The rusty chain cuffed to my ankle was the first thing I'd noticed when my eyes opened. The second thing I'd noticed was the other end of the chain, attached to a radiator bleeding heat into the large room.

"A-aaie," I winced.

The slightest movement sent jolts up my body. Not the good kind either. That's when I noticed the bandages overwhelming my left shoulder. Seven stitches ran from under the bandage, along the skin on the side of my shoulder in the form of a thick scar, as if I'd undergone surgery.

But I knew I hadn't. My guess was, it was just a nasty wound that needed stitches. I wasn't sure how many. But it must've been a lot because I was in immense pain. My brain felt like it was pulsing against the inside of my skull, and my shoulder was throbbing.

I cried, clenching my head, "Ugh, what the fuck is going on?"

The next several minutes was spent in agony; me gaping at the creamy white walls boxing me in. Their empty traces caused my toes to curl. There were unfallen tears flooding the brims of my eyes that made it hard to see. But I somehow managed. It took longer than I imagined for me to swallow the fear sinking into the pits of my stomach. And still, it hadn't settled.

What kind of room was this, a bedroom? Oh, maybe it was.

The queen-sized bed under me answered my question. Encased in the same shade of faint brown quilts as the curtains, the room was a beautiful painting of white and brown. Sheesh, this room was almost as big as my entire apartment. If I hadn't felt poor before, I definitely felt poor now. But that was the least of my worries.

I rattled the chain against the marble floor with my hands. My attempt to grab someone's attention was useless. I couldn't hear anyone or anything outside the door. Was I alone? What kind of person would kidnap me and throw me in a fancy room, chained? Unless I was a prize to them. Oh shit, no. I didn't want to be a prisoner to some psycho who saw me as their treasure.

My eyes flew wide and I yelled, "Let me out! Let me out!"

When I first woke up, my mouth was dry. I couldn't remember anything being in my stomach the night before. So, I'd thrown up acid in the corner of the room, twice. It was as far as the chains would allow me to go. I'd tried the door several times but something prevented it from opening on the outside. I'd tried the window but it wouldn't budge at all.

Whoever did this was smart.

They hadn't left any useful objects for me to try and escape with. Except for a chair. But the chair was next to the bookshelf. I'd have tipped over the bookshelf that was set towards the back of the room, and with due with that.

But I couldn't reach the bookshelf. I wasn't going to try anymore either. I'd have probably been too weak to push it forward anyways. Just rattling these chains was enough to have me hunched over, breathless, and panting for air.

Damn. That wolf should have just murdered me as soon as it spotted me. It'd have been better than waking up to whatever the fuck this was. As I thought of the wolf, my hand absentmindedly caressed the bandages. My neck.

"The wolf. . ." I whispered.

Oh gosh. I remembered. Sharp canine teeth. My screams. Pain. Voices. And most importantly, blood. My blood. I hadn't saw it, but I felt it dripping down the side of my arm after its teeth sunk into my flesh. The blood was fresh on my hands, acting as another layer of skin. Thin, and warm, until it'd been kissed by the cold.

"Ugh!" I fell back on the bed. My legs kicked into the air before bouncing onto the soft cushiony material again. At least, I hadn't been put on the floor. My capturer could have easily done so. Yet they chose not to. I guess that was better than the worst-case scenarios I'd been processing in my head.

Oh shit. My glasses were still here too. Surprisingly. I'd been so cooped up in trying to figure out what the hell was going on, I'd forgotten all about them. I hadn't even realized they'd been on my face all this time. Sheesh. A bit dirty too. 

Time ticked painfully slow. Seconds, minutes, hours—there was no clock on the wall to tell.

I curled myself into a ball, knees caressing my chest. I could feel my stomach caving into my spine. That was enough to force a groan out of me. Any further back and tears were going to blur my eyes again.

"Please don't throw up again," I begged myself.

The buildup was forming in my throat. I could feel my airways constricting as I fought to keep the bile down. Beads of sweat centered along the crease of my forehead. What I assumed was a fever, strung my body on as my skin boiled with heat.

"Do you think she'll survive?" My ears twitched.

"Don't know. She's lucky to be alive as we speak," a voice replied.

"Your father has no idea she's here, does he?" The voices were creeping under the cracks of the sealed gray metal door.

There were a number of two feet walking in total. One, I assumed were heels thumping along the hall, belonging to the voice I thought was a woman. The second weighed heavier than the heels, similar to the sound of thick boots. They synchronized in their steps until silence paraded around the other side of the door.

"I guess that's a no. So, how long has she been out?" the previous voice continued.

"About twelve hours now. Claudia last checked on her a few hours ago. She was still knocked out cold. The bite nearly severed her entire shoulder. As soon as she's undergone the full process, there's no telling what'll happen to her. It's rare for a human to survive the turn. I'm surprised she didn't die on the spot. She's not as weak as she looks, that's for sure."

I should have probably been offended by their statement. But it was true. They must've been talking about the wolf. It was an animal, after all. Did these people save me? I knew this wasn't a hospital. It couldn't have been. Strangers. That's what they were.

I hadn't realized there were strangers nearby when the wolf attacked. Well, now I was thankful. But still close to peeing myself. Surely, people who saved my life wouldn't have me chained to a radiator.

Suddenly, the lock clicked. I immediately scrambled off the bed, crouching in between the corner of the wall and the window. My back clashed against the flat surface shooting tingles up my spine. Damn, chain! I could barely move with this thing wrapped around my ankle. I was willing to bet my skin was bruised under there already.

Two pairs of eyes struck me down as soon as they entered the room. I spotted the amber hues first. An enticing, pit of fiery flames that could burn even a spitfire like me if I got close enough. He must've been who the heavier footsteps belonged to.

He was nothing as I'd been preparing myself for. I found myself gawking over his jet-black hair for several seconds. While he was fairly thin, his shoulders were broad and wide. But they sized up perfectly with his body that easily towered over me.

"Seriously, Vincent. What the hell are we going to do about this? Your father won't be happy if those people are given a reason to enter our territory again." The woman beside him sighed.

The slight rasp in her voice caught me off guard. It was nothing like the soft tones I'd heard in most women I'd met. She wasn't anything as I imagined either. She was tall. Especially for a woman.

Her height nearly reached his, standing at almost six-feet, and her brown skin glistened in the light. Her hair was nearly the same color, though the roots started in black until they faded into light brown, that cut off just past her shoulders. I studied her slim face, eyeing the nose ring attached to her nostril. A short golden necklace hooked around her neck.

"Don't worry about him. I'll tell him when he returns and handle it from there. Besides, we've got bigger issues to worry about. Just do what I brought you here for, Mariah. Please." If not for my predicament, I'd have probably gushed over his vibrato tone. But I forced myself to focus.

This wasn't a fairy tale. This was a dangerous situation. And my life was clearly at stake.

Mariah obeyed his orders. The moment her foot slipped forward; my eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. I cowered back further into the corner, stuttering, "D-don't take another step! Right there is fine." My voice hadn't done my demand any justice. All she'd done was cock an eyebrow at me.

Of course, I wasn't intimidating. I should've known I wouldn't have been able to intimidate either of these people. The moment they entered the room, they hadn't flinched at the sight of me. Her body hadn't even twitched at my outburst.

"Oh, I guess you don't want my help then. . . Are you sure? I'm the only one here right now who's capable of numbing some of your pain. I'm sure you must feel it by now. I can only imagine how much it's hurting," she said, flashing me a gentle smile.

I kept quiet. The guy hadn't intervened yet. He stood to the side, quietly watching over our interaction. I knew exactly what she was doing. She had something I wanted and she was going to tempt me with it. But I wouldn't fall for it.

"I'm fine," I stated.

"You're fine?" she questioned.

"Yes."

"We're not going to hurt you if that's what you're worried about," she said. I glanced down at the chains then back at her with an incredulous, are you serious right now, look.

She caught on immediately. "I know. I know. The situation is quite opposite from what I'm telling you. Trust me, I get it. If I were in your shoes, I'd be losing my mind too but there's an explanation—"

"Mariah, give us a minute please," the guy interrupted.

"What?" She gaped at him.

"It's okay. I just need a moment. This is my responsibility, not yours. I'll send you back in here later," he responded, brushing her off.

Mariah glanced between us for a few more seconds. The uncertainty was slapped across her face for him and myself to see. However, she obeyed again and shuffled past him without another word. I noticed his hand grip her arm before she was a foot out the door.

"Return to the pack hall to tell Bennett and Claudia we're moving forward with preparing things for the ceremony. The ceremony will be held exactly five days from now, per my father's wishes.

"This pack will not go on without an alpha. The burial will be held in two. Make sure they are aware they will be making rounds throughout town to inform everyone." He had leaned closer to her but I could still hear his whispers.

My hearing had always been up to par ever since I was a little girl. But this didn't feel the same. I didn't feel the same. It was as if my ears were opening for the first time within these last few hours. His calm breathing. Her rugged breath. It was all so clear in my head; I would have thought I'd been conjuring up those noises on my own.

Who was he? That question had been rolling around in my head since he walked in. Since we made eye contact. He spoke with terminology I'd only ever been familiar with in media, literature, and whatever else I could get my hands on.

Alpha's, packs, ceremonies—those were the kind of fantasies we fantasized about in my reality. If we couldn't live it, we pictured it. It was the next best thing to escaping. I'd always wanted to shed my reality and experience someone else's for a day. Though, this wasn't exactly what I had in mind.

"Understood," she said. The door clicking again snapped me out of my daze.

Shit, I was locked in here with him.

I couldn't help but shift under his gaze. It was the same glare that wolf shot me with—the one he used to venture into my soul—the night before. The way he spoke reminded me of a king. Was he royalty? The space I'd been confined to looked luxurious enough. He had similar vibes to someone in power too. He gave demands and people followed without question.

One look into those eyes again and something wrenched me with guilt. I turned around, emptying the contents of my stomach into the corner. I'd heard his footsteps heading towards the other side of the room at an even pace. Me hurling my guts out hadn't bothered him one bit.

"Your symptoms are getting worse. Do you remember anything? Your name?" His voice was like cold frosting over me. Cool and skin shriveling. When I turned back around, he was stood near the bookshelf. I watched him flip the brown chair around backwards, its wooden legs scraping against the floor. He eased himself down onto it, facing me.

The silence was too thick. Too strong. And his stare was heavy.

I knew when people had a bone to pick with me. Patricia Scott, 2nd grade, a jealous child angry that I'd become closer to her sister than she was. Something about an inseparable twin bond. Up until my mother had moved me out of that elementary school in third grade, Patricia lived to make my life a living hell.

There were no hard feelings over elementary drama though. But that didn't mean my childish brain, that had yet to fully develop, understood that. Rather, it was the first time I accepted people for what they could be—vile or good-intentioned. This guy hadn't shown me which path he would take yet.

When he realized he wasn't going to get a response, a low sigh slipped from his mouth. "I was hoping you wouldn't make this harder for the both of us. You need my help more than ever right now. And if you want to make it out of here alive, I'd suggest you work with me."

I gripped the chain with unease. "Take this chain off of me. Then, we'll see."

"So, you do speak," he said, arching one of his eyebrows, "I can't do that."

I let out a hard laugh and scoffed. "Oh, don't give me that bullshit. You can, but you won't."

He folded his hands over the chair, watching me with a blank expression. "Genesis, you're not in any predicament to be making any demands. And if you value your life, I'd recommend you stop making those demands." Again, with the all-too calm voice.

"Unbelievable. How can you claim none of you want to hurt me but then you treat me like a prisoner after saving my life!? You should've just let me die then! I'm not telling you anything until this chain is off," I spat; a certain venom building in my tone.

He pinched the bridge of his nose, his jaw muscles compressing in irritation. I couldn't help but flinch. I'd tried to ignore the growl that seeped along his breath but my mind was racing several miles per minute. Humans don't growl like that; it warned.

If I ignored the fact that he knew my name, maybe the horrible feeling of what was to come next, in my gut, would settle. Could he see me trembling? My shaky hands practically clenched onto the chain for dear life. His calm demeanor hadn't made me feel any better. I felt mocked. An absolute joke, being hand-fed my death.

A loud noise bounced off the walls of the room. I had then realized he kicked off the chair, sending it forward. It fell with a loud thud. I watched the clearly aggravated man stride towards me, hands balled into fists at his side, the veins nearly throbbing through his skin.

My breath hitched in my throat. A flicker of gold. I saw it. It passed through the hues of his eyes. I wasn't blind. Not after yesterday's incident. But it was already gone. Who were these people? No, what were these people?

My muscles tensed at the dark chuckle rumbling under his breath. Nothing humorous. Just dry and empty. I almost hadn't heard it.

"I'm trying to be patient with you. But you're starting to push it. Choose your battles wisely, Anderson. You're right. I should have let you die. But I have questions. And you have answers. This is me, trying to keep you alive, so I can get those answers. The faster you give them, the faster I can figure out a way to discard you.

"I want nothing more than to punish the person responsible for my brother's death, and you're not giving me much weight to decide that you're innocent. Do we understand? You do not want to test my patience again, Genesis. It's already thinning." He stopped in front of me, glaring down at me as if I were a peasant threatening his throne.

The chills running down my back was a reminder this was in fact real. That I was, in fact, not dreaming of the gold swarming in his eyes. Because it was there again. He resembled a vicious animal waiting for me to tempt its anger. A wolf. His eyes. His aura. All too similar to the wolf I'd been attacked by. Their power, and their approach was similar too.

"W-what? Innocent? I-I don't know what you're talking—" I slapped a hand over my mouth before chunks of puke flew out. A pain in the back of my jaw throbbed forcefully. Like my teeth were stretching the gums. I clenched my eyes shut, moaning in pain.

"Shit. It's already started," he sighed, muttering under his breath. "I must have miscalculated how much time we had. The wolf genes are running through you heavily. At this rate, you won't survive the interrogation either." My mind was too hazy to process his words correctly.

I frowned and shook my head. "I-interrogation? What does that even mean? W-what is happening to me?" I gasped for air.

"You're changing. The wolf that bit you last night"—he paused—"do you remember?"

"I-I . . . I do. . . What does that have anything to do with this though!?" I scowled.

He studied me for a moment. Suddenly, his tongue clicked against the root of his mouth.

"This won't work." He scoffed and clenched his fists tighter. I opened my mouth to retort but he beat me to it. "You're in denial, already. And I haven't even laid it all out for you."

"Hey!" I protested.

"How the hell did Amaury manage to get himself in this mess?" I figured he was talking to himself about someone he knew.

Then, his eyes were on me again. "Your human genes are combating the wolf genes. You feel it pulsing through you, don't you? How does it feel? Excruciating? Like your bones are aching inside out? I need you to understand something; once the change happens, you can't turn back time, and you can't get rid of your wolf.

"What you're feeling is your body trying to survive. Human bodies aren't compatible with shifters DNA. Are we on the same page, here? The pain will only get worse. It's only so often a human gets bitten by one of our kind. After that, there's nothing more we can do for you."

His words took a moment to register. I blinked. Once. Twice. Holy shit, it felt like he hadn't even given me a moment to prepare myself. Still, I did the only thing my brain could think of. I denied it.

"Shifters? As in werewolves? Or a sub-species of humans who turn into wolves? B-but no. I don't believe you. . ." I gritted my teeth, trembling. "Werewolves don't exist. Y-you . . . you guys must've done something to me while I was out!"

He growled again; this time less gentle then the first. My heart sped up at the noise. There were too many flashbacks clouding my mind. The whimpers, the growls, the blood. All from the one wolf who was the reason behind my pain.

"Listen, I don't care what you believe. Believe what you want, matter-of-fact. But if you continue to refuse our help, we'll just have to continue with a decision as you are."

"A decision? Wait, the interrogation. You said something about an interrogation. . . I-I don't understand. What am I being accused of?"

"Murder," was his simple reply.

"M-murder?" There was silence. I laughed. I laughed so hard I almost choked on my own saliva. "You can just kill me now. I've had enough. This is enough torture."

"I'm afraid I cannot do that either. It would be against our laws. At least, without a proper investigation. Then, I can kill you"—I sucked in a deep breath at the sight of his wicked smile—"that is, if you're not at all innocent. Until then, you are being held captive here under the suspicions of the murder of Alpha Amaury. And you will be tried as such."

"You're . . . serious? I'm being tried for murder? And wolf laws? Alpha Amaury? What the hell is this!? This is all ridiculous. Y-you can't do that! This is kidnapping! I'm human—!"

I wasn't changing. I was human. I knew I was. This was a lie. None of this was real.

"Not anymore," he said, flatly.

I clamped my mouth shut. His antagonizing words washed over me until I was drowning. I laid a hand on my chest, attempting to ease my breathing. Shit, was this a panic attack? I felt as though I couldn't breathe. My chest was doing funny things I hadn't felt in a while.

The sooner he stopped talking, the sooner I could comprehend what he was trying to say.

Shifters, murder, dead alpha's—it was all nonsense.

I didn't understand. If, for a second, what he was saying was true, I had nothing to do with that wolf's death anyways. It attacked me. Not the other way around. The evidence was on my shoulder. What more evidence had I needed to prove my innocence?

Fuck, there was no way they could keep me here. Someone would file a report. Police would come looking for me, surely. I didn't even belong here! Where was here anyways? I stumbled to my aching feet, stretching on my toes.

"No," I whispered.

It couldn't have been.

I wanted this to be a joke. Maybe a nightmare. I could only see a small fragment of the window from where I stood. But it was clear enough. Past the houses close by, down below the trees, I was looking down on my small town of Havford from the mountain tops.

I was . . . I wasn't even close to town. Shit, I was in Calamitous.