I remained seated on that plushed bed even after the male lycan returned with a female, a bowl in her hand and a small container in the other.

Red nails glimmered under the lights of the room and I found myself silently admiring the paint on the woman's fingernails; the color contrasted beautifully against the black nightgown she wore.

"Have you slept?" The male lycan thundered from behind the female and my eyes lifted to slowly meet his own before lazily moving away to the opened door beyond him.

Nerves grew in my belly and my jaw suddenly felt tight with apprehension, leg muscles tensing. I refrained from jolting out the bed, knowing that the pain in my ankle would only worsen if I did so.

At my silence the male said nothing, but allowed the woman to step forward and rest the grey bowl on the mattress. Chunky white liquid swirled in it and I was quick to look away from it as my stomach churned.

"This is for you to drink." The female lycan's voice was so soft and almost gentle, but the icy cold in her grey-blue eyes were harshly calculating as they assessed me. "It shall help ease the pain in your ankle."

My gaze lowered to where my foot currently was on the bed; stretched and bandaged ankle hanging off the edge. I heard the rustling of clothing and saw the bandage she produced to rest beside the bowl as she uttered quietly, "For your ankle."

The lycans of the Klawmoon pack, on rare occasions, had provided us with bandages as well. They would watch as I patched the wounds they had given me, only to cut them open and watch them bleed again with their relentless beatings.

My thin fingers lifted the bandage, my fingertips moving back and forth against them whilst the woman carried on, "I have pills as well for you. You are to take two of them after drinking your medicine." She gestured to the bowl with a pointed chin. "The pills will help with the pain as-"

"Am I a prisoner here?"

I did not miss the woman's disgruntled expression when I interrupted her and I began to angle my body towards the door, just in case I needed to flee.

The male lycan's eyes became hooded as he stepped closer to the bed and the female shuffled backwards, allowing him to stand where she once did.

I braced myself for the devastating answer. I could feel heaviness in my chest, the lowering of my shoulders and the burn behind my eyes as I prepared for an answer I had already assumed.

"No."

Lie, I thought immediately, fingers curling around the sheets.

But his features were as sincere as his tone and nothing about his body language gave away that he was lying. But I knew lycans were extremely gifted at keeping their lies secret.

"How do you know my name?" I asked the lycan, my body leaning backwards at his closeness, uneasy. His pleasant, clean, scent stung my nostrils and my lips pressed together firmly as I inhaled it.

He looked behind me momentarily, towards the barred windows and then returned his gaze to mine. "Some of the former prisoners of the Klawmoon pack told me."

My head lifted warily, aching to say more but reluctant to have further conversation with a lycan I did not trust.

"They are here as well," The lycan continued. "Not in this home, but in another, healing and sleeping."

He looked me over pointedly and I heard the soft giggle from the female lycan. She was watching the two of us, evidently amused. However, her expression sobered once she caught sight of my harsh stare.

"Why have I been brought here?" I asked, lifting the container of pills the woman had left on the bed, eyeing the pink colors with distrust.

"Drink from the bowl, take the pills," Was all the male said after watching me with the container. "And then sleep. I will explain more when you have done those things."

My fingers gripped the plastic, squeezing it until the cover popped off. It rolled off the bed under our gazes, moved across the floor until it toppled over and landed by the doorway.

It must have been weak. I wasn't that strong physically.

"I will not sleep until you have told me why I'm here." I spat at the male, earning a snarl that I didn't blink twice at. "I have a lot of experience with staying awake for plenty of hours, lycan. Being able to sleep for long periods of time was very rare for me to do in the Klawmoon's prison and I can assure you that I certainly will not rest now unless you answer my question."

Silence descended over the room. I refused to drop my eyes away from the massive lycan, who had yet to show what he thought. The female however, stepped a couple feet away and made herself comfortable on a small wooden stool in the corner of the room. "Go on, Alpha boy." She chortled, earning her a vicious growl.

I lifted an eyebrow at her boldness; it was clear that these two were close. Perhaps friends of some sorts. That could be the only explanation as to why she would dare speak to him that way.

"Hush, Lilith." The lycan, no, the Alpha, bit out tersely. "And there is no need to sit and listen to what I will say. I won't be here for much longer."

The stool creaked, signaling that she had stood, but my attention remained fixated on the Alpha before me as he began speaking to me, slowly, ensuring I heard each word clearly,

"It is common, Olivia, that once male lycans have found their mates, that they allow them, or bring them to live in their homes."

Seconds slipped by and his words circulated in my mind, horror and disbelief dawning. My head began to shake back and forth, throat suddenly dry as his piercing eyes ran over my face, taking in each emotion that showed on them. The urge to vomit became overwhelming, but I resisted, instead opting to wrap my arms around my stomach.

I had heard of the occasions of lycans being mated to humans by my parents and neighbors as a child. The neighbors had plentifully voiced their opinions on the topic, which were mostly disgusted comments, whilst my mother and father had chosen to say nothing. I had instead imagined the dread that a human would feel with being mated to a lycan and had never thought that I would currently be in the situation I had known other humans had faced.

"Drink the medicine, take the pills and sleep." The Alpha spoke curtly, interrupting my thoughts. He looked to be bitter and almost, disappointed. "Come with me, Lilith."

And he stepped away, the female lycan trailing after him but pausing in the doorway to look me over with something akin to pity before closing the door soundly, leaving me to deal with my swarming thoughts, utterly confused.

********

My fingers wrapped around the barred windows and my legs trembled from the effort it took to stand. Longing weighed heavy in my chest as I watched the snow storm, the trees bending under the strength of the disastrous wind. Lightning briefly lit up the entire sky and I gaped in awe, nose pressing against the metal bars and wide eyes eagerly taking in the beautiful sight.

I was maybe a fool to wish to be in that snow, yearning to feel the powerful wind, but I did not care. I bit my tongue, drawing and sucking away the blood that arose as lightning once again flashed through the sky. This view had managed to pull me out of the deep thoughts of mates and the Alpha; it was a much needed distraction that I welcomed.

The wind continued to batter the trees and the window panes, the snow whipping around furiously in the air. The window creaked from the force of the wind and I reached out a finger, idly placing a thumb against the pane to feel the icy cold of it. I shuddered and drew away, a satisfied smile twisting my lips, but dropping away when I realized I was not alone in this room.

His distinct scent was prominent in the air and I could hear his breathing, slow and calm. Almost rhythmic.

And wordlessly, without looking to the Alpha who had managed to enter whilst I was occupied with staring out the window at nature, I sat on the bed, gingerly pulling my ankles away from the cold floor and stretching my legs before me, before daring to risk a glance to the silent, massive lycan.

The Alpha adorned dark clothing, which hugged his muscles and reminded me of the training attire the Klawmoon pack warriors would wear in the prison at times. They would smell of sweat and dirt and I knew they had been training outside for many hours before replacing the previous guards and stationing themselves near the cells.

My curiosity piqued, albeit briefly as my eyes dipped low to his lower body, but my gaze became focused on his actions when he moved across the room, his footsteps barely audible.

He walked to the bedside table where I had rested the bowl with medicine and the container of pills. Annoyance shone in his eyes before he seemingly tampered it down, drawing a deep breath and releasing it slowly.

I scrambled backwards when he sat on the bed, merely a few inches from me. My back hit into the headboard and I dragged my knees to my chest, heart pounding rapidly as I stared with apprehension towards the very imposing lycan.

He lifted the bowl without a word, muttered a few words under his breath about why Lilith had chosen to pour the liquid into a bowl instead of cup.

"Drink." The Alpha commanded. "It may taste bitter but it shall help with the pain you currently feel."

My eyebrows furrowed.

How does he know-

"You grimaced when you moved your ankle across the bed. Drink it." And he pushed the rim to my lips despite my resistance. The metal hurt my teeth and I opened my mouth, allowing the liquid to flow down, almost choking at it's smell and taste. It was indeed, very bitter.

The lycan replaced the bowl with two small pills, resting them on his palm. I wiped at my lips, using a free hand to instead lean sideways and reach towards the container of pills, but the Alpha was faster, moving them out of my reach so that I would have no choice but to take the ones he currently held.

I did not understand the difference it made, but to him, it evidently meant something. So I shook my head, my body sinking low until I laid on my back against the soft mattress, stubbornly and silently.

"You will find, Olivia," The Alpha said, giving up and resting the two pills on the bed. "That the lycans here are not like the ones in the Klawmoon pack."

My eyes jerked to his, but he did not look to me, instead towards the pills resting by my arm.

"We will never intentionally harm you."

I said nothing, even when his hand raised to touch my hair, but my skin prickled in discomfort. He stood quickly, turning off the lights and exiting the room, leaving the door open wide.