14

Katarina’s POV
Despite everything, I found unexpected solace in the soft, white bed with Snuggles by my side. For the first time in a long while, sleep came without the usual torment of nightmares. The absence of my nightly demons was confusing, but I was thankful for the reprieve. My waking life had already become a living nightmare; the last thing I needed was to be haunted in my sleep as well.
I spent the entire day confined to the comfort of my room, refusing to venture out even for food or water. The idea of encountering Alpha Dominic was unbearable. I couldn’t figure out if he suffered from some kind of mood disorder or if he had simply waited until I was trapped on his territory to reveal his true, cruel nature.
Rose whimpered at the thought of our mate causing us pain. She was already growing fond of his strong features and piercing charcoal eyes. But for me, the idea of having a mate only deepened my resolve to reject him. This was exactly the kind of nightmare I had feared.
As the day wore on, I could tell it was late afternoon. The sun began to dip below the horizon, casting a dim light through my window. A soft knock at the door interrupted my brooding thoughts. My stomach churned with anxiety at the prospect of facing an angry Alpha Dominic, but the faint floral scent wafting through the door told me it wasn’t him.
I hesitated before opening the door, finding a girl around my age on the other side. She was taller than me, but her expression was one of fear. It took me a moment to realize that her fear wasn’t directed at me, but at my mate.
“Alpha Dominic requests your presence for dinner,” she said quietly, taking a step back to allow me to follow her.
“Alpha Dominic can leave me the hell alone,” I snapped, instantly regretting my harsh words as the color drained from her face. Terror replaced the fear in her delicate features.
“Luna, he asked me to tell you that if you don’t come with me, he’ll come up here and drag you downstairs himself,” she said softly, her eyes filled with pity. Her words made my stomach clench with dread. Rose, however, urged me to stay put, eager for another chance to be alone with him. She wanted to see if we could soften his hostility. But I had no such desires.
“Fine, just let me get dressed,” I sighed, allowing the girl into my room. I grabbed the first v-neck shirt and pair of jeans I saw, hastily ran a brush through my hair, and changed clothes. With my fists clenched at my sides, I followed the girl downstairs.
She led me through several hallways and down a grand flight of stairs. The dining room we entered was massive, with a table that could easily seat thirty people. At the far end sat Alpha Dominic, a seat beside him clearly reserved for me. It was bad enough that I was being forced to have dinner with him, but now I had to sit next to him too.
His flawless features twisted into a cold smirk, clearly pleased that his threat had coerced me out of my room. Ignoring him, I took my seat, though my empty stomach rebelled against the idea of eating. I felt like I was in mourning, knowing that if his attitude didn’t change, I might not survive this place.
The young girl returned with plates of pot roast, potatoes, and carrots. The scent should have stirred my hunger, but I refused to eat. I wanted Alpha Dominic to understand that while he could force me to be here, he couldn’t make me enjoy it.
Silence reigned as he began eating, and after a few moments, he finally spoke, catching on to my defiance.
“Eat, Katarina,” he commanded, his deep voice laced with the power of an Alpha, trying to compel me to obey.
I gritted my teeth and remained silent, determined not to give him the satisfaction of bossing me around.
“Katarina, what did I say about defying me?” Alpha Dominic’s cold voice echoed through the quiet room. The power radiating from him was palpable, but I dug my nails into my palms to resist the urge to flinch.
My stubbornness won out, and before I could stop myself, I retorted, “I don’t remember, Alpha Dominic.” I locked eyes with him in an act of defiance, immediately regretting my words.
In a split second, his eyes turned pitch black as he rose from the table, towering over me. My face flushed with anger, not embarrassment, as my blood boiled.
“You will learn to show respect, little mate. I was lenient yesterday, but now you need to be taught a lesson,” Alpha Dominic said, his voice unnervingly calm. Before I could react, I found myself bolting from the chair, making a desperate dash for the door.
I didn’t get far before strong arms wrapped around me, lifting me off the ground. My stomach collided with his shoulder as he carried me toward a random door.
“Let me go!” I growled, thrashing in his grip, landing weak punches on his chest. I tried to reach for a more vulnerable spot, but my arms were too short. He probably felt like he was dealing with a tantrum-throwing child, but I didn’t care.
My fear and anger only grew as he carried me down to what looked like a basement. What was he planning to do-lock me up?
He adjusted his grip to keep me from slipping, his forearm too close to my mouth for comfort. In a burst of defiance, I bit down hard, tasting his blood. He looked down at me, stunned, as though he couldn’t believe someone would dare attack him. I wondered how many wolves had actually made him bleed. I liked to think I was the first.
In one swift motion, he ripped my teeth from his arm and threw me onto a stained mattress on the floor. Anger flared as I watched him lock a cage door around me, trapping me behind metal bars.
“You bit me, little mate,” Alpha Dominic said, giving me a strange look. I glared back, spitting his blood on the floor in defiance. What was he going to do, keep me here forever?
“If you were anyone else, you’d be dead by now,” he said calmly, still eyeing me with that odd expression. In that moment, two things became clear to me. One, Alpha Dominic definitely had some sort of mood disorder. And two, I was going to defy him at every turn until he either let me go or ended my life.
“You’re such a bastard,” I spat at him, my voice trembling with anger, even if it still sounded small.
“You will stay down here until you learn to respect your Alpha,” he declared, turning on his heel and slamming the door behind him.
Darkness swallowed the room, so complete that I couldn’t even see my own hand in front of my face. The bravado I’d mustered began to dissolve, replaced by a creeping sense of terror. My heart thudded loudly in the suffocating silence, the only sound accompanying the swirling thoughts of my cruel mate. He was really going to leave me here until I became the compliant little mate he wanted-ready to serve him in every way, including bearing his children.
Rose, my wolf, was of no help. She longed for the closeness of our mate, torn between the innate desire to be near him and the disgust at how he was treating us. The conflict left both of us trapped, faced with an impossible choice: remain defiant and endure this prison or surrender to him and risk losing ourselves entirely.
My stubbornness won out as I curled up on the filthy mattress, finally allowing the tears I’d held back to fall freely.
I had no idea how much time had passed; the basement was devoid of windows, leaving me in perpetual darkness. Occasionally, Alpha Dominic would descend the stairs to ask if I was ready to submit and show him the respect he demanded. Each time, I hurled a new insult at him-asshole, jerk, even trying to provoke him into a fight at one point.
Whenever I tried to sleep, I was jolted awake by nightmares far worse than my waking reality. I had hoped for a reprieve in my dreams, but they only served to remind me of my dire situation. If anyone could hear my desperate screams, they chose not to intervene.
Hunger gnawed at me, and I wondered how long it had been since I last ate. The sound of footsteps at the top of the stairs pulled me from my thoughts, and I prepared another insult for Alpha Dominic. But I hesitated as I heard a girl’s voice instead, shouting angrily.
Despite myself, a pang of jealousy surged through me. Was he with another woman? What were they doing? I pushed the thought aside and focused on listening to the muffled words.
“Insufferable… lock her up… your mate…” I caught fragments of the conversation, the thick wooden door at the top of the stairs obscuring much of it.
“How long… days… let her out… cruel.” The girl’s voice echoed in the dark, her anger palpable.
I pressed myself against the bars of the cage, straining to hear Alpha Dominic’s response. His voice remained quiet, but I heard heavy footsteps retreating from the door, leaving me to wonder where he was going.
The door at the top of the stairs creaked open, and I watched warily as a girl around my age descended the steps.
“Katarina, right?” she asked, stopping in front of the bars.
“That’s me,” I croaked, cringing at how hoarse my voice sounded from lack of water.
“If I open this, do you promise not to run?” she asked, raising an eyebrow as she eyed me warily.
“I wouldn’t get far anyway,” I sighed. “No, I won’t run.”
“Good. Sorry about all this,” she muttered, unlocking the cage.
I wobbled on my feet as I stood, but after a moment, I managed to steady myself. Together, we left the basement, the fresh air a welcome change from the dank, suffocating smell of wet earth and cement.
“I leave for a few weeks and come home to find my brother’s mate locked in a cell-by my brother, no less,” she grumbled, more to herself than to me. The jealousy that had been simmering in my gut dissipated.
I took a closer look at her. She was about my age, maybe seventeen or eighteen, and bore a strong resemblance to Alpha Dominic. Her long dark hair and striking gray eyes stood out against her pale skin. She was also taller and more curvaceous than me.
“He’s your brother?” I asked incredulously.
“Unfortunately. And yeah, he’s a total bastard, isn’t he?” she sighed, glancing at my dirty clothes with a frown.
“Yup,” I replied, popping the ‘p’ for emphasis.
“So, uh, how long was I down there?” I asked hesitantly.
“Three days. And I’m really sorry about that. If I’d gotten home sooner, you wouldn’t have been stuck there so long,” she said, her expression apologetic.
“Wow, it didn’t feel like three days,” I muttered, at a loss for words.
“So, he just let you release me?” I asked, wary of the possibility of being thrown back in the basement.
“Yeah, he did. Look, I know he’s a jerk, but he has a soft spot for me sometimes. And you’re his mate, so eventually, he’s going to have a soft spot for you too. The bond will get stronger, and he’ll start feeling your emotions,” she explained, tapping her foot as if deep in thought.
“Forgive me if I’m skeptical,” I replied dryly. “And what do you mean, he’ll start feeling my emotions?”
“As you spend more time together, the mate bond strengthens and pushes you to… you know, seal the deal,” she said awkwardly. “Oh, and by the way, I’m Seraphina.”
“Katarina, but I guess you already knew that,” I chuckled weakly.
After a brief silence, during which Seraphina seemed to assess me, she finally reached a decision.
“I’m going to dinner tonight with my mate, Lucian, and I’ve just decided that you’re coming with,” she announced cheerfully.
“Um, I don’t think Alpha Dominic is going to be okay with that,” I replied, trying to keep the scowl off my face.
“Leave that to me. Go upstairs and get dressed-it’s 6:00 now, so we’ll leave in thirty minutes. And wear something nice, like a cute dress. Show Dominic how you deserve to be treated,” Seraphina said confidently as she headed upstairs, likely to confront her brother.
I sighed. Seraphina made it sound so simple. But if Dominic barely had a soft spot for his sister, why would he have one for me? He had locked me in a cell for three days and threatened me. I didn’t want to show him anything. I never wanted to be his mate in the first place.