"Why don't you take your revenge on my father instead?"

Despite the difficulty, Aurora managed to voice her question. She felt it was unfair that she had to bear the brunt of Alpha Cris's hatred for something she had no part in.

"I have the same question as you. Why me and my people?" Cris didn't raise his voice. Even if he had, Aurora wouldn't have heard him. Cris didn't raise his voice. Even if he had, Aurora wouldn't have heard him. Too terrified to meet his cold, deep eyes, she focused on his lips instead.

"Your father razed my pack, killed my parents, my little sister, and my brother, and enslaved my people. They let me live just to endure those hellish ten years as his slave. Why me?"

Tears streamed down Aurora's face. She was terrified, but for some reason, she understood him—she could feel his pain. This wasn't fair for him either.

"Please..." Aurora whimpered as she felt his hand squeeze her breast. No one had ever touched her like this before, and even though she was never her father's pride, no one had ever dared to degrade her.

"Please? I've said that word countless times, but what did your father say? He told me, 'You can beg all you want, but I will do as I please. That's how power works.'"

Aurora screamed in agony as he pinched her nipple so hard that the pain nearly overwhelmed her.

"Don't cry. This is just the beginning. The day your father died was the day you became my slave, my property, and I became your master."

Through her blurry vision, as tears welled up in her eyes, Aurora read his lips and knew he was true to his word. This was only the beginning.

Cris growled, irritated by her pain and tears. He turned her around, forcing her to kneel and pressing her head into the soft pillow as he began to undress her.

Her father had done this to the women in his pack and forced Cris to watch every moment of it.

He positioned himself behind her, ready to make her feel the same agony he and his people had endured. She would know their pain.

It was fortunate, Cris thought, that the alpha had two children. He could torment them as he pleased—after all, wasn't that how power worked?

Aurora thrashed desperately as she felt her dress being torn apart with ease, the fabric shredding like tissue. She shivered as the night air brushed against her bare skin, while his rough fingers gripped her thighs.

She knew what was coming and tried to prepare herself, but when faced with the horror, she couldn't help but recoil in fear.

But then, Cris suddenly stopped.

Aurora didn't know why, but she felt him move away, the weight on the bed lifting. He got off the bed, and she immediately grabbed a blanket to cover herself. His back was to her as he pulled his pants back on.

"What is that on your back?" he asked, but since she couldn't read his lips, Aurora didn't know what he was saying. "I'm asking you—what happened to your back? Who did that to you?"

Cris knew the alpha's daughter was a runt, plagued with health issues, which explained why she rarely appeared in public.

During his years as a slave in this pack, he had only seen her twice—and he hadn't paid her much attention. Why would he? She was just a pale, gloomy little girl who seemed to fade into the background.

"Answer my question." Cris turned around to face Aurora, glaring at her for not answering.

The young girl clutched the blanket around her small, fragile body, but Cris had already seen her. She was so diminutive and frail that even a starved slave appeared healthier than her.

How had they been feeding the alpha's daughter all this time? And how could she have such glaring scars on her back?

Yes, her back was covered in scars.

As a shifter, she should have been able to heal without a trace—unless she had been injured by something made of silver, like the scar on Cris's face.

But who would do that to the alpha's daughter in her own pack?

"One more time—I'm asking you, who did that to you?!" Cris couldn't believe his own slave was ignoring him.

He strode across the room and forced her to face him, noticing the glaring mark on her chin where he had gripped her earlier. It was red and slightly bleeding. She should have healed such a minor injury by now—why hadn't she?

Cris frowned as he looked into her ocean-blue eyes. Her auburn hair fell across half of her face, cascading onto the blanket she clutched so desperately.

"Answer me," Cris hissed viciously.

"What?" Aurora managed to choke out, tightening her grip on the blanket as if it were her only protection—though she knew Cris could easily tear it away if he wished. "What question?"

Aurora had missed his question and was now left bewildered, unsure how to respond.

On the other hand, Cris was no less confused. He frowned deeply, a crack forming in his usual callousness, revealing a flicker of emotion beyond anger and hatred.

"Get out," Cris finally commanded. "Get out of here."

He knew everything about Aurora's brother, the next in line to be alpha of the pack, but the little girl had never interested him enough to learn more.

Cris released Aurora, and she scrambled away from the bed, naked after he had torn her dress apart.

"I… I'll put on your shirt." Aurora spotted Cris's shirt on the floor and quickly pulled it on. She glanced at him, and he didn't stop her.