Elena’s POV
The explanation finally made sense to .
That evening when my mother returned ho, I convinced her to remove the stitches from my back. The wounds had nearly healed completely, though she worried about potential scarring.
Honestly, scars were the least of my concerns right now.
The next morning arrived like any other workday, and I followed my usual routine to the warehouse. But sothing felt different the mont I stepped through those doors. Eyes followed my every movent, yet not a single person approached for conversation.
In wolf packs, especially large ones like ours, news traveled faster than wildfire. The story of my encounter with the rogues had already made its rounds through the entire community. They knew I had been attacked, and more surprisingly, they knew I had fought back successfully.
Most of them probably never imagined soone like capable of such a thing, especially since I wasn’t even an oga.
I decided to ignore their stares and whispered conversations, focusing instead on the tasks at hand. Work was work, regardless of what others thought about my personal life.
Hours passed as we thodically unloaded pallet after pallet, the physical labor providing a welco distraction from the awkward atmosphere. Finally, when the last delivery had been processed and stored away, I made my way to the employee locker room to collect my belongings.
That’s when Victor erged from his office, his presence imdiately commanding attention.
"Elena, could you spare a mont?" His tone seed casual enough, but sothing in his expression made pause.
I hesitated, studying his face carefully. Unfortunately, refusing wasn’t really an option if I wanted to keep this job, especially given my family’s current financial situation.
Reluctantly, I followed him back toward his private office, my footsteps echoing in the increasingly empty warehouse. He closed the door firmly behind us, and I couldn’t help but notice the sound of the last few workers heading ho for the day.
The realization hit then - I was completely alone with Victor in this isolated building.
"How are you feeling today?" he asked, settling against the edge of his desk with practiced casualness.
"I’m perfectly fine. Should there be sothing wrong?" I replied, keeping my voice steady despite the growing unease in my stomach.
"I honestly didn’t expect to see you here today. Word travels fast around here, and we all heard about what happened with those rogues." His eyes seed to be studying my reaction carefully.
"I’m sure everyone has heard about it by now. The whole pack seems to know every detail." I couldn’t keep the slight edge of irritation from creeping into my voice.
"What I’m curious about is how they managed to get so close to where you live. That doesn’t happen often in our territory."
"My family lives in a trailer deep in the woods, well beyond where the regular patrols bother to check. It’s always been a vulnerable spot where rogues could slip across our borders undetected." I shifted my weight, eager to end this conversation and leave.
"That’s unfortunate. But I also heard sothing rather impressive - that you actually saved your mother that night."
"She hasn’t been strong enough to shift into her wolf form since my father died. Soone had to protect her." I glanced toward the door. "Is there a specific reason you wanted to speak with ?"
"Actually, yes. I wanted you to know that unlike everyone else in this pack who treats you like you’re sohow less valuable than even the lowest-ranking oga, I don’t see you that way at all." He moved closer as he spoke.
"Okay," I said simply, unsure where this conversation was heading.
"In fact, I think you’re absolutely incredible, considering everything you’ve endured in your life." Without warning, he reached out and brushed a strand of my hair back over my shoulder, his fingers lingering longer than appropriate.
"I really do need to get ho now." I took a step backward, alarm bells beginning to sound in my head.
"No, I think you can stay here a little longer with ." His hand moved down to wrap around my waist, pulling closer against my will.
"Victor, remove your hands from imdiately." My voice ca out sharper than intended, but I ant every word.
"Why would you want to do that? Don’t tell you’re not flattered by the attention. I an, let’s be realistic here - no one else in this entire pack is ever going to give you a second glance." He stepped even closer, trapping against the wall.
The sll of his breath made my stomach turn as he leaned in closer to my face.
"I told you to get away from ." I placed both hands against his chest and shoved him backward with all my strength.
"You little bitch," he snarled, his hand connecting with my cheek in a vicious slap that sent stumbling sideways into the tal filing cabinet.
Pain exploded across my face, but before I could fully recover, he was behind , wrapping his arms around my chest in a crushing bear hug.
Instinct took over. I threw my head back as hard as I could, connecting solidly with his nose. The satisfying crack and his grunt of pain told I’d hit my target.
He stumbled backward, montarily stunned, and I made a desperate dash for the door. But he recovered faster than I’d hoped, catching by my hair and yanking back with brutal force.
Before I could react, he had thrown backward onto his desk, papers scattering everywhere. His hand clamped down around my throat, cutting off my air supply.
"You’re going to regret fighting ," he growled, leaning down until his face was inches from the curve of my neck, inhaling deeply like so kind of predator.
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