His Runaway Luna

8. Caged by Fate

Iris

When I woke up the next morning, I was alone in the room. He was gone and it was better like that, since his presence and his touch only drove me confused.

I didn’t need that, I shouldn’t want someone who hurt me and placed me in a Dungeon. I looked around his ample room, completely undecorated and plain, besides some carpets and blankets made of animal skin and fur that were spread all over the place.

I sat on the edge of the bed and took a deep breath, trying to make sense of all that happened. The fact that my life had completely changed in the last thirty hours still didn’t sink in completely.

I wrapped myself in a robe and tried to open the door, it was locked. I huffed in frustration.

“We have to manage to regain control of our lives, Iris,” the sweet voice in my mind said. Sapphire was the only good thing that happened to me in the last twenty-four hours.

I wasn’t alone anymore, I had her; I was stronger and practically caged by fate. In the middle of the chaos, something was worrying me a lot, Zita. I still haven’t heard anything about her, and I couldn’t even mind-link her, something was blocking it.

“Colton? How are you? Have you heard anything about Zita?” My voice was laced with worry even through the mind-link.

“I am fine, you don’t have to worry about me, Pup. Zita? All I know is that after she was whipped, she was taken to the pack clinic. I will try to get some news on her,” he replied.

Guilt and worry almost made my eyes blurry with tears. But I swallowed my sobs back. I didn’t have time to cry, I had to find a way to help her, to reach her.

Soon, a knock on the door snapped me from my thoughts, a small omega lady who didn’t seem much older than me, entered with a tray of food and a little bag.

“Good morning, Miss Iris.” She had a polite smile and a huge scar on her face. She promptly placed the tray on the bedside table and opened the window, letting some light into the room.

“What’s your name?” I asked.

“Oh… I am... Ashley,” she said without looking at my eyes.

“Nice to meet you,” I offered a smile and she nodded, looking very confused.

“Here are some clothes... I will place them in the drawer,” she murmured, avoiding my eyes and looking at the bag in her hand.

“Don’t worry, I can organize them myself,” I said walking towards her.

She let out a trembling gasp and shrank a bit, making her body smaller. She started trembling and moved away, “I am so sorry to upset you, Miss.”

“What? No, you didn’t upset me. Why are you nervous?” I asked, getting very confused.

“I… you don’t want me to fold the clothes and...I am so sorry,” she murmured.

“I am not upset at all, I just can do it myself. Please, tell me why you are that nervous,” I asked softly, giving her some space.

“I thought you...because you were talking and asked my name... and the clothes. I thought you would tell the Alpha my name and what I did wrong and the Beta would…” her voice was quivering and her gaze cast down.

“He would punish you?” I asked, sighing. Ashley nodded in response. I took a few steps closer to her and placed a hand on her trembling shoulder.

“I won’t get you punished, ever. You don’t have to worry about it.” I tried to reassure her and she nodded nervously. I sighed, feeling quite bad for her, she needed a friend, and I could definitely use one as well.

“Thank you for your kindness, Miss.”

“Ashley, what happens when you upset someone, the rank members or the guests?” I asked more worried than curious.

“I… we, omegas, get whipped or something else…” she almost whimpered. I wouldn’t ask her anything more or push her further, she was already nervous.

“I am so sorry, Ashley. But you don’t have to worry about me, I won’t get you into trouble and I wish... I hope I can do something to help you and the other omegas in the packhouse.”

Ashley nodded, her muscles relaxing a bit as she straightened her back. She would open up in her own time, as soon as she could see that she could trust me.

My gaze found the door and I sighed, “Ashley, the room is locked. Did someone say something? The Alpha? The Head Omega?” I asked, anxious to have at least a bit of freedom.

“Hmmm… the Head Omega said the Alpha ordered that his antechamber should always be locked and only she has the key, besides him… she opened the door for me and told me that the door of this bedroom could remain unlocked. Sorry, Miss,” she replied tensely.

“It’s okay, it’s not your fault,” I said softly.

I looked intently at her, there were some other small marks and scars on her arms and she was so skinny. Those monsters probably didn’t let her eat or were forcing her into too much work. If she got enough food and rest she would have been able to heal and her skin wouldn’t form that many scars.

A sigh left my lips, my heart hurt for Ashley and all the staff of this house. I knew that we had very strict laws in this pack and that people’s freedom was limited. I knew that a lot had to change in this pack, I heard my dad talking about it many times. But I didn’t know it was that bad. Not until my eyes were confronted with this crude reality.

How could I have lived in my dad’s house totally oblivious to my people’s suffering? Completely unaware inside my bubble?

At least being brought here and making that ominous deal with Alpha Zack, popped my bubble, no it rather obliterated it, and now I knew much more about what my people were being put through.

I made the right decision when I accepted to become the Luna. This pack needed change, this pack needed me.

~ * ~

Not much changed in the following few days, besides the fact that Ashley and I were growing closer. The Alpha only came back to the room at night, mated me and slept. We barely talked, not that I wanted to chat with him, I just wanted to be able to at least circulate around the house and get to know about Zita.

I sighed in frustration looking at myself in the full-length mirror as Ashley helped me to adjust a white long dress. I took another look at my reflection, I was looking like my mom in one of the only photos I have of her. That made me smile, I couldn’t remember much about her; I was only a toddler when she was killed due to a nasty Lycan attack in our pack.

I was getting ready for some sort of Introduction Ceremony. In Colton’s words— via mind link, since even though we were living under the same roof, we couldn’t meet—the Alpha wanted to show me off as his trophy, the white wolf.

The idea of it made my stomach churn, but at least I would be able to get out of this room and have the chance to talk to Alpha Zack.

“You are looking wonderful, Miss,” Ashley said, adjusting the small tiara in my hair, which was done in a half-updo. I shook my head, it was way too much.

The scent of frost and dry pine invaded the room and I saw Ashley stiffen from the corner of my eyes. She bowed down and left the room hurriedly.

His cold grey eyes met mine in the mirror and he adjusted the diamond necklace on my neck, and I was surprised as he wrapped his arms around me.

“You look good, white is your color.”

“Pun intended. Is he trying to be funny?” Sapphire asked in my head. She hadn’t managed to talk to his wolf so far, he was ignoring her completely.

“Thank you,” I replied drily.

“Let’s go,” he took me by the hand, bringing my body close to his. Between all the anger and frustration, I couldn’t brush off the electric feeling between us. Strangely, I could feel it even now, without having the pheromones flooding my bloodstream.

“I wanted to talk to you,” I said as we walked down the stairs, his hand on my waist was possessive and firm.

“What?” he asked without looking at me and I sighed. Of course, he wouldn’t care, he only wanted me to give him an heir and to show me off. I was in a medieval marriage in the twenty-first century, my cursed fate!

“I want to get out of the room, I need to breathe fresh air, my wolf needs to run.”

“Okay, you can go anywhere on the fourth floor, from now on. But you aren’t running without supervision, I won’t have you running away, Iris,” he replied, looking intently at me.

I only nodded, a surge of surprise causing me to not know how to react. The fourth floor was the Alpha’s floor and the only bedroom occupied was his.

When we were almost reaching the ground floor, I snapped back from my little startlement and asked the second question in my mind, “I want to know about my friend Zita. I am worried about her,” I started.

“Alpha Zack, Iris,” the Beta said, taking a few steps in our direction.

“Later,” Alpha Zack replied, glancing at me before he approached his Beta.

“I will enter the Hall first, you can escort Iris there in a few minutes,” he instructed his Beta and entered the main room, closing the door behind him.

The Introduction Event was happening in the biggest room of the pack, which we called ‘The Pack Room’. It was some kind of ballroom, where parties and large meetings were held—mainly meetings. Our pack didn’t celebrate many parties apart from a normally big event to celebrate the coronation of a new Alpha, Beta and Gamma.

I took a lungful of air, why didn’t he ask Colton to escort me instead? A young omega lady entered the hall and walked close to us. She remained there still, waiting for something. I looked at her, but the Beta ignored her presence as if she were invisible. She surely was invisible to him.

The Beta had a lopsided smirk and looked intently at me, ogling me from head to toe. My face contorted in a frown as my lips curled on a snarl, which only made his grin grow.

“I can tell you about Zita and let you see her if you also do something for me. We should keep everything between us, our secret for our mutual benefit,” he murmured, circling me and taking a strand of my hair in his filthy hands. I cringed, slapping his hand away and taking a few steps away from him.

“Come on, don’t play hard to get. I’ll help you to see your friend if you suck my...” he started, his words bringing me nausea.

“Stop there! Respect me, your mate, and your Alpha!” I exclaimed, my eyes narrowed. A burst of anger vibrated through my bloodstream.

How dare he? Sapphire growled in my mind, she was enraged and filled with indignation as well.

Beta Grey only chuckled in response, “Let’s see how long your backbone will last, you are nothing more than the Alpha’s se.x toy. Don’t start to think that you are something more than that only because of the color of your wolf.”

The Omega whimpered as the Beta’s aura rose in anger, he looked at her and jerked her in his direction, his fingers firm in her flesh. He was surely the one who hurt Ashley and probably the rest of the staff as well.

“Not that anyone will believe a little flea like you! If you say anything to the Alpha or to Susan, you will deeply regret it. It will be a thousand times worse than last time I had put my hands on you, useless wench!” he lashed out, almost making her fall at the violence of his touch.

“If you dare to touch her and any other Omega, any other woman in this house, I will be the one telling the Alpha everything about your filthy proposal! And if you try anything like this again, asking me for filth or forcing any women to it, the Alpha won’t be the only one you should fear! Are we clear?” my voice carried a power that was unknown to me, and I could feel my aura growing, surrounding me with some unfamiliar energy, light, and heat.

Beta Grey let go of the omega girl rather abruptly and she took a few steps away leaning on the handrail for support, her eyes fixed on me as if she was seeing a ghost.

After a few seconds, I heard the front door open and the surge of energy flowing through me stopped abruptly.

“Iris, come on. The Alpha is waiting for you,” Colton said motioning for me to walk forward and enter the main room.

I breathed deeply, a wave of exhaustion made my body mushy, but I took a step ahead. This was my pack and I would help them.