Sober.

Chapter 2

Immediately after Braden's death, I went to live with Alpha Lennox. He never mentioned why he killed Braden and I never asked, his presence was suffocating and his rules were even more so. I wasn't allowed outside without him or a guard, I wasn't allowed to shift unless he was with me, I was allowed no interaction with any pack member unless I asked permission. Not to mention his advances were always forceful, and then they got worse, until two weeks after everything, he took me. I tried to fight, but that day he marked me and I felt such pain. Any wolf knew that a bond would only cause torment if there was no emotional tie there to ground it. I took multiple pills and I tried so hard to end the life I could feel growing in my body, but a few weeks later, my stomach started to grow, and I could feel only hatred and resentment towards the man who had taken everything from me in a single day. He made sure I never did anything rash, keeping knives and anything harmful away from me after he found me taking the pills one day. Then, late at night, I would hear him speaking to the baby in calm whispers, stroking my stomach when he though I was unconscious. It would've been sweet if the situation was different.

What I never expected was Liliana.

The day I gave birth was both the worst and best day of my life. Lennox wasn't there as he had to attend some worldwide pack meeting, but I was so glad he wasn't. I couldn't bear to have him there and make the experience any more terrible than it already was.

I just wanted to get this over with.

After pushing and screaming with no drugs or emotional aid for hours on end, there she was. At first I didn't want to see her, or the green eyes and blonde hair I was sure would be there. But when I saw that tiny fist pop from under the blanket they'd swaddled her in, I changed my mind. I reached my arms out and held what felt like home for the first time in eons. The little bean had neither blonde hair, nor green eyes. A beautiful baby with chocolatey eyes and dusty brown hair gurgled at me and I felt my heart quiver at the sight. I cried then. Not because of the hormones or the stress or because this felt like a small victory, but because I still had Braden with me. I had hidden his ring a long time ago, but hung it around Liliana's wrist in the hopes that Braden would protect her from wherever he was.

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When Lennnox found out, he was livid, he had never laid a hand on me outside of the bedroom, but he was so very close to it when he saw me holding Liliana on his first day back. He stormed off and I spent the night holding her on the couch. I could hear his voice all throughout the night, shouting and growling at someone. I didn't want to know who.

The next day, he was all smiles and a caring hand. He even held Liliana once- despite all my protests. I was on edge for that entire week, clutching Liliana to me and never letting her out of my sight. I had no help or friends to turn to, as I was considered somewhat of an outcast due to my bloodline.

Before I knew it, the end of the week had come upon us and Lennox had left to greet some royal representative. Laying Liliana to rest, I took a short nap, feeling safer than I had in a while, but before I dozed off completely, a knock sounded from the front door.

I rushed to get Liliana, wondering how Lennox could be home so soon, and opened the door to be met with an elderly woman, a royal guard, and Lennox, standing behind them with a crazed giddiness in his eyes. The soldiers golden emblem glinted in the sun, shining like an omen. The woman was much shorter than me, and I was barely five feet on a good day.

The woman regarded me with stoic eyes before stating robotically, "Liliana will now be taken." she lightly touched my forehead and I felt myself go faint. The guard stepped forward and grabbed Liliana before I fell to the floor, a resounding thud and the cries of my entire world growing farther away was all I heard before blacking out.

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I woke up with a start, feeling uncomfortably hot. It was pitch black but the moon shone through the window, allowing for outlines of furniture. Large hands moved through my hair, attempting to calm me. I only felt myself bristle at the contact. I then realized I was in Lennox's lap. I became stock still in his arms and his unwanted ministrations stopped as he pulled me closer to his chest, sighing contentedly.

"You're so beautiful, did you know that?" He nuzzled into my neck and lapped at the raised edges of the mark on my skin.A twisted smirk spread across my face as I breathed in the irony of the situation, but fear was quick to slice through me as his arms tightened their hold.

"W-where's Liliana?" My voice was quiet, I could barely hear myself.

His arms suddenly crushed me, stunting my breath. I gripped his thigh, practically ripping at the fabric of his jeans. "Who?"

"Liliana... my daughter?" I was practically choking.

He let go suddenly, pushing me to the ground as he stood. I lay there, staring up at him in the first bout of defiance I had shown him since I had arrived at his humble abode. He glared at me, his eyes flashing yellow as his shoulders rocked with the force of a shift. I scurried backwards, trying to get away from the danger I saw in his eyes.

Then he stopped. Stopped shaking, stopped growling, stopped shifting. He just stopped and smiled. His eyes still glowed, the delight within them obvious. To an extent I knew what he was preparing to say but I waited in disbelief.

His teeth glinted harshly in the moonlight as he spoke.

"Liliana has been taken."

Air flew out my lungs as I struggled to understand what he was saying.

"Y-you mean to the royal family?" I could hardly believe it. He nodded.

Every twenty years the royal family sends out it's seer to collect children for the royal family. The seer hand picks the children using a special ceremony that determines if the child is worthy of mating with royal blood. If they are, the child is sent to the castle to be groomed for their mating ceremony and to eventually become a member of the court. In exchange, the families of these children were given a hefty sum of money and the 'honor' of having a child chosen for such a sacred position. The royals who mated with these children were usually the same age as their mates, making the process easier and more comfortable for both parties. After twenty years the cycle repeats. The royals and their mates usually receive immortality and live on with their children forever. It was rumored that the king had been alive for over 700 years and hadn't taken a mate.

I grit my teeth, attempting to stop the tears. "You're lying."

He broke down in roaring laughter, taking a moment before composing himself and walking towards the door. He turned on the lights and there, in the middle of the bed we shared lay a leather duffel bag as large as a quarter of the bed. The golden emblem shined obnoxiously in the ambient lighting.

"Does it look like I'm lying sweet Seraphina?"

The lights turned off abruptly and I could hear him stalking towards me.

"Now, lets try this again..."

I didn't even scream this time.