I quickly wiped at my wet eyes, but I wasn't fast enough. Natalie had already stepped inside. Her arms folded across her chest while a pleased smile spread across her face. The look in her eyes made it obvious she enjoyed catching me like this.

"Seriously?" she said with a mocking laugh as she walked closer. "You're sitting here crying again? That's embarrassing."

Not a single word left my mouth. I kept my head lowered while fear shook my body. Inside me, Maryse growled with fury and pushed to break free. She wanted to tear Natalie apart, but terror had already rooted me to the spot.

Natalie moved closer until her face hovered inches from mine, and the heavy scent of her perfume nearly made it hard to breathe.

"So that's the reason you've been acting like this," she murmured, but every word cut deep. "You actually thought being Caleb's mate made you important? That's funny. Everyone already knows about it, Elena. The problem is that nobody cares. You're nothing to him. He doesn't even want you around. Sooner or later, he'll reject you in front of everyone, and when that happens, you'll wish you never came into this pack."

My mouth shook as I tried to stop myself from crying again.

She lowered her voice, and the threat in her eyes made my chest tighten. "Don't tell anyone what I said, or you'll regret it."

I couldn't force out a response. All I managed was a weak nod.

Looking satisfied, Natalie stepped back and brushed her skirt with disgust.

"That's better. Fix your face already. Watching you cry is irritating enough. And if people learn the reason behind those tears, trust me, things will get much worse for you."

Without waiting for another word, she walked out of the room. Her brown curls bounced behind her as the door slammed shut.

Even after she left, her words still crawled through my head like poison. What disturbed me most wasn't the threat. It was the fact that they already knew Caleb was my mate.

Mates were meant to stand beside each other. They were supposed to protect one another no matter what happened.

The moment I stepped out of the laundry room, hoping to escape the suffocating tension for a little while, Hannah blocked my path near the kitchen entrance. "You're on toilet duty starting today," she said sharply without giving me time to react. "And don't expect that assignment to change anytime soon."

Confusion hit me immediately. "What? That's the worst chore in the pack."

Her hand struck my face before I could say anything else.

The force sent me stumbling to the floor while pain burned across my cheek.

"I wasn't asking for your opinion! Get up and do your job!" A cruel laugh escaped her as she watched me struggle.

My whole body shook, but I still forced myself to obey. Deep down, I already knew this wasn't truly Hannah's decision. Natalie was behind it.

After that, my days became unbearable.

Anything that went wrong inside the house somehow became my fault. If a vase shattered, Natalie blamed me. If someone spilled a drink or ripped a cloth, she immediately pointed at me like she had been waiting for the chance. Nobody questioned her accusations. The others only laughed and whispered behind my back while looking at me with contempt.

Through all of it, Caleb stayed silent.

He saw everything, yet he never once stepped in to stop it.

Several days later, I rushed toward the kitchen early in the morning after hearing Hannah yelling at the servants. The second I entered the room, expensive cutlery crashed onto the floor right in front of me.

The sharp noise rang through the kitchen.

Not long after that, Natalie walked in with a dark expression on her face, though the look in her eyes made the entire scene feel rehearsed.

"Hannah, don't just stand there and let her off easily," she instructed coldly. "She's been nothing but a problem."

Hannah immediately agreed. Before I could move away, the two of them trapped me against the pantry wall. Unease twisted inside my chest as I realized something terrible was about to happen, but there was already nowhere left to run.

"Maybe this will finally teach you your place," Hannah spat before striking me.

I cried out and begged them to stop, but nobody came to help me.

A deep growl suddenly cut through the chaos. "What the hell is happening here?"

The second I heard Caleb's voice, hope rushed through me so fast it hurt. For one foolish moment, I thought he had finally come to protect me.

Natalie reacted before I could even move. With a shaky voice full of fake innocence, she hurried toward him and raised her injured hand.

"Alpha Caleb," she called out softly, "Elena attacked me with broken glass. Look at this. I'm bleeding because of her."

"That's a lie!" I cried out. "I didn't touch her!"

"Enough!" he shouted while glaring at me with fury burning in his eyes. "Throw her into the dark cellar!"

Everything inside me went still.

He was my mate, yet he didn't even glance at the bruises covering me. He didn't care enough to hear my side. Caleb was never going to save me.

This entire thing had been planned from the beginning, and Natalie's satisfied smile only confirmed it.

Hannah and Natalie grabbed me roughly before dragging me downstairs. The cellar waiting below looked more like a grave than a prison. Moisture covered the walls, and mold spread across the stone like rot. A dying torch flickered weakly in the corner while the foul smell in the air made my stomach twist.

"You'll stay here until we decide you've suffered enough," Natalie remarked coldly.

Before leaving, she looked back at me one last time with triumph written all over her face.

"Pathetic creature."

Then the door slammed shut.

The days inside that place blurred together.

Cold stone pressed against my back every night while hunger slowly drained the strength from my body. The darkness became unbearable, but Maryse stayed beside me through it all. Even while hurting herself, she still tried to comfort me whenever I felt like breaking apart.

By the seventh day, the cellar door finally opened again.

Hannah stood there waiting for me with an unreadable expression.

"Get up," she instructed flatly. "Alpha Caleb is asking for you."

A small spark of hope returned to me despite everything.

But Hannah destroyed that hope with her next words.

"You're being handed over to Alpha Davis," she said with a cruel smirk. "And you already know what happens to the women sent to him. None of his wives lasted longer than a year."

The air left my lungs.

"What? No... he wouldn't do that to me."

Hannah burst into laughter.

"You're still dreaming about Caleb choosing you? Lady Natalie got exactly what she wanted. She convinced him to throw you away. No woman wants Alpha Davis. Everyone knows he's cursed. But Caleb gains power from this arrangement, and you're the price he decided to pay. That's all you'll ever be. A sacrifice for an alliance."

The last thing I saw was Hannah's mocking smile before she seized my arm and dragged me out of the cellar.