Rejected at Birth

Interrogation

Grace looked at the man that had thwarted her escape but also smelled of Pine and spearmint. The scent encompassing her senses as the terrifying and gorgeous man brought her back to the tiny room in which she had woken. Fear filled her in this all too familiar situation as she prepared for pain. Wincing Grace dropped to the bed as he set her there, threatened her and then turned and walked away. What was this weird feeling, she felt a pain in her chest equivalent to a small stabbing pain as she watched the man leave and not look back.

Grace wondered why they had helped her, obviously he didn’t like nor trust her and their was going to be little she could do to alter this opinion, that much was clear. Attempting to adjust into a semi comfortable position Grace settled for laying with a lean to her strong side. This eased the pain and her breaths steady as she inhaled.

Questions flooded her head as she began to breathe faster and tried desperately to slow her breathing which quickly morphed into a hyperventilation of sorts. Snapping her out of her momentary breakdown she heard someone approaching.

Grace lay on the narrow cot in the dimly lit infirmary, her body battered and bruised. The scent of antiseptic hung heavy in the air, a stark contrast to the wildness outside—the untamed lands of the Unknown Pack. She wasn’t caged, but she might as well have been. The guards stationed outside her door ensured she wouldn’t escape.

Her father had betrayed her,not just betrayed. He had attempted to kill her a fear she had her whole life and somehow she had survived. Grace’s father leaving her for dead on the edge of Alpha Sebastian’s territory was the only thing she knew as fact. Her werewolf education was limited to the few things she could read and decipher from eavesdropping on other shifters conversations over the years of school. Sebastian The same Alpha whose presence now haunted her thoughts, whose eyes bore into her soul. She’d felt the pull, the inexplicable bond that defied reason. It was as if her very essence recognized him as her protector. Grace could not understand this obsession. She had never felt anything like this before.

Bryce, the Beta, entered the room. His Chocolate hair fell across his forehead, and his eyes held a mix of curiosity and calculation. He was Sebastian’s brother, and their friendship ran deep. But Bryce was different—more cunning, more dangerous. He circled her cot like a predator assessing its prey.

“Grace,” he said, his voice smooth as silk. “You’re an enigma. Found on our borders, unconscious. Your scent is unfamiliar, yet there’s something about you that draws us in.”

She clenched her jaw, refusing to show weakness. “I won’t answer your questions.” Grace sniffed the air as the scent of Sandlewood and lavender filled her with a temporary sense of calm and a wetness began to pull between her legs against her will almost as if on instinct. Embarrassed she tightened her thighs together on the cot as she glared at him.

Bryce chuckled. “Feisty. I like that.” He leaned in, his breath brushing her cheek. “Tell me about your connection to Sebastian. Why does he look at you like he’s found his salvation?”

Grace’s heart raced. She’d seen the way Sebastian watched her—the hunger, the protectiveness. Bryce made eye contact with her but only for a moment before a similar draw was felt in her chest. Frustrated at the lack of knowledge she huffed to herself.

“Sebastian is nothing to me,” she replied, her voice steady. “I owe him nothing.”

Bryce’s fingers trailed down her arm, leaving a trail of fire. “You underestimate the power of a bond. It’s primal, irresistible. Deny it all you want, but your body knows.”

She gritted her teeth. “I won’t be manipulated.”

His lips grazed her ear. “Perhaps you’d prefer a different kind of persuasion.” His touch slid lower, dangerously close to places she’d never allow.

Grace’s resolve wavered. She’d heard rumors of Bryce’s seductive prowess, how he used it to extract information. But she couldn’t let him break her. Not when Sebastian’s eyes haunted her dreams.

“Enough,” she snapped, pushing him away. “I am not some toy to pass your time and cannot be so easily boughten like some of the company you frequently keep, however your reputation proceeds you.

Bryce straightened, disappointment flickering in his eyes. “Stubborn. You’ll learn, Grace. This pack isn’t a place for secrets.”

As if on cue, the door swung open, revealing Alpha Sebastian. His presence filled the room, commanding attention. His gaze locked onto Grace, possessive and fierce.

“Leave us,” he ordered Bryce.

The Beta hesitated, then nodded and exited. Sebastian stepped closer, his fingers brushing her cheek. “You intrigue me,” he murmured. “There’s a pull between us, one I can’t explain.”

Grace’s pulse quickened. “I feel it too.”

His eyes darkened. “We’ll unravel this mystery together, Grace. And no secrets will remain hidden in the shadows. I will understand your presence here and we will find out together why the goddess felt we should be fated as your kind is the cause of much pain and suffrage amongst my family and my pack.

Sebastian glared as he took a step back to collect his thoughts. He had information to get from her and he needed to do it now.