The lock rattled less than an hour later.

Alaric stepped inside, carrying a porcelain bowl of beef broth and warm bread. He wore a clean charcoal sweater, looking like the devoted mate he always pretended to be in front of the council.

"I brought you dinner," he said softly, kneeling beside my cot. "You're stubborn, Vera, but I don't want you starving down here. Say thank you, and let me feed you."

He blew on a spoonful of broth, offering it to my cracked lips. His bare fingers reached out to cup my chin.

I parted my lips, lunged forward, and sank my teeth straight into his index finger.

I clamped down with every ounce of strength left in my jaw, grinding until bone grated against bone.

Alaric roared, dropping the bowl to the floor. His heavy palm struck the side of my face with a brutal crack.

My head slammed hard against the stone wall. White light exploded behind my eyelids, and the taste of copper filled my mouth.

"Ungrateful bitch," he snarled, clutching his mangled, bleeding finger against his chest.

He kicked the shattered porcelain across the floor, sending warm broth and chunks of meat pooling in the filth.

"Eat it off the stones," Alaric ordered, towering over me with cold fury in his eyes. "Lick it up like the dog you are, or starve."

He spun on his heel and slammed the iron door shut behind him.

My stomach cramped violently from hunger. Every bruised muscle in my body begged for nourishment, but I dragged my chained leg back, took aim, and kicked the remaining crusts of bread straight into the darkest corner of the cell.

I would rather rot than beg from his hand.

Ten minutes later, the latch clicked open again.

A figure slipped through the narrow opening, easing the heavy iron shut behind him.

It wasn't Alaric.

"Jonah," I croaked, my throat raw. "Jonah, help me! Unlock this chain right now!"

Jonah froze, his hand lingering on the brass door handle. He blinked against the dim light, his eyes landing on the cot.

"Luna?" His voice wavered. "What the hell... the Alpha told the outer guard you were escorted back to Moonridge two days ago."

"He lied," I rasped, pointing toward the silver cuff embedded in my swollen ankle. "Look at me! He locked me down here. Get the key and get me out before he comes back."

Jonah didn't reach for his belt.

Instead, his gaze dropped from my bruised face down to my bare shoulders, the shredded shift on the floor, and the thin linen sheet barely covering my thighs. His eyes lingered on the curve of my waist.

The shock on his face faded, replaced by something dark and calculating.

"Get you out?" Jonah asked quietly, stepping closer to the cot. "And risk Alaric ripping my throat out? That's a death sentence, Vera."

"You think he'll spare you if you walk away?" I forced my voice steady, fighting back the rising nausea in my chest. "You know his secret now. You've seen this room. The second he realizes you were down here, he'll put your head on a spike to cover his tracks. Beta loyalty means nothing to an Alpha like him."

Jonah hesitated, his jaw working as my words registered. But his eyes never left my bare skin.

"Maybe," Jonah said, his thumbs hooking into the waistband of his tactical trousers. "Or maybe I take my payment upfront. You want my help? Give me something worth the risk."

A chill ran straight down my spine. "What?"

"You heard me," he said, stepping between my parted knees. "You're offering promises. I want an Alpha's woman. Let me fuck you, and I'll unlock that chain."

Rage and disgust flared in my chest, but inside my ribs, my wolf remained completely silent. The silver had silenced her. I had no strength, no allies, and no second chance.

If I refused, Jonah would walk out, lock the door, and let Alaric torture me until I broke.

*Survive,* I told myself, feeling the cold calculation settle in my mind. *Swallow the shame and survive.*

"Fine," I said, my voice empty. "Do it. But you unlock the cuff the second you finish. And I keep my mouth shut about what you did."

Jonah let out a rough laugh. "Deal."

He shoved the linen sheet aside, exposing me to the freezing subterranean air.

"You want payment?" he asked.

I stared at the cracks in the ceiling and held on to the only thought that mattered: survive. Jonah took what he had demanded while I lay chained to the cot, unable to give meaningful consent. I left my body behind and counted the seconds until it was over.

When he pulled away, I kept my face turned toward the wall and waited for the shaking to stop.

"The key," I said immediately, my voice devoid of emotion."The key," I said immediately, my voice devoid of emotion.

Jonah took a ragged breath, zipping his trousers. The lust had cleared from his face, leaving behind a sudden, nervous panic. He knew what he had just done.

He reached into his pocket, pulled out the heavy silver key, and unlocked the cuff around my ankle.

The burning stopped instantly. Blood trickled down my raw heel as the metal clattered against the stone floor.

"Here," Jonah muttered, stripping off his heavy dark utility jacket and throwing it at me. "Put that on and stay behind me until the perimeter gate."

I pulled the thick coat over my naked body, zipping it up to my throat.

While Jonah turned toward the door to check the corridor, my fingers moved across the metal supply table beside the cot.

I swiped his electronic security keycard, snatched the folded night guard roster, and grabbed Doctor Corin's medical file, shoving all three into the deep inner pocket of the jacket.

We slipped into the damp basement hallway.

Jonah led me through the shadows, bypassing two dormant security checkpoints before pushing open a low iron hatch that opened onto the perimeter tree line.

"Run," Jonah whispered, his face pale under the moonlight. "Don't ever come back."

I didn't answer.

I bolted into the darkness, my bare feet tearing against frozen mud and sharp gravel. Agony radiated up my infected ankle with every stride, but pure survival pushed me forward.

I broke through the thick underbrush, hit the empty asphalt of the forest highway, and sprinted north toward Moonridge Pack territory.

Ten minutes into the run, a searing pain tore through the center of my chest.

The mate bond flared like burning gasoline.

Alaric knew.

A deafening siren wailed across the valley from Thornvale Manor, shattering the silence of the night.

Then, Alaric's Alpha command blasted through the pack mindlink, vibrating violently against the walls of my skull.

*To all Thornvale warriors,* his voice roared, shaking with venomous rage. *Luna Vera has betrayed this pack! She seduced a sentry, stole classified documents, and fled into the woods! She is an escaped fugitive. Hunt her down and bring her back in chains!*