Rosa's POV

I woke to the dull thud of my body bouncing against a wooden surface. My head throbbed, and I could taste blood on my lips from where they’d split. My eyes were covered by a tight blindfold, plunging me into total darkness.

Panic swelled inside me. I tried to move, but my hands were bound behind my back, and my ankles were tied together. The rough motion of the cart beneath me rattled my bones, sending wave after wave of pain through my body.

Where was I? How long had I been unconscious?

The air was filled with the musty scent of damp wood and the acrid stench of sweat. The blindfold pressed against my skin, suffocating my vision, and leaving me with only my hearing to navigate the terrifying unknown around me.

Suddenly, the cart lurched to a stop.

“We’ve reached WolfClaw pack,” a gruff voice said from somewhere near the front of the cart.

My heart stuttered. WolfClaw pack. The name made my mouth go bitter with fear. I had heard stories about the notorious pack, how ruthless their Alpha was, how the wolves there lived by the law of the strongest. What was I doing here? Why had they brought me to this place?

A second voice spoke, sharp and low. “Then let’s get this over with before Alpha Damon realizes we’re gone.”

My blood froze. I recognized that voice. Beta Jasper.

So Damon hadn’t ordered this. He wasn’t the one behind my capture and… sale. A tiny spark of relief flared inside me, but it was quickly killed by the crushing fear that followed. If Alpha Damon wasn’t behind this, who was? Who had orchestrated my kidnapping, and why?

I shifted slightly, feeling the rope burn into my skin as I tried to loosen it. My wrists ached from being tied so tightly, and the rough fibers of the rope chafed against my raw skin with every movement I made. I had no idea how long I’d been tied up like this, but the numbness in my hands suggested it had been a while.

For a few minutes, there was silence except for the distant rustle of trees and the occasional snort from the horses. My breathing was ragged, as I waited for what came next.

Then I heard it; the sound of another cart approaching. Hooves clopped against the hard ground, and wheels creaked as they rolled to a halt nearby. A door swung open with a loud thud, and voices began to murmur.

I strained my ears, trying to make out what was being said. Beta Jasper’s voice was low and clipped as he spoke to someone unfamiliar. The new voice was grating and harsh and impatient.

“I’ll give you 200 gold coins for her,” the nasty man said.

“Two hundred?” Jasper replied, sounding insulted. “She’s young and strong. She's a virgin. Surely she’s worth at least five hundred.”

I swallowed hard, my throat dry. They were bargaining for me. I was nothing but a piece of property to them, being sold like cattle to the highest bidder.

The harsh voice grunted. "But she has been claimed by your Alpha already. How am I sure that the mating bond between them isn't strong?"

"Because it isn't." Beta Jasper replied. "Alpha Damon rejected her just before we brought her here."

The harsh voice sighed. “Fine. Four hundred, and not a coin more.”

There was a pause, and then the clinking sound of gold coins being counted out. My stomach twisted in revulsion. This was it. I was about to be sold off like an object.

“Deal,” Beta Jasper said finally.

A wave of nausea hit me, but I fought it down. I couldn’t afford to panic, not now. I had to stay calm. But the fear stole my ability to think, or to even breathe.

The nasty man barked an order. “Lucan! Get over here. Untie her and take off the blindfold.”

Lucan? Who was Lucan?

Heavy footsteps approached, and before I could process what was happening, rough hands grabbed my shoulders. I flinched at the touch, my muscles tensing as the blindfold was yanked from my eyes. The sudden light was blinding, and I blinked rapidly, trying to adjust.

When my vision finally cleared, I found myself staring into the most striking pair of silver-blue eyes I had ever seen.

I gasped, my breath catching in my throat.

The man standing in front of me was tall, so tall that his broad shoulders threw a shadow over my face. His hair was dark, almost black, falling messily over his forehead. But it was his eyes that held me captive, like molten silver, sharp and piercing. His expression was one of shock, but under the surface, I could sense something more.

My heart jumped in surprise. There was something about him, something that tugged at me deep inside. A strange, powerful pull I couldn’t explain. My wolf stirred within me, recognizing something my mind hadn’t yet processed.

I couldn’t tear my eyes away from him. My breathing quickened, my body reacting to his presence in a way that made no sense. This pull—it was more than just attraction. It was primal. Instinctive.

A bond.

The realization hit me like a lightning strike. This man, this stranger who had just removed my blindfold....

This man was my second-chance mate.