Claimed│✓

THIRTY-TWO: WITHERING SOUL

[thirty-one]

"What happened to him?" was the first thing I asked when I looked upon my father's bloodied and battered body. For a brief moment, I'd hoped he'd just been unlucky enough to be apprehended and was innocent and that Alana was crazy.

But still it was unsettling how much she knew that I knew I couldn't refute.

"I don't know." Eric said, "You have any clue Gideon?"

I licked my lips just realizing how chapped they were. I paused thinking about how I should feel about that knowing that Gideon had beaten my father to pulp, held back not killed him. He had no particular reason to want to hate my father,nothing he'd disclosed to me. But deep down I felt happy and my wolf did too. It was too enticing of a feeling to pass up. If Gideon could have fun, I wanted my own too.

"I have nothing to say about that." but I caught the twinkle in his eye, it wasn't anything special, it just held a promise of more if he was given cause.

"Why me?" I asked aloud not caring for any sort of discretion at this point. I had a problem with this pack keeping secrets and I wasn't going to hold back now. My shame is their shame too.

"There is nothing special about you, there was never anything special about you. It could have been anybody. We weren't there to make that decision for him." Jensen answered, breathing heavily, saliva coming down from his mouth.How the mighty have fallen.

"I beg to differ." I mused quietly, looking down in my lap.

"Maya, what do you mean? Come out with it." Olivia said from behind me. I didn't bother looking up, my hair falling around my body carefully as I knelt down, too tired to stand triumphantly before all those who had wished terrible things for me.

I wasn't going to leave this cocoon of mine a butterfly.

"My father wasn't born here." I replied. "This place he's called home for so many years now, means nothing to him. My mother and I mean nothing to him... Alana told me so."

I waited for some sort of confirmation from the man himself. I peeked through my hair,all the eyes alight with curiosity.

"She's very correct,Maya. You are no daughter of mine." he spoke, a single tear rushing down my cheek. "I'm surprised it took her that long to recognize me. I was worried she'd rat me out but nothing came to pass. I suppose she didn't feel the need to talk but knowing just how righteous the old woman is she'd never be able to keep her trap shut. What else did she tell you?"

"That it was all pretense?" he asked calmly, so serene like nothing was the matter, like it was the most natural thing to do. "I gave you away as it was meant to be. My Alpha,Craig, father to Damon,asked this of me."

"You bastard." someone whispered.

A rare laugh escaped my father's lips,

"I've been called worse and I find nothing I've done wrong. It was what was expected of me. I had nothing to lose.When I left those mountains, I knew I was going to die but not before I had my chance to prove why my family's sacrifice was so important."

My eyes twitched again as more tears came forth.

"My son!" he shouted struggling against the binds of that tied him to the ground. "My real child died long ago along with his mother and I couldn't join them. Knowing that I had control of your existence, Maya, was unimaginably satisfying.I no longer felt as helpless as I did with them. You wore that necklace with so much pride after I'd left it for you on your bed to wear,such an impressionable child. It was so easy giving you away, you never fought. Even to someone like him." he cocked his head at Gideon.

"I hope you haven't fallen in love." he taunted,spitting blood out. "Marrying you off to Gideon was... insurance and it worked out wonderfully. I needed to make sure you stayed alive long enough for Damon to collect. I didn't know it was going to take this long. I'd been to the Gatherings many times to watch people like him fight to the death. His sense of self-preservation was astounding and unmatched. As far as I could tell,if he fought so hard to stay alive and succeeded every single time it was certain you'd stay alive too.Damon can do with you as he wishes. My family is waiting for me."

"But it can't just mean nothing..." I said my voice growing hoarse but also in volume. I would impose myself, my sacrifice here and now. "I crawled back to that house for you, for mother, for all these people!"

To warn them. I could have lain there,bleeding out into the cold but no I was a warrior. It was my duty to let them know that danger was near but I had failed to realize the truth. The truth was that I should have been protecting myself all this time, defending my own honor.

"And you did well, you played your part. You were born for this." he replied.

"How could you call her that? How could you say her name?" Olivia.

"Her mother named her and I went along with it." he spat.

I lunged with no prior thought to my actions, no pause as to whether it was right or wrong. As far as I was concerned, I had every right but as I bared my teeth, my anguish; claws extended ready to strike him down, a soft whisper came to my ear,

"You will regret it. I promise you, you will regret it."

Gideon,his firm hand, stopping me from casting the man I called father from this world to somewhere far,far away.I trembled violently barely able to catch anything else said.

They were set on fire. Eric didn't want anyone to find the markings on their bodies if anyone were to find them. There were many screams that came out into the night but none came from me. I was completely silent,still, lying placidly in Gideon's hold.

Watching my father's eyes,the only thing I'd ever inherited from him,slowly lose their light,I thought of how similar we are. Never questioning the actions of others, giving ourselves up to the notions of others, loyal to a fault.

And as they burned, the dawn of a new day on the horizon, I recite Alana's words in my mind,

The virgin sacrifice only received from the wolf's most loyal patron.

THIS IS AN UNEDITED DRAFT.THANK YOU FOR READING.