Restlessness gripped me, pinning me to the edge of the bed, eyes locked on the door. My stomach had already growled more times than I could count, reminding me that I hadn't eaten in... well, I wasn't sure when. The apple the old woman had given me earlier during the so-called "beautification" process had barely dulled the gnawing hunger.

That nagging voice in the back of my mind kept insisting that I was safe with Alpha Stefano. But the rational part of me wasn't buying it. Antonio's ...