His Little Human Mate

Chapter 3

Noella

I had no idea what the word meant or if it was even a word, but the second it left my mouth, the man in front of me started to growl. That's right. He growled. Like. A. Dog.

The panic that had eased rushed back in with a vengeance as I slowly stood, trying desperately to keep steady despite the trembling of my legs.

"You have no right to speak that word, rogue," he practically snarled.

Rogue? Why did I feel like I just walked into an entirely different dimension?

I pulled every ounce of confidence I didn't have and squared my shoulders.

"I am not a rogue, and I would like to speak with the Alpha."

That sounded normal, right?

The man paused before sniffing the air with a frown on his face. Was he...... smelling me? What in the actual-

"Kyler!" A voice from my left shouted.

Big, bulky, broody, and way too muscular. That's what walked out from the trees. He was at least twice my height, and I didn't even think he would have to do much but pinch me and I'd pop.

I was going to die here. I was going to die alone in the forest and nobody would know.

"Stop fraternizing with the rogue and haul her ass to the pack house," Mr. Muscular said.

"She's demanding to speak with the Alpha, and I'm not locking her up without a cause," the man I now knew as Kyler, said.

"The cause is that she's a rogue!"

Something incredibly strange happened then. Kyler's eyes turned frosty, like fogged glass in the winter, and then Mr. Muscular's did the same. It went on for not even a minute before they both turned back to me.

I swallowed nervously as they stared.

"Go talk to him, but be fast, and tell me his answer as soon as you get it," Mr. Muscular said.

I blinked, and Suddenly, Kyler was gone.

"How did he..?"

Pressure on my throat hit me right before a tree trunk met my back. I gasped as my hands rose to grip his, but his hold was ironclad.

"Listen, I don't know who you think you are, but showing up here with a masked scent is a great way to get yourself killed. You just invited yourself into a world of misery."

I shook my head aggressively as my eyes welled from the pressure.

"I don't-" I tried to take a deep breath and failed miserably. "I'm not... who... you think... I am."

He sneered at me, and everything within me recoiled.

"That's what they all say."

He released me, and I dropped into the snow, gasping for air that couldn't come fast enough.

"Don't move a single inch, because, unlike Kyler, I will kill you on the spot."

A shudder moved up my spine as I wrapped my arms around my trembling figure. I hadn't even realized how cold it was until then, and I couldn't seem to stop the shaking that overcame my body.

"Maybe if you gave up the charade and shifted, you would warm up."

What?

"I don't understand," I whimpered.

The weird eye fog thing happened again to him, and then he grabbed my shoulder and yanked me up.

"Looks like you get to see the Alpha, but I can guarantee it won't be on your terms."

I didn't know whether to be happy or terrified, so both settled in my gut as he pulled me through the forest. I knew I was being dragged into something I couldn't walk out of, but there was nothing I could do except follow the man in front of me.

*•*•*•*•*•*

Adrenaline started to wear off around 20 steps in, and I had forgotten about the twist my hand took in my fall, but the pain that was pulsing through it wasn't afraid to remind me. The chills from earlier had only gotten worse, but I felt like I was burning up, which made no sense.

"You walk like a handicapped sloth," Mr. Muscler grumbled.

There was no way I was about to give him a reason to toss me by whining about my hand, so I said nothing.

"Have you finally realized you're not in charge?"

My body gave a violent shiver, and I wrapped my arms tighter around myself as I kept my eyes glued to the ground to keep the dizziness at bay.

He chuckled at my silence, and I held back a whimper.

"He's gonna have some fun with you, isn't he?"

I swallowed the bile that rose. I would not show this arrogant bully how utterly terrified I was. I would not succumb to helplessness. There was a way out of this. There had to be.

We walked for a while longer before the shadows ahead soon turned into buildings, and I was in awe of the hugeness of the space. There were so many houses, gates, gardens, fields. It was massive.

People had always said that the forbidden forest was full of monsters, and trees that howled with warnings, and it could've just been my mind hallucinating from pain and exhaustion, but this town was... beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. It was a whole life that lived just beyond our reach.

"Move."

My wonder crumbled beneath rough hands and harsh words. No matter how beautiful this place was, it would most likely be the last thing I saw. Monsters covered in roses, I guess.

We approached the largest building, and my eyes tracked six floors before I was roughly pulled inside.

My head swam, and nausea threatened to push my stomach upward, but I breathed deep and slow, trying to focus on my surroundings. Marble flooring made my boots click lightly, and my breath was no longer fogging my vision. The walls were white. There was a twirly staircase to the right. I could see-

Nope, it wasn't working.

"I'm gonna be sick," I whispered, and the man barely had time to move away before I was heaving my guts onto the marble.

"Jeez," he muttered. "You rogues are disgusting sometimes."

The comment made me pause, but then another bout of sickness had me forgetting that he even spoke.

"Oh my goodness!" A woman's voice sounded from my right. "You poor soul! What happened?"

A warm hand touched my shoulder before it was ripped away.

"Not now, Cara. Miss Sickness here has a straight route to the dungeon after she's done hurling."

"You can be truly heartless sometimes, you know that?"

"My job description doesn't require niceties, so I'm failing to see the problem."

A scoff sounded right before I was yanked to my feet once again, and the room spun as we started to walk again.

The rest of the trip was a blur of dizzying pain and more nausea, so finally being able to sit down, even if it was in a cell, was bliss.

"Welcome to your new suite. I'm going to get the Alpha, but he tends to be busy, so I'd make yourself comfortable," Muscles said.

His footsteps were the last thing I heard, and then silence was in the room finally. Maybe? I couldn't tell because my ears started to ring. My head got way too heavy all of a sudden, and it hit concrete as it dropped.

The cold floor cooled my cheeks, and it felt so good to get a break from the heat.

Maybe I was dreaming, and when I woke up my father would be right there, relieved that I came back for him.

When I woke up everything would be normal again. At least, that's what I tell myself as my eyes shut, blocking out everything until unconsciousness took me under its wave of blissful ignorance, and I slept.

A/N
Thank you for reading!
I would love to know what you think so far!