Twenty-four hours had crawled by in that place. I counted them by the cracks in the wall, by the rhythmic footsteps of the guards outside my cell, and by the way the stagnant air cycled from cold to warm and back again. When the heavy iron door finally creaked open, the sound was so abrasive I almost jumped out of my skin.
"Ms. Hannah, you can come out," the officer said. I sat up so fast that my head spun and my vision blurred for a second. Shock was written all over my face as I stared at the officer. My heart started racing and thoughts tumbled over each other in a frantic heap.
"Did she come back for me?" I asked immediately, my voice raspy with desperation. "Who bailed me out? My mother? Taurus? Him?" I didn't even know why I was saying those names. I truly hadn't expected anyone to come. Somewhere during the long, silent night, I had started to accept this cell. At least here I was fed, had a place to sleep that I didn't have to pay for. It was uncomfortable, humiliating, and freezing, but still better than being the invisible, unwanted ghost in the Ragnar household. I almost laughed bitterly at the realization that a jail cell felt more like home than that mansion ever had.
I stood up slowly and followed the officer out, my legs stiff and aching from lying on the hard stone floor. We walked toward the front desk where my meager belongings were being cleared.
"Meet Mrs. Eleanor Khian," the officer said, gesturing toward a woman waiting by the door. "She bailed you out."
I froze. Even before my eyes fully settled on her, her presence seemed to expand and fill the room. She sat with her back perfectly straight, her posture so elegant it made the plastic precinct chair look like a throne. Her hair was silver, not the dull grey of age, but a gleaming metallic silver, styled into smooth, perfect waves. She looked like she had stepped straight out of a high-end film. Powerful. Untouchable. The kind of woman people instinctively moved aside for without being told.
For a moment, I genuinely thought she was there to file a report against me. Me? Being bailed out by her? It made no sense. Why would someone of her stature help a girl like me? Questions rushed through my mind. Was she the playboy's mother? His grandmother? But she looked nothing like the woman who had ordered my confinement yesterday. Her name, Khian, stirred a faint, ghostly memory in the back of my mind, like a half-forgotten dream from childhood, but no matter how hard I tried, I could not place it.
I turned fully to face her, clutching my small bag to my chest. "Thank you very much for helping me," I said, my voice polite but thick with confusion. "But who are you? And why did you help me?"
Before she could respond, the officer beside me clicked his tongue in irritation. "Tsk," he said sharply. "This child is so disrespectful. Instead of being grateful that someone finally came for you, you stand here questioning her."
He turned to Mrs. Khian, his tone suddenly obsequious. "Do not mind her, ma'am. She has a long mouth. She is very disrespectful to her elders."
I bit my tongue so hard I tasted copper. He was wrong about many things, but he was also the only person who had tried to listen to me – even if only a little – over the last few hours. For that, I let the insult slide.
Mrs. Khian didn't look offended. She didn't even look surprised. She appeared about forty, maybe fifty at most, but her eyes held the weight of centuries. She raised a gloved hand and called someone forward. "This is Laura," she said calmly. "My Beta."
A tall, broad-shouldered woman stepped closer. Her gaze was steady, cold, and heavy with authority.
"I guess you've heard of Betas and Alphas," Mrs. Khian continued, briefly flicking her eyes toward me. "We live in a world where supernatural beings mix freely. I am not very strong myself, but Laura will see to you." She paused, then added, "If you've finished with the rest of your procedures here, come meet me outside."
She stood up gracefully and walked out of the station, leaving behind the faint, lingering scent of expensive perfume.
Beta. I understood that word all too well. My foster father, Mr. Ragnar, had been a cast-out Beta. I knew the hierarchy. I knew the power they wielded. That knowledge made my stomach twist into a tight knot of dread.
Before I could even process what was happening, Laura reached out and grabbed my arm. Her grip was like a vice , firm, unyielding, and painful. She locked eyes with the officer briefly, nodded once, and started dragging me toward the exit.
Panic surged through me. "Let go of me!" I protested, struggling to free my arm. "What is going on? Where are you taking me?"
I tried to pull away, but it was useless. She was far stronger than she looked. Pain shot up my shoulder as her fingers tightened around my bruised skin.
Then, something snapped inside me. A voice rose from somewhere deep in my chest. It wasn't loud, but it carried a weight that seemed to vibrate through the air.
"Leave her alone."
The next thing I knew, Laura's hand flew off my arm as if she had been struck by an invisible force. I stumbled backward violently, my feet tangling as I lost my balance. I landed awkwardly on the hard tile, my hand hitting the floor first and my fingers twisting under my body weight.
"What the fuck?" I screamed as a white-hot explosion of pain erupted in my hand. I stared at my fingers in horror. They looked wrong bent at sickening angles. A sharp, blinding throb shot through my wrist and tears sprang to my eyes. I looked up at Laura, chest heaving with a mix of fury and fear.
"Did you bail me out just for this?" I shouted. "To torture me? Did that man send you? Did he come here just to hurt me even more?"
Before she could respond, Mrs. Khian was suddenly there beside me, kneeling down. She reached out and pulled me up effortlessly, her strength surprising me.
"Please," I begged, my voice breaking. "Please take me to the hospital. I dislocated my hands and you are not even helping."
"Keep quiet," Mrs. Khian said. "Have you seen your injuries?"
The moment the words left her mouth, my jaw locked. My tongue froze. I tried to scream, tried to argue, but no sound would come out. It was as if my vocal cords had been turned to stone.
Mrs. Khian took my injured fingers in her hands. Without a word of warning, she twisted them back into place.
The pain was agonizing. I screamed internally, my eyes wide and watering. Then, just as suddenly as it had come, the agony vanished. Completely.
I stared at my hand, breathing hard. I flexed my fingers slowly. Then faster. There was no swelling. No bruising. No pain.
I looked up at her in utter shock. "Wait," I said, finding my voice again. "It doesn't hurt. It really doesn't hurt anymore." I reached up to my face, touching the places I expected bruises, but feeling nothing.
"What did you do? Did you use an Alpha order on me? Did you heal me?" I asked, my voice shaky.
Mrs. Khian didn't answer me directly. Instead, she looked at Laura, and I heard her voice not through my ears but inside my head: "I am sure she is one of us. Our bloodline."
I froze. I heard it as clear as a bell. "What bloodline?" I blurted, my voice trembling. "What is happening? I know you people are… different, but you can't just say things like that. You bailed me out for no reason, and now you're talking about bloodlines. Please explain!"
"Come," Mrs. Khian said calmly, turning toward the door. "Follow me. You heard what I said in my mind. That alone tells me everything I need to know."
Before I could even think of a rebuttal, a response surged up from my own soul, involuntary and ancient. "Yes, Grand Alpha," I said without realizing it.
My breath caught. "Grand… what?" I managed to ask, panic creeping into my voice. I stared at her back, my heart hammering so hard I thought it would crack a rib.
"Did you hear that?" I asked, panic evident in my voice. "Did you hear what I just said?"
Laura looked at me closely, her expression softening for the first time. She nodded. "It seems you have unlocked something inside you, child."
"Unlocked what?" I hissed.
I was cursed. I had no inner voice, no wolf, no scent. I was nothing. What were these people talking about?
I turned away, ignoring them both as I stepped into the daylight. All I wanted was to leave, to find a place to hide, to escape these strange women and the terrifying chaos they had brought with them. I muttered to myself as I walked on, my world tilting into a reality I didn't understand.