Four

RYLEE

I was surprised by his statement. It was the first time I was hearing those words since my life became a mess. Tears filled my eyes and I slowly met his gaze. Despite how intense his icy gaze was, I couldn't help but feel grateful that there was someone who believed me.

"You do?"

"That isn't the point" He said and I lowered my gaze.

Considering the fact that my little excitement had gone down a notch, I was still relieved about the fact that he wasn't accusing me of making up stories, just like every other person had done.

He was cold and indifferent. But, at least, he had a good sense of judgement.

The man with the brown hair walked in, his gaze meeting mine.

"Jared, show her to her new room" Alpha Vincent said as he turned away from us.

"Come with me" Jared said and I quietly followed him after sparing the Alpha one last glance.

When Jared and I got to our destination, we walked into a small room which had a mattress in it. The room felt bare. Still, I was relieved that it wasn't as bad as the dark room.

"You're his beta, aren't you?" I said to Jared as he opened the window.

"That, I am" he responded.

"My name is..."

He cut me off with a grin.

"Rylee Shaw. Born on the thirteenth day of October, 2001. Daughter of Laura and Robert Shaw. Has two siblings; a younger brother and a younger sister"

I blinked.

"Wow, you sure did a lot of background check" I commented.

"It's something I had to do" he said and I nodded.

"Yeah, just like you locked me up in the dark room for three days" I mumbled.

"I had no choice. I was just following orders, Miss Shaw. I'm sorry."

"How long have you known Alpha Vincent? Has he always been like that?" I asked.

"What?"

Jared looked confused.

"Cold and indifferent?"

He threw me an incredulous stare.

"You think he's cold? You haven't seen the half of it. What you have seen so far is him on a very good day" he told me.

"Is it that bad?" I asked with a wince.

"I shouldn't be telling you any of this. But, I'm telling you because I want you to be careful. The last thing you want to do is annoy him. So, lie low and endure all kind of bullshits thrown your way. It's the best you can do, for now" he said and left me alone.

I lowered my aching body to the surface of the bed and closed my eyes as I mulled over Jared's words.

The knock on the door jolted me from my slumber.

Exhausted from all the work I'd been doing, I'd fallen asleep on the bed after Jared had left the room.

Rubbing my eyes, I walked to the door and opened it. The three members of the pack who had continued to torment me were standing right there, glaring at me. Before I could say anything, they dragged me out of the room and slammed the door shut.

"What did you do?!" One of them demanded, her eyes burning with fury.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about" I stammered, flustered by their sudden visit.

"What on Earth did you do that made Alpha Vincent to give you a room?"

"I-I really don't know!" I said, feeling frustrated by how overwhelming the situation was getting.

One of them slapped me across the face and pushed me out in the open. It was snowing and the cold was almost unbearable, especially since I was wearing a thin dress.

"I didn't do anything, please" I stammered.

"Look at you. Who's going to help you now? We should kill you and hide your body. Then, we can tell Alpha Vincent that you ran away. He doesn't care about slaves, after all" the biggest of the three said, her green eyes filled with malice.

"Please, don't kill me" I cried, shivers racking my body.

"Look at you. You're so weak and helpless. You should never have come to this town"

"Why do you hate me so much?! I didn't do anything to any of you!" I cried, earning myself a black eye.

I doubled over in pain and they started to kick me in the ribs. Then, I heard it.

Nathan's soothing voice.

'Fight back, Ry! Don't let them trample on you! You have to fight back, no matter what!'

Nathan had said those words to me, the day he'd rescued me from my bullies. I didn't have the strength or the will to do that. I was a mere slave who had been exiled. I didn't have a home or a family. I was all alone in my little world.

"Stop it! Hey, stop hitting her!"

The beating stopped but I kept my eyes closed. The cold had made me numb to the pain.

"Mia, Amy, Stephanie... the three of you should be ashamed of yourself. I'm going to make sure my brother hears about what you've done"

I recognized the voice to be Ava's. I was relieved that there was one person on my side.

"You think he's going to care? She's a slave, Ava. An ordinary slave"

The footsteps faded and I opened my eyes to see Ava hovering over me with a worried look on her face.

"Your eye is swollen. That must hurt really bad. I'm so sorry" she said, helping me to my feet.

"It's okay, it's not your fault" I croaked as she led me to my room and handed me a towel.

"You should have fought them off" Ava said.

I shook my head, slowly.

"Then, what? They were right, Ava. I'm just a mere slave. You shouldn't even be here. Your brother is going to be mad if he finds out that you came here"

"Didn't you have friends? Parents? A boyfriend or something?"

"Maybe, I did. But, they're all gone now. I lost them all" I responded, looking away from her.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, Rylee. Nobody deserves to go through all that"

I forced out a smile and she grabbed my hand.

"I really want to be a friend who can be there for you, Rylee. You won't have to be alone"

A tear slid down my cheek and I squeezed my eyes shut.

"Thank you, Ava"

...

Still sore from the previous night's encounter with the pack members who had bullied me, I was asked to take part in doing the dishes. I met a few omegas. They didn't have a hard time sympathising with me. But, they all gave me the same advice. They all asked me to be careful around the Alpha.

I wanted to do everything I could to stay out of the Alpha's sight. But, it felt like the universe was against me. I was sent to the Alpha's quarters to take part in cleaning it up and doing the laundry.

When I got there, I realized that I was the only one who had been sent there. Alpha Vincent wasn't in the room. I suspected that he was in his study. For a moment, I just stood in front of the open door of his room, confused. I didn't have the courage to go in. I didn't know where to start from.

Mustering courage, I took a deep breath and walked into the room. The bed looked like it had not been used in a very long time. This could mean that Alpha Vincent had never slept in his room.

The black bedcovers were coated with dust and so were the pillows. There were vivid blood stains on the floor. There was a pile of bloodied clothes on the floor as well. I looked around the room, wondering who owned the clothes lying on the floor.

Tensed, I bent down to pick them up. The door to the bathroom creaked open and Alpha Vincent stepped out with a towel wrapped around his waist and a smaller one around his neck. His icy gaze met mine and I blinked.

I expected him to scream at me, but all he did was stare. There was a storm in his eyes. His silence was scarier than I'd imagined. This man was intimidating as hell.

We both stared at each other in silence. Somehow, even in such a complicated situation, I couldn't help but notice how ripped he was. I also noticed how low his towel was hanging around his waist. There was a jagged scar on his left chest. It seemed to be as a result of a very painful wound.

While I remained frozen to the spot, my wolf was stirring. I didn't know why, but there was something about Alpha Vincent that was making her excited. I wanted to run away, but I couldn't move.

"What are you doing here?" He demanded, his face devoid of expressions.

"I-I-"

"Cat got your tongue?"

I parted my lips to say something, but his scent hit my nostrils and my eyes went wide.