Elara Thornfield
Beta Kieran Stormfang’s words hung in the air of Alpha Command like a poison fog. My four-foot-five body went completely rigid, my Zeta wolf trembling in sheer, unadulterated terror.
Alpha Ronan Blackridge slowly lowered his cigarette, his black complexion turning dangerously dark as his lethal eyes snapped from the wax-sealed scroll to my pale face.
"A virginity inspection?" Ronan asked, his deep Alpha voice dropping into a register so low it vibrated the stone beneath my feet. "By whose order?"
"The Thornfield Council," Kieran replied, handing the parchment across the heavy oak desk. "Your mother and half-brother filed the petition with the elders an hour ago, Alpha. They claim Elara has been sneaking out of the Blackridge Alpha Fortress to sell her body to wandering rogues."
My heart hammered so hard against my ribs I thought my chest would split open.
Ronan unrolled the scroll, his sharp gaze sweeping over the written runes before he let out a harsh, bitter laugh. "They are demanding five hundred silver coins from the pack treasury to cancel the public examination."
"I... I did not ask for this, Alpha," I choked out, my voice breaking as I fell to my knees before his massive frame, my submissive instincts overwhelming my ability to stand. "I swear on my bloodline, I have never touched a rogue!"
Ronan stepped around the desk, his dark, muscular five-foot-eight figure towering over me like a storm cloud. He grabbed my jaw with his thick fingers, forcing my head back until I was looking straight into his cold, black eyes.
"Tell me, Zeta," he drawled, his thumb pressing hard against my lower lip, tracing the sensitive skin until my breath hitched. "What is your secondary trade?"
"I... I carve sacred relief stones for the lower-caste shrines," I lied frantically, tears welling up in my eyes as my blood burned under his touch. "I carve them on my rest cycles to buy food for the Thornfield elders. It has nothing to do with pack business!"
"Relief stones," Ronan repeated, his gaze dropping to my mouth, then down to the heavy swell of my chest where my breath was coming in short, panicked gasps. "And you do not sell your body?"
"Never, Alpha Ronan!" I sobbed, my palms sweating against the cold floor. "If you do not believe me, you can cut my wages. You can forbid me from leaving the fortress!"
Ronan stared down at me in absolute silence for several agonizing seconds, his dark aura crushing the breath from my lungs. The scent of burnt tobacco and raw male cedarwood radiated off him, instantly making my wet core throb with remembered heat. My wolf whimpered in absolute betrayal of my fear, longing for his heavy hands to tear my armor away just like he did in the lodge.
"Dismissed, Kieran," Ronan commanded without looking away from me.
Kieran bowed his head. "Yes, Alpha."
The heavy oak door clicked shut, leaving us entirely alone in Alpha Command.
Ronan pulled his hand back, reaching for his silver lighter. Snap. The blue flame illuminated his sharp jawline as he lit the cigarette held between his fingers.
"You may leave, Elara," he said smoothly, turning his back to me and looking out over Moonhaven Ridge.
"Leave?" I stammered, picking my four-foot-five body up off the floor on shaking legs. "You... you are not handing me over to the council?"
"Go," he repeated curtly, dismissing me with a wave of his hand.
I did not wait for him to change his mind. I scrambled out of Alpha Command, my legs barely holding my weight as I practically ran down the corridor toward the lower-caste quarters.
When I slammed the door to the Ashbourne Pack house, Willow Ashbourne jumped out of her chair, dropping her wooden bowl.
"Why did you take so long?" Willow gasped, hailing me over as she grabbed my arms. "Why didn't you answer my comm-stone?"
I collapsed onto the wooden bench, my head buried in my hands as my body shook with delayed sobs. "He saw your texts, Willow."
Willow froze, her face draining of all color until she looked as pale as a corpse. "He... he saw what I sent?"
"He read the preview," I wept, wiping the cold sweat from my forehead. "He asked me what I was hiding that would cause him to catch me. I had to tell him I was illegally selling stone carvings on the side!"
Willow’s breath hitched in her chest. "Did he believe you?"
"I do not know," I choked out, my voice trembling. "He let me go, but my brother and mother just submitted a formal petition to the Thornfield Council. They are demanding a public virginity inspection by tomorrow morning unless I give them five hundred silver coins!"
Willow’s jaw dropped in absolute shock. "They did what? Your own bloodline is setting you up!"
"If the pack elders inspect me, they will instantly see that my seal is broken," I whispered, my eyes wild with terror. "They will know a powerful Alpha took me, and Beta Kieran will trace the scent straight back to Alpha Ronan's den!"
"You cannot go to that inspection," Willow hissed, gripping my shoulders tight. "Never use texts again. If we need to speak while you are in Alpha Command, call me directly. But right now, you have to get those silver coins."
Before I could answer, a loud, thunderous knock echoed through the heavy timber door of our quarters, rattling the iron hinges.
I froze, my heart dropping straight into my stomach.
"Open in the name of the Blackridge Alpha Dominion!" Beta Kieran’s voice roared from the hallway. "Elara Thornfield, by order of Alpha Ronan Blackridge, you are being taken into custody!"
