The Prophecy Series

ESTELLA

“Put me down,” I growled as I fought against his grip, but it was no use.

I felt embarrassed and turned on by him all at once.

“No,” he said sternly.

I started thrashing punches at his back and kicking his stomach.

He used his free hand to smack my ass hard, and I almost yelped. It stung.

“You’re an asshole,” I grunted as I started scratching at his back, trying anything to get free.

His hand smacked my ass again, even harder than the first time, and I couldn’t hold back the yelp.

I growled as we approached the pack again, and people watched as he again carried me through the pack. I covered my face in humiliation.

“I hate him,” Bell whimpered, and I heard a growl erupt from his chest. Had he heard what she said?

This time he didn’t stop walking at the pack house. He continued past the warrior’s training center, and I had no idea where we were going.

“He is going to kill us.” Bell was in a panic, and this time, he chuckled.

Yup, he could hear her. Was that because of the mate bond?

After a few minutes, he walked up some steps and into a house. I hadn’t been here before. He set me down on my feet and took a few steps back. His eyes were still black, his wolf in control.

“If you try to run, you will be in even more trouble. Don’t test me.” He growled in anger. I didn’t respond. I just stood there staring at his angry expression.

He walked into the kitchen, and I looked around the house we were in. He had his own house. I guess that made sense. He was the alpha.

It smelled like him—warm and crisp rain. I could tell that no one but him used this house.

“Upstairs,” he said, pointing up the stairs. “Now.”

I looked at him as if I were going to challenge him, but I knew I wouldn’t win, and he had already humiliated me enough.

He grabbed my arm once we reached the top of the second floor and pulled me into what appeared to be his office.

He snatched my bag and emptied it out on the floor, searching it for Goddess knows what.

“Take off your hoodie,” he said, looking at me. I did as he said as he eyed my body.

“Shoes,” he said, leaning against his desk.

I took off my shoes and socks, throwing them to the side.

“Pants,” he said, looking at my lower half.

“What?” I asked, and his face was angered because I asked him.

“Off.”

I took them off. I was only wearing a pair of underwear and a loose tank top with a bra underneath.

“Now,” he said. “I am going to punish you.” He eyed my body.

“What?” I asked. Looking at his dark eyes, I knew he meant it. Bell and I were on the same page: we didn’t like him.

“I didn’t stutter,” he growled.

I wasn’t scared of him, and I was worried because he was unpredictable.

Alphas were naturally dominant, and right now, he was expressing his place as an alpha. More specifically, my alpha.

In any other situation, I might have been turned on, but I hadn’t done anything to deserve this.

My mother always told me that when you meet your mate, things change. They look at you with love and adoration. All they want to do is give you love, but that was not what was happening with him.

I didn’t even know his name! Ryan was right about mates, and I hated myself for ever doubting him.

“You could run,” Bell whispered. His eyes got wide, and I knew he heard her. ~“Sorry.” ~

How he heard her was beyond me.

He reached out, grabbed my arm, and pulled me toward him. My breath hitched once I was only a few inches away from his face.

“Why?” I asked in a hushed tone.

He dismissed my question with a roll of his eyes. “You are my mate, and you will obey me. You will not run, and you will respect me,” he said, glaring at me.

“Respect is earned, not given,” I spat. I was boiling from the inside out.

“I suggest you watch the way you speak to me. You might find yourself in an extremely uncomfortable position,” he growled.

“You wouldn’t dare.” I could feel my face grow hotter and hotter.

“Do you really want to test me?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

I gulped. I didn’t even know this guy.

He let out a chuckle and pushed me toward his desk. “Lean forward and place your hands flat on the desk,” he said, sneering.

I was scared, so scared, but I did as he said. He used his feet to separate my legs and pushed me farther over the desk. I couldn’t lie; I was turned on but still scared out of my mind.

I heard him grab something off a shelf before walking back toward me. I felt it before I heard it: the sharp sting of a leather strap hitting my ass.

I yelped, unable to hold my tears back any longer. I felt it again, followed by the sound, and again.

I tried to stay as still as possible but couldn’t help jumping on the third smack.

“Don’t move,” he demanded, placing his hand on my back to keep me in place.

Nerves shot throughout my body. Sparks weren’t going off throughout me. It was emptiness. I was empty.

I heard his arm swing back before the leather strap came in contact with my ass again. I yelped again. At this point, I was sobbing. He did it once more, and my knees almost buckled from under me.

I wasn’t sure why, but he stopped. Maybe it was my sobbing, or maybe he realized I didn’t deserve this as I did nothing wrong.

“You know, if this wasn’t supposed to be a punishment, my dick would be buried deep inside your sopping wet pussy right now,” he whispered.

I could feel his hot breath all over me. “Please, don’t,” I begged.

“And why not?” he asked. He grabbed me by my hair and pulled me to stand up.

“Please,” I begged. I wasn’t sure what I was asking anymore. The lines were so blurred.

“The next words out of your mouth better be an apology, or you’ll find yourself in an even more compromised position.” He sneered.

What he wanted me to apologize for, I had no idea. But I had been humiliated enough for one day.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered as I started crying again.

“Good, you should be,” he growled. “If you ever try to touch another man, leave, or talk back to me again, you will regret it.” He spoke in a cruel tone. I couldn’t even look at him.

“Look at me,” he growled in his alpha tone.

It was the first time I heard his alpha tone being used with me, and Bell purred at the sound. I looked up at him to see he was now sitting behind his desk with a stern expression.

I didn’t even care what I looked like right now. I’ve looked worse, and I don’t care what he thinks of me. Not anymore, at least.

“Trust me when I say that I am going easy on you. Next time it won’t be easy. And you will be bare bent over my desk. Do I make myself clear?”

Tears continued to fall from my eyes, and I said nothing.

“If you don’t say, ‘Yes, Alpha,’” he growled, standing up and walking closer to me. My heart was racing within my chest.

“Yes, Alpha,” I mumbled as loud as I could, hoping that he wouldn’t touch me.

“Let’s go,” he said as he started walking out of the office.

I stumbled over my feet for a second before following him. Once I exited the office, he grabbed my arm and took me to the room farthest away.

He opened the door and pushed me inside before shutting and locking it behind me.

The room wasn’t his. It didn’t even smell like him.

“We don’t want to smell like him anyways,” Bell spat in disgust. I knew that, secretly, she wanted him, but I didn’t question her motives because I loathed him.

“Shh. Please, I don’t want him to hear. He’ll come back,” I whispered.

I collapsed on the bed as my heart constricted.

“He won’t hurt us. I won’t let him,” she said, trying to soothe me.

“We wouldn’t be in this situation if it wasn’t for you,” I spat.

“This isn’t my fault.”

“It is. You knew. That’s why you shut down on me for the past week. If you had said something, we could have left.” I groaned in pain.

“You wouldn’t have left.” She chuckled. Deep down, she still wanted our mate.

“Yes, I would have!” I grunted.

“Why?”

“Ryan told me how some mates treat each other. That’s another reason why I never left the pack to look for my mate after mom died. I was scared I was going to get hurt.

“I knew I would either be trapped in a loveless relationship where I was the punching bag, or I was going to get rejected,” I whimpered as tears fell down my face.

“I don’t get your obsession with him.”

“I’m not obsessed with Ryan. He was there. I didn’t have a mate and his rejected him,” I said.

“Ryan will never love you the way our mate will.”

“Our mate doesn’t love us. Ryan does. Don’t be a fool. You know you love Ryan’s wolf,” I cried.

“Stop being so dramatic.” She sighed.

“My mom died because of a stupid mistake my father made, but he claimed it was my fault. Our mate doesn’t love us, and you are calling me dramatic? No, I’m done.

“If he wants me as his punching bag, so be it. I don’t care anymore. You are probably right about Ryan. He only fucked me because I was there,” I said as anger rushed over me.

“Maybe this is his way of expressing his feelings.” She sounded somewhat hopeful.

“I don’t care anymore, Bell. I don’t want to hear your voice again,” I said before shutting her completely out. I sobbed until I couldn’t sob anymore.