SHATTERED CROWN,SILENT WOLF

The collar choked me when I cried. I learned that on day one. “Stop it,” the handler snapped. “No one buys a whining slave.” I didn’t answer. I was 14 when Ashen Hollow burned. I’m 19 now. Crying doesn’t help. Five years. Five years of scrubbing floors at Blackthorn Estate. Five years of “yes, sir” and “thank you, sir” while I counted the scars on my back. Today was different. Today was auction day. The yard smelled like iron and wet dirt. Twenty of us lined up. Collars. Chains. Numbers pinned to our shirts. I was #7. “Fresh stock,” the auctioneer yelled. “Strong backs. Obedient. Bred from fallen packs.” Bred. Like I was a dog. People walked past. Poking. Checking teeth. One woman laughed when I flinched. My objective was simple: Survive. Don’t get bought by the cruel ones. Don’t get separated from the other Hollow survivors. Mara said my brother might still be alive. Somewhere. Then he stopped in front of me. Tall. Black coat. Scar across his jaw. Eyes like winter. He didn’t poke me. He just looked. “How much for #7?” His voice was low. Rough. “50 silver,” the auctioneer said. “She’s quiet. Good with housework.” The man snorted. “She’s starving.” “She works anyway.” He pulled out a pouch. Dropped 60 silver on the table. “I’ll take her.” My stomach dropped. New master. New hell. He didn’t put a leash on me. He just said, “Walk.” We left Blackthorn behind. The gates closed. I didn’t look back. We walked for hours. To the Border Markets. Noise. Blood. People shouting. He stopped at a food stall. Bought bread. Handed it to me. “Eat,” he said. I stared at it. “Why?” “Because you’re going to pass out if you don’t.” I ate. Fast. Like I hadn’t in days. “What’s your name?” he asked. I hesitated. Names were dangerous. “Naya.” “Rhys,” he said. “I’m not keeping you as a slave.” I almost laughed. “Then why buy me?” “Because you have Hollow eyes,” he said. “And I need someone who has nothing left to lose.” He leaned in. “The Alpha who burned your pack? He’s the same bastard who framed me. His name is Doran Vex.” My bread went dry in my mouth. Rhys kept talking. “I want my name back. You want him dead. So we help each other.” That was the moment my goal changed. It wasn’t just survive anymore. It was revenge. I looked up at him. “What do you need me to do?” Rhys smiled. Not nice. Sharp. “First? Get stronger. Because when we walk into Vex territory, you’re not going to be #7 anymore.” He held out his hand. No chains. I took it. Outside the market, snow started to fall. On Ashen Hollow. On Blackthorn. On us. New map. New goal. And for the first time in 5 years, I wasn’t running. I was hunting.