When I came to, I was surrounded by pure darkness. My head was pounding with my heartbeat and a hot aching burned between my legs. I sat up, expecting to be in my tiny bedroom with my bare mattress but I was still surrounded by darkness instead of a sliver of moonlight peeking through my tiny windows. Suddenly memories flashed through my brain like lightning striking. The attack. Luna Abigail's death. The man hobbling me and climbing on top of me, touching me... Then other memories filled my head from me falling in and out of consciousness. The men forcing themselves between my legs. Men forcing themselves between my jaws... My broken sobs as I begged them to stop. But they refused to listen. They simply laughed.

Vomit travelled up my throat at the memories and rushed out of my mouth along with an endless flow of tears down my cheeks until I was dry heaving and my cheeks were sticky with the salt of my tears. What had they done?

When I was finished, I crawled across the dirt covered floor and hugged my bare body so that not even the shadows themselves could see my shame. As my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I realized that I was in a jail cell with the bars no more than a yard from where I sat. I weakly grabbed the bars in an attempt to find any weak spot, but I quickly retracted my hands when a hot pain consumed my palms. I let out a whimper of pain as I cradled my burning hands to my chest. Wolfsbane.

"I would avoid touching those if I were you," a gruff male voice advised somewhere within the darkness. Another prisoner. "A single touch could have you out for hours, even days."

"W-Where am I?" I weakly asked, though I already knew the answer.

"The Blood Crescent Pack," he weakly answered before he fell into a rough coughing fit. The smell of his blood filled the air. "Welcome to hell."

Tears filled my eyes as I feverishly shook my head. Moon Goddess, no. Please don't let this be real. Please just let this be a cruel game or an awful nightmare or-

"Well, well. Look who finally woke up," a deep voice called, sounding only a few feet in front of me. It was him. The man who made me his personal toy. "You did a great job last night," he commented as the sound of the heavy cell door opening was heard. If only I could see, maybe I could run past him. "The boys can't wait to have you again tonight, some girls too." I could hear the smirk on his face, but how could he brag about something as awful as this? Did he not feel shame? Did he not feel sickened? "But before the fun can continue, Alpha Greyson requests to see you." My heart dropped. Alpha Greyson, the infamous leader of these hellish people. Sending his Warriors and best fighters to any pack he feels wronged him and allows them to run wild, killing anyone that stands in their way regardless of age or occupation.

And now I was his next victim.

I wanted to scream and sob and beg for him to show me any sort of mercy, but instead I sat silently and allowed him to roughly throw me over his shoulder, a sharp wince escaping my lips as my bare ribs roughly collided with his broad shoulder.

"May he have mercy on you, miss," the man in the darkness offered me, his voice hoarse and weak from his coughing fit, and no matter how much I wanted to thank him my lips remained glued shut. The man carrying me didn't acknowledge him either.

He hauled me up what felt like an endless amount of stairs, roughly readjusting me on his shoulder every now and again, scoffing at my whimpers when he hit a sensitive spot or when his shoulder dug into my rib. When we finally emerged out of the darkness and into the light, it took me awhile to get my bearings and for my eyes to adjust. I recognized that he was carrying me across a field, which didn't surprise me seeing that most packs have their prisons far away from the rest of the pack so that if any wolf did manage to escape, they could be captured before interfering with the village.

I took a deep breath. There weren't any scents for a few meters. That's all I needed. The man had me in such a way that my upper body and arms were hanging over his back while my lower body and back were firmly held against his chest. If I could time it and hit just the right spot, I could loosen his grip on me or possibly knock him out and run. My insides shook at the thought of attempting something so risky. If I failed, I'd be killed on the spot, but it was worth it if I could put a bit of distance between me and the sick Beta who used my unconscious body for his own sick desires, even if it's only for a few seconds.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath and recalled all of the instructions I'd heard Alpha Phoenix give the Warriors the day he decided to use me as his personal punching bag. I silently prayed to the Moon Goddess before I opened my eyes, drew my elbow back as far and as quickly as possible and jammed it as hard as I could into the man's lower back. My elbow cried out in pain as the man instantly doubled over, my feet ending up firmly on the ground as his loudly cursed. Without thinking I quickly kneed him as hard as I could in the face before I delivered a solid punch to his temple, twisting my fist as I did so as I remembered Phoenix instructing. He dropped like a fly, but I knew it wouldn't last long since I wasn't strong and it wouldn't take long for his body to recover and for one angry wolf to be after me so I ran as fast as I could.

As soon as I broke into a sprint a loud howl ripped through the air. The head Warrior. They were onto me.

I cursed as I willed my legs to move faster, but even at my fastest, a new blood could outrun me. I debated shifting into my long dormant wolf in order to give myself a little boast, but the decision making was cut short by the sound of dozens of paws thundering toward me accompanied by the menacing sounds of growls and howls. I braced myself for the inevitable pain that came with shifting into a dormant wolf as I reached into the animal part of me. I felt every bone break and every hair pierce through my skin like a needle to cloth as every cell in my body transformed and changed and within a second I was River, my midnight black wolf. She let out a huff as she quickly ran across the field toward the pack boundary, my speed greatly increased but not fast enough to stay ahead of these Warriors for long. If only I could get to the border...

Suddenly, the masculine scent of pinewood and fresh morning dew filled my nose before a massive wolf tackled me from the side and landed on top of me, knocking the wind out of me. The wolf was a deep black like mine and had unsettling gold eyes. Power oozed from every pore in the wolf's body and you couldn't help but cower away in its presence. It was Alpha Greyson. He flashed its fangs before a loud and powerful growl rumbled deep within its chest before it climbed up its throat.

I instantly shifted back into my human form, bowing my head to show surrender and submission. The wolf remained on top of me, its four legs caging my body so that I had no escape. Instead of ripping my head off or shifting back into its human form like I expected him to, he sniffed me-my cheek, my hair, my neck, and when his wet nose lightly brushed my neck, electric sparks shot through my body, causing me to tense as I sucked in a breath. What was this? He must've felt them as well because he instantly pulled back and despite it being taken as a sign of disrespect, my eyes found his and a flash of something showed in his eyes, but before I could decipher what it was or what it meant, it was gone.

Without warning, the wolf shifted back into its human form and I was met by a stunning pair of moss green eyes. I'd always seen pictures of Alpha Greyson, but it felt like I was seeing him for the first time. His messy brown hair looked even softer in person and his eyes were enough to silence a whole room. He had a perfect nose and high cheekbones along with a strong beard that didn't extend past his face. His pink lips were slightly parted as he studied me just as I did him. He also had tattoos that formed sleeves around his bulging muscles along with some that peaked from his back. His muscles continued down his chest and his strong six-pack of abs.

Then I realized he was naked. On top of me. Who was also naked.

I instantly shrank back, feeling embarrassed that our bare bodies were so close. "Why are there so many scents on you?" he softly asked, his voice sounding like pure music to my ears as he pulled his eyebrows together in confusion. "Who did this to you?"

"You!" a voice called, causing both our heads to turn in the direction that it came from. There among the circle of Warriors that had formed around us stood the Beta. Blood leaked from his nose and a black eye was starting to form. I guess I'd hit him harder than I thought. I instantly shrank back afraid of what he'd do to me.

That's when it clicked in Alpha Greyson's head.

He looked from the Beta then to me before his gaze set on the Beta before a look of pure rage and hatred painted his face and within mere moments, he had his Beta held against a tree by his throat with his claws digging into the side of it ready to rip his throat straight out of his body. "What did you do to her you bastard?" he growled in a deadly low tone that sent a shiver down my spine, but all the Beta could do was fruitlessly claw at the Alpha's hand in an attempt to get free as blood leaked from the corner of his mouth. It didn't work. "What did you do to my mate?" he roared after the Beta didn't respond fast enough, his eyes transitioning to a soulless black out of rage.

Wait, did he just call me his mate?

My heartbeat quickened as I quickly curled into a ball, my breathing labored and panic slowly leaking into my system. No. I can't be mated to the monster that led the attack on my pack and killed my Luna. I couldn't be mated to the monster that murders innocent people for fun. I can't be mated to the monster who led the men who used me for their own personal desires. I can't be. I refused to be. But despite how badly I wanted to get up and run as fast as I could away from this nightmare, my body was frozen in fear of not only the fuming Alpha that stood mere yards away from me, but also due to the ring of Warrior wolves that'd formed around us that could kill me in a second without breaking a sweat.

"I-I'm sorry, Greyson. Please forg-give me. I d-didn't know-" he choked out, but was interrupted by Greyson's grip becoming tighter on his throat.

"That is Alpha to you," he growled. "And you will never be forgiven. You along with over ten other people invaded my mate, and by the terrified look on her face at the sound of your voice and the multiple bruises on her body, I know she didn't consent you bastard!" Greyson roared as he drew back his fist and delivered a hard punch to his Beta's jaw, causing a crack to ring out in the air as the Beta cried in pain, but Greyson didn't care. He continued punching him until blood leaked from his nose and stained his teeth. "This is for what you did to my mate!" he roared, delivering a new punch with every word. By the time he was done, his Beta was barely recognizable. Greyson growled, but instead of killing the Beta like I assumed, he dropped him to the ground, his body creating a dull thud as his unconscious body hit the ground.

"Ashton," he said in a deathly calm voice, his eyes never leaving the Beta as one wolf stepped forward who I assumed was Ashton, the leader of the Warriors, "take Andrew and prepare him for the Hunt." My eyes grew wide. Getting Hunted by your Alpha is the worst thing that could happen to a wolf, especially of that Alpha is Alpha Greyson. The damned wolf is kicked out of the territory and is given an hour head start before the Alpha hunts him and the prey isn't allowed to go to any other pack for help and if they try, they're captured until the Alpha finds them and ends them. But if they survive seven days without being caught, they're free to join whatever pack they want or to go rogue, but knowing Greyson, he'd kill him regardless the number of days that pass between the start and end of the hunt. "When he awakes, have him tell you the name of everyone who did this to my mate and get them ready for the Hunt as well."

Ashton, still in his wolf form, gave his Alpha a stern nod before the sound of breaking bones filled the air which caused me to look away because I knew that once he shifted back to his human form he'd be bare.

"I swear I will kill everyone who did this to her," he vowed more to himself than to anyone in particular.

How would he react if he found out this wasn't the first time this happened to me?

"What's your name?" He gently asked as he approached me, the rage and hatred that had once painted his features now gone.

"A-Avery," I stammered out, my body slightly shaking out of fear.

"Avery," he repeated, my name sounding beautiful as it slid past his lips. "A beautiful name for a beautiful girl," he observed as his giant hand suddenly cupped my cheek causing me to freeze in fear as his thumb caressed my cheek causing the sparks I felt once before to shoot through my body like fireworks. My body relaxed though fear ran rapid in my veins. "Taylor, go grab us some clothes and the rest of you, good work. You may return to your posts," he instructed, his eyes never leaving mine as he said so. Within moments we were alone with each other. The moon trickled through the treetops and illuminated his godly body as he continued stroking my cheek beneath the soft moonlight. I found myself closing my eyes and leaning into his strangely addicting touch and despite how badly I wanted to pull away, my body refused to and basked in the warm sparks that only my mate could cause. My mate. The feared Alpha Greyson is my mate.

The very thought terrified me.

Without warning, his hand retracted and the feeling of his body left mine. My eyes opened and my body yearned for his once more. "Thank you Taylor," he said as a wolf returned with bundles on clothes securely in its jaws. It nodded after Greyson took the clothes from it before it ran into the woods most likely to join its brethren.

He handed me a sweatshirt which I gratefully took, eager to hide my bare body. "Can you stand?" he asked as he pulled on a pair of sweatpants. I mutely nodded as I made a move to stand, but as soon as I put wait on my feet, pain ripped through me like a knife and I instantly collapsed back onto the ground.

"Are you alright?" the Alpha asked as he kneeled beside me and looked me over for any injuries.

"I-I don't know what-" I started but was cut off by the memory of what the Beta did to me. I looked at my ankles and saw the deep ugly slashes he'd delivered to the back of my ankles. I guess I didn't feel it while I was running due to the adrenaline that rushed through me. I felt vomit begin to rise up my throat, but I swallowed it down. "M-My ankles," I choked out. "He clawed through my tendons and they haven't healed yet." The Alpha looked at my injuries and instantly he tensed as his eyes grew a shade darker out of anger.

"I'm going to kill him for hurting you," he growled out as he gently took me in his arms and carried me bridal style through the woods, my body heating up due to the sparks that bombarded me from all angles. It perplexed me seeing such a heartless beast treat me with such care and grace and I almost relaxed, but then I remembered what he was capable of and what he's done and all comfort left my body in a rush. He pulled me close to his chest as he carried me through the dense thicket of trees, their branches scratching his tanned skin but he didn't seem to mind. He continued carrying me in silence until we emerged in front of a large cabin that had his scent leaking through every crack and opening. My wolf went wild.

He carried me up the stairs and effortlessly kicked his door open, not seeming to care about the cracks that appeared in the frame due to the force he'd used.

"Are you hungry, Avery?" he asked, a small shiver running down my spine at how precious my name sounded coming from his lips. I shook my head despite my stomach slowly digesting itself. He looked at me, his moss green eyes burning right through me and seeing through my lie, but instead of arguing, he nodded before he made a move toward the stairs. "You're afraid of me, Avery. I can smell it," he suddenly stated. "It's pouring from every pore of your body." He sounded somewhat offended as he spoke and I avoided his eyes. "Why?" he questioned as he used his hand to gently move my head so I was looking at him once more.

"It's hard not to be," I said without thinking. "You send your men into other packs to slaughter and use whomever they please, not caring how many families you tear apart or whose innocence they take." My thoughts fell from my mouth before I could process them or stop them. "You kill whomever you please whenever you please without wasting a second and your Beta's not any better who not only let other people use me, but he also killed my Luna in front of me. Do you know how that feels?" I questioned, tears burning in my eyes while embers of hate sparked in my heart. "Not only having to watch your parents killed and burned before you, but then to watch the only person who ever truly cared about you get their heart ripped out only because they were trying to protect you." By now tears were limitlessly falling down my face while I looked the Alpha in the eyes. "So no Alpha Greyson I'm not afraid of you," I whispered. "I'm terrified that I'll just be another nameless life you're going to take."

He looked at me, a surprised expression on his face, but almost as it appeared, it was replaced by a stone cold expression before he mutely let my body fall to the floor, causing a whimper to escape my lips as pain traveled throughout my body. "You will not disrespect me like that, do you understand?" he lowly growled, his large body towering over my petite and broken one. I nodded, curling up into a ball in order to protect myself from the kicks that were likely to follow.

"Good," he said before he roughly grabbed me by the arm and pulled me into a bedroom that was drenched in his scent before he threw me on the bed. My heartbeat instantly quickened as I feared the worst. First my pack members then the Beta and now the Alpha himself. Tears jumped to my eyes but I quickly blinked them away. "You are to take a shower and meet me downstairs for dinner, am I understood?" he tightly questioned as he looked through his drawers.

"Y-Yes Alpha Greyson," I stammered as he pulled a long black t-shirt out of his drawer, causing him to raise an eyebrow at me.

"You will address me as Greyson and Greyson only," he demanded as he handed me the shirt. I mutely nodded in response. His eyes looked at me before he too nodded and turned to exit the room. "You have fifteen minutes. Close one of these doors and I'll rip it off its hinges, understood?"

"Y-Yes Alph- I mean Greyson." He nodded in approval before he exited the room without another word.