Aria's POV:
“Let me go!” I demanded, thrashing against them, but their grip felt like iron and my pleas only amused him.
“I’d love to drop you,” the goon sneered, his low voice taunting. “But your dad used you as collateral.”
My stomach dropped and my mind reeled. “Collateral?” I choked out, disbelief freezing my tongue. “What do you mean?”
He jerked my chin up, forcing me to meet his cold gaze. “Your dad owes a massive debt. You, sweetheart, are the payback. I’m shipping your tight ass to the slave traders to settle his tab.”
My day had started out completely normal, working my clinic job—the only bright spot in my ruined life. As a weak wolf, playing doctor was the only way I ever felt useful.
“Who are you?” I stammered, just as two more thugs dropped from the branches above. They landed with quiet stealth, circling me like vultures. My heart pounded.
My wolf sensed danger and screamed at me to bolt. I yanked backward, but his fingers dug deeper into my flesh. I winced.
“Whatever this is, we can talk it out and find a better solution!”
The leader barked a laugh. “She wants to negotiate,” he mocked. “Get over here!” He yanked me hard, while his cronies shadowed us.
My life flashed before my eyes. I knew my dad's gambling habit was bad. It had dragged us from royalty to ruin after my mom died, but I swore selling his own flesh and blood was a line he wouldn't cross. Seizing a split-second opening, I ripped myself free and ran as fast as my legs could carry me.
I bolted through the dark woods, never daring to look back. I felt their wolves closing in, but soon recognized my surroundings. I was almost home. I took a sharp turn into town, navigating the familiar alleys, and ducked into a wooden crate just as they rounded the corner.
“Where the hell is she?”
“She couldn't have gotten far!” Their angry voices echoed right outside my hiding spot. I squished myself tighter into a ball, my legs trembling.
Sometime later, the coast was clear. I snuck inside my house, heaved a heavy sigh, and crashed onto the couch. The second my back hit the cushions, I was out cold.
“Ahhh!” I screamed, jerking awake at a looming shadow.
“Relax! It's just me,” my dad said, gripping my shoulders. I rubbed my sleepy eyes.
“Dad?” I stretched, pulling myself up. The bright sun streaming through the window meant it was morning.
“Aria. You came home late,” he muttered.
“I got jumped by some thugs who claimed you used me as collateral.” I turned my back to fire up the stove. “I knew it was bullshit. I gave them the slip, but—”
I spun around and froze. My dad had company.
“What is going on?” I gasped, staring at the exact same men who had hunted me last night.
“Like I told you, your old man owes a massive debt.” I snapped my head toward my dad. He stood there shivering, silently mouthing I’m sorry. A useless apology.
“I suggest you play nice this time, because we're taking you—dead or alive,” the leader sneered.
“You're lying!” I screamed, stumbling backward as panic clawed my throat. There was nowhere to run. My back hit the sink while the brutes closed in.
My claws popped, a surge of raw adrenaline begging me to rip their throats out, but brute force wouldn't save me against three grown wolves. I saw the cowardly defeat in my dad's eyes. He was throwing me to the wolves.
My hands shook violently as the leader pinned my wrists. I thrashed, desperate to claw his balls off, but I was utterly trapped. They dragged me out the front door like a piece of meat.
“Your degenerate dad borrowed my money, gambled it away, and promised to hand over his most prized possession if he lost,” the leader smirked as he shoved me into the back of a rusty van.
The driver floored it. Before I could even beg, a meaty hand clamped a chemical-soaked rag over my mouth. I thrashed frantically, my claws shredding his bare arms, until the world faded to black.
I woke up gagging. The foul stench of unwashed bodies, dirt, and stale smoke hit me like a brick. Blinking through the haze, I found myself dumped inside a dingy tent.
My heavy head spun as brutal realization hit: this was the infamous slave camp, a black market where anyone could buy fresh meat without a single question asked.
“No… this can’t be happening!” I rasped. Scrambling to my feet, I bolted for the exit, my sharp claws slashing the fabric.
A burly guard blocked the flap. “Let me go!” I shrieked, lunging at him tooth and nail.
He snatched my wrists and slung me backward. I fought like a feral dog, my claws screeching uselessly against his thick armor. “Let me out! I won't be a slave! I’m a physician! You can't do this to me!”
My screams cracked into pathetic sobs as crushing despair took over. Sick of my shit, the guard backhanded me across the face and kicked me down. White-hot pain exploded in my jaw, but I didn’t stop. I crawled forward, wrapping my arms around his filthy boots, sobbing and begging for mercy.
He kicked me again, hard. I clung tighter, my nails digging into the rough dirt as his heavy boots slammed into my ribs and stomach, trying to break me.
I howled in agony, spitting blood but refusing to let go. Finally, he snapped. The harsh shing of a drawn sword echoed, and my heart stopped dead. The sharp steel gleamed at my throat. I was seconds away from dying.
I choked on jagged breaths, staring up at him with defiant terror. Then, an imposing man stepped into the tent. Dripping with cold authority, he grabbed the guard's arm.
“This one?” he mused, his smooth voice echoing. “She is the prettiest piece of flesh in here, isn't she?”
The guard blinked, the bloodlust fading from his eyes. He sheathed his sword and stepped back. “Yes, sir.”
The man’s dark gaze roamed hungrily over my bruised body, before pointing at four trembling girls cowering in the corner. “Take all five down to the stream.”
“Scrub them clean and force them into the sheer silks I brought. A transport is arriving shortly to haul them off to the Hellbound Pack. Congratulations, ladies. You've just been drafted as Alpha Draven's personal breeders. Prepare to spend your days on your backs.”
Bile rose in my throat. My empty hands shook violently. I collapsed into the dirt, hot tears streaming down my face as my entire world shattered into pieces.
Was this really my doomed fate? To be nothing but a helpless, breeding toy for an Alpha notorious for breaking his victims and staining his sheets with blood?