Samantha's POV

I sat bolt upright, ignoring the way it made my head spin.

"That can't be possible," I breathed, clutching my stomach. "You must be mistaken. I'm not pregnant."

Ava bristled indignantly. "You know I only ever tell you the truth, Samantha."

She was right, as much as I hated to admit it at the moment. My wolf was weak right now due to our five years of torment, but she was still incredibly wise—back when I first shifted, Ava told me that with the proper nourishment, she could be extremely powerful. A silver wolf.

Silver wolves were incredibly rare—not having been seen in our world for over a century. Not only that, but they possessed powerful regenerative abilities and the gift of healing, with a deep understanding of werewolf anatomy.

Which meant that they had the ability to see a body's ailments before anyone else could.

Which also meant… that my wolf was correct when she said I was pregnant, even if I hadn't begun to have symptoms yet.

I sighed and flopped back down onto the small cot, running my hand over my face.

"That's why you fainted," Ava went on. "You almost lost control and released your scent. Kade would have known about the mate bond. So I made you pass out."

Ah. So it was a failsafe to keep Kade from finding out that he was bound to me in ways that neither of us ever wanted. Ever since Kade took me as his slave, Ava hid her presence whenever he was around to keep the fact that he was my fated mate a secret.

And now that I was pregnant, the mate bond would be even harder to ignore. So my wolf had to take matters into her own hands.

I bit my lip, hand instinctively fluttering to my belly as if I could already feel the little life within. My stomach was still flat, and I felt the same; but I knew that Ava was telling me the truth.

A baby. I was going to have a baby.

Becoming pregnant with my mate's pup should have been a joyous occasion. But all it brought was sadness. Kade didn't love me—quite the opposite, in fact. He hated me.

"You are nothing," his words from last night echoed through my mind. "You'll never matter to anyone. You'll die alone and miserable, and only then, for the first time in years, will I smile."

How could I have a baby with him?

I shuddered at the thought. "Kade can't know," I whispered into the darkness.

"Of course," Ava replied. "We'll keep this secret, just as we've kept all the others."

My wolf's support was comforting. I wasn't sure if I wanted to keep this child born of hatred yet, but for now, I had to focus on keeping the pregnancy hidden until the end of my sentence. Then, and only then, could I worry about my next steps.

I just had to survive for another seven months.

Those months passed interminably slowly. With each passing day, I grew weaker and weaker, both due to the pregnancy and my torment. I managed to hide the pregnancy, but only because my belly was still relatively flat due to my lack of nutrition.

Finally, on the final day of the seventh month, my family arrived to pick me up as promised. I didn't even know they had arrived until I heard my mother's familiar voice in the foyer.

"Where is my daughter?"

My hands shook as I dropped the toilet scrubber and rushed out of the bathroom. I nearly collapsed when I saw my father and mother standing there. My father, of course, showed little emotion; hardly more than a cold flick of his gaze over my bedraggled form.

However, my mother's eyes went wide when she saw my stained dress, ragged hair, and pale skin—a far cry from the healthy young woman she had last seen nearly five years ago.

"Samantha," my mother breathed, rushing forward and throwing her arms around me. "Samantha, my baby girl…"

I didn't cry as my mother held me close. I had stopped knowing how to cry a very long time ago.

And then, over my mother's shoulder, I saw Serena step out from behind my father. She looked like me—or at least, she once did, before my sentence. Now, she was just a bitter reminder of what I'd once had.

Beautiful golden hair trailing down her spine. A slender, upright posture. Bright green eyes.

But there was one thing that Serena and I had never shared: our spirit. She was once the introverted and quiet twin. Now her face was just as cold and unfeeling as our father before she schooled it into a mask of horror.

"Oh, Samantha!" Serena cried, rushing forward and throwing her arms around both me and our mother. "My dear sister, what did he do to you?!"

You have no fucking idea, I wanted to say, but held my tongue. Instead, I simply replied, "Can we leave now?"

My mother and sister stepped back and blinked at me. My mother held me by both shoulders, looking me over for injury. Everything was hidden under my clothes, but she didn't know that the worst injuries of all were the ones on the inside. The emotional torment. The baby.

"Samantha, aren't you happy to see us?" my father snapped. "We came all this way to pick you up, and you can't even crack a smile."

I flicked my gaze over to him and felt my chest tighten. Of course he would make this about him. He always did.

As if they hadn't fucking left me in this hellhole for five years.

"Oh. She's still blaming us," Serena sighed, taking another step back. The horror on her face had slipped away, her expression returning to its usual coldness. "As if it's our fault that she wound up here."

But it is your fault, I thought, but didn't say out loud. What was the point? No one listened to me. No one ever did.

"We suffered too, you know," my father went on, rolling his eyes. "You look at us as if we wanted you to be locked up here as Alpha Kade's ward."

Ward. I almost laughed out loud at that.

Not prisoner. Not slave.

Fucking ward.

It wasn't sorrow or relief that I felt building up inside of me just then, but anger. But my wolf quickly calmed me, reminding me that it wasn't worth it to argue with them.

Once again, Ava was right. The shitty bond I shared with this even shittier family was nothing now compared to the pain I had spent the last five years enduring. I just needed to get out and figure out what to do with the baby.

I forced my face into neutrality again and turned to my mother. "I'm just tired," I said, which was partially true. "I've been working a lot."

My mother's expression crumpled. She took my hands in hers, and it was only then that I realized my fingertips were trembling. "Oh, dear… You're shaking," she whispered, tears misting her blue eyes—so much like my own.

Before I could stop her, my mother lifted my hand, causing my sleeve to rise to reveal my wrist. I gasped, trying to pull it back down, but it was too late. My mother had already seen the black mark beneath.

"What's… What's this?" My mother asked, pushing my sleeve up.

I tried to pull away. "Nothing. Just a—"

"Oh, Goddess!" My mother cried out when she saw the dark bruises and the network of scars marring my arm.

Samantha's POV

The scars and bruises on my arm were like a macabre map of abuse. Some were old scars, some were new bruises, but it didn't matter how long they had been there.

All that mattered was that I had endured five years of broken skin and physical torment, with only a weakened wolf to heal me, which also meant that those scars would remain until Ava returned to her old strength.

And that could never happen as long as I remained here in this hell.

My mother's cries were distant to my own ears, as if she were saying my name from underwater as she held my arm up to reveal my humiliation to all.

Meanwhile, across the room, my father's face remained cold. But he looked away and his voice was tight as he said, "We should speak to Kade so he can end your sentence."

I nodded, holding back a sigh of relief. At least my family and I were on the same page about one thing: I needed to get the hell out of here. And quickly.

The Beta, who had been standing nearby and watching the entire exchange with a look of complete disinterest on his face, led us to Kade's office. I had only set foot in this room before when summoned, and it was never for good reasons.

His office was exactly the same as always. Bookshelves lining every single wall, with an area cut out for the fireplace. A large desk that I had endured too many spankings bent over. A couple of plush armchairs that he only reserved for guests.

Kade was sitting behind the desk with a pair of glasses perching on the end of his nose as he studied a document in front of him when we entered. He barely looked up; he hated my family just as much as he hated me.

"Alpha Kade." My father spoke first, effectively stopping my mother from blurting anything out about the cuts and bruises. "We've come to collect Samantha."

For a long moment, Kade didn't answer—just kept reading his document. Finally, he set the paper aside in no rush at all, removed his glasses, and looked up at me.

I suppressed a shudder as his gray eyes swept over me.

"I'll end her sentence now," he said calmly.

My mother let out a sigh of relief beside me. I nearly crumpled right then and there from exhaustion and joy in equal measure. "Gather your things," she said, turning to me. "We're taking you home now—"

"Home?" Kade cut her off, standing. In the enclosed space, he looked positively mountainous, all broad shoulders and thick muscles straining against his shirt. "Who said she's going home?"

"But you said you'd end her sentence—" my father began, but Kade cut him off with a raised hand.

The room fell silent as Kade slowly turned his gaze on me again. There was something strange in his expression, something unlike the usual hatred he showed me. Was that a hint of… panic in his eyes that I saw? But it was gone before I had a chance to study it.

"Oh, Goddess… He knows about the mate bond and the child, doesn't he?" I desperately asked Ava. "He won't let me go now because of it."

"He shouldn't know," Ava assured me. "I haven't revealed myself. He would have no way of sensing the bond or the child."

I chose to believe her. I had to. Because the alternative… I didn't even want to consider what punishments Kade might have in store for me if he knew the truth about everything.

"She will no longer be a servant," Kade went on coolly, as if we were discussing no more than the weather, "but I won't allow the woman who caused my parents' deaths and my sister's madness to return to a life of luxury. No. She must remain here, in Crescent Hollow pack, and live out the rest of her days witnessing my sister's pain and grief."

My throat constricted painfully. I should have known that Kade wouldn't just let me walk away. He intended to destroy my life as punishment, whether I was his slave or not.

Panic took hold of me then, and I whirled to face my mother. "Mom, please take me away from here," I begged, grasping at her hands. "Please, I don't want to stay—"

"Crescent Hollow has provided your family's pack with protection for years now, Samantha," Kade growled. I hated when he said my name; he only said it when he was angry with me. The rest of the time, I had no name. "Do you really want to take that from them now?"

My family looked at one another in shock. It was true; Crescent Hollow had protected our pack, Stoneridge—of which my father was the Alpha—for many years now.

Kade's implication was clear: if I didn't remain in Crescent Hollow as his personal punching bag, he was going to revoke that protection. Rogues could overrun the small, rural pack of Stoneridge within a fortnight if it weren't for Crescent Hollow's strength.

"No," I whispered, even though I knew begging wouldn't help me now. My family had already made up their minds just like that. "Mom… Dad… Please…"

My mother was the only one who hesitated. Serena and my father were already at the door. Neither of them was looking at me. "Margaret," my father said warningly, hand lingering on the doorknob.

I felt sick. "Mom…"

My mother shivered, but murmured, "I'm sorry, Samantha. It's for the good of the pack. At least you won't be a servant anymore…"

With that, my mother wrenched her hands free from mine and quickly followed my sister and father out the door. The last look she gave me before they were gone was tearful, but resolute. I had no choice in the matter.

They were leaving me behind with this brute. Abandoning me. Again.

I fell to my knees, ignoring the sensation of pain shooting through my joints as I made impact with the hardwood floor. As the door fell shut behind my family, one tear fell. Then another. And another.

Soon, I was sobbing openly for the first time in… I couldn't even recall how long it had been since I cried like this.

"Please," I choked out through the sobs, clasping my hands together and looking imploringly up at Kade. All my remaining dignity slipped away in an instant, replaced with the overwhelming need to escape. "Please, let me go home—"

I didn't have a chance to finish before the back of Kade's hand met my cheek. Blinding pain shot through me, sending stars dancing across my vision. The force of the slap was enough to send me slamming against the floor, belly-side down.

"No!" Ava cried, and in a moment of panic, released what little strength she had to protect me and the child from permanent harm. Her aura radiated through the room, like a warm, silver light enveloping everything.

My eyes shot open when it was over. No. No, no, no…

I looked up to find Kade standing over me, nostrils flaring and gray eyes glowing.

"You're my fated mate?!" he breathed. "And… a pup? You're pregnant?

I swallowed hard, preparing for the worst. Ava's strength was short-lived, having only shown herself for a moment to protect me and the baby before she collapsed in exhaustion. But it was enough.

Kade knew. And all I could do now was lay there on the floor, clutching my stomach and wondering what to do next. Or if there was even anything to do now.

He stepped closer and towered over me, dark figure blotting out the light.

"You hid all this from me," he growled, "and you want to leave?"

Third Person POV

"You shouldn't have hurt our mate. What is wrong with you?"

Kade's wolf, Ghost, had just confirmed what Kade had been suspecting for five years: Samantha, the girl who had caused his parents to die and his sister to go mad from the brutal rape she'd endured, was his mate.

Of course, Kade had wondered on many occasions before if Samantha was his mate. He could never sense her wolf, but sometimes, during those nights when he brought her to his bedroom…

He couldn't help but feel a deep and profound connection to her despite his hatred.

On more than one occasion, he had even wondered if the reason why he kept calling her to his room—and why she always came, even if they loathed one another—was because she was his mate.

But he had never been absolutely certain. Not until now, at least.

Not until he scented her wolf for the briefest of moments, sensing both their mate bond and the pup she carried within her.

Samantha was Kade's mate. And she was pregnant.

It should have been a joyous occasion for any wolf, especially an Alpha that still had no Luna or heir, but all Kade felt was festering, bitter hatred for her. Samantha had ruined his life. Now his parents dead and his beloved sister broken.

The once intelligent, beautiful girl he'd called his sister was now a shell of her former self who could barely string two coherent sentences together without having a meltdown. Her episodes sometimes lasted for days—thrashing and screaming and hallucinating about the men who had broken her.

And it was all Samantha's fault.

Kade despised his mate with a burning passion. And yet, seeing the look of despair in her eyes as she stared up at him was unbearable. Kade didn't want to protect her, but he also couldn't help but notice the sudden urge not to hurt her.

"You must protect the child, if not her," Ghost insisted. "Put aside your hatred for one moment, Kade, and do what's right."

What's right.

What was "right" felt like throwing her into the cells right now and letting her rot down there for hiding so much from him. She really thought she could slip away without him ever knowing that she'd kept their bond and their child secret? What else did she have planned?

But Ghost was right; Kade couldn't let his pup suffer because of its mother's sins.

Internally, Kade felt a tide of panic threatening to overwhelm him. But he controlled his voice as he said, "It's no matter. I know the truth now." He dropped to a crouch beside Samantha, who shivered and scooched backwards until her spine hit the wall. "And now that you're pregnant, you belong to me. I wasn't going to let you go before, but I especially won't now."

Samatha's mouth parted wordlessly. The look in those blue eyes of hers was equal parts horror and resignation.

Kade slowly stood and turned to his Beta. "Take her to the doctor at once."

And without another word, he stormed out of the room.

…

"Mom…? Dad? Alpha Kade just pulled in."

Serena pointed at the sleek black car that had just parked in the driveway, and her parents came running. Indeed, Kade climbed out and began walking up the path with short, quick strides.

Serena's heart thudded as she rushed to the foyer and briefly smoothed her hair down in the hallway mirror before flinging the door open.

"Alpha Kade!" Serena trilled, smiling warmly. "To what do we owe the pleasure?"

Kade's expression was cold and calculated. Serena resisted the temptation to twist her hands nervously as she stood in front of the Alpha who was both terrifying and incredibly handsome. That square jawline covered in dark stubble ticked as he looked at her.

"I need to speak with your parents," he said gruffly.

Before Serena could reply, her parents appeared behind her. "Alpha Kade," her father said, bowing respectfully. "Please, come in. Margaret, why don't you go prepare some tea—"

"No need." Kade seemed to have no intention of setting foot in the house. "I just found out that your daughter is pregnant."

Serena and her family went utterly silent. Samantha was… pregnant? Surely it couldn't be Kade's child—Kade would never—

"Apparently it's mine," Kade went on as if reading their minds.

A wave of jealousy washed over Serena so intense that it nearly made her knees buckle out from under her. Kade and Samantha had slept together. For how long had this been going on? They didn't love each other, did they?

Samantha and Kade might be friends when they were kids, which made Serena jealous of Samantha, but Kade should've hated Samantha now after what happened five years ago.

Serena had always heard of Kade as becoming an aggressive and ruthless Alpha after what happened five years ago, not the type to make sweet love to anyone—especially not Samantha. And yet Serena had seen the way Kade looked at her in his office.

He'd looked at Samantha like he actually cared, even if only for a moment. It almost seemed as if the brutal, cold Alpha exterior was starting to crack and reveal something soft and tender underneath.

And now Serena wanted him all to herself even more.

Margaret immediately stepped forward and touched her husband's arm. "Jack, if I might have a word…?"

Serena's father nodded, and Kade agreed to wait on the porch while they spoke in private. Behind the closed door, Jack whirled on Margaret. "Is it really his?"

Margaret furrowed her brow. "I guess so. But Samantha—"

"If it's true, then Samantha probably became pregnant against her own will," Serena blurted out, turning to her parents. "She shouldn't be around him. It's not safe for her or the baby."

Jack's throat bobbed. "But he already threatened to remove Stoneridge from his protection. Our pack is small, and with all the rogues out there, we need Crescent Hollow. If we take Samantha back, then we'll all be doomed."

"Then send me in her place. If he really wants an heir, I can give birth to his child instead," Serena straightened with a cool smile, even though her mind was racing.

Serena's parents' eyes went wide. "No, honey, you can't—" her mother began, but Serena cut her off with an award-winning grin. The same grin that always got her whatever she wanted.

"I'll be fine, Mom. Kade told us the slave punishment is over. Besides," she assured her, "you know I've always had more charm than Samantha ever had. I'll win Kade over in no time and you won't need to worry about me. Plus you can bring Samantha home and get the care for her that she needs."

Margaret and Jack exchanged wary looks. But finally, after a long moment, Jack nodded. "I think it's worth a try. Besides, Samantha has always been a fuck-up. This pregnancy will only make matters worse."

Margaret wrung her hands, considering. "I just won't want her or her child to be unsafe…" She glanced at Serena. "But I don't want you to get hurt, either, darling."

"Like I said, I'll be alright. In fact, I'll have Kade wrapped around my little finger before you know it. Just let me talk to him."

Margaret still looked uncertain, but finally agreed. When they opened the door, Kade was still standing on the front steps with his arms folded over his chest. Just the sight of those enormous biceps bulging beneath his shirt was enough to make Serena's mouth water.

To think that soon, he would be hers… All she had to do was play her cards right.

"Margaret just told me something," Jack began hesitantly, glancing at his wife. "I wasn't aware of this, but apparently Samantha told Margaret this morning that she was pregnant with another male's child—that she's been seeing someone in Crescent Hollow for some time."

Kade's face blackened.

"Due to her betrayal, we think it's best if we take her back," Margaret said.

Serena beamed and stepped forward. "But if you're willing, Alpha Kade, I'll take her place. Let me become your Luna—your mate. And I swear I'll bear as many children as you desire…"

But Kade wasn't listening. He was already turning and bolting down the stairs and back to his car, ignoring Serena and her family's words.

All Serena and her parents could do was stare in shock as he peeled out of the driveway with a screech of tires.