Chapter 16 Dreaming A Hell is better
Avanzini didn't look like a woman who needed to raise her voice to be obeyed.
Her office sat at the highest level of Monica, far removed from the corridors below. Velvet draped the walls in deep wine tones, the lighting warm and deliberate, casting everything in a flattering glow that softened edges and hid flaws. It was a room designed to seduce the eye before anything else.
Skylar stood in the center of it, feeling as though she had been placed on display.
Avanzini circled her slowly, heels clicking in a measured rhythm against the polished floor. Her gaze moved over Skylar with open interest, unashamed, almost appreciative in a way that made Skylar’s skin tighten.
“Well,” Avanzini murmured, stopping just in front of her. “You’re even prettier up close.”
Skylar's hands remained still at her sides, though her fingers curled slightly into the fabric of the gown Enida had chosen for her. Avanzini reached out without asking, brushing a strand of Skylar’s hair back into place, her touch light but possessive.
“Fragile, but not weak. That’s the kind customer likes.” Her lips curved faintly. “The ones who look like they might break… but don’t.”
Avanzini moved away to sit behind her desk, crossing one leg over the other with effortless grace. “What were you before this?”
“A college student,” the lie slid easily off Skylar's tongue. Avanzini tilted her head slightly, studying her.
“And now?”
“Nothing.”
Avanzini laughed softly, the sound low and amused. Her gaze flickered briefly toward Enida, who stood quietly by the door, before returning to Skylar.
“Have you been mating to a male?” Avanzini asked lightly. Skylar didn’t look away, yet too hesitate to let them know the truth.
“No. Haven't found my mate yet.”
“So you’re a virgin …?” Avanzini’s smile grew wider, like she just found something valueable from the pretty gem she had. “They’ll pay higher for you, girl.”
Skylar’s jaw tightened, fear trembled inside her eyes but she kept her composure.
“You’ll do very well here. Better than most,” Then, almost casually, she added, “We’ll need to prepare you first.”
"Prepare me how?"
“A simple procedure; every werewolves here got the same thing.” Avanzini walked closer to Skylar, looking at her eyes like locking what was hers. “You’lle get popular so easy, kid. You’re pretty, a wolf, and I don’t want some random pregnancy took your golden time so we’ll get you the procedure to keep you profitable.”
The words hit harder than any physical blow. “What?” Her tone disbelief, her eyes showing a shock. She turned toward Enida instinctively, Enida didn’t look surprised but Skylar had just deceived because Enida didn’t tell her about this one.
Like it was nothing.
“I’m not doing this.” Skylar said, shaking her head in hesitation and fear. Avanzini didn’t react in anger, instead, she smiled but it wasn’t sympathy or anything. She just didn’t care whether Skylar liked it or not, she would still do it anyway.
“Don’t whining, darling. If you think you could leave this place, save that thought to your next life,” Avanzini said ini gentle, but it wasn’t a generousity. “Once you’re here as my woman, you don’t walk out.”
Skylar took a step back, her body moved before her mind could catch up. But she didn’t make it three steps. Hands caught her hard, and unyielding—dragging her back before she could reach the door. Her body twisted instinctively, fighting, but her strength failed her too quickly.
“Let me go—!”
Her voice broke as they forced her down, her knees hitting the floor, her arms pinned behind her back with enough force to make her wince.
And then something in her chest tightened, like a force that had been held for a long time. For the first time since she had arrived, it stirred. Her wolf.
The air changed subtly, just enough to made Avanzini stopped. Her eyes narrowed, her head tilting slightly as if she had felt something she couldn’t name.
“What was that?” she murmured. Skylar didn’t know how to use her wolf while it was the only hope she had now. Then the men holding her reacted, their grip tightening instinctively after Avanzini told them so.
Avanzini moved toward a cabinet, pulling out a small glass vial filled with a dark liquid that caught the light in an unsettling way. Skylar’s breath hitched; whatever it was, she knew it wasn’t meant to help her.
“No—” she tried, turning her head away as Avanzini approached again.
“Drink,” Avanzini said simply.
Skylar shook her head, her body straining against the hold. “I said no—!”
The men forced her still. Her jaw clenched, refusing to open, but her strength faltered, her resistance slipping inch by inch. The glass pressed closer and hopelessness clawed at her chest—and then asharp crack split the air.
Avanzini’s body jerked forward as something struck the side of her head, sending her stumbling to the ground with a startled cry. Then chaos broke loose. One of the men barely had time to turn before the same weapon—a golf club—swung again, striking with precise force. The second followed, dropping just as quickly.
Enida stood between them, breathing hard, the club still raised in her hands.
“Get up!” she snapped. Skylar didn’t need to be told twice. She pushed herself up, her legs unsteady but moving, her heart pounding too fast. Enida grabbed her wrist. “We’ll run. Just don’t look back, okay?”
Skylar nodded, didn’t ask where they would run to but she wouldn’t miss this chance. She following Enida until they saw a door. The back exit slammed open as they burst into the night, the noise of the city crashing over them in stark contrast to the silence they had just escaped.
Skylar’s breath bured in her chest, her body protesting every step, but she didn’t stop. Enida pulled her sharply down a side street, then another, navigating the maze with practiced familiarity.
The city began to thin; the lights faded, replaced by darkness, by the looming outline of something wilder, less controlled. A fence rose ahead of them—tall, dividing the edge of the city from the stretch of forest beyond.
Enida didn’t hesitate to climbed. Skylar followed, her limbs trembling, barely managing to pull herself over before dropping to the other side. Branches snapped underfoot as they pushed into the trees.
Skylar heard people shouting in urge, telling another to search. Of course, they would be Avanzini’s men—looking for Skylar. She felt a slight fear, but Enida’s grab like a reminder that she would save as long as she followed Enida.
They ran deeper to the forest until the ground dipped. Then the sound of rushing water filled the air. Enida stopped abruptly while Skylar nearly collided with her.
In front of them, a river cut through the forest, wide and fast—moving, the current strong enough to drag anything caught in it without hesitation. Skylar stared at it, and her chest started heavy.
“What do we do?” she asked.
Enida turned to her. For a moment, the fear in her eyes was undeniable. But under the pale wash of moonlight, something else surfaced too—something softer, something almost unbearably familiar.
“What else? We jump,” she said.