Chapter Seventy One
“I don’t need his money, Riley,” my mother says.
“I know, but we need to start up afresh, and so we need this; after it is all over, I promise you we will leave and never return.”
“Why you?” she questions.
“I don’t know….”
“There are so many females; he is an Alpha, the most known; any she–wolf would want him; why did he pick you, and what is he going to gain from this? Because I don’t think your companion for six months is all he wants,” my mother says, hatred in her eyes.
“I’ve asked, but I don’t know what he gains from this either, but we shouldn’t care about that; we would be gone soon.‘
“I know why he picked you,” mother says.
“You do?”
“Yes. It’s some kind of payback. I ran away from this pack many years ago as a… sex slave, and my daughter is taken for the same purpose.”
“I am not a sex slave!,” I say, lying through my teeth.
“Tell me he hadn’t bedded you more than once? This is what he wants; they want to ruin us, and it started with me,” she says.
I stood silent, because it did make sense. Why me? I had always asked; he had said it was more fun to break an innocent like me, but there are others just like me; why hadn’t he gone for them then? I remembered that fateful day he walked into the ball for the first time; it was purposeful, like he knew me from somewhere. He also knew my name. He didn’t seem to know that my mother was a slave then but again it could have all been an act, so he must have known about my mother too. What
mother too. What my mother said made a whole lot of sense.
“You could run away…”
“You think I hadn’t tried that before? He caught me, mom.‘
“Did he hurt you?” Her eyes were wide with defiance.
“No,“H-lied, but she saw through that, deciding not to press me for more.
“How do you know he would keep to what he says?, that he doesn’t intend to keep you here for a lifetime, or maybe till he tires of you?” She asks, and I remember Thane’s words, ‘You are still amusing. For now‘.
“He would do as he says,” I said; maybe I was trying to convince myself more.
“You put too much trust in him, but it is not your fault, you were right when you said ‘this is
y
Chapter Seventy One
the only way‘. I would protect you the best I can, but I’m so sorry, Riley, I can’t do much.”
“Don’t worry, mother, look after yourself; I am a big girl now,” I assured her, but she didn’t look comforted by that. “We would get out of this together…I hope,” I say, but I don’t believe it; there’s this sinking feeling in my chest, this desperation I hated.
“We would,” she agrees. “And there is one more thing you need to know,” she says. “My real name is Kate.“.
My mother had never told me her real name; countless times I’ve asked, but she had told me she had forgotten her true name many years ago, and I settled on calling her ‘mother‘ or ‘mom ‘. I wondered what secrets her name held.
There was still so much I wasn’t telling her, but I had to keep it to myself; she had been through a lot, and I didn’t need to tell her about Ryker or my insecurities. She didn’t need any more of that.
Nothing she said could cleanse the guilt I felt. I was the selfish one, and all along she suffered.
I walked back to my room, numb.
I could feel the irritation when I noticed Beatrix heading my way; I didn’t want to speak to her; I was in no mood for that. But she walked right past me as if I were nothing but thin air. Of course, she had gotten what she wanted; no need for the false pretense. It was clear now; she had set me up. I couldn’t help but wonder how she knew about my past with Ryder. But again, she was exactly the type that was ready to dig as deep as possible into a matter just to get what she wanted, and what she wanted was Thane. She could have him.
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