The Alpha King's Regret

Chapter 2

My heart pounded furiously against my chest at what I'd done. I knew I was done for in every way a person could be, but still, I wasn't regretful. When my eyes met Joshua's, I was shocked by what I saw.

His hands slowly went up to the spot on his cheek I had hit before a small smile formed on his lips. He suddenly grabbed me by the neck and brought my face closer to his.

"That's right, Chloe ," he said. "Fight back with all you've got. To be honest, it was a little boring to see you had given up so easily."

And he slapped me hard across the cheek, the force of it sending me crashing to the floor. My head hit the ground hard, leaving me momentarily blind, and I simply lay still, steadying my breath.

"Don't be a bore. Come on," he said, and from the corner of my eyes, I watched him approach me. I knew no one would be coming to save me.

Just as he reached me, there was a small knock on the door, interrupting us. I took in a breath of relief. Even if it was temporary, I could catch my breath.

"Come in," Josh said in a harsh tone.

The door opened, and one of the pack's servants walked in, her hands placed in front of her and her eyes focused on her feet.

"The elders request a meeting," she said in a shaky voice.

He rolled up his sleeves and sent a glance my way before marching out of the room.

As soon as he did, Leah, the servant, rushed to me and helped me up.

"Are you okay? Oh no, you're bleeding," she said, her hand gently touching the side of my face.

"It's fine," I said, standing up. He had done worse. My head immediately felt dizzy as soon as I got up, and I held Leah's arm to steady myself.

"Come on, i'll take you to the physician," she said.

"No, really, i'm fine. Just help me clean it up." She nodded, and we made our way back to the servant's quarters, where I had a room next to hers.

I clenched my teeth when Leah pressed an alcohol-soaked rag to my forehead to stop the bleeding.

"You should run away," she said in a low voice, avoiding my eyes. "You can't be resigned to living like this for the rest of your life."

Leah was brought in as a servant shortly after me. She had also been a child, and during our time together, we had formed a friendship, but unlike me, she was overlooked by Josh and everyone else.

"Go where? Back to my family?" I asked with slight sarcasm in my tone.

She shrugged. "That'd certainly be better than "That'll be breaking the treaty, Leah.

A war would break out, and lives would be lost all because of me. I could never do that."

"What about your life?" she asked angrily. "Do you not matter?"

"Not more than the hundreds and thousands more that will be affected if the two packs clash again. I will never forgive myself."

She looked at me with pity in her eyes. "I fear for you, Chloe . The goodness in your heart should be a blessing to you, but then -""Chloe aaaaa, I heard her call out my name in a sing-song voice from outside.

"Where are you?"

It was Anna , Joshua's younger sister, the one who had locked me in the store room earlier.

I took a deep breath to calm myself down, and a few seconds later, the door to my room opened, and she walked in.

Anna was a beauty like her brother, their dirty-blonde hair and blue eyes did wonders for their physical appearance. It was just a pity that they both were absolutely rotten inside.

Her face switched into worry as soon as she saw me.

"Oh no, Chloe , what happened to you?"

she asked, her hand on my head as she inspected the wound. I saw Leah send her glares, and I could barely stop myself from smiling at the sight.

"I'm fine. It's nothing," I said, slightly moving away from her.

"Did my brother do this? That's a pity. He shouldn't treat you like this, Chloe , even if you belong to him." And she laughed heartily as though she'd said the funniest thing ever.

"Anyways, come on. I need you to fix my hair," she said, pulling me by the hand. I stumbled after her.

We made our way upstairs, and she led me up to her room where two other girls were, Anna 's best friends, Hannah and Amaya. They were both the Beta's daughters and were currently trying out outfits. The room was in complete disarray, with clothes strewn about the room and shoes scattered around.

Hannah scrunched up her nose at me. "When last did you have a bath, Chloe ?" I smiled at her. "A bath? What is that?"

"I can't believe you let her come into your room, Anna ," Amaya said, rolling her eyes at me.

"And I can't believe you walk around with a face like that," Gold, my wolf, said in a snarky tone.

I smiled to myself as I turned to Anna , who had settled herself in front of the mirror.

"Now, let's see," Anna said, looking at her reflection. "I want you to do something that will accentuate my face."

"I understand," I said, moving closer to her.

"What are you doing?" she shrieked, surprising me. "Go on, go wash your hands downstairs!"

I walked out of the room and took the flight of stairs to the washroom downstairs before climbing back up, my heartbeat accelerated at the excessive movement. I paused in front of the room to catch my breath, and from my position, I could hear the conversation inside the room.

"The Black Tide pack," Amaya said. "I feel a shiver at just the name."

Instantly, I remembered. I'd heard whispers weeks ago from the other servants about us having visitors, but I hadn't even been bothered by it. I had thought it mere gossip, but it really was true, and it was not just any visitors, ones from the Black Tide pack.

They were the most powerful pack in all of our species and were equally feared and admired by everyone. The strength of its ordinary members was rumored to be incredible, and just their Beta's ability surpassed a lot of the pack's Alphas.

"I wonder what he'll be like, Alpha Grayson .

Oh my! I'm so excited. I can't breathe properly anymore," Hannah said, laughing nervously.

"I don't care if any of his members coming with him turns out to be my mate or not; I am going with them," Amaya said.

'I already know he's mine, Anna said in a calm and confident tone. "What better union than ours? I, the daughter of the former Alpha of the second most powerful pack, and he, the Alpha of the most powerful pack. I can only imagine what our reign would be like."

I felt excitement surge through me. This was my last chance at finding a mate; from what they were saying, other members of the Black Tide were coming, and with the Goddess's blessings, I could finally find my mate.

For years, Joshua had kept me locked up in the four walls of his home for fear of me eventually going out and stumbling upon my mate, but now, this was my chance.

"Please, dear Goddess, let this be it," I begged her with tears in my eyes. The thought of living with Joshua for the rest of my life displeased me more than the recent thoughts of me killing myself.