Chapter 9 Reconnection

I would have protested by not eating the meal, but I was hungry beyond the drama. No one would care, and they might probably pack it up. The Alpha is far away, so my protest might not even reach his ears. I decided it would be best to start the hunger strike when I get familiar with the environment.

Also, the journey was a long one. I had exhausted all my energy. The bath must have had a nice feel in my system because I snored away immediately after I finished eating. Strangely, I could sleep without a nightmare, the first time in several months.

I would always wake up with puffy eyes because of the nightmare, but this time around, I slept deeply. No one was in the room when I woke up; I looked around to see only me in the large room.

It was late in the night and the only sources of light were the ones coming from the hurricane lantern hung at several points in the room. It was bright enough to light up the room perfectly. My feet connected with the warm floor as I took a proper look around the room. The wooden chest at the far end held a few neatly folded garments at the top and bedding at the lower part.

Nothing much was placed in the room, making it echo at any slightest provocation. The silence was getting to me; I needed something to calm my mind with. My mind flashed back to the bookstore.

"Mrs. Porter must have been so worried by now. I didn't even get to say goodbye to her. She was the first person to accommodate me."

Regret washed over me. I didn't even have the time to prepare or tell her that I would not be coming back to the store. All my belongings were still in my room, which might worry her more. The fact that she might be trying her best to look for me made me feel worse.

"I should tell Alpha to get my letter across to her." A sigh left my throat before my forehead slowly folded in a frown

I realized that I was already getting comfortable in the pack that I didn't want to have anything to do with. I should be planning my escape, if anything, and not trying to send words to Mrs. Porter.

But something was missing. I haven't heard my wolf talk or move ever since she trembled at the sight of the Alpha as we were coming to the pack. She never spoke to me or moved; it was pure silence.

I had ignored her totally for the past four years. It was very difficult at first because we used to talk a lot. We'd yap about everything from morning till night, but I had to survive and protect both of us. If I kept interacting with her, it would be easy to spot my wolf side and catch my scent.

Firstly, it was a communication of the times we were alone, but gradually, I began to lose touch and wouldn't speak to her even when I was alone in my room. Since I was out of the human world, "I should speak to her now" was my goal, but she wouldn't even acknowledge my presence.

"Hey! Are you there?"

I was met with a dead silence. She neither moved nor responded; she was still. I should have expected that. The bond between us had thinned for a very long time. However, I needed her more than ever before, so I had to massage her ego. I wouldn't mind rolling on the floor just to get her talking. It would be very difficult to escape without her help.

Gaslighting should work, so I thought. "You know, I only did that for us. You are alive only because I went through the pain of not talking to you so it will be best for you to help me now. If we end up escaping, you will also be free from all the troubles. So, why don't you forgive me already, Lyra?"

Still the same silence. I couldn't help but sigh in defeat. What was I expecting? She wouldn't be easily bought over. Thankfully, the leader of the maid came to check up on me before the close of the day.

"Please, I need some books. "I am very bored here." I pleaded with her, and she assured me that they would be brought to me in no time

"You can always reach out to me if you want my presence," she said to me, raising the small bell on the table.

"You can use this."

I nodded slowly, watching her take her leave. She was almost at the door when I realized that I didn't know her name.

"Maren," she answered, bowed, and disappeared behind the doors.

**

Even with the books that were brought, I was restless throughout the night. There was nothing I didn't try to make Lyra talk, but she held her lips tight. I decided to let it be for the main time and focus on the situation at hand. When the time comes, she wouldn't be that brutal to not help with the escape since it involves her, I concluded.

Days flipped by, and I didn't hear from the Alpha. I was confined in the room without anywhere to go, and it was starting to get frustrating. The continuous routine of bathing, eating, reading, and sleeping made me feel useless.

I got so bored in the evening that I decided that day I would make Lyra talk no matter what. I moved from one furniture to the other, sniffing everything in the room. I made sure to inhale their smells deeply, but there was nothing with a very strong choking smell.

Just then, I remembered the tannery. It was the place with the most choking smell that an ordinary wolf like me wouldn't be able to withstand. I rushed to ring the bell and one of the maids ran in to attend to me.

"Can I visit the tannery? I wonder what it would be like over there," my mischievous eyes beamed in the glowing light.

She was confused by my request, but I assured her that I just wanted to take a look because of the book I was reading.

"I didn't have the time to visit one in my pack; I wanted to see one for myself now," I explained.

"I will tell Lady Maren and give you the feedback," she responded.

Of course, I knew it would be a solid no, so I decided to blackmail her with Alpha's authority.

"I wonder what you will tell the Alpha by the time I report to him that you didn't take care of me. Look at my nose; it's so itchy and red because of the dust reactions. The room is so full of dust that I couldn't help but be irritated. My nose keeps dripping, and I might soon sneeze my brain out."

Immediately, she fell on her face before me and apologized for my state. It made me feel bad for some seconds, but I pushed off the guilt and blackmailed her more when she proposed cleaning the room more to my taste.

"It's not about cleaning the room. I am just frustrated here. I need to get some fresh air, and we can just branch the tannery from there. You don't need to be dramatic," I assured her, glancing at her contemplating face.

After a little silence, she decided to take up my request and led me out of the room. It was late at night when we headed out of the residence. I didn't have the time to relish the beauty of the mansion; I needed to get to the tannery as soon as possible.

We got there after a ten-minute walk and found the men changing shifts. The door to the tannery was opened to see the men putting on long, sleeveless leather aprons over simple tunics made of coarse linen. Most of the aprons were cracked and supple from constant usage; they clinched their waists with the help of leather thongs. Their pants were tucked into knee-high leather boots that were worn and stained. A few of them had leather gloves on while others went about with their bare hands that were roughened due to years of handling chemicals and rough hides.

The stench of the place hit me in the entire face. I had commanded the maid to stay out so she wouldn't share in the torture. The air was filled with the thick, rotten smell of hides, sulfur, lime, and oak bark that made my stomach turn. The sound of scraping and pounding was at its highest through the thud of the mallets as they worked on the leather.

"Here we go!" I closed my eyes to concentrate and widened my nostrils to welcome the torturous smell coming from the noxious fumes.

Within seconds, I was sweating hard. The smell was crazy and terrible. I almost gave up but stood there, determined to choke Lyra till she reacted. For more than five minutes, nothing happened.

My face and eyes were reddened. The spit going down my throat signaled that something had gone wrong with my body, but I kept at it till I couldn't bear it anymore.

"I can see you are holding your ground well. "I promise to make you pay for this." I fumed and stomped out of the tannery angrily.

From there, I went straight to my bed. Every plea by the maid to take a bath, so I could get rid of the smell, fell on deaf ears. I was pissed beyond boundaries and I didn't want to pass the aggression on to her.

The thought of the Alpha not anywhere in sight added to the anger. I just closed my eyes and laid there till I was overcome by sleep.