---
Song: None Of My Friends - Liz lawrence
----
Aysal did not speak the next day, even as she felt her mate's wrath through his words and rigid body language. She could tell that he didn't know whether her speaking was a good thing, considering the things she had said to him in only a few sentences.
Thankfully, he had not put her back into the chains though the bruises, now an ugly purple, were a constant reminder to be wary of him.
He still did not allow her out of the room, locking it behind him when he left in the early hours of the morning, and left her without anything to do except stew in his room and explore.
As soon as he left the room, she jumped up, not hesitating in rummaging through his expansive side tables, trying to find a clue as to where she was.
A clue as to how to leave.
When nothing came from that, she hopped around the room, tampering with the art that hung on the walls, looking for anything forgotten hiding behind plant pots or under the bed.
Halfway through the search, the familiar sound of a key being jammed into the lock halted her, causing her to run back to the bed and sit, poised and collected as if she had not just been rummaging through the room.
Humming a small tune, Jacob, the same man that had tried to coax her into eating for the past few days entered with his trolley of delicacies not far behind him.
"The Alpha finally took you out of those chains, I see," he commented, glancing at the bruises lining her wrists.
He pulled out a small lap table, his wrinkled hands placing a steaming plate of eggs, bacon and french toast in front of her alongside an array of fruits and a water bottle full of water.
Aysal waited patiently for him to follow his routine but instead of leaving as he would usually do, he walked to the other side of the room and moved a luscious green chair around so it would face the bed instead of the fireplace.
Slightly startled, she only looked at him from across the steaming food.
"I don't know what you said to the Alpha but he's been on a rampage all day," He took a pause, looking down at his nail beds for a short moment before looking back up to her, "I don't know what fight you're trying to win but you won't be able to succeed by starving yourself, Luna."
Aysal held his eyes for a moment, refusing to show any reaction to the name he had called her.
She knew she was breaking pack protocol by holding his gaze; in many packs, she-wolves were not allowed to make eye contact with any male wolves until they permitted it.
Every fibre in her body told her that he was right, that she should eat to be strong enough to leave but she couldn't bring herself to pick up even a single strawberry.
She was far too stubborn.
With a deep sigh and one last lingering look, he stood up and slowly rolled the trolley away, leaving her alone with the food and her thoughts.
It was only after he exited the room did she pick up a strawberry, letting herself savour the flavour. As soon as she had eaten one bite of food, her body craved for more and in under a minute, all of the food had disappeared.
She lay in bed for a few more minutes, feeling the relief wash through her body by finally getting the nutrients it needed and she slowly drifted into sleep.
The opening of the door made her spring awake, sitting upright and breathing heavily, ready to attack.
The familiar Alpha that breezed into the room did not ease her tension.
She kept her eyes trained on him as he fully entered the room.
As if sensing her tension, he hesitated by the door, closing it slowly before analysing her, not saying a word as he took in her dishevelled state. It was his first time seeing her this frazzled and he wanted to savour it.
Aysal watched as the Alpha's gaze wandered around the room as if scrutinizing it.
Ever so slowly, he walked towards a singular piece of art that she had been examining before Jacob had come in with the food and watched as he carefully straightened it, looking behind his shoulder at her with a knowing look.
An infuriating smirk settled on his lips.
"If you want to know more about me, how about you use that pretty little voice instead of rummaging through my room?" He said, humour lacing his voice.
He gazed at her for another moment, expecting her to speak up again before huffing to himself and going to the bathroom to continue his daily routine as if nothing had changed.
Aysal hurriedly patted her hair down and straightened her clothes out a little, returning to a sitting position on the bed, waiting for him to come out of the bathroom so that she could prepare to sleep.
All traces of the tray that she had eaten from had gone, meaning that Jacob had come in and taken it away.
It only took him a short while to finish up in the bathroom and he didn't even look in her direction as he walked to his closet. He only looked up as Aysal walked to the bathroom, making sure that she had locked it behind her.
She washed her face, brushed her teeth and overall finished her business before she noticed a small window at the top of the shower.
She eyed it from afar but made no move to try and open it.
When she escaped, it would be well thought out and an Alpha that could hear a pin drop would not be in hearing distance.
She would be placed back in those shackles almost immediately and she knew it.
Tomorrow, she thought to herself as she returned to the bedroom.
The sight of her mate reading was not a surprise for her, especially since she had corrected him when he used his computer. She moved to the closet, opening all of the doors only to see that no space had been cleared for any clothes for her.
"Will I have any clothes or am I to remain in this for the remainder of my stay here?" She asked, sarcasm and annoyance lacing her otherwise polite words.
"I will arrange them, for now just take my clothes as you see fit," He all but murmured from the other side of the bed.
A beat of silence passed before Aysal closed the closet doors enough to make a sound for him to hear and got into bed still in her clothes, careful not to touch him.
She would rather wear her dirty clothes than put anything of his on.
He didn't react, only slowly flipping the page in his book. Not more than five minutes later, he placed the book down.
Aysal's breathing hitched as silence stretched through the room, with her back to him, she didn't know what he was doing.
His voice interrupted her thoughts.
"Tomorrow, you will attend classes to prepare you to become a sufficient Luna and a proper wife, for me and for my pack," He said, his voice low and quiet but Aysal heard everything.
Proper wife, she thought to herself, fuck that.
All too soon, the final light in the room switched off and they were cloaked in darkness. Aysal had kept herself awake for most of the nights she had the Alpha beside her, only allowing herself to slumber once he had exited for his duties but she could hardly fight against the tugs of sleep.
As soon as she felt her body even somewhat relax, warm fingers met the dip between her neck and shoulder, stroking the place where many choose to mark their mates.
Her body tensed yet again and her breathing hitched, her body ready to flee if she felt even the slightest puncture.
The fingers left her neck but she did not relax, the promise of the future too heavy for her to bear.
She needed to leave.
She barely got a moment of reprise before an arm snaked around her waist pulling her body from the opposite side of the bed and into a hard stomach.
Her heart thundered in her chest but she knew she couldn't leave his grasp, he'd just punish her again. She was in his territory, not hers and she knew it.
The tug of sleep that pulled at her earlier had vanished, leaving only adrenaline in its wake.
Aysal did not sleep a wink that night.
---
1510 words
what are yall thinking about this book?
are you liking the characters?
ik its different from my usual theme so thats probably why theres less people reading it lmao
anyways thank you if you are reading i appreciate the support
okay bye