HOLLOW

•TWO•

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The door creaked open causing my head to snap up. The light quickly poured into the room from outside. I tightly shut my eyes, wishing they would adjust. "Sorry," a gentle voice murmured. I had been in here for hours and I could no longer determine reality from my imagination. I heard the door shut softly. Finally, someone who doesn't slam doors. My eyes opened back up and saw a young girl standing before me with a plate of food in hand.

My stomach growled at the sight. I was starving and had no doubt that I dropped a few pounds. I would guess that she was in her teen years. She offered a small smile and placed the food beside me. "Hello," she says, taking a seat before me. I cleared my throat before attempting to speak. "Hi," I said. I became suspicious because she hadn't started yelling and interrogating me about why I had crossed this territory.

I averted my gaze to the small plate of food beside me. It had a piece of bread with a few berries and a cup of water. "You can eat it," she says adding a little laugh at the end. The chains clinked and echoed through the room as I moved my hand towards the bread. I cautiously brought it to my mouth and took a small bite out of it. What if it was poisoned? "How come you're locked up?" She asks. I took a glance at her and decided to ignore the question. Only because I didn't know why I was locked up. I plopped a berry into my mouth and realized that it wasn't so bad.

Bite after bite, I finished the whole plate. I finally felt fed and not fragile for the first time in days. Or was it weeks? Ioanna picked up the small plate and waved to me before scurrying out the door. The soft closing of the door had me feeling alone again. I sighed and leaned my head back against the wall. I wonder if my friends are worried about me. I hoped to get out of here soon. I wasn't stable enough for this.

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The door swung open and the girl from the day before had walked into the room. She stepped right up to me and knelt down. She was slightly sweaty, causing the light to reflect on her skin. She picked up my hand and took a key to unlock the chains. She roughly jammed the key into the lock and the chains released their hold from around my wrist. Bruises decorated my wrist from the weight of the chains. She unlocked the other and I finally had a taste of freedom. "Get up," she says harshly. I quickly obey her and stand up for the first time in days. My legs feel like jello as I stood in place.

"Let's go," she says grabbing me by the arms and practically dragging me out of the room. Once the light from outside hit my skin, I saw how pale I had become. I looked like a clean sheet of paper. This had been my first time seeing what's outside of the room I was kept in. There was a long, stone hall with similar doors on each side. I heard ear-piercing screams coming from further down the hall. I became frightened. What if I was being lead right to death? She began leading me down the narrow hallway. I heard yelling coming from a few rooms that we had passed.

Beads of sweat formed on my forehead. Her grip on my arms tightened. They were like a replacement for the chains. I winced as her nails dug into my arm. Every time I tried to free from her hold, she tightened her grip on me. She stopped in front of the last door in the hall. She pushed open the door handle and threw me into the room. I slid across the rough floors, scraping the side of my arm and leg in the process.

I hissed at the pain shooting through my limbs and sat up. I saw spots of blood on the floor and didn't even bother checking to see how bad it was. Like the other room, chains were attached to the wall but these ones were different. They shined brighter under the light and looked mischievous somehow. "Amyra!" The girl yelled from behind me.

I whipped my head towards her and saw the rage on her face. A brunette came running up to her. "I told you to be here, idiot!" A vein was popping up on her neck. "I am sorry, Zephyra," the girl, Amyra says as she lowers her head before walking into the room. So that's her name. Zephyra. Amyra takes me by the arm and drags me to the wall, where the chains were located. I didn't fight with her because I knew it wouldn't end well for me. She locked the shiny material around my wrists and left the room.

Zephyra walked into the room slowly, with confusion written on her face. "Do you feel... okay?" She asks slowly. I drew my eyebrows together. "Uh, yes," I answer. She just stared at me. "Weird," she whispered. "Alpha's gonna love this," she said before walking out the room. Well, that was unusual.

•Zephyra's POV•

She must be a witch. She must've created the scent of a rogue to play with my mind. But if she was a witch, she would've been out of here a long time ago. I ran to the big double doors at the end of the hall. I angrily knocked on the door and waited for permission to come in. "Enter," a deep, smooth voice said from the other side. I pushed the door open and walked into the neat and organized office. I bowed my head before telling him the news. "Alpha, I think we have a witch," I say to him. He snickers and turns his head to look at me. "Orion tells me it's a rogue," He states. I nod. "I thought it was a rogue too. But when I put the silver chains on her, she didn't even wince!" I explain. He looks at me with surprise. "Are you positive that you put the correct chains on her?" He questions. I nod my head eagerly. He rubs his chin, deep in thought. "There might be a chance that she is a hybrid," he tells me. I never thought of that. "But I shall have to see her myself to confirm this," he states. I nod my head. "Yes, alpha," I say before turning around and walking out of his office.

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