Enslaved by the Lycan

chapter 02

MATE.

MATE.

MATE.

I had heard that word somewhere before. In the language of werewolves, "Mate" meant predestined mate. It was supposed to be a love that was surreal and beyond measure, but something told me that wasn't what I would be to the man standing before me. A man who looked every bit a predator.

My lips went dry, and I took a nervous step back.

"How do you expect us to believe this? In these... legends?" Hugo asked, narrowing his eyes.

The man in front of me laughed, sounding completely incredulous. He looked back over his own shoulder, and as if communicating telepathically with the others, one of his men stepped forward. Then, in a completely unnatural way, he began to transform into a wolf right before my eyes.

The sound of snapping bones and stretching flesh filled the silence of the square. Within seconds, where a man in jeans with a bare chest had stood, there was now a beast with grey fur and bared teeth.

Panic exploded. People tripped over one another to escape, but the other nine men remained motionless, blocking the exits. My mother pulled at my arm, her nails digging into my skin.

"I am nothing to you," I said, my voice coming out steadier than I expected despite the trembling in my hands. "I am not a slave, I am not an offering, and I am certainly not 'chosen.' You can have all the strength you want, but I am not going."

The man in the center took a step toward me. His scent flooded my senses.

"Ah, my little rabbit, you are so entertaining." He laughed, his eyes shimmering between grey and silver. I shivered. "We sealed this in blood, and you will pay me. Either with yourself, or with blood. It matters little to me."

He didn't wait for an answer. The wolf that had transformed let out a growl—a guttural sound that made the ground vibrate beneath my feet. The silver-eyed man mounted his horse with annoying ease and, without looking back, rode off with his men.

The dust settled, but the panic did not.

My mother grabbed me tightly, dragging me back home amidst the screams of other families. As soon as we stepped inside, she slammed the bolt shut and leaned her forehead against the wood, gasping for air.

"Mom, listen to me," I said, grabbing an old backpack and throwing clothes inside haphazardly. "We aren't staying here. I’m not going to be anyone’s 'payment.'"

"Juno, you heard what he said. Blood. He wants blood."

"We’re running, Mom! Through the stone shortcut. They’re too big; they won't fit through there. We don't have my father; we have no one to fight for us. If we stay, I’m a slave. If we leave now, we’re free."

I stopped mid-step. The air escaped my lungs.

He was there.

Sitting on my bed, relaxed, as if that room belonged to him. He was looking at a small photo of me on the dresser, his long legs stretched out across the sheets. The moonlight streamed through the window, contouring the muscles of his bare chest and giving his gaze a metallic glint.

My mother let out a muffled scream and fell to her knees in the hallway.

"What are you doing here? Get out of my room!" I shouted, my voice cracking as panic rose in my throat.

He raised his eyes slowly. He smiled, but it wasn't a real smile. It was the way a wolf shows its teeth.

"Were you going somewhere, Juno?" he asked, his voice vibrating against the walls. "Running away is such a... predictable instinct."

"I am not going with you. I would rather die than be your slave," I said, clutching the back of a chair to keep from falling. "We are leaving, and you can't stop us."

He stood up from the bed with a slowness that left me breathless. Every step he took toward me seemed to drain the oxygen from the room. He stopped inches away, the heat from his body hitting me like a wave of fire.

"Try to cross the boundary of this village," he whispered, leaning in until his lips almost touched my ear. "Take one step outside, and I swear I will turn this place into a slaughterhouse."

He gripped my chin, forcing me to look at him. His silver eyes were merciless.

"I will kill every man, woman, and child in this place," he whispered against my face. "And your mother... I will save her for last. I will make you watch the life drain from her eyes while I rip her heart out right in front of you."

He leaned even closer.

"I will leave you alive, Juno. Alone. With the scent of their blood clinging to your soul forever. Every scream of agony from your mother will be your fault because you were too selfish to accept your destiny."

He let go of my face, but the mark of his fingers continued to burn against my skin.

"Do you want to be free, little rabbit? Then know this: the price of your escape is the death of everyone you know."

I looked at the despair in my mother’s eyes and understood. I had no choice.

"Be in the square at dawn," he said, walking toward the window. "Or start counting the bodies."

He leaped into the night, vanishing into the shadows as if he had never been there. But his scent remained, embedded in my sheets.