Chapter 1 001

SELENE’S POV

The rogue above me was taking way too long to cum, so I shifted my thoughts to the cracks in the ceiling. 

It helped me pretend I was somewhere else, a trick you learn when you’ve been naked in too many rooms that smell like cheap cologne, and especially when the man above you is talking too much about his job and not enough about how close he is to finishing.

The ceiling had twelve cracks and I’d named them after Moon Goddesses’ names I half-remembered from my childhood before I went rogue, before Packs and laws and bloodlines decided what I was worth. 

Suddenly, the door burst open and startled the rogue above me.

“What the hell—” he began, already scrambling for his pants. The first wolf who crawled through the door didn’t even glance at him.

His attention slid over the bed, over my bare skin, and stopped. His pupils flared and his scent shifted, like a predator clocking prey. Hunger rolled off him in a wave that made my stomach knot.

“Wait for your turn, you asshole!” I barked.

“Quiet,” the man snapped with the authority of someone who had said it a thousand times and got obedience. 

The second wolf closed the door behind him, and when I heard the soft click of the lock turning, I knew this wasn’t a client who wanted a trip to pound town, or the act of a jealous mate or some elaborate setup by the client to dodge payment.

Instinctively, I swung my legs off the bed and reached for my dress. I managed to get one foot on the floor before the first wolf grabbed my arm and twisted it just enough to cause pain to bloom straight to my spine.

“Get your hands off me you fucking twat!” 

He smiled at that and nodded toward the other man. “She’s got bite.”

“What do you want?" I shouted, struggling. "Money? I don't give discounts to idiots. Get your filthy arms off me before I rip something important off."

But they all ignored my outburst. Instead, something sharp kissed the side of my neck, and a quick sting followed, spreading numbness through my skin and causing my breath to hitch. 

The room tilted, the cracks in the ceiling blurring into one another until the constellations collapsed into a single white smear, and the last thing I felt before the dark took me was the man’s hand on my jaw, tilting my face side to side like he was checking my teeth.

Cold air bit my skin just as I regained consciousness. My wrists burned from the zip ties cutting into them. I was on my knees on a platform, bright lights beating down from above, and when I tried to move, hands shoved me back into place.

"Stay," a voice hissed in my ear.

I blinked hard, forcing my eyes to focus. Rows of seats spread out in front of me in a theatre style and they were filled with men. Alphas, from the stink of them with a thick, choking scent of power that made my stomach recoil with disgust.

"Lot number forty-seven," a smooth voice announced from somewhere to my left. "Female. Twenty three. Unbound. Omega heat confirmed."

Omega.

No. No, that wasn't right. I have never gone into heat. Never—

“Previous occupation: prostitute. Some wear and tear, but confirmed for breeding by our physicians." He mocked and laughter rippled through the crowd.

Rage cleared the last of the fog from my head. "Fuck you!" I screamed, lunging forward. The zip ties bit deeper and blood trickled down my wrists. "You're all dead men! You hear me? Dead!"

More laughter echoed. One alpha in the front row leaned forward, eyes crawling over my body like insects. "Damaged goods." He spat.

"Bidding starts at one hundred thousand." The auctioneer announced. A paddle went up, then another and another. I spat at the closest guard and got a backhand across the face for it. My ear rang and blood filled my mouth.

"One-twenty."

"One fifty."

They were bidding on me like I was a fucking broodmare. I tried to get up again but a guard's hand clamped on the back of my neck, forcing me down. My cheek pressed against the cold platform.

"Two hundred."

"Two-fifty."

My heart hammered against my ribs. This wasn't real. I sold my body on my terms, took my bills and walked away. This... this was something else. 

"Three hundred."

I stopped listening as the numbers climbed and started looking for exits instead. Two doors in the back, guards at both, at least a dozen alphas between me and freedom, and I could barely feel my legs.

"Five hundred thousand." A voice roared and the room went quiet.

I turned my head, trying to see who'd said it. A man stood in the back corner, half-hidden in shadow. He had very tall and broad shoulders. The other alphas shifted in their seats, suddenly uncomfortable.

"Five hundred thousand going once..."

"You're insane," I barked, my voice hoarse. "I'll kill you in your sleep first chance I get."

The auctioneer ignored me. "Going twice..." 

“Five hundred fifty,” another voice boomed just when I thought it was all over. I peel my gaze away from the man to search who had spoken. “Do I hear—”

“Six hundred hundred,” another roared. “You’re wasting your money, Iver.”

“One million.” Iver’s lips curved upwards, daring the other Alphas to bid higher than him. 

The Alpha Iver outbid snarled, surging his wolf in an aggressive manner, but Iver didn’t even blink, and the pressure in the room spiked, causing an invisible weight to slam down until my knees buckled and I had to grit my teeth to stay upright.

Alpha Iver finally stepped into the light and my breath stopped. I stared back at him, my chest heaving and blood drying at the corner of my mouth. 

He was massive. Not just tall, but built like violence itself. Dark hair, sharp jaw, and eyes that looked black from this distance. Scars cut through one eyebrow. He wore a suit that probably costed more than I'd made in my entire life, but there was nothing civilized about him.

Every instinct I had screamed at me to run.

"One Million going once… twice…. And Sold to Alpha Iver of the Blood Pack for one hundred thousand."

Alpha Iver began walking toward the platform and the crowd parted for him like he was poison. My hands shook from rage and the zip ties cut deeper as I tried to pull free. 

He climbed the steps to the platform. Up close, he was even bigger. Even more terrifying. His scent hit me like a truck. He smelled of pine and smoke and something wild that made my hindbrain go haywire.

He crouched down in front of me. Our eyes met and the world exploded.

Heat detonated in my chest, spreading through my veins like wildfire. A sensation I've never felt before snapped into me so hard I gasped. I could feel him. Inside my head. In my bones. His rage. His hunger. His absolute disgust.

Mate.

The word whispered in my mind in a voice that wasn't mine.