Tiana's POV
I jumped out of bed. Oh gosh. I'm going to get a really bad beating today. The sun was high in the sky as I sprinted out of the maids quarter.
“Where were you?” Alpha Derek growled harshly, when I got to his room.
I cringed away from his glare.
“I-I-I was sleeping. I couldn't sleep early last night because of the laundry you asked me to do… Alpha.” I quietly replied.
He growled again and slapped me down.
“Clean up my room and it better be finished before I return.”
I stood to my feet hesitantly. “Yes, Alpha,” I submitted.
He pushed me roughly away as he stormed out of the door.
With tears streaming down my face, I trudged to his room. It stank of other female wolves, but I couldn't defy the Alpha. I got to work, knowing he'd be back in about fifteen minutes. The room was soon clean but still smelled of female wolves. Tears appeared in my eyes as I remembered the rejection. It's been two months since Derek rejected me as his mate and everything seems to have gotten from bad to worse.
I don't know how words got out that I was rejected by my mate, but since then everything has gotten worse for me. My father disowned me and also kicked me out of his house; now I stay in a little cottage in the pack house. Selene has also made life miserable for me; she and her friends always seize every opportunity they get to hit and abuse me.
Even Omegas now send me on different errands, and if I refuse, they'd beat me and also report to the Alpha. Although when Alpha Aston was around, it wasn't like this because he wouldn't have allowed them to abuse me physically, but since he traveled, Derek doesn't care or mind whatever they do to me. Instead, he would also partake in punishing me. And it breaks my heart the most knowing that I'm being punished by my mate.
I didn't feel the pain of the broken bond the night he rejected me, but I think seeing him with different ladies every day was more painful than the pain of the bond. I waited every day, hoping that he would change his mind and claim me as his mate; however, it looked like such a day would never come. I have made up my mind to run away, but I know if I tried now, I would be caught and punished. So, all I could do now was wait for the perfect time to run.
I walked out of his room and began walking to the kitchen when something caught my attention. “I can't wait for my dad to return so I can tell him that you're my fated mate. In that way, I can take over as the Alpha, and you will rule by my side as my Luna.” I heard Derek saying to someone.
“Are you sure this is going to work?” I heard a familiar female voice asking.
“Trust me, this is going to work; I have it all planned out. But you must not tell anyone about this, it will be our little secret.” Derek replied.
“Okay, I will have to reject William first because he's my mate but I have not accepted him yet.” The female voice replied again.
"Okay, go do that quickly while I inform your brother that you are my mate. In that way, he would be able to stand as a witness when I tell my father." Derek replied.
Tears streaked my face as I realized that Selene was the lady inside the room. As if cheating on me with her wasn't enough for Derek, now he plans to make her his Luna by lying to everyone, including his father. This has gone too far. It is time for me to leave. I would die if I stayed in this pack for one more month because if Selene becomes the Luna of this pack, she and her mother would make sure I see hell here.
I immediately ran to my cupboard and packed all my items. I didn't have to stay long because I didn't have much stuff to pack, considering that I lived in a closet-sized cottage. I grabbed my duffle bag and shoved anything I owned into the bag, filling up only half of the bag.
After I made sure I had all I needed, I grabbed a piece of paper and wrote a note to my pack.
I ran out of the pack house and headed for the pack border, and luckily for me, I was able to sneak past the warriors who were having lunch. Once I had crossed the border, I began running. I breezed past trees, not stopping for breath as I moved swiftly.
After about a few hours of running, I noticed with relief how quiet the wind was, as I could only hear my breathing. My legs ached the moment I stopped, and my back hunched to rest my hands on my knees as I forcibly allowed air to enter and leave my lungs, leaving this burning sensation in my lungs. I waited for what seemed like almost an hour before straightening and holding onto a tree for support.
I eventually stopped panting, and my eyes began to adjust to the darkness that engulfed me. I stood straight, thinking of which direction to follow so I could be further away from Moonstone Pack. I hadn't thought about it for long before my nose picked up a smell, and I immediately closed my nose. Without being told, I already knew what the smell was.
I immediately stepped back and wanted to move in a direction when a man emerged from nowhere. I turned, wanting to pass another route to escape the man as he staggered towards me, and I saw three men well spread on every route my mind could take.
“You look lost; how about we show you the way?” One of the men said, and soon I was cornered like a rat by the four of them.
Panic rises, and I hit one of them in his stomach, disgust filling me up to the brink as I remembered what those rogues did to my mother.
The men looked shocked at the fact that I knew exactly what they meant by circling me like vultures. Like speed, the man whom I had hit frowned and made to grab me. My reflexes were stronger, and I moved quicker on my toes, evading his attack.
The other three took it as a sign to attack me at the same time, and they jumped on me. I managed to escape them, but as I turned my back, willing my legs to carry me as fast as I could muster, one of the men flung himself at me and held me by my legs.
I kicked ferociously, letting out screams of violence, but I only managed to catch one of the men in the face with my knee while I struggled out of his grip; the other three held me down, pinning me. Immediately, I saw the look of satisfaction and pure evil that radiated off of each of them.
“You bit*h! You're so going to pay for that,” the man whom I had kicked with my knee said.
Anger welled up inside me, but not as high as my instinct to survive. And from what I had witnessed, I know one female wolf is no match for two rogues; how much more a wolf-less girl against four rogues.
From where I lay, struggling to get free, I caught a glimpse of a shadow in the bushes.
“Help!” I screamed facing the place I saw the shadow figure.
“Lay a single finger on her and you die tonight,” the man in the shadow said calmly.
The rogues looked at one another and burst into laughter.
That was the last thing I heard before blood splattered across my face.