Elaine POV
“It was stupid of you to attack Avena,” my Dad shouted as soon as I opened my eyes.
He made the headache I had worse. He was the cause of it!
“She attacked me. I defended myself,” I groaned.
My bones cried out as I moved.
“Whether you like it or not Avena is the Lune Elect of this Pack. Our Mating Ceremony is tonight.”
“So this is how you will invite me to your wedding?”
He towered over me. Wait, I wasn’t in my bedroom. Where did he take me?
“There’s nothing you can do to stop my engagement, Elaine.”
Maybe not me but it was against our laws to mate creatures other than werewolves. Humans were the only exception but even that wasn’t done often.
“Do what you want. I don’t care! I just want to get out of here.”
He shook his head. “You owe me.”
“What do I owe you? You won’t even tell me,” I yelled.
He sighed as if bored of this interaction. “That’s not for you to know right now. The ceremony is tomorrow and you’re going to attend and be a good girl.”
I sat up slowly. I listened to my body’s protests and took it easy.
“Where am I?” I asked.
“The Pack house. You violated my trust by attacking my fiancee so I had to put you in a secure room.”
Where didn’t he understand that Avena attacked me?
I looked around for my phone but the room was totally bare aside from the bed. The windows were barred shut without curtains to cover the aged wood.
“You’re not allowed any visitors. So forget about seeing Opal,” he said.
“What did you do to her?” I cried.
“Nothing. I’ve left her in the hands of her parents.”
“Please don’t let them hurt her. She’s pregnant.”
“That’s none of my business. You better not be pregnant for that bastard. That’s a problem I don’t want on my hands.”
I wasn’t pregnant or I didn’t think I was.
“You can forget about your phone too because your Mother’s been filling your head with nonsense. I should never have told you about her,” he said remorsefully.
“You should never have taken me in the first place.”
“You’re my daughter. I make the rules in your life.”
I gasped. “No!”
“You’re just ungrateful, Elaine,” he lifted his nose and grimaced.
He was supposed to love and protect me but Laiken Ryker didn’t know anything about love. He was a cold and dead monster inside. He was a soulless beast who cared about nothing or than himself. He didn’t love Avena even though he was marrying her. There was something he needed from her. My relationship with my Father was officially dead. I would escape and break the blood promise. He didn’t deserve my help.
“I’ll leave you alone to think,” he said.
“Fine, I’ll get the door for you.”
I raised my hand and imagined the door would open and a vicious wind would scoot him out of my room, but nothing happened. I stared at my palm. Dad laughed.
“Did I forget to mention something about your magic?”
“What have you done?” I cried.
“I neutralized your magic. You got too strong for your good.”
“What? You can’t do that!”
“You won’t be able to use your powers for a while and with your weak wolf you won’t be much of a threat. Think about what you’ve done Elaine and maybe you’ll have a better mood at the wedding. The Alpha’s daughter must always be happy and cheerful.”
He marched out and the door slammed behind me. Ignoring my body aches I rushed to the door and pulled the knob but it was useless. The door was locked.
I ran to the window.
“Dove, I need help,” I called my wolf. “Dove, please.”
She was dormant. Gone like she never existed.
“Damn it. What am I going to do?” I whispered.
My powers were quiet and my wolf was dormant. I’m an idiot how could I allow myself to get into this mess? It was hopeless. I curled into a ball at the bottom of the large window. I stayed that way for hours hoping a plan would come to mind but it was filled with despair and blankness.
“Crying won’t solve your problems.”
I screamed.
“Quiet down are you trying to get us caught?” Lynn hissed.
“How did you get in here?” I rubbed my eyes.
“Magic, duh. The Coven knows about your battle with Avena.”
I picked myself up. “It wasn’t much of a battle. Dad cut in and knocked me out.”
“If he hadn’t you would have beat her! So awesome.”
“No, Lynn it’s not. I want this to be over. Avena and my Dad are getting married tonight.”
“Isn’t it against werewolf laws?” Lynn asked, folding her arms over her chest.
“It is. Just like having hybrid children and my Dad has two of them.”
Lynn tugged at her black hair. “Well, it’s not like anyone can kill you.”
“Why’s your coven watching me anyway?”
“They’re not watching you exactly they just know when things happen. You know they want you to join and have a powerful role. Think about the power Elaine.”
“No, I don’t want the power. My Dad’s done a lot of things all with the help of magic and who’s been supplying him with that power? The coven.”
“No! We are not associated with whatever Laiken does.”
“Avena’s lived here her whole life and during that time she’s tried to kill me, she’s been keeping my magic dead and harmed my wolf. Where was your coven?”
“We’re here now doesn’t that matter?”
“Of course not. I’m not interested find another witch. Magic only complicates my life.”
“You don’t mean that.”
“I mean it Lynn,” I marched to the bed and sat on the edge. “Look what it did for you it separated you from your sister.”
She clenched her jaw. “Joining the dark arts was the best thing that ever happened to me. It was better than being on the streets.”
“And abandoning your sister?”
“She had Adrian and his family she was going to be fine. I don’t know how that would have ended because of the werewolves’ dumb laws.”
The doorknob turned. Lynn and I froze.
“It’s locked genius,” someone hissed.
“I had to try smart ass,” someone retorted.
“Who is that?” Lynn whispered.
I raised my shoulders. We inched closer to the door and listened intently.
“Can’t you turn into a bat and fly into the window?” Blazer grumbled.
“That’s stereotypical. Where the hell would the rest of me go if I turned into a bat?”
“I don’t know man I didn’t make it up.”
“Blazer! Are you too idiots trying to get caught?” I said.
“Stand back,” Lawrence said.
Lynn and I took a few steps back. The door broke off the frame. Lawrence rammed it open with his shoulder. He didn’t make as much noise as I thought he would.
“How the hell did you get in?” Blazer asked Lynn.
Lynn shrugged. Lawrence closed the door as best as he could.
“I heard you got grounded. Why am I always saving your ass?”
I offered him a small smile.
“You missed out on over ten years of her life. You have a lot of catching up to do,” Blazer replied.
“Hey!”
“Are we busting her out or what?” Lawrence asked.
“Doubt you’ll get far. There’s heavy magic all over this place,” Lynn commented.
“Not to mention the guests are arriving for the mating ceremony,” Blazer added.
“I don’t know about you guys but I’m not keen on watching my Father get married.”
My brothers agreed.
“The best time to bust out is during the ceremony,” Lynn suggested.
“When security is at an all-time high?” Lawrence asked.
“You’re two hybrids and a werewolf you’ll figure it out. The best I can do for you guys is to get the wards down for a while so you can work your magic. Deal?”
I nodded. “Thanks…”
We locked eyes for a second. I didn’t know how much pain Lynn went through in her life but I had a feeling she still felt alone despite the presence of a coven in her life.
“Wait, you’re Rae’s sister aren’t you?” Lawrence asked.
Lynn frowned. “How do you know? I’m positive we don’t know you.”
“Uh… never mind. The party’s starting in a few hours. We need a plan,” Lawrence raked a hand through his hair. “We need to make sure Nik doesn’t catch us.”
If Dad’s lap dog caught us, then it was all over.
“Agreed. I’ll get started.” Lynn snapped her fingers.