Chapter 3

Diana’s POV

The cell was smaller than the one back home and smelled like old blood. I sat on the dirty mattress and pulled my knees up to my chest while trying not to think about what was going to happen to me.

I am a breeder now. I had always dreamed that my first time would be with my mate after we found each other. I used to imagine how gentle and loving he would be when we finally completed the mating bond. Instead, I was going to be used by a monster who would probably kill me when he got bored.

The tears came again and I couldn't stop them from falling down my cheeks. I pressed my face into my hands and tried to be quiet. Rowan's face kept appearing in my mind and I wondered if he was safe somewhere or if they had hurt him after dragging him away.

I must have cried myself to sleep because the next thing I knew, the sound of keys jangling woke me up. I opened my eyes to see a figure standing outside my cell

"Get up." A woman appeared with keys in her hand. She looked like she might be the head of the cleaning staff based on her clothing and the way she carried herself with authority.

"I'm not going anywhere with you." I stayed exactly where I was sitting on the floor.

"Listen to me very carefully, girl." The woman unlocked my cell door and stepped inside. "You can either follow me willingly right now, or I can have the guards drag you kicking and screaming. Either way, you're coming with me."

Her voice held the kind of warning that reminded me of the older women who had helped raise me in the pack house. Despite everything that had happened, some part of me still responded to that motherly tone.

"Fine." I pushed myself up from the floor and walked toward her.

"Good choice," she said as we left the cell area and walked down a long hallway. "My name is Martha and I've been working in this pack house for fifteen years."

"Where are you taking me?" I asked quietly as we passed by several doors that were all locked tight.

"To get you ready." She continued walking down the hallway and I had no choice but to follow. "Alpha Kieran wants to see you within the hour."

The woman led me through several corridors until we reached a large bathroom where three other women were waiting. They all looked like staff members and none of them seemed particularly friendly toward me.

"This is Diana," Martha announced to the group. "She's the new breeder from the Blackfang pack."

The women looked at me with pity expressions. One of them, a younger woman with short brown hair, shook her head slowly.

"She's so young," the brown haired woman whispered to Martha. "How old is she?"

"Twenty-two," Martha answered while she started running water in the large bathtub. "Alpha Kieran specifically requested someone in their early twenties.

"Poor thing has no idea what's coming," another woman said as she laid out towels and bottles of soap.

I stood there listening to them talk about me like I wasn't even in the room and fear started growing in my chest. "What do you mean I don't know what's coming? What's going to happen to me?"

"Strip down and get in the bath, before asking any questions." the first woman ordered as she pointed toward a large tub filled with steaming water.

"I can bathe myself, thank you." I crossed my arms over my chest and stayed where I was standing.

"Not today, you can't." She grabbed my arm and started pulling me toward the tub. "We have specific instructions about how you need to be prepared."

The other women moved closer and I realized I was outnumbered. Fighting them would only make this situation worse, so I reluctantly started removing my dirty clothes.

The hot water actually felt good against my sore muscles, but I couldn't relax knowing what was coming next. The women scrubbed my skin until it was raw and washed my hair with expensive-smelling soap.

"What exactly am I being prepared for?" I asked while one of them worked tangles out of my hair with a brush.

"Alpha Kieran likes his breeders to look perfect when he first meets them," the head woman said without looking up from the clothes she was laying out. "First impressions matter to him."

"And what happens if he doesn't like what he sees?" The words came out before I could stop them.

The women exchanged looks that made my blood turn cold.

"Let's just say you better hope he finds you acceptable. Because girls who disappoint Alpha Kieran tend to disappear."

My hands started shaking as the reality of my situation hit me all over again. I wasn't just a prisoner here - I was completely disposable. If Alpha Kieran decided I wasn't worth keeping around, nobody would ever see me again.

"The last breeder lasted six months before she started refusing his orders," one of the younger women whispered while drying my hair. "They found pieces of her clothing in the forest but never found her body."

"Stop talking," the head woman snapped, but the damage was already done.

"Another girl tried to escape through the kitchen window," a different woman added quietly. "The guards brought her back and Alpha Kieran made the entire pack watch while he fed her to his hunting wolves as punishment."

I felt sick to my stomach and had to grip the sides of the tub to keep from falling over. These weren't just warnings - they were telling me about real women who had died horrible deaths.

"He breaks bones when he gets angry," the first woman continued in a whisper. "I've seen girls with their arms twisted backward and their legs bent in ways that aren't natural."

"Enough!" The head woman grabbed the younger woman's arm and squeezed until she winced. "You'll terrify her before she even meets him."

But it was too late. The brutal images they had painted were already burned into my mind and I couldn't stop imagining myself torn apart by wild animals or broken beyond repair.

They pulled me out of the bath and handed me a red dress. The dress was made of thin red silk that barely covered anything important. It had thin straps and a neckline that dipped dangerously low while the hem stopped at the very top of my thighs.

The undergarments were even worse - tiny lace pieces that felt more like decoration than actual clothing. Everything about the outfit was designed to make me feel exposed and helpless.

I wanted to protest but the stories they had just told me made it clear that refusing wasn't an option. Instead, I stood there feeling completely disgusted with myself as they dressed me like a doll.

"Perfect," the head woman said after they finished with my hair and makeup. "Alpha Kieran should be very pleased with how you look."

They led me through more corridors toward whatever room he was waiting in.

We stopped in front of massive wooden doors carved with wolf symbols. The head woman knocked three times and a deep voice from inside called for us to enter.

"Keep your eyes on the floor until he gives you permission to look at him," she whispered in my ear before pushing the doors open.

The room was enormous with high ceilings and expensive furniture everywhere. I could feel someone watching me from across the space but I kept my eyes fixed on the stone floor like I had been told.

"Alpha Kieran," the head woman spoke respectfully. "The new breeder is here as requested."

"Leave us," a man's voice commanded from somewhere in front of me.

I heard footsteps as the women left and the doors closed behind me with a final click. Now I was alone with Alpha Kieran while wearing practically nothing.

"Look at me," he ordered.

I kept my eyes focused on the floor and tried to control my breathing.

"I said look at me." His voice carried the power of an Alpha command that made my body want to obey automatically.

I slowly raised my head and found myself looking into the most beautiful face I had ever seen. Strong jaw, dark hair, and piercing blue eyes that seemed to see straight through me.

The moment our eyes met, I felt it hit me like lightning.

The mate bond.

How was this possible? I didn't even have a wolf, so how could I feel the mate bond?

But there was no mistaking the electric pull that suddenly connected us or the way my heart started racing for completely different reasons. This terrifying man was supposed to be mine and I was supposed to be his.

But Alpha Kieran Blackwood stared back at me with the coldest gray eyes I had ever seen, and his face showed nothing but complete irritation.