Hazel’s POV
My head throbbed as consciousness slowly returned. The first thing I noticed was the stench. The air was musty, thick with mold and decay. My eyelids felt heavy, but I forced them open, wincing at the dull pain pulsing behind my temples.
The room was dark. There was barely enough light coming in from the cracks of what seed like the door. It allowed to make out vague shapes and outlines.
I was in so kind of basent. The walls were covered in peeling, water-stained wallpaper. The concrete floor beneath was cold and damp against my skin. Above, exposed pipes ran across a cracked ceiling.
I tried to move and imdiately felt the bite of tal against my wrists, causing to hiss in pain. Looking down, I saw silver chains binding my arms, the tal already leaving angry red marks on my skin. My ankles were similarly bound.
Silver. Of course.
Not only did it burn my skin, but it also blocked my healing abilities and weakened our mate bond. The bite mark the wolf left on my arm was still raw and red. Thankfully, it had stopped bleeding. Whoever had taken knew exactly what they were doing.
‘Lucas? Liam? Levi?’ I called through our bond, desperate to reach my mates. But the connection felt muffled and all I got back was silence.
Voices drifted from beyond a door at the top of a short flight of stairs. There were two won arguing. I strained to hear their words, but I couldn’t catch much.
Suddenly, footsteps approached. I stiffened, heart hamring against my ribs as the door creaked open. Light from the hallway spilled in the mont they opened the door, montarily blinding .
A figure stepped into the basent, and as my eyes adjusted, I recognized the smug face of Annie Williams. Behind her, more hesitant in her movents, was Cassandra.
My heart imdiately fell into the pits of my stomach.
“Well, well, look who’s finally awake,” Annie taunted, flipping a switch that illuminated a single bare bulb hanging from the ceiling. “Comfortable, Hazel?”
She circled like a predator, her blue eyes gleaming with malice. Cassandra remained by the stairs, arms crossed over her chest. Unlike Annie’s excited cruelty, Cassandra’s face was devoid of any emotion.
I glared at both of them, unable to speak through the duct tape over my lips. Annie leaned down, her blonde hair falling forward as she brought her face close to mine.
“What’s that? Can’t hear you,” she mocked. “Don’t worry, you won’t need to talk much longer anyway.”
I shifted my gaze to Cassandra, trying to communicate with my eyes what I couldn’t say with words.
Why? What is this place? What did I ever do to you?
Cassandra t my stare for a brief mont before looking away.
“Don’t bother,” Annie sneered, noticing our exchange. “Cassie’s been working with us from the beginning. That whole mate thing with Callum? Fake. She’s quite the actress, isn’t she?”
My eyes widened in surprise. What did Annie an it was all fake?
“Annie,” Cassandra snapped, her expression much colder than I had ever heard before. “She doesn’t need to know all this.”
“She’ll eventually know,” Annie said, waving the matter off.
Then, she turned to .
“You should see your face right now,” Annie laughed, standing straight again. “You really thought everyone wanted to be your friend, didn’t you? Poor little orphan Hazel, finally finding her place.”
I turned my head away, refusing to give her the satisfaction of seeing how much her words stung.
“Hey!” Annie grabbed my chin, forcing to look at her. “I’m talking to you. The least you could do is pay attention when I explain how I’ve ruined your life.”
“Quit it,” Cassandra said, her voice calm. “Rember what he said. Just check the chains and leave her.”
“Oh please,” Annie rolled her eyes. “I’ve waited too long for this. I want to savor the mont.”
When I continued to ignore her taunts, focusing instead on trying to loosen my restraints, Annie’s expression darkened.
“You think you’re better than ?” Her hand connected with my cheek in a sharp slap that snapped my head to the side. “After everything those triplets did to you, you still spread your legs for them the first chance you got. Pathetic.”
I tasted blood where my teeth had cut the inside of my cheek. The pain of the slap was nothing compared to the burning of the silver against my skin, but it ignited a fury inside . I lunged forward as far as my chains would allow, a growl rumbling in my throat despite the tape.
Annie stepped back, montarily startled, before her face contorted with rage. She raised her hand for another strike.
“That’s enough,” Cassandra warned. “He won’t be pleased if she’s damaged.”
“I don’t care,” Annie snarled. “What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him.”
She swung again, but this ti I was ready. I ducked my head, causing her to miss. Enraged, she grabbed a fistful of my hair and yanked my head back.
“You’ll pay for—”
A blur of movent cut off Annie’s threat. A booted foot suddenly connected with her side, sending her flying across the room. She crashed into a stack of boxes with a shriek.
A tall figure stepped into the light, his face hidden in shadow. Annie groaned, trying to push herself up from the debris.
“Didn’t I tell you not to touch her?” The man’s voice was low, dangerous, with an accent I couldn’t quite place.
He stalked toward Annie, who was now cowering among the fallen boxes. In one swift motion, he reached down and grabbed her by the hair, yanking her to her feet as she scread in pain.
“If I find even one strand of hair missing from her,” he hissed, his face inches from Annie’s, “you’ll have to pay for it.”
I shifted back in shock, the chains clanking against the floor. The man’s head turned toward , and as he stepped into the light from the single bulb, I felt my blood run cold.
His face held the sharp jawline and the sa high cheekbones. If it weren’t for his eye color, I would’ve thought one of them had co for . At first glance, the resemblance was unmistakable.
He looked exactly like the Sullivan triplets.
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