~Chapter contains triggering violence~
Sleep didn't come easy to me that night.
At some point, I ended up dozing off, but not until I'd tossed and turned for hours. Dean seemed perfectly relaxed and drifted off long before me. Not only did I find it a miracle that my excessive movement didn't wake him, but I didn't understand how he could sleep so peacefully, knowing the punishment he'd sentenced those girls to.
It was moments like these that made me question the Moon Goddess's decision. How could someone like Dean truly be my perfect match? My other half? I would never deny that I cared for him, he was my mate, after all, but I felt like every time we made progress, something came up to put us back at square one.
Would I even be able to look him in the eye after tomorrow?
~~
When it was time for me to get up and get ready for my day, I realized very quickly that I'd only gotten a couple hours of sleep. I'd slept on less before and would be fine, but my body had slowly become accustom to the luxurious bed, comfort of our mate, and the soothing sleep that followed.
But it was hard to be soothed by your mate's presence knowing he would be publicly abusing young girls the next day.
Dean had already left our wing, of course. I'd woken up around my normal time despite my lack of sleep, and Dean had already gone to his office for the day to take care of whatever necessities before the public whipping.
Did one dress up for these occasions? Although I was dreading it, something told me Dean would expect me to look classy and put together, like a true Luna. I may not agree with this whole ordeal, but I didn't want to upset him, and I certainly didn't want to appear in front of my pack looking messy and unprofessional.
With a long sigh, I finally slid out of bed and walked over to the closet to pick out something to wear. Most of the clothing the maids had gotten for me were neutral colors, which was fine by me, but I felt the need to dress dark for the occasion. Professional, but dark. Behind several pairs of pants, I found a black pencil skirt tucked away and plucked it from its hanger before beginning to rummage through the blouses.
Most of my tops were lighter in color and didn't really match the vibe I was going for with this outfit. As I continued to slide through the hangers, I grew frustrated. Was there not one black shirt in this closet?
Just as I was about to give up and create with some excuse as to why I couldn't attend this so-called event, I spotted it. At the very back of the closet hung a single black blouse. It was a long sleeve button-up made of a silk-like material, and it was perfect.
Feeling satisfied with my funeral-like clothing, I got dressed and then went to the bathroom to finish getting ready. Although I knew there was a high chance of me crying at some point during the day, I decided makeup was necessary. I needed to show that I could be a proper Luna, even if there was a risk of me falling apart in front of my pack.
After staring at myself in the mirror for several minutes, I decided I was satisfied with my appearance, or as satisfied as one could be knowing they were about to witness a very brutal, disturbing scene unfold.
It was time to meet Dean in his office.
As I started to make the short walk that I'd become quite familiar with, I noticed my anxiety grew faster than normal. I was only a few steps out into the hallway, and my hands were already trembling. My heart hadn't begun pounding just yet, but I knew that familiar feeling would follow close behind.
My legs grew numb the closer I got to Dean's office, almost as if they didn't want to continue this journey. My mind and body were fighting against this. Every instinct within me knew it was wrong, but there was nothing I could do to stop it. I was helpless, as usual.
With another deep breath, I reached out and knocked on the office door, not bothering to wait for a response before turning the knob and pushing it open. Inside, Dean was standing in the center of the room wearing a white button-up shirt and dark gray dress slacks. Today, he was also sporting a dark blue tie, which I had to admit, made him look even more handsome, and it appeared he was straightening it out as I entered the room.
How could a man so handsome be so dark and twisted on the inside?
"Audrey, right on time," Dean said, acknowledging me with a nod. He acted so casual, as if we were about to attend a meeting or a luncheon.
I nodded in response. I didn't know what to say to him, and the event hadn't even taken place yet.
Slowly, Dean approached me and casually wrapped an arm around my waist once he was within proper distance. He then leaned down and pressed a warm kiss to my temple. His touch and the fullness of his lips pressed to my skin made me want to curl my body against his. With one little touch, our mate bond had me melting, and for one, brief moment, I almost forgot the horrific events that were about to take place.
Hand in hand, Dean and I exited his office and made our way downstairs and out front to the courtyard. By now, the entire pack had been notified of the whipping, and a large portion of the pack were already seated outside, eager to get good seats.
As dark and twisted as it may seem, that was just how the majority of Dark Root pack members were. Traditionally, we stuck with strict rules and harsh punishments, and because of that, most pack members avoided getting in any trouble.
More than likely, these girls had either not expected Dean to find out about their misconduct, or they thought that he would have agreed with them.
Dean and I took to the podium as I tried to casually wipe my free hand on the edge of my skirt, desperate to stop the perspiration. It was useless, however, as my anxiety was growing exponentially by the second.
"Welcome, Dark Root pack," Dean spoke loudly, his deep voice echoing off the pack house and surrounding buildings.
"Today, we come together to be reminded that there are consequences for every action. Today, I hope each of you are reminded of what happens to those who are not loyal to their Alpha and Luna, and who disobey pack rules."
As he finished speaking, a couple of guards shoved open the front door of the pack house and proceeded to drag Analea and Jessica towards the stage area. Traditionally, the Alpha would carry out the whipping himself, and just the thought of witnessing my mate do such a thing broke my heart in half.
Once the guards got close enough, they pushed Analea and Jessica onto the stage, only about a foot away from mine and Dean's feet. The girls were crying, and their overall appearance suggested that they hadn't slept much last night.
Could anyone really blame them?
As hurt as I was by their behavior and words, this punishment would hurt a lot more. In fact, many people were never quite the same after experiencing a public whipping, and many pack members never looked at them the same again either.
"Analea Highsmith and Jessica Finnigan," Dean started, his voice still booming and silencing the crowd even further. "You two have been sentenced to a public whipping. You will each receive 5 lashings with a silver-coated whip. Do you understand?"
Analea had begun sobbing by the end of Dean's piece, but was attempting to nod in response. Jessica, however, was attempting to keep herself together, despite the tears streaking down her cheeks.
"Y-Yes, Alpha," Jessica finally replied with a stutter.
Dean nodded and then turned to the pack members seated in the audience, "As some of you may already know, these two young women directly insulted our Luna. Disrespect towards your pack, your Alpha, and your Luna, will not be tolerated under any circumstances."
There were a few murmurs amongst the crowd, likely people stating their disgust with the girls on stage. In a way, that disturbed me too. This was something that could've happened to anyone. In fact, it was very likely that many pack members felt the same way as these girls did about Dean and I being mates.
"Is the pack in agreement, that this behavior is unacceptable?" Dean asked, as he let go of my hand and stepped forward to take the whip from one of the guards.
"Yes, Alpha!" the pack shouted in unison.
Without any further words, Dean turned to Jessica.
"Strip!" he commanded.
I cringed at both his words and his tone. Although this was also customary of public whippings, it made the whole situation even worse in my mind. It was incredibly humiliating for those girls.
Analea and Jessica were both now shaking as they slowly reached to the bottoms of their shirts and grasped them before pulling them over their heads. They continued to cry, but didn't dare object. Attempting to defy their Alpha now would only make matters worse.
Once the two girls were down to only their bra and underwear, they froze, on their hands and knees, staring down at the ground. Luckily, tradition didn't call for the victims getting completely nude.
With no further words or hesitation, Dean pulled back the whip and then lurched forward, striking Jessica on her back. Jessica instantly shot up in pain, squealing and clenching her eyes shut as more tears poured out. As soon as Dean pulled the whip back, a deep, red laceration was visible on Jessica's back. I gasped, but tried to remain as composed as possible, despite my heart rate increasing by the second.
Dean then turned and did the same to Analea, and she responded with a similar reaction. She cried out as the skin on her back split open and began to bleed as the impact from the whip combined with the silver burned through her skin. I bit down on my lip, so hard that it drew blood.
One.
He turned back to Jessica and repeated his motions, causing an X-formation to appear across her back as the new wound met the old and split her skin in half. Blood began to drip down her spine, and I slowly took a step back.
Then, he turned to Analea and did the same. Her small body collapsed flat on the ground and started to spasm from the pain shooting through her core.
Two.
My hands were now trembling at such a rate, that it had to be noticeable. Although, I was sure the crowd wasn't focused on me with two young girls being abused in front of them. Before I could react any further, it happened again.
Three.
Dean lurched forward again, thrashing the silver-coated whip against Jessica's back. This time, she collapsed as well. In the blink of an eye, Dean turn and repeated the movement on Analea.
Four.
Now, my legs were trembling. Was my mate really not feeling anything from these girls' pain? No sympathy? No regret? Both girls were limp, laying on the floor of stage with no movement other than their labored breaths. Their backs were bleeding profusely, red streaking down every inch of their skin.
I squeezed my eyes shut, not able to take in any more of the scene before me. The blood, the pain, and especially my mate, inflicting the pain. By now, he'd lashed out again on both of the girls once more.
Five.
A tear slipped from my eye, and I collapsed.
Everyone - I'm SO sorry for the extreme delay. I just can't seem to get my shit together lately. Luckily, I have a couple breaks coming up in the near-future, so I will hopefully be able to give you all some more frequent updates starting next week. I promise I will try my absolute hardest.
In the mean time, what did you think of this chapter? It was pretty intense, and I know it could've been disturbing for some readers. If you haven't already, take a look at Luna Hana, Lena, Zahra, and Skylar! Please continue to read, vote, and comment!
xoxo -V