Claimed By The Twins Alphas

Chapter 16

~ ROWAN’S POV ~

The steam from the iron filled the small laundry room, making the air heavy and damp. My shoulder still throbbed from where I’d slammed Sabrina against the wall earlier, but the adrenaline from our last fight hadn't fully left my system. I was on edge and every little sound made my skin crawl.

I reached for the porcelain teapot Julian had left on the side table earlier. My hands were shaking. I didn’t want to admit it, but Sabrina’s words about my execution were digging into my brain. I was nothing but a tool. A walking womb.

"You're still here? I thought you’d be halfway to the dungeon by now," Sabrina’s voice cut through the silence.

I didn't turn around. I kept my back to her, focusing on pouring a cup of tea. "The twins haven't come for me yet. I guess your little ring trick didn't work as well as you hoped."

"They're busy," Sabrina snapped. She walked into my peripheral vision, clutching a bundle of silk. Her jaw was bruised, a dark purple mark blooming where I’d punched her. It made me feel a sick sense of pride. "But don't worry, Rowan. I’ll make sure they see what a clumsy, useless b***h you are before the night is over."

"Move, Sabrina," I said, my voice was low and steady.

"Or what? You'll hit me again?" She stepped closer, her eyes flashing with a desperate kind of hatred. "Go ahead. Let them see how violent the little breeder is. Maybe they’ll decide the baby isn't worth the trouble of keeping you alive."

I turned, trying to walk past her with the tea. "I said move."

She didn't. She lunged forward, her shoulder catching my arm. The teapot tilted and the hot liquid splashed out, soaking right into the sleeve of an ivory silk robe draped over the table. It was one of her favorites, something expensive and delicate that probably cost more than a year of my life back at the Lunar Crest pack.

The tea left a jagged, ugly brown stain on the fabric.

Sabrina gasped, her face contorting with a rage. "You did that on purpose."

"It was an accident," I said, though I didn't care. "You bumped into me."

"You ruined it!" she screamed. She grabbed the robe, staring at the ruined silk in horror. "This was a gift from Julian. You disgusting, filthy b***h!"

She moved faster than I expected. In one blurred motion, she dropped the robe and snatched the heavy steam iron off the board. It had been sitting there for ten minutes, the light was glowing red and the metal plate hissing with heat.

"I’m going to teach you a lesson about touching things that don't belong to you," she hissed.

I tried to step back, but my heel caught on the edge of the laundry basket. I stumbled. That second of hesitation was all she needed.

Sabrina lunged. She went for my shoulder.

The sound was the first thing I noticed, a sickening hiss as the scorching metal met my skin. Then came the smell of burning flesh. And then, the pain. I felt the hot explosion that traveled down my spine and up into my skull.

I screamed so loud that the sound tore at my throat.

"There," Sabrina whispered, leaning into the iron, pressing it harder against my collarbone. "Now everyone knows who you belong to. You're my property, Rowan. Just a marked animal."

She pulled the iron away, and I slumped against the washing machine, gasping for air. My vision became blurry. The world turned a hazy grey. I looked down at my shoulder. My shirt was melted into the wound and the skin around it was now red and blistered.

Then something inside me snapped.

It wasn't just the pain. It was the weeks of being treated like an object, the fear of the executioner's blade, the humiliation of being a breeder for two men who looked at me like a prize. My Moon-bound wolf, which had been buzzing under my skin since the silver sickness left, didn't just growl. She roared.

A cold, terrifying power flooded my veins.

I looked up at Sabrina. She was smiling, looking down at the iron in her hand like it was a trophy.

"You shouldn't have done that," I whispered. My voice didn't sound like mine. It was deeper, vibrating with a frequency that made the glass jars on the shelves rattle.

"What are you going to–"

I didn't let her finish. I moved with a speed that felt supernatural. I was on her in a heartbeat, my fingers digging into her shoulders. I slammed her onto the tile floor so hard.

"Stop! Get off me!" Sabrina yelled, her eyes widening as she saw the change in me.

I didn't hit her. I didn't need to. I gripped her forearms, and the moment our skin touched, it happened. Only this time, it wasn't an accident. I reached into her, feeling for the spark of her wolf, and I pulled.

Sabrina’s scream was high-pitched and terrifying. She thrashed under me, her back arching off the floor. I could feel her power, her beta strength, her speed, her very essence, flowing out of her and into me. It felt like drinking liquid fire. For a few seconds, I wasn't just Rowan; I was everything she was, and more.

She went limp. Her eyes rolled back in her head, and her breathing became shallow. I let her go, falling back against the wall, my chest heaving. The pain in my shoulder was still there, but it felt distant now, drowned out by the sheer amount of power vibrating in my muscles.

Sabrina was alive, but she was broken. She lay on the floor, twitching feebly, her wolf suppressed so deeply it might as well have been dead.

I looked around the laundry room. This was the end. If I stayed, the twins would find me. They’d see what I’d done to their favorite plaything. They’d see that I wasn't just a breeder, I was a threat. And Alphas didn't keep threats in their bedrooms. They put them in the ground.

"I’m leaving," I whispered to the empty room.

I didn't grab any bags. I didn't need them. I walked out of the laundry room and headed for the service exit. I knew where the enforcers were. I could smell them now,the scent of sweat, leather, and cheap tobacco was in the air.

I reached the back door. Two enforcers stood there, their arms crossed. They were big men, members of the Crescent Moon elite.

"Go back to your room, Rowan," one of them said, stepping into my path. "The Alphas said no one leaves tonight."

"Move," I said.

"Listen, little girl–"

He reached for my arm. I didn't even shift. I just swung. My fist connected with his jaw, and the power behind the hit sent him flying back into the stone wall. He dropped like a sack of flour.

The second enforcer growled, his eyes turning yellow as he began to shift. "You b***h!"

I didn't give him the chance. I lunged, grabbing his throat. I felt that same pull, that same hunger to drain him, but I just shoved him aside with enough force to break his ribs. He hit the ground, gasping for air.

I burst through the door and into the cool night air.

The Knox mansion sat on a hill, surrounded by high walls and more guards. I could hear the sirens starting to wail. They knew.

I ran toward the western gate. Three more enforcers intercepted me near the gardens.

"Subdue her!" one yelled.

They shifted mid-run, three massive wolves–grey, black, and brown–barrelled toward me with their teeth bared.

My Moon-bound wolf took over. I didn't fully shift; I didn't have time. But my claws lengthened, and my vision sharpened until the world was nothing but heat signatures and movement.

The first wolf lunged for my throat. I dodged, my body moving like silk, and slammed my elbow into its spine. It let out a pained yelp and collapsed. The other two came at me from both sides. I felt a surge of that stolen power. I let out a powerful roar.

The two wolves skidded to a halt, their ears pinning back in instinctual fear. That second of hesitation was their downfall. I kicked the black one in the chest, sending it tumbling into the hedges, and grabbed the brown one by the scruff, throwing it into its companion.

I didn't stay to finish them.

I sprinted and disappeared into the Moon Haven woods.