I try to think back to the last thing I can remember…
The sharp prick at my neck… the darkness clawing at me, pulling me under.
That’s it. Go to sleep, girl.
Wait… did my father do this?
But… he wouldn’t?—
I want to think he would never go that far, but the little kernel of doubt that blooms within my chest won’t even let me finish the thought.
My father has always been disappointed in me… in the daughter who killed his mate with her birth. If I’d been a son, he might have been able to forgive me.A son’s dominance wouldbring him rank; a son would have been useful. Hetold me this a thousand times.
All a daughter could do for him was clean his dishes and mop his floors.Useless human shit.
How many times had he told me I was lucky he hadn’t kicked me out? How his protection kept me from the dangerous people out there who would love to get their hands on a shifter wolf?
Each time, I had put my head down and had done the best that I could. Working my fingers to the bone to please him.
Why wasn’t it enough?
Fighting every moment of my life to make up for my failure of being born a useless girl… for the crime of killing my own mother. Trying to work hard enough to prove to him I am worthy. Maybe if I’d just pushed myself harder… if I’d left everything more perfect… I’ve always hoped that someday he’ll forgive me. Maybe he will even be proud of me.
But now…
I don’t even understand. Had I made one too many mistakes? Had my father given me to these humans? Had he… sold me? Did he know what they were doing to me here?
If I am really truly honest with myself… it’s not that my father couldn’t do this… I just thought that he wouldn’t.
Lying here with my arms bound and burning… I never thought that I would be so wrong.
Chapter 3
Willow
Gas hisses out of the vents above me. Even before the sting pierces my sensitive nose, I know it’s poison. Cloying and sickly sweet.
Panicking, I jerk my burning wrists, uselessly trying to get myself free, but my struggles are useless and the cuffs won’t budge.
I lie here, more powerless than I’ve ever been, and watch as the gas thickens into a toxic cloud. My lungs burn as I hold my breath… for as long as I can… until I gasp helplessly, breathing all that poison in… the holes in my vision grow wider and wider… until once again the darkness pulls me under.
My eyelids are so heavy, for a moment I worry they are glued shut. All I know is that my head is pounding and I feel as if I amemerging from a dense fog. The only thing I am sure of is the gut feeling nagging me that something is very wrong.
What had they done to me while I was unconscious?
Everything hurts. But now, alongside the burning pain of the silver at my wrists, is a searing hot flame across my lower belly. I arch my neck and peer down at myself, leaning as far as the handcuffs will allow. I wish I could just reach down and feel the area.
There is a long surgical cut across my lower belly. The skin is being held together with large surgical staples, and the surrounding skin looks raw and swollen—they must be coated in silver. The humans often make their medical supplies with silver to prevent infection.
Too bad the metal is toxic enough to my wolf that it prevents me from healing on my own.
It’s not as if I am a stranger to pain. I’ve endured a lot, and I know I will survive this as well… But ever since I’ve had my wolf, I have come to rely on her strength. Drawing on her accelerated healing and ferocity. Now, with the silver burning into me, I am left completely defenseless—so helpless and vulnerable, handcuffed here. I feel like I’m not even a shifter anymore.
The humans who are doing this to me are all gone. I can tell by their faint but lingering scents; they must have gone home for the night. I am under no illusions about who is doing all of this, despite their efforts to stay out of sight.
I don’t know why they seem to hate me so much. I still haven't seen any of their faces; they only seem to come in to poke and prod me when I’m in a chemical sleep.
I’d heard rumors that the humans were curious about our ability to change forms and to heal… but to the point where they feel that mylifeshould pay the price to satisfy their curiosity? They must have also learned about our extended lifespan and want to take it for themselves.