Abandoned Treasure

I’d bitten my mate, but I’d never talked to her. The mate link snapped in place, but her wolf was too weak to respond on the drive home. Once she woke, the Alpha had a slave collar with a silver core welded around her neck that prevented the mind link from happening. My wolf was despondent because he couldn’t reach her.

The Alpha wisely ordered his Betas to keep me away from the Pack House while they were breaking her will. Some Pack members gleefully shared stories of her resistance and the harsh punishments they earned.

It took everything I had to control my emotions until I was alone.

The worst moment was when the Alpha called me to his office after lunch, forty-three days after Carol Sampson’s capture. I knew her wounds had healed, and her initial training was complete. I was nervous because the rumors were flying that she’d be ‘introduced’ to the Pack tonight. That meant she’d be on the menu for ‘entertainment’ purposes along with the others.

My wolf started going nuts when he picked up her scent from the hallway.

I knocked on the door nervously, entering at the Alpha’s command. Alpha Todd stood in the center of the room. Carol knelt next to him, wrists cuffed behind her, and a thick leather-lined steel and silver collar on her neck. The Pack Betas stood to each side of their leader. “Warrior Storm, reporting as ordered, sir.”

I only had eyes for my mate. Her eyes widened as she caught my scent; they flashed for a second with hope as our wolves reached out for each other. The Alpha extinguished that with a hard yank on the chain. “We have a present for you, Nathan.”

It wasn’t my birthday, and this couldn’t be good. “Sir?”

“We’re having a private party with my senior wolves and our new fuck toy. Since you two are mates, I thought you should be here for it.” An evil grin spread on his face. “She should have died in the raid where you killed her parents and brother. Saving her life was a mistake; you traded her honorable death in battle for a lifetime of sexual servitude. And the best part? You made that choice for her.”

The hatred shining in her eyes bored into my very soul. “We had no hope for a future if I didn’t save her,” I answered.

“She killed your friend while you and your friends killed her family,” Alpha Todd replied. “Reject her now, and let Luna find you another. There’s no future here for you.”

I dropped to a knee, reaching out with my hand as she shook angrily. Her fear of her handlers kept her still with her head down. I lifted her chin with my index finger, tingles traveling up my hand and arm. My wolf surged forward at the contact, reaching for his fated pair.

Carol looked away from me, but not before I saw the spark of defiance deep in her soul. The slave handlers only thought her broken. She was biding time.

I dropped my hand to my side, then looked to my Alpha. “I cannot reject the wolf that Luna made for me.”

“She will never be yours,” he promised.

“I will not be the one to profane the sacred bond,” I said as I stood up. “I would rather spend my life mateless.”

The Betas looked at me like I was crazy. Mating was fundamental to wolves and not subject to Alpha command. It was sacrilege to interfere with those the Goddess Luna paired together. He couldn’t force me, and everyone knew it. That didn’t make my actions a good idea in their eyes. “I see,” Alpha Todd said. “Slave Carol, this male marked you without consent and participated in the death of your family. Now he refuses to release you. Do you have anything to say to Warrior Nathan Storm?” She nodded. “You may speak freely.”

She raised her head and stared into my eyes. “I can never forgive you,” she began. “I, Carol Ann Sampson, reject…”

“NO! I won’t accept it!”

“She doesn’t want you, boy. Accept it and move on.”

“I cannot.”

The Alpha stared at me, then looked down at my mate. “As you wish,” he told me. “Sit on the chair and do not move. You will see in person what life you’ve provided for your so-called MATE.”

My wolf howled in pain as the men, starting with the Alpha, used and abused her for the next two hours. The Alpha order kept me in place to witness it all.

When the last man spent his essence on her abused body, the Alpha leaned down and spoke something into her ear. “You are released, Nathan.” I stood to my feet, my knees and back protesting after the extended stillness. “Let’s give the lovebirds some time to figure things out,” he said. “Take her to be cleaned up when they finish.”

With that, the Alpha walked out, followed by his senior leadership. As soon as the door closed, I moved to her side. “Leave me alone to my shame,” she whispered.

“I can’t do that,” I whispered into her ear. The walls had ears, after all. “You are my mate. We can’t be together now. It may take years, but I will find a way for us to be free together.” I didn’t wait for an answer; instead, I went to the bathroom and wet a towel in the sink. Bringing it to where she lay on the floor, I offered it to her since she didn’t want me touching her. “Stay alive, and don’t lose hope,” I urged her as she cleaned the mess off her face and hair.

“You should have let me die,” she told me. “Whatever you plan to do, do it quickly. I don’t know how long until I’m too broken to continue.”

“Promise me you’ll wait.”

She didn't answer. She handed me the towel, our hands brushing in the process. I saw her smile at the tingles. “I have to go.”

I watched her open the door and follow the Beta to the servant’s stairway.

I didn’t know then that it would be years before I would be ready to make my move.