Sold to the Alpha

by Cara Wylde

Avelyn froze with the straps of the backpack half down her arms. Sabine’s determined, firm answer had sent a chill down her spine. There was definitely something wrong. She had been too busy breathing in the fresh mountain air and massaging her sore shoulders to notice, but she could see it now. Something had changed. She hesitated a moment longer, then finally let the backpack fall to the ground. She’d put a warm sweater on Sabine’s frail body if she had to fight the girl into submission.

  Sabine lifted her head when she heard Avelyn rummage through her things. “What are you doing?”

  “I’m taking out that sweater.”

  “I told you I don’t need it.”

  “I don’t care. You’re going to wear it.”

  Sabine huffed, then released a chilling, high-pitched chuckle. Avelyn stopped what she was doing and straightened her back. She crossed her arms over her chest and looked wearily at Sabine. The girl was acting strangely, and she wasn’t sure how to react. She knew that her long years of confinement had surely messed with her sanity, but she had no idea how much. It was like she wasn’t the same person she had talked with through a closed door for a whole month. Sabine held her gaze. There was something in those eyes.

  “You’re naïve,” she said. “So naïve that you’ve made me have second thoughts.”

  Avelyn raised her eyebrows in confusion. She would have said something if Sabine’s words hadn’t shocked her into silence. It was probably better to wait and see what she had to say, just to make sure she didn’t react inappropriately. The girl had suffered so much. How did you deal with someone so broken?

  “Fortunately, the four-hour walk through those sickening dungeons helped clear my mind and remember…” She took her time to consider how to end that sentence.

  “Remember what?” Avelyn couldn’t take the mystery and weirdness anymore. This was bullshit. They had to keep going, not waste time in the woods. “What? What’s going on? I don’t get it.”

  “… remember why I’m about to do what I’m about to do.” Sabine stood up and took a step towards Avelyn. She didn’t look all that pale anymore.

  Avelyn sighed and rolled her eyes. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, but we should get going. I see that you’re feeling better.”

  “Oh, I am better. In fact, I haven’t felt so good in many, many years.” She looked up at the full sphere of the moon. “You’ve no idea how many.”

  Avelyn bit her lip, uncertain why she was suddenly feeling scared. She raised her eyes to the sky and saw the clear full moon between the tree branches, not a single cloud spoiling its perfect, white surface.

  “I haven’t seen the moon in so long,” continued Sabine, “that I almost forgot what it looked like… what it felt like.” She closed her eyes and let the moonlight shine on her olive skin and dark eyelashes.

  “Sabine…?” Avelyn had taken a step back, though she couldn’t have said when. It was like her body had reacted without her input. Sabine turned towards her, and Avelyn could swear she had changed. She couldn’t quite comprehend how, because she was still the same sickly skinny girl with wild hair and gaunt face, but her skin didn’t look as yellowish as before, and the muscles in her arms had somehow gained volume, as if to prove they had always been there, although invisible. Even though she was physically taller than her, Avelyn felt smaller and… vulnerable? There was one word that could encompass those two feelings. What was it? Avelyn’s arms came down to her sides. Prey. That was the word. She felt like she was the prey.

  Sabine saw, or rather felt, Avelyn’s change of posture and mood. A green sparkle flashed in her dark brown eyes, and she let out a short, sinister laugh. “How could you think that I would let a petty human female steal Max from me? You thought I hated him, didn’t you? You thought I was a poor, fragile human, just like you, who couldn’t defend herself from the big, bad beast.”

  “You’re not…” whispered Avelyn. It had taken her long enough to understand the change she had noticed on Sabine’s features. The moonlight that made her lips fuller and brought a faint shade of pink to her cheeks, the green tint that was now visible in her dark eyes… The girl wasn’t human, she was a werewolf. A human turned werewolf, to be more precise. That’s why her eyes weren’t naturally green. Finally, so many details made sense. How Sabine had heard her step away from the door when her shoes didn’t even make a sound, how she could see perfectly well in the dark… The pieces were falling into place, the puzzle was taking form. Except, it wasn’t taking the form Avelyn had initially had in mind.

  “No, I’m not.”

  The she-wolf looked threatening, but it wasn’t like Avelyn hadn’t dealt with a werewolf before. They could still sort things out, she just needed to be careful. Sabine was clearly unstable, but surely she could reason with her if she listened to her patiently and found out what she wanted.

  “Who… did this to you? Max?”

  “Oh, I’ve almost overlooked the fact that you’d have even more questions now. I guess I can indulge you for a couple of minutes… Yes, Max turned me.”

  “But that’s illegal. That goes against the peace treaty.”

  “He turned me before the end of the war, idiot. There was no peace treaty then. Not even the thought of it. If you knew him just a little, you’d know he’d never do something like that.”

  “It’s been… over 100 years since the war…” Avelyn’s head was spinning, and she fought to keep her mind clear and alert. She had to focus. “This means you’re much older than… This means… How long have you really been imprisoned?”

  “Sixty years.”

  “Shit!” Avelyn’s eyes went wide with disbelief. She couldn’t wrap her mind around Sabine’s answer. “Shit. Shit. Shit. That’s… I can’t even…”

  “You humans have a twisted perspective on time. To a werewolf, sixty years is nothing but a long summer vacation.”

  Avelyn tried to calm her breathing. “You lied to me.” How many other lies had she told her? “You lied to me so I wouldn’t figure out that you’re not human. But why? Why didn’t you break down that door and save yourself? You certainly have the strength.”

  A flash of sadness crossed Sabine’s eerie features. “They made sure I didn’t. The tea Christine made me drink every night? It wasn’t so I could sleep. It weakened my body and mind. It made it impossible for me to focus or coordinate my body properly. I could barely move from my bed to go to the bathroom. Breaking down a door was out of the question. And she always prepared it stronger on full moon nights, just to make sure the full moon didn’t give me a boost of energy even if I couldn’t see it.”

  Avelyn wasn’t sure what she could say. There were so many things she still didn’t understand, so many gaps. “I’m sorry…”

  Sabine furrowed her eyebrows. “Don’t. Don’t treat me like a victim. Even if I could run away, I wouldn’t have.”

  “Do you hear yourself? Do you have any idea how that sounds?”

  Sabine took a step towards Avelyn. “Yes, I do. It sounds like love. Pure, unconditional love. What would you know about it? You let yourself be influenced by what I told you and you betrayed him.”

  “I could never love someone who’s done this to you, or anyone else. Someone who locked you up just because you couldn’t give him children. It’s so selfish! So cruel! Sixty years without seeing the sun, the sky… without breathing fresh air, feeling the wind on your skin? Sixty years in a room, Sabine! It doesn’t matter how you perceive time because you’re a werewolf. He shouldn’t have kept you in there a single day.”

  The girl huffed. “You don’t understand.”

  “What is there to understand?”

  “He kept me close. When his wolves asked him to get rid of me, he chose to keep me close.”

  “I… I don’t… You don’t know what you’re saying…”

  Sabine took a few more steps towards her, and Avelyn pulled back. “Max saved me. I love him and I will always love him because he saved my life and took me in when I had no one left in
this world. When that asshole Karl and his Dark Wolves attacked my village and killed my family and my little brother, Max stopped them at the last moment. If it weren’t for him, I’d be dead. Karl had hurt me so bad and I had lost so much blood that I was sure I’d die there, on the floor, next to my mother’s body. Max was the one who chased his insane brother away and bit me. He turned me into a werewolf because it was the only way he could save me. The wolf venom was the only thing that could heal my broken body before I bled out.”

  Avelyn covered her mouth with both her hands. Hot tears ran down her cheeks.

  “Even more, he made me his bride although he knew that because I was a she-wolf I couldn’t have children. He didn’t need heirs. All he needed was to have me, to love me. It was enough for him, but it wasn’t enough for his wolves. Being the main Alpha of the clan, it was his duty and responsibility to secure the continuity of the Alpha line. He had no choice. I’m not mad at him, I never was. I understand his position. I admire his strength. Unlike you,” Sabine threw her a disgusted look, “I have always been by his side. Through good and bad. Like a real bride.”

  “No… This is insane.” Avelyn shook her head and took another step back. She didn’t like Sabine’s threatening pose, with her back straight, her hands squeezed into fists at her sides, and her curly hair dancing wildly around her face and shoulders in the rhythm of the howling wind.

  “Things were perfect before you came here. He visited me once a week, even had dinner with me from time to time. Then he stopped coming down to my room, and I had to endure Christine’s boring company and stupid stories. Max had always been honest to me before he bought you. I had no idea what was happening, what had changed, why he wasn’t visiting me anymore… I thought I had done something wrong, something that upset him. Then, you found me that night and I finally realized: he had gotten himself another bride. A human one. A big, soft, fertile body he could plant his seed in and give the clan the heir they had been asking for. Don’t look so confused. Yes, I could guess your weight and body-build from the way you moved, from how you shifted from one leg to another. That night, when you finally left, I kept repeating to myself that you were just a tool, that all he wanted from you were children. So, I waited. I waited for him to come down again so I could ask him, so he could assure me, tell me he was forced by the clan to get a human bride and that you didn’t matter. That he still loved me and only me. But he never came.”

  Avelyn felt her mouth and throat dry. Her heart was beating in her ears, a deafening sound that almost made her head spin. This was bad. This was incredibly bad. She looked around her quickly, her eyes scanning the trees that surrounded them. There was no way out of this. She could try to run, but she knew she’d never make it far. The full moon had clearly restored Sabine’s physical strength and sharpened her senses. If she started running, the only thing she’d manage would be to piss her off.

  “No explanation, no apology, not even a sign. That’s how I knew: you were the reason he had stopped seeing me. Maybe he felt guilty. Maybe he couldn’t look me in the eye and tell me he was cheating on me with a human female. Maybe… Or maybe, he had fallen for you. For pathetic little you who was looking for a chance to escape, to run away and leave him. You don’t deserve his love, Avelyn. You don’t deserve to bear his children.”

  “So,” whispered Avelyn. “This is what it’s all about: I can give him an heir and you can’t.” She gulped, afraid that she might have said the wrong words. She wanted to take them back the moment they had left her mouth.

  Sabine smiled. “You see, the beauty of me being the way I am is that I can fix you.”

  “What are you talking about?” Avelyn took two more steps back and hit a tree. Her hands reached behind her to grab the trunk, ready to dash if the need arose. She had zero chances of outrunning a werewolf, but that didn’t mean she wouldn’t try.

  “I…” Sabine touched her own chest, “can make you…” she pointed to Avelyn, “just like me. A she-wolf. One bite. My venom running through your veins, your body undergoing small changes for one month, you turning into a werewolf on the next full moon. A strong, incredibly fast body and perfect senses. A barren womb. The perfect plan, wouldn’t you say?” Sabine gave her another wicked smile.

  “No!” Avelyn screamed. “Don’t do this to me. Please don’t do this to me.”

  Snap.

  Sabine’s left leg broke. Adrenaline coursed through Avelyn’s veins.

  “No… Sabine, no…”

  Snap.

  The girl fell on her hands and knees, her crazy eyes fixed on her prey. Another snap. Her back arched at an unnatural angle.

  Avelyn realized it took Sabine longer to turn into her wolf form. Maybe she had time to reach Dunkelstadt and scream her lungs out in hopes that someone would hear her. She dashed through the trees, willing her tired legs to move as fast as possible. But having a head start did nothing when one was chased by a shape-shifter. First, she heard the sound of twigs snapping and bushes being stomped to the ground. The next thing she knew, she was lying on a bed of leaves and pine needles, her mouth full of slightly damp earth. She spit it out and tried to breathe. The heavy weight of the large, black she-wolf pinned her down. Avelyn screamed and kicked her legs. She tried to push herself up. She was determined to fight for her life, even though she knew she had already lost. She was at the mercy of the enraged werewolf.

  Finally, Avelyn managed to turn her body around. Her heart stopped when she saw the she-wolf’s sharp fangs so close to her face. “Please…” she whispered. The beast sneered and placed a huge, heavy paw on Avelyn’s chest. She threw her head back, closed her eyes, and howled at the moon. A long, bloodcurdling howl that pierced Avelyn’s ears. She pushed at the wolf’s chest with all her might, but the immense body didn’t even budge. It felt like a rock under her trembling fingers. She grabbed at the fur and pulled. She had no idea what she was doing and what consequences it might bring, but she had to do something. Anything. She wasn’t going to go down without a fight. She ended up with two handfuls of black fur and a very angry werewolf right in her face.

  “No, Sabine! Don’t! Please!” She was screaming, begging for her life. A paw pinned one of her flailing hands to the ground, and the werewolf’s fangs went for her neck.

  Unbearable pain. Blood gushing out of a deep wound. The sting of werewolf venom making its way through her body. Avelyn’s vision went black and she lost consciousness.

  ***

  She felt two strong arms lifting her off the ground. Her head fell back for a moment, her fiery hair hanging down, then the big arms readjusted her body effortlessly, and her cheek was pressed against a muscular chest. Feeling returned to her arms and hands, and she raised one shaky hand to hook around the neck of the person who was carrying her. She felt warm and safe in his arms. Her torn neck and collarbone didn’t hurt as badly.

  “Max?” Her voice was hoarse. She had forced the word out and it almost scratched at her dry throat.

  “Shh… I’m here. I’m here now.”

  It was Max. The gentle tone made heavy tears run down her cheeks, digging thin rivulets into the dried dirt covering them.

  “I’m sorry,” she croaked. “I didn’t know. I’m so sorry. I should have trusted you.”

  “Shh… It’s okay. It’s my fault. I should have told you. I should have never lied to you.”

  Avelyn sniffed her nose and cringed when a sharp pain ran from her left shoulder to her temple and exploded into an unbelievable migraine. She opened her eyes and stared up at Max’s neck and chin. He was looking straight ahead. She could only see his tightly clenched jaw and a shiny teardrop hanging off his chin. It fell on Avelyn’s neck.

  “Where is she?” she asked.

  “I don’t know. She ran away. Kevin and a couple of wolves are trying to track her down.”

  “I’m sorry… I thought… I thought I was helping her.”

  “She can’t be helped.”

  “Why? What have I ever done to her? I w
anted to be her friend.”

  “You can’t think like that. She almost killed you.”

  Avelyn furrowed her brows in concentration. “No, she never wanted to kill me.”

  Max hesitated for a second. “She left you to bleed to death.”

  “No. She only wanted to turn me. So I couldn’t have children.”

  Max stopped, eyes wide with shock and understanding. His grip on Avelyn’s body tightened.

  “She loves you, Max. She couldn’t stand the idea that you had taken another bride who could bear your children when that was the only thing she couldn’t offer you. This is my fault, not hers. You locked her up because she couldn’t give you heirs and then you bought yourself a human female. If only I had known… How else could she have reacted? She felt abandoned and betrayed.”

  “I didn’t lock her up because she couldn’t have children. Is that what she told you?” He looked down at Avelyn, his eyes taking in her dirty face, her heavy tears, the dried blood that covered her chest. “I locked her up because she had gone insane. She was a danger to herself and everyone around her. Avelyn, I locked her up because she had killed two maids and injured a Moon Child.”

  Bile rose in Avelyn’s throat, and her body started trembling uncontrollably. “No…”

  “Yes. The wolves wanted me to kill her or take her to court. If she’d been judged by the council, she would’ve been sentenced to death. I couldn’t do either of that. It was the only solution. We covered the murder as best as we could, and made sure she would not hurt anyone again.”

  “What have I done?”

  Max squeezed her to his chest and resumed walking. The first sun rays were peeking through the clouds and the Schloss came into view, its tall towers reigning over the mountain and the forest.

  “You’ve only done what you thought was the right thing, my love, and I respect you for that. I’ll protect you, I’ll keep you safe, I promise. I’ll spend my life trying to gain your forgiveness. I should have never lied to you.”

  Avelyn didn’t know what to say. Her thoughts were a complete jumble, her body was exhausted, and her eyes were so heavy that she could barely keep them open. She caressed Max’s neck with the tips of her fingers, hoping that would be enough of an answer for now.