I missed you
Julia’s POV:
“Slap!”
I touched my cheek when my mate, Alpha Rainer, slapped me hard right in front of his parents and his beta. Tears rolled down my cheeks, but this was not the first time he had humiliated me in front of the others.
“How many times do I have to feed this in your f*cking head that you aren’t supposed to make decisions in my absence?” Rainer screamed at me.
He grabbed a fistful of my hair, yanking my head back with such force that a strangled cry escaped my throat.
I stared at my in-laws, pleading with my eyes.
“I asked Mother before granting permission to the gamma—” I couldn’t finish off my words as my mother-in-law interrupted me.
“How dare you lie, Julia? You never took my permission to hire new omega servants in the pack house,” Kylie, my mother-in-law, told a white lie to my husband.
“No, that’s not true! Please, Rainer, believe me. I would never go behind her back. She said it was fine. I swear!” My voice cracked as I pleaded, but it only seemed to fuel his rage.
His grip on my hair tightened mercilessly before he threw me down like I was nothing. My body hit the floor with a dull thud, pain radiating through my side.
“You dare to lie about my mother?” he roared, storming toward me. Another slap came, just as fierce as the first. “You b*tch! I told her not to make me marry someone as useless as you!”
I curled in on myself, trembling that he would beat me more.
“She can’t even give me a son,” Rainer spat. “What good is she?”
I lay there in silence, broken on the floor, not because I had no words, but because I knew they would never believe me.
“Leave my sight before I lose my temper,” Rainer shouted at me. I quickly rose to my feet and dragged myself out of the room. While crossing through the hall, I saw the pack’s servants laughing and smiling at my miserable state. I lowered her head and ran to my room, only to shut the door behind myself.
Warm tears spilled down my cheeks, and I fell to my knees while curling up. Three years ago, when I first met Rainer, I got instantly connected to him because of our mate bond. Though it was an arranged marriage setup, we were blessed by the moon to be the fated mates. I was so excited and happy to marry him.
I thought my marriage would be like the one they mention in the fairy tales, but it didn’t happen. Every dream I had about my happy marriage had shattered right after becoming Rainer’s official mate and wife. The abuse started right from the beginning, and I didn’t even know what the reason was behind it.
Initially, I thought it was because this marriage was decided by our grandparents, even before our births, that made him hate me. I became a dutiful wife and a loyal mate, trying to do everything that could please him. However, my efforts were in vain.
The worst abuse started when my miscarriage happened when Rainer’s best friend, Lola, pushed me down the stairs. I kept telling him it was not my fault, but Rainer never listened to me. At the same time, I lost my wolf too. The too much abuse was overwhelming for my wolf and I turned wolfless.
“If I had a baby by now, then he would probably have begun loving me,” I thought to myself.
When I looked at other ladies with happy married life, my heart would bleed.
"Why Moon Goddess have you granted me such a fate? What wrong did I do that no one understands my pain?" I'd asked this question from the Moon Goddess a lot times, but never got any response. Every single day I felt suffocated in this marriage, but I couldn't even possibly walk away.
My family would never accept me and so this pack if I even dared raising my voice against Rainer.
Thinking all this, I wiped the tears from the back of my palms and looked ahead at the wall hanging of our wedding portrait. That was the last time I genuinely smiled.
“Luna, are you inside?” I heard a maid’s voice from outside, who knocked on the door.
“Yes,” I replied.
“Alpha’s younger brother has returned from the warrior training,” the maid informed me.
“Hades is back!” I mumbled. “I will be in the living room shortly,” I told her, and went to the washroom. I washed my face, but my cheek had a bruise from the tight slap. “I have to wear the makeup again.” I dabbed the towel across my face before returning to the room.
Putting on the makeup, I hid the bruises on my face well. I wore a fake smile, trying to act as a respected luna. Then, stepping out of the room, I only stopped in the living room.
“Here is your sister-in-law, Hades!” Rainer said with a fake, warm smile at me. In a nanosecond, Rainer was beside me, his hand moved to my waist, holding me closer. I bore the pain from the bruise I got on my waist two days ago after Rainer kicked me.
I forced a smile on my lips when Hades finally turned to look at me. My eyes widened to see how tall and muscular he had become. I remember he used to be smaller than Rainer in height, but now, he was taller than my mate. I felt Rainer’s hand slipping off my waist, and I saw him checking his phone.
“It’s been a long time since I last saw you, Julia,” Hades said in his deep voice.
I turned my head when Hades hugged me. “I missed you,” he whispered in my ear, and for some reason, his voice sent a shiver down my spine.
I gently pushed him away, wanting to keep an appropriate distance between us.
"What happened to your hand? Why is there a purple bruise here?" Hades frowned as he bore his gaze into mine.
