19. ARIA

The shackle clamped harder around my neck. I had been battered terribly. My strength faded with each passing moment, leaving me helpless and alone. It was as if the walls of the underground compound were closing in around me, threatening to crush me beneath them.

The thought of my life slipping away filled me with a profound sense of sorrow. How could everything have unraveled so quickly? How could my world have been turned upside-down in the blink of an eye?

Amid my anguish, my thoughts turned to Elinor, my steadfast friend and sister. I could only imagine the worry and fear she battled in my absence. I wished with all my being that I could ease her burden and reassure her that I was still fighting.

Against my will, my thoughts inevitably strayed to Ethan. Despite everything that had transpired, his image lingered in my mind like a stubborn ghost. I knew I shouldn"t be thinking of him after the pain he had caused. Yet, I found myself unable to resist my heart"s desires.

They say the heart wants what it wants, and I couldn"t deny the truth of those words. Despite the hurt and the betrayal, I still longed for his presence, touch, and warmth. It was a painful contradiction, a battle waged within the depths of my soul.

Against my wishes, I clung to the fragile thought that I would survive this ordeal and be reunited with Ethan. And though the road ahead seemed fraught with peril and uncertainty, I knew that as long as I held onto that, I would never truly be alone.

Harris, the Alpha of the callous pack that had abducted me, sent a couple of his henchmen to me after our last conversation. One of them, a soft-spoken man in his mid-twenties named Jerry, entered my cell. I braced myself for more taunts and cruelty, but Jerry approached me with a gentleness I hadn"t expected.

Perhaps he was different from the others, perhaps he was here to offer me some semblance of kindness in this sea of darkness.

To my horror, I soon realized his intentions. Jerry"s concern for my well-being was not born out of compassion but rather a twisted agenda set forth by his Alpha. He inspected the festering wounds on my body.

The conditions of my captivity were clear: they would not provide me with basic care or medical attention unless I agreed to Harris" demands—to become a breeding wolf.

Jerry was kind at first, and I was beginning to think maybe he was a victim, too. He offered words of comfort. He said if this were another life, he would have been able to treat the wounds digging into my collarbone. However, Harris Kane had ensured that no such kindness was extended to their prisoner unless I agreed to do as he asked.

But as I looked into Jerry"s eyes, seeing the conflict and hesitation within them, I wondered—was there a chance, however slim, that he might be swayed to my side? That he might be the key to my escape, my ticket to freedom from this living nightmare?

As Jerry examined my wounds, a tense silence hung in the air. I could feel his gaze upon me, his eyes searching for something, perhaps a glimpse of the defiance that burned within me.

Finally, unable to bear the silence any longer, I spoke, my voice hoarse with exhaustion and desperation.

"What do you want from me?"

Jerry"s expression softened, and a considerable amount of remorse passed through his eyes. "I"m sorry, Aria," he murmured. "I know this isn"t fair to you."

I scoffed, the bitterness of my situation boiling to the surface. "Fair? Do you think any of this is fair?" I spat, gesturing angrily to my confines. Jerry flinched at my words, a pained expression crossing his features. "No, of course not," he admitted, his voice heavy with guilt. "But I... have orders to follow."

I shook my head. "And you"re just going to follow them blindly?" I demanded, my voice rising with anger and frustration.

Jerry hesitated, his gaze dropping to the floor as if unable to meet my accusing stare. "I don"t have a choice, Aria," he admitted, his voice barely audible. "If I don"t do as Harris says, he"ll... punish me, or worse."

Despite my anger and fear, a surge of sympathy welled within me. I could see the conflict raging within Jerry, torn between his loyalty to his Alpha and his sense of right and wrong.

For a moment, our shared predicament hung between us, the silence broken only by the distant echoes of the compound"s dark corridors.

Then, I made a decision.

"Well, Jerry," I said, my voice steady. "Maybe it"s time you started questioning those orders. Maybe it"s time you started thinking for yourself."

For a minute, I thought we had an understanding, but suddenly, he looked at me squarely. All traces of the compassion I felt earlier from him evaporated.

"Why are you being unnecessarily stubborn with the boss" demands?", he questioned me. Without giving me a chance to respond, he continued. "You think you are too special to populate our pack? I know you think you are better than us, but you're wrong. We will have what we want whether you agree or not."

I looked at him, gobsmacked. Then it all became clear. He wasn"t trying to be my friend. He had been sent to play the nice card and convince me, but when the tactic failed, he turned on me. It was business as usual. Nothing too deep.

He was starting to say something else when we heard a loud crash outside. The loud noise echoed through the compound.

Before I could voice my concerns, Jerry commanded me to stay put while he investigated. With trepidation, I watched as he disappeared into the darkness beyond the bars of my cell.

Minutes stretched as I waited, the tension mounting with each second. Then, just as I was on the verge of despair, Jerry returned, his face a mask of uncertainty.

"It"s Ethan," he said in disbelief. "He"s here with his men, trying to break you out."

My heart leaped at the sound of Ethan"s name. But before I could grasp the magnitude of his words, though, he brought me crashing back to reality.

"It's a bloodbath out there," he cautioned. "It"s going to be difficult for Ethan to get to you."

But I wasn"t listening. All I could think about was the possibility of escape, of leaving this hellish nightmare behind me. The thought of freedom fueled a surge of adrenaline within me, drowning out the doubts and fears that had plagued me for so long.

I turned to Jerry, my eyes blazing.

"You will be surprised at how effective Ethan can be," I said, my voice steady.

For the first time in what felt like an eternity, I believed that escape was possible and freedom was within reach. With Ethan by my side, I knew we could overcome any obstacle.

After what felt like eons, the door to my cell crashed down with a thunderous roar. Through the haze of pain and exhaustion, I caught a glimpse of a figure that resembled Ethan and wanted to shout for joy. But my strength failed me, and before I could muster the energy to utter a word, darkness enveloped me.

I felt myself slipping, the edges of consciousness fraying as if pulled by invisible threads. The world around me blurred, and the sounds of confusion faded. But through the fog of my fading senses, I could still make out the silhouette of Ethan running toward me.

I knew I was losing consciousness, but I wanted to be sure it wasn"t my imagination playing a trick on me, so I reached out to touch him with a trembling hand. Just before I succumbed to the darkness, my knees buckled under me and I felt his strong arms around me, pulling me into a protective embrace that banished the shadows and brought me back to the light.