Mara

“Your father asked me to take you off his hands,” Johnathan says in a straightforward, almost bored voice. “Actually, he put you on the open market. There was a fierce bidding war for you.”

My eyes almost bulge out of my skull and fresh tears burn my throat. How could my father do that to me?

He did not put me on that market to sell me to an Alpha. It’s a slave market where wolves sell their used up wives or unwanted daughters. Most end up as breeders or prostitutes in the wolf pleasure houses.

“Everyone thought you came with an inheritance and that you were worth the investment,” Johnathan goes on.

I have no idea how much he paid for me, but my father would not have settled for anything less than the compensation Kysan and Lucas demanded. “My father disowned me,” I whisper. “You won’t get your money back.”

“I know. Preston told me.” His eyes slide over my ravaged face. “That is not why I bought you. You do not need to fear me,” he says and leans over to take one of the drinks. “I don’t believe in hitting women…well, unless I have to.”

My stomach turns cold. I’m suddenly and starkly reminded of my place in this world. I’m still just an Omega, sold like a lame horse on auction, only good to be dog food. “Forgive me, Alpha,” I say softly. “If you can tell me your rules so I don’t transgress…”

For a moment, Johnathan just stares at me. “Rules?”

I nod. “For me. I…I don’t want to cause any trouble.”

“You mean you don’t want to get beaten?”

“Yes.”

“That’s not what I meant,” he says, but doesn’t elaborate. “I will not beat you.”

“Okay,” I whisper and sip my drink.

He has a strange manner about him. He’s direct, almost detached, and doesn’t appear to be in the least bit interested in me.

“I have no rules for you specifically. All I ask is that you carry yourself with the dignity of a Luna. Your father told me that he sent you to finishing school for Luna training?”

“Yes, Alpha.”

It says a lot about my life that I now look back on my time at the finishing school as one of the best years of my life.

I was the only Omega there, but I held my head down and did my lessons. The other girls at the school were all Alphas’ daughters and loved to taunt me, but at least they were never violent.

Upon my return, and on my nineteenth birthday two days later, I married Lucas in a lavish ceremony. I can’t remember my life before him, and I can’t imagine this new life after him.

“You can come and go as you please. Haven’s Crest is safe. No one here will touch you.”

“Thank you, Alpha. What…my household duties? What are they?”

“Johnathan,” he says. “You are to be my mate, not my servant. I have a full staff.”

He makes me nervous. He has a dark, dangerous aura, yet there’s something about him that I find at once alluring and utterly terrifying.

“I bought you because my pack needs a Luna. Your only duty will be to the pack and to serve them faithfully as such.”

Rhoda said that this was not a pack. And if it’s not a pack, why would they need a Luna?

“The wolves living here are all rogues,” Johnathan says, and answers my unasked question. “Me included. My plan is to form an official pack. I already registered with the council, but they will not recognise us until I have a Luna.”

I don’t talk. I don’t know what to say. Years of silence and obedience have turned me into a mindless, barely functioning, she-wolf. I feel like a moron, but my tongue refuses to move, and my mouth won’t form words.

“I’m given to understand that you are unable to bear children?” Johnathan asks.

I quickly shake my head. “I- no, I might be…I used contraception. I did not want to have Lucas’s children.”

A lazy smile ripples across Johnathan’s mouth. “Clever.”

I don’t think so, but I’m not going to contradict him. Johnathan keeps up a good front, but he exudes danger. The kind that can consume a person if they’re not careful, and I haven’t forgotten Preston’s warning that the Alpha has a temper.

“It doesn’t matter to me. I already have a son,” he informs me.

“Oh. How old is he?” I ask.

“Five. His mother abandoned him right after he was born.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I’m not,” he says without elaborating, but his chest puffs up with pride when he talks about his child. “His name is Gregory. He is the reason I want to turn Haven’s Crest into a proper pack. I want to leave him a legacy.”

I smile. This is the first time Johnathan has shown any real emotion. He clearly loves his son.

“Do you have any questions?”

“No, Al- Johnathan.”

He opens his desk drawer and removes a thick envelope. “Your documentation is in here. Your father gave it to Preston. There’s also a bank card with a pin. You will need clothes and such.”

A bank card?

He takes another, bigger envelope out. “Your divorce papers. Lucas asked that you sign them within the week and courier it to him.”

I stare at the thick brown envelope in Johnathan’s hand. “Do you have a pen?”

He nods and reaches into his drawer to produce a pen. I pull the documents out of the envelope and start to sign them. “You should probably read those first,” he says, interrupting me.

I look up from the paperwork. “Why?”

“Your divorce is for the human authorities,” Johnathan says and without asking takes the stack of papers from me. “According to their laws, you’ll be entitled to some form of alimony.”

“I don’t want it,” I say. “I don’t want anything from them.”

The Alpha doesn’t answer me. His eyes are flying over the typed pages. When he reaches the third page, he stops “Yes, see…this is what I mean. If you sign these papers, even the house your father bought for you will be transferred into his name.”

“He can have it.”

Johnathan looks up from the paperwork. “Man, he really beat all the fight right out of you, didn’t he?”

Shame starts to eat away at my guts like a hungry caterpillar. That’s the worst of it, I think. The humiliation. The burning, unspeakable shame of it all.

And Haley. My confidant. My friend. I swallow past the tears. I will not cry for them. I won’t.

“Your house is on human territory,” Johnathan goes on. “It does not fall under pack law. He can’t legally take it. That’s why he wants you to transfer it into his name.”

“Why does it matter?” I ask in a husky voice. “I won’t be going back there.”

“You’re not signing this,” the Alpha says, his voice taking on a dark, dangerous edge that scares me half to death.

“I- I have to.”

“No. My attorneys will fight this for you. You deserve that house, Mara. You can sell it, but you are not giving it to that…arrogant asshole.”

My eyes widen a little at his anger. Why does he care? He doesn’t even know me. I’m part of a business transaction and a necessary evil to get his pack recognised by the wolf council.

“Leave it with me,” Johnathan says and presses a button on his desk.

Within seconds, Chad walks through the door. “Alpha?” he asks.

“Show Miss Smith to her room,” he says. “Then arrange for a driver to take her into town.”

“Yes, Alpha,” Chad says. His voice is filled with adoration.

When I don’t immediately get up, Johnathan gives me a disapproving look. “That’s your cue to leave, Mara.”

Johnathan

I take out my phone and pull up the listing for Mara. She has been removed from the site, but I screenshot it right before the auction came to an end.

I spent roughly half the money in my bank account on her. It’s way more than I can afford to waste on a she-wolf. I did not need someone like Mara. Technically, I can take any mate and declare her my Luna for my pack to be recognised by the council. But I wanted Mara.

Establishing a new pack takes a lot of money. Money I don’t have. The modern world destroyed a lot of packs. Humans are encroaching on our territories, and to keep the unknowns, as we call them, out, we have to buy the land that has been our homes for centuries.

The human authorities who are aware of our existence also keep increasing our taxes. They are convinced we’re rich even though most of us don’t even have a pot to piss in.

Douglas used the word heiress in Mara’s listing, knowing that a lot of Alphas are struggling to get by now and would jump at the chance to get their hands on a rich little she-wolf’s money. Insincere fuck.

It was a stupid move. I could have gotten a much better she-wolf for far cheaper. I shouldn’t have done it. I should have given up on her, but I couldn’t bring myself to stop. Douglas Smith is a multi-billionaire. Only a fool wouldn’t have taken that chance.

I’m getting by for now, but my money is running out. My pack is growing by the day and maintaining it is starting to cost more than I’m earning.

I own the entire town of Haven’s Crest. I bought it one dilapidated shack at a time, and turned this place into an irresistible tourist attraction. The humans spending their money here are barely keeping me afloat, and if I want to keep growing my pack, I need the land surrounding my town.

Unfortunately, the land belongs to the local government that purposefully inflated the price - they want us out of here. A town of vampires and werewolves on their doorstep makes doesn't sit too well with them.

I considered threatening or simply killing them, but there are always new, more corrupt humans to take the place of the ones I kill.

The fact that Douglas disowned Mara is a complication, but not an unexpected one. I already prepared for that contingency when I put in my first bid. I always have a Plan A, B, and C in place before I make any kind of move. I never make hasty decisions, and buying Mara was a calculated risk.

There are other ways to get my hands on BioGen and Douglas Smith’s fortunes.

Preston knocks on my door a minute or so after Mara leaves with Rhoda. I’m not happy that she’ll be seen with the whorehouse’s madam, but Preston thought that Rhoda was a good choice to make Mara feel more welcome here. Rhoda comes from a similar background as Mara, and my Beta figured they’d bond over their shared trauma.

My Beta sighs and slumps in the nearest chair. “So,” he says, getting right to the point. “What do you think of her?” Preston asks.

“Mara? She’s a little skittish. Quiet.”

“Can you blame her?”

“No,” I answer curtly. “But she-wolves like that…Lunas need to be authoritative.”

“She’ll find her way.” Preston replies with a sigh. “You are not going to…harm that poor girl are you?”

Like me, Preston is a rogue, but unlike other Alphas and Betas we did not grow up together, forming a familial trust bond. He has served me faithfully over the years, and I trust him, but I still keep my darkest secrets close to my chest.

He knows why I bought Mara. though He was the one who told me that Douglas listed her on the slave market.

“Johnathan?” Preston asks a little hesitantly. “The girl? You will be kind to her, right?”

“I won’t harm her. You should know better than to even ask me such questions.”

He’s asking because I started with pleasure houses and strip clubs. That’s how I make some of my money, but I have never hurt one of the girls who works for me, and all of my employees are there of their free will. I’ve never forced anyone to work in those places.

I hate it. I hate what I’ve had to do, but it was the easiest and fastest way to establish myself in Haven’s Crest, and now the income from my various establishments is just barely enought to keep my head above water. I want to stop doing it. Trading in flesh never sat well with me.

“She asked me about the bank card,” Preston says.

“Mara?”

“Yes. She wanted to know if it’s from you.”

“What did you say?”

“The truth. I know nothing about it.”

“It’s from her father. It’s not a lot. Enough to get her settled with the essentials. Less than I paid for her, actually.”

“How do you know that?”

I pull out a letter addressed to me and hand it to Preston. It doesn’t say much. In it, he simply asks that I’ll keep her safe and treat her better than her previous mate did.

That is where my Plan B comes in. Douglas cares about his daughter. Maybe not as much as he should, but enough to ask that I treat her well. That could be all I need to get my foot in the door.

“Hm,” Preston grunts when he’s done reading. “That’s interesting. The way he turned his back on her when he disowned her…I didn’t think he cared at all. Maybe Douglas Smith isn’t the cunt I thought he was.”

“Maybe not. Kyson’s a dickhead though. I’ve met him.”

“Yes, he’s not going to win any popularity contests,” Preston says with a chuckle. “Do you think Douglas really disowned Mara?”

“We have to assume that he did.”

“It’s a shame. We really could have used that money.”

I sigh and lean back, staring up at the roof. “What’s done is done, Preston. There’s no use crying over it now.”

“I know,” Preston says. “At least she’s pretty, right? I mean…she will be, once she heals.”

The photo Douglas used in his listing is of a younger Mara. I think she might have been seventeen, maybe eighteen, when it was taken. Clearly still more girl than woman. Her skin was perfect, unmarked by years of abuse, her green eyes sparkled with light, showing all the excitement her bright future held.

A future that was destroyed by her father and their asshole Alpha.

What I haven’t told anyone, what I’ll never tell anyone, is that her image alone called out to me in ways I couldn’t explain. Even if she didn’t come with the promise of a large inheritance, I would have kept bidding on her. There’s just something about her…

The call was even stronger when she sat in my office, rendered almost completely mute by years of abuse. I felt it. A connection that transcends words or understanding.

"Yes, well,” I say. “Pretty doesn't really pay the bills, now does it?”

"You can put her back on the market...see if you can recoup some of your money."

I glare at my Beta. "Have you lost your fucking mind? No!"

"I'm just saying-"

"And I'm saying no. What's wrong with you?"

Preston holds his hands up in a defensive motion. "It was just a suggestion, man. There are rich Alphas out there who will want her."

"I don't care! I will never sell her. Never. Bring it up again and I'll rip your head off your shoulders. Are we clear?"

"Yes, Alpha," Preston mutters under his breath.

"Good. You can go, and we won't talk about this again."

My Beta nods and wordlessly leaves the study.

I get up and pour myself a whiskey. This has been one hell of a long and disappointing day. I can't wait for it to end.

I stand in the window and watch the waterfall while I sip the whiskey. As the burning liquid slides down my throat, I try to convince myself that buying Mara was just a business decision and nothing more.

I almost believe it.

Almost.

Mara

I thought I’d enjoy my excursion into town with Rhoda, but I’ve been isolated for so long that all the people made me nervous.

Everyone seemed to know who I am. People stopped me to introduced themselves, welcomed me to the town, and asked me if I’m happy to be here, when the wedding would be, if I like the Alpha, and wanted to know who bruised me up. Who dared to touch a hair on our Luna’s pretty little head? Is your father happy with the new arrangement?

All questions I couldn’t answer, or didn’t want to answer

Rhoda was no help. She basked in the attention. Or perhaps people here are just like that and she’s so used to it that she didn't even notice. I couldn’t quite figure out which one of the two it was.

By the time we made it back to the mansion, I was exhausted and ready to crawl into a hole.

There was a time, not so long ago when I think about it, that I enjoyed going out. I was popular in school - no doubt because of my father's money - and I had no shortage of invitations to every party thrown by both humans and wolves. I loved being the centre of attention.

Today, it felt as if I tried to navigate a minefield. I wanted the earth to open up and swallow me whole.

In a weird way, I long to go back to my quiet, solitary house back at Red Ridge where my only company was the radio and vacuum cleaner.

Chad knocks and enters with my mountain of parcels. I haven’t shopped like that since I was eighteen and my father instructed me to get everything I needed for finishing school. He made sure that I bought the best of everything. It wasn’t for my sake. I realise that now. It was so he could show off his wealth to the Alphas.

The butler drops all my parcels on the floor, and says, “I’ll send an Omega up to-”

“It’s fine, Chad, thank you. I can put it away myself.”

My bedroom, which I figure won’t be my bedroom for long, is beautiful. I love the rustic interior. The bed frame and headboard are made from wood like everything else, and my window overlooks the town and the lake in the distance.

The antique wardrobe is in immaculate condition, as is the matching dresser and vanity. Even the bathroom is beautiful. The countertops are made from the most beautiful black granite which seems to sparkle in the light. The basin, made from some kind of stone, shower, and bath blends in beautifully with everything else.

It’s like living in nature without any of the inconvenience. The only thing that reminds me that I’m not inside a natural museum is the white toilet that stands out starkly against all the earthy colours.

“Supper is served strictly at seven,” Chad says and puts the last of my parcels on the floor. “Alpha Johnathan appreciates...punctuality,” the butler warns me.

It doesn’t happen a lot, but every so often, a glimmer of a warning shines through. Someone will mention something Johnathan doesn’t like, and everytime they do, I can see just the slightest hint of discomfort in their eyes, if not outright fear.

“D- does he dress for dinner?” I ask.

The butler’s entire face lights up as he smiles at me. “No. This is a home, not a palace. Alpha just keeps a strict schedule, that is all.”

I nod my understanding, and Chad quietly leaves my room.

My father always insisted that we dress up for dinner. I wore evening gowns from the age of thirteen, always dressing as if I was on my way to the prom. I never asked him why. I just assumed everyone did things that way.

When I moved into my own home, Lucas continued the tradition. I cooked every meal, but for dinner he expected at least a three course fare. There was never anyone to serve us, so not only did I have to dress up in slinky evening gowns every night, I had to serve my mate while wearing six inch heels and trying not to spill food on my expensive dresses.

Once, I accidentally upended an entire bowl of soup on a particularly expensive, red evening gown. Lucas grabbed me by the hair, and shoved my face into the tureen, almost submerging my head in the boiling hot soup.

He held me under until I blacked out. When I woke up, I lay on the floor, covered in soup, vomit, and blisters as big as my fist. The one on my forehead was so deep that I could see bits of my skull poking through the skin.

I shifted that night. Alone in my room. I was afraid I’d die if I didn’t.

Lucas came in to see my wolf, my beautiful Aria, and commanded me to shift back to human. I was healed, but it wasn’t worth the beating he gave me for shifting against his command.

I couldn’t walk for three days, and it took nearly two weeks for my broken wrist to heal - injuries that would have healed instantly if he’d let me shift.

And even then, he still wanted me to cook and clean for him. Broken hand and all.

Tears as hot as that soup burns the back of my throat, but I quickly swallow them away.

All of that is behind me now. Lucas is no longer my mate, he has no claim to me. He abjured me in front of witnesses, and even if he wants me back at some point in the future, he’ll need my permission this time because my father disowned me. Douglas Smith has no say over my life anymore.

I glance at my watch and realise, in horror, that dinner is only an hour away. I still have to shower, and I desperately need to change out of the wrinkly green dress. It’s starting to smell.

Alpha Johnathan may not have a dress code, but I’m fairly certain he’ll want me to look at least presentable when I join him for our evening meal.

Forty-five minutes later, I’m ready. I did my hair a little, curling it so it falls in golden red curls down my back, and dressed in a comfortable, but I hope suitable, dress that covers me from my neck to my toes.

I tried my best to hide my bruises with my limited supply of make-up, but I can still see the different shades of green, blue, and purple that colour my face.

I sigh loudly and decide to let it go. If I don’t leave now, I'll be late for dinner, and I do not want to upset my future mate before I know what kind of man he is. Many men make all sorts of promises until they trap you in a marriage, and then it’s game over.

It’s only when I leave my bedroom that I realise I’ve made a catastrophic mistake.

I have no idea where the dining room is. and time is ticking away.

With Aria being asleep, I have no way to track it down by smell. I’m practically human at this point.

There’s no one around to ask for directions either. When we came back up, the pack house was bustling with life, but now it’s as if the whole staff upped and disappeared into thin air.

Bile pushes up into my throat and my stomach cramps spasmodically. He said he doesn’t beat women….unless he has to. What if that ‘has to’ is to correct their behaviour?

“Mara,” Johnathan says from the bottom of the stairs.

I almost burst into tears when I see him.

“Why are you just standing there?” he asks.

He did dress for dinner to some degree. He changed out of his shorts into linen trousers, replaced his t-shirt with a button down shirt, and he's wearing shoes.

“I- I don’t know where the dining room is,” I answer

To my utter relief, Johnathan smiles. “It’s a big place. I know. I am just heading there myself. Come. I’ll show you.”

For a moment, I am frozen, unable to move. What if he’s only pretending to be nice? What if I join him and he sucker punches me for being too stupid to find the dining room by myself?

“Mara!” Johnathan snaps. “Right now. I don’t like being late.”

That gets me out of my frozen state. “Sorry,” I mutter.

Johnathan waits for me as I descend the stairs, his face pulled into a disapproving scowl. “I like things a certain way, Mara.”

Feeling bold I say, “I thought you said there are no rules. That I must merely conduct myself with the dignity of a Luna.”

“I told you that I don’t have specific rules for you. I never said that there are no rules. Imagine the chaos if I had no rules or laws.”

“Will you tell me the rules now?”

“No,” he says as we start to walk through the many hallways. “You’ve had a long day, so I decided that it can wait.”

“But what if I accidentally break one of your rules?” I ask, hating how timid and scared I sound, but simultaneously unable to stop it.

“Then I will inform you, and correct you.”

Correct me. Like Lucas did?

Johnathan's words leave me cold and terrified.

I escaped Lucas and his abuse, but now my future mate is threatening to 'correct' me. Lucas used to say that it was his duty to guide my behaviour. He said it whenever he beat me. "You disobeyed me, Mara. I have to guide you. How else will you learn?"

But Johnathan is twice Lucas's size, and probably twice as strong. He could kill me with a single blow.

I feel stuck. Trapped.

My life will never change. I will always be some Alpha's punching bag.

Maybe that's all I'm good for, anyway.