Their Hunted Princess

003

Ellie's POV:

The days that followed were nothing short of restless.

Each day before the crack of dawn I woke up and trained with Alpha Winter till it was nine am. Then we had breakfast and continued training. Till it was evening. My body was in constant pain. My muscles ached and screamed with even the smallest movements, my joints creaked like they were badly oiled. The exhaustion was deep in my bones, my arms dragging down my sides. And he wouldn't bother explaining what he was training me for. Even when I threw up or passed out, we continued training.

As the blood moon approached, I got more and more restless. I could feel it deep in my wolf that something terrible was going to happen on that day. And worse, I had a feeling that I knew what it was.

Yet I couldn't place my hand on it.

Elsa came by and made a scene about how I was needed back at the pack house. Alpha Winter simply replied that I would not be going back there anytime soon. Mother barely said a word to me since I returned. And my days have been clouded with confusion.

Right now I wandered through the halls, aching and tired after a long day of training with Alpha Winter.

"I am not handing my daughter over to you." I heard Alpha Winter's angry tone.

My heart jumped into my mouth. My chest heaved with each shallow and hard breath I took.

Shit. He's angry. Alpha Winter that controlled his emotions like a finely tuned switch, was angry.

I paused and leaned closer to his office door. The door creaked slightly and my breath hitched. Thankfully, no one noticed. From the slight opening I could see three tall men talking to him. He looked tensed, his eyes wild with anger. And his body vibrating with tensed energy. His eyes were red, a telltale sign of his rage. The air felt fragile as glass. One wrong move and it would shatter.

"Tell him that I refused. I have no need for his riches nor his slaves. I will not give him what he wants."

"You cannot refuse him. If he comes down here, it will be war for you. Would you bring war down on your people, because of that omega?"

"Elizabeth is my daughter! She is not just an omega, she is my child! Watch how you speak about her! She is not a piece of property! I will not give her away. Come war or peace."

Me?!

I gasped and clamped my hand over my mouth before I could make a noise and reveal my position . These men...they want me?

I stared closely, trying to figure out anything that would point me in the direction of their identity. They wore simple black cloaks with no crests.

"According to our research, she has lived as an omega slave for the majority of her life. Your daughter? She was never treated like one."

"It doesn't change that fact that she is my daughter!" Alpha winter yelled, the air booming with his powerful voice. His alpha aura flared and I whimpered in pain, taking a small step back. "Get out." He spat at the men.

There was silence. Then the men bowed. "As you wish, Alpha Winter. Remember that actions have consequences."

"You will shut your mouth if you want to keep your tongue in it."

I quickly dashed down the hall and from a safe distance watched them leave. I caught a glimpse of a crest on one of their chests.

The crest of the Alpha King. My heart dropped into my stomach.

The alpha king?! The supreme alpha of our world? Oh no! This is bad! This is terrible!

What are his men doing in our house? Stone Haven pack may be big, but it's still considered a somewhat small pack compared to the Alpha King's pack. Our population is less than ten thousand.

The alpha king is the alpha of alphas. No one has seen his face, no one knows him in person. But tales of him are whispered in reverent fear. Some say that he's a lycan. Others say he's a hybrid of a wolf and an unknown creature. Others say he's a cursed god, a demon, a creature not of this world. He conquered packs upon packs, his territory stretching far and wide, running into millions of wolves. The only reason he stopped waging wars was because of the peace treaty signed just ten years ago.

One thing is for sure. The man doesn't ask for anything. He rips it off, blood and bones included. No one says no to him. No one defies an order from him.

Alpha Winter just did that.

"Elizabeth,"

I snapped out of my thoughts. I didn't notice when alpha Winter walked up to me. His body was still tense with anger, and I could still feel his aura choking me. His eyes regarded me with a chill that I felt in my bone marrow.

"I'm sorry, alpha. I shouldn't have..."

My words died in my throat. He yanked me into a hug, holding the back of my head tightly as his other arm crushed around my waist. My face pressed into his broad chest, and my body seized up in fright.

It felt like a bear hugging a rag doll.

"I am not letting them take my daughter away. Never." He growled, his words sounding distant like he wasn't talking to me.

I couldn't breath. I opened my mount to try and inhale and got nothing. "A-alpha—" I rasped, panic clogging my throat.

His arms tightened around me, making me gasp. They felt like iron brands, impossible to break free of. By now his aura was intense, causing tears to flood my eyes. A cold sickening feeling settled in my chest and I felt sick like I was going to throw up. My skin crawled and I wanted nothing more than to push myself away from him.

Stop. Leave me alone! Don't touch me! I don't want this!

What am I saying?! He's my father. Why...why does it hurt so much?

"They won't get you. You will stay here where I can protect you forever. You are not going anywhere. He can burn in hell for all I care."

"I...I can't...b-breathe..."

He wasn't even hearing me. I wasn't even sure he was aware of how hard he was crushing me. He's a massive man, and I've always hated how small and malnourished I was. Black dots began to appear at the corner of my vision. Hot tears spilled down my eyes, I gasped and choked on nothing.

He kept saying how he won't lose me. How no one will take me away from him. Over and over again. My body went weak, and the darkness claimed me.

When I opened my eyes again, I was lying in bed and Elsa was sitting beside me idly reading a book. She noticed my eyes and let out a heavy sigh. She snapped the book shut and crossed her legs. I noticed a slight wince as she did that.

Did she hurt herself?

"f*****g hell Ellie. You've never stopped being so dramatic have you?"

I sat up and turned to her. Her hair was ruffled and her lipstick smudged. Her cheeks had a rosy hue and I could see hickeys littered across her neck which she tried to hide with her hair. A strange scent clung to her.

The moment I got a whiff of it, my wolf howled in my head. Dread washed over me like an acid ran, soaking down to my bones. It went to the darkest parts of mine, teasing something I wasn't sure of.

I knew that scent. Amber and a hint of the sea. I knew that scent by heart!

My mind raced as I tried to place where I had smelt it before. Just like at the hill, my head exploded into sharp pain the more I tried to remember.

Danger! All my senses screamed danger! That scent was danger.

My wolf that was normally very silent was howling in pain in my head. My throat began to hurt again and I felt like I was being dragged into murky waters. My heart thrashed against my ribcage so hard I feared I'd break a bone or two.

I grabbed Elsa and lunged myself at her.

"Crazy b***h! What are you doing?! Get your filthy hands off me!" She screamed, her arms hitting my chest in an attempt to shove me off.

I sniffed her neck, inhaling a lungful of that strange scent. I doubled over in pain, screaming till my throat got hoarse. Elsa joined, our voices making a cursed melody.

Before I knew it, I was crying. Rocking myself back and forth as my body trembled with bitter sobs.

The nagging feeling came back. I'm forgetting something. All the hints are in front of me. What is it?!

Elsa grabbed my hair and forced my head up. In that position, it became very clear.

The image I had of her standing over me overlapped my vision. She held a knife in her hand, it's silvery blade shining with blood. Her lips moved and no words came out. Her face shifted to a look of pure evil, fangs bared and eyes crimson red.

A warm liquid trailed down my chest. I touched it and my hand came off stained with blood. I screamed, my vision going blurry.

My blood. She stabbed me.

"You're going to die today." She hissed, her voice coiling around me like a snake.

Her hand came down on my cheek, the force of her slap whipping my head to the side. When I turned back to her, the knife was gone. And the blood on my chest was gone.

I backed as far away from her as I could get. My teeth rattled with how hard I was trembling. I huddled against myself in the corner, tears streaking down my face and my throat burning.

She glared at me, her face disgusted and angry. Her lips peeled back in a snarl, her eyes flashing red as her aura spiked up. "The blood moon is tomorrow. Make sure you're at the pack house or I'll have the guards whip you till you bleed to death. And make sure Daddy doesn't find out. I have no f*****g idea why he's suddenly protective over you, I bet he wants to sell you off somewhere."

Don't go! My wolf screamed in my head. Ellie do not go to the pack house tomorrow.

Elsa wiped her cheek, and I could swear it was blood she wiped off. One blink and it was gone. "f*****g runt." She spat at me then stormed out in a flurry of silk and lace.

Tomorrow loomed over my head like an executioner's sword, ready to drop at any moment.

And I needed to know why. What is going to happen on a blood moon that hadn't happened before?

This was it. The blood moon.

After all night of tossing and turning, sweating buckets and leaving the lights on because I was terrified of a faceless monster eating me up, morning came.

"Lock all the doors. She is not to leave this house." I overheard Alpha Winter instructing the guards.

I got up and went outside. Guards and servants ran around like headless chickens. The air was thick with tension. Alpha winter spotted me and I bowed.

"Elizabeth go back to your room. Rose will bring your meals for today. We don't have training, take the day off and rest."

I swallowed my nerves and walked up to him. "What is this? Why is the place locked?"

"Go inside and don't question me."

I grabbed his sleeve. He looked between his sleeve and my face. "No. I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what's going on."

His eyes flashed and I winced. He pried my hand off his sleeve. "All you need to know is that I'm protecting you. Do as I said and don't ask any questions."

"Daddy! Where is Ellie?! She's supposed to..." Elsa stormed into the house. Her eyes settled on me and she growled. "You damn b***h! "

"Elsa!" Alpha Winter yelled, his voice resonating through the air like an explosion. The hubble of the servants went deadly silent. I froze. Elsa froze. No one dared move a muscle. "Elizabeth is not leaving this house. And that is final."

"Why not?" A shout cut through the thick air like a hot knife to butter. It took one second to realize it was I who shouted. "Why are you doing this?! Locking me up without an explanation and—"

He stormed up to me and grabbed my arm. His eyes glowed, a sign not to piss him off any longer. "I will not be disrespected by my daughter."

"I am not your daughter? Remember? I am the disgrace. I am the one who tarnished the perfect name of the Winter family and—" I screamed as he raised his hand. I fully braced for the hit, a whack on my head or a slap, something that would rattle my brain for sure.

Instead I felt a gentle touch on the side of my face.

I lowered my hands and cautiously stared into his face. His eyes were icy blue, guarded and hiding an emotion I couldn't name.

"Never again," He whispered, and it sounded like he wasn't talking to me. "I will not lose you again, Elizabeth."

"I have to go to the blood moon festival." I said in a voice I didn't recognize as mine.

"Go to sleep."

My heart broke and shattered. His alpha command. It was one thing he had sworn to never use on his family. Oh but of course, Elizabeth has to suffer it first.

My body was out before my mind could fully comprehend the command.