Sold to the Alpha (Alma Venus Shifter Brides 1)

“You humans have a twisted perspective on time. To a werewolf, sixty years is nothing but a long summer vacation.”

Avelyn tried to calm her breathing. “You lied to me.” How many other lies had she told her? “You lied to me so I wouldn’t figure out that you’re not human. But why? Why didn’t you break down that door and save yourself? You certainly have the strength.”

A flash of sadness crossed Sabine’s eerie features. “They made sure I didn’t. The tea Christine made me drink every night? It wasn’t so I could sleep. It weakened my body and mind. It made it impossible for me to focus or coordinate my body properly. I could barely move from my bed to go to the bathroom. Breaking down a door was out of the question. And she always prepared it stronger on full moon nights, just to make sure the full moon didn’t give me a boost of energy even if I couldn’t see it.”

Avelyn wasn’t sure what she could say. There were so many things she still didn’t understand, so many gaps. “I’m sorry…”

Sabine furrowed her eyebrows. “Don’t. Don’t treat me like a victim. Even if I could run away, I wouldn’t have.”

“Do you hear yourself? Do you have any idea how that sounds?”

Sabine took a step towards Avelyn. “Yes, I do. It sounds like love. Pure, unconditional love. What would you know about it? You let yourself be influenced by what I told you and you betrayed him.”

“I could never love someone who’s done this to you, or anyone else. Someone who locked you up just because you couldn’t give him children. It’s so selfish! So cruel! Sixty years without seeing the sun, the sky… without breathing fresh air, feeling the wind on your skin? Sixty years in a room, Sabine! It doesn’t matter how you perceive time because you’re a werewolf. He shouldn’t have kept you in there a single day.”

The girl huffed. “You don’t understand.”

“What is there to understand?”

“He kept me close. When his wolves asked him to get rid of me, he chose to keep me close.”

“I… I don’t… You don’t know what you’re saying…”

Sabine took a few more steps towards her, and Avelyn pulled back. “Max saved me. I love him and I will always love him because he saved my life and took me in when I had no one left in

this world. When that asshole Karl and his Dark Wolves attacked my village and killed my family and my little brother, Max stopped them at the last moment. If it weren’t for him, I’d be dead. Karl had hurt me so bad and I had lost so much blood that I was sure I’d die there, on the floor, next to my mother’s body. Max was the one who chased his insane brother away and bit me. He turned me into a werewolf because it was the only way he could save me. The wolf venom was the only thing that could heal my broken body before I bled out.”

Avelyn covered her mouth with both her hands. Hot tears ran down her cheeks.

“Even more, he made me his bride although he knew that because I was a she-wolf I couldn’t have children. He didn’t need heirs. All he needed was to have me, to love me. It was enough for him, but it wasn’t enough for his wolves. Being the main Alpha of the clan, it was his duty and responsibility to secure the continuity of the Alpha line. He had no choice. I’m not mad at him, I never was. I understand his position. I admire his strength. Unlike you,” Sabine threw her a disgusted look, “I have always been by his side. Through good and bad. Like a real bride.”

“No… This is insane.” Avelyn shook her head and took another step back. She didn’t like Sabine’s threatening pose, with her back straight, her hands squeezed into fists at her sides, and her curly hair dancing wildly around her face and shoulders in the rhythm of the howling wind.

“Things were perfect before you came here. He visited me once a week, even had dinner with me from time to time. Then he stopped coming down to my room, and I had to endure Christine’s boring company and stupid stories. Max had always been honest to me before he bought you. I had no idea what was happening, what had changed, why he wasn’t visiting me anymore… I thought I had done something wrong, something that upset him. Then, you found me that night and I finally realized: he had gotten himself another bride. A human one. A big, soft, fertile body he could plant his seed in and give the clan the heir they had been asking for. Don’t look so confused. Yes, I could guess your weight and body-build from the way you moved, from how you shifted from one leg to another. That night, when you finally left, I kept repeating to myself that you were just a tool, that all he wanted from you were children. So, I waited. I waited for him to come down again so I could ask him, so he could assure me, tell me he was forced by the clan to get a human bride and that you didn’t matter. That he still loved me and only me. But he never came.”

Avelyn felt her mouth and throat dry. Her heart was beating in her ears, a deafening sound that almost made her head spin. This was bad. This was incredibly bad. She looked around her quickly, her eyes scanning the trees that surrounded them. There was no way out of this. She could try to run, but she knew she’d never make it far. The full moon had clearly restored Sabine’s physical strength and sharpened her senses. If she started running, the only thing she’d manage would be to piss her off.

“No explanation, no apology, not even a sign. That’s how I knew: you were the reason he had stopped seeing me. Maybe he felt guilty. Maybe he couldn’t look me in the eye and tell me he was cheating on me with a human female. Maybe… Or maybe, he had fallen for you. For pathetic little you who was looking for a chance to escape, to run away and leave him. You don’t deserve his love, Avelyn. You don’t deserve to bear his children.”

“So,” whispered Avelyn. “This is what it’s all about: I can give him an heir and you can’t.” She gulped, afraid that she might have said the wrong words. She wanted to take them back the moment they had left her mouth.

Sabine smiled. “You see, the beauty of me being the way I am is that I can fix you.”

“What are you talking about?” Avelyn took two more steps back and hit a tree. Her hands reached behind her to grab the trunk, ready to dash if the need arose. She had zero chances of outrunning a werewolf, but that didn’t mean she wouldn’t try.

“I…” Sabine touched her own chest, “can make you…” she pointed to Avelyn, “just like me. A she-wolf. One bite. My venom running through your veins, your body undergoing small changes for one month, you turning into a werewolf on the next full moon. A strong, incredibly fast body and perfect senses. A barren womb. The perfect plan, wouldn’t you say?” Sabine gave her another wicked smile.

“No!” Avelyn screamed. “Don’t do this to me. Please don’t do this to me.”

Snap.

Sabine’s left leg broke. Adrenaline coursed through Avelyn’s veins.

“No… Sabine, no…”

Snap.

The girl fell on her hands and knees, her crazy eyes fixed on her prey. Another snap. Her back arched at an unnatural angle.