Chapter 6 - April

No longer capable of holding myself upright, I curled into a fetal position on the bed Jasper had allocated to me and faced the doorway. I had done everything I could to keep moving despite the trauma I had experienced, but my body had exhausted itself.

I knew that I was in emotional shock from everything that had transpired. Just hours ago, I had been helping my friend make wedding plans. Now, it was me who had become a mate.

Jasper was far from what I had pictured as my ideal partner. Not only was he cold and arrogant, but he seemed to hate women more than anyone I had ever met. The Moonstone Pack had, historically, been a very crude and patriarchal society, so it made sense that Jasper would hold those attributes as well.

In fact, Alpha Aiden Moonstone had been much the same when Madi had joined their pack. I didn't believe that I would have the same calming effect on Jasper that Madi had on her mate, though.

My first task was to calm myself. Even though I was lying down, I could feel my heart beating in my chest. I closed my eyes and took deep breaths, willing myself to get it together. I imagined that I was back at home, safe in my bed. I breathed in as I thought of the sound of the rain that pounded on my bedroom window during spring thunderstorms. I breathed out and thought of the warmth of my favorite pajamas.

I knew I was in Jasper's cabin, but remembering my safe place helped me channel the peace I felt there. When my heart rate was finally under control, I felt myself begin to doze off.

Before I was fully asleep, I heard the door creak open. I cracked one eyelid open and saw Jasper move quietly into the room. Through my eyelashes, I watched him as he took note of my sleeping body before pulling the door shut and leaving me in peace.

Without him saying so, I knew he wouldn't touch me tonight. With that as my last thought, I fell asleep.

***

I was awoken by the sound of the door shutting and a metal padlock clicking on the other side. My eyes opened groggily, taking in the dimly lit room. Jasper had opened my bedroom door before he left, most likely to make sure I hadn't managed to escape in the night. The early morning sun had barely begun to rise, and my mate was gone.

With no more energy to analyze my situation, I closed my eyes once again, allowing myself the much-needed respite from the trauma I had endured in the past twenty-four hours.

The following days proceeded in much the same way. In the evenings, Jasper would return, remove his boots, and close the door to my room. He would wake early in the morning and lock the door from the outside.

I didn't complain about the lock. After what had nearly happened the first day I was in the Dark Moon Pack, I knew it was as much for my protection as it was to prevent me from escaping.

During the day, I had little indication of what happened in the outside world. Jasper didn't speak to me, even when he was in the cabin, and no one else came to the door.

Each day, I spent an equal amount of time sleeping and pacing back and forth in the small space. The first day, I'd spent a few hours spying out the window, but I'd stopped when I saw some of the wolves trying to peer in to catch a glimpse of me.

I had managed to find an old pillowcase to turn into a makeshift window covering. That was the last time I approached the window. The last thing I needed was another death of a Dark Moon wolf on my conscience.

On the morning of my fourth day of captivity, I decided to ask Jasper to take me outside for some air. It wasn't that I believed Jasper had any kind of interest in my well-being, but I couldn't stay cooped up forever. At some point, I needed to either find a way to escape or find a way to make this my home. Neither of those goals would be furthered by my isolation from the pack.

I rose early and moved to sit on one of the chairs in the makeshift kitchen, waiting for my mate to wake up.

"I want to go outside," I said as soon as he opened his eyes. I feared that if I didn't speak up immediately, I would lose my nerve, and when he responded by glaring at me, that decision was solidified. There was no way I would have asked after seeing the pure hatred in his eyes.

"No," he replied, moving to put his boots on.

I stood and moved toward the door, intent on pressing the issue. He may have terrified me, but this needed to happen. And soon.

"Jasper, please," I said, using my most submissive tone of voice. "I know you have no reason to trust me, but I can't stay in this cabin forever."

"Yes, you can," Jasper said.

Panic filled me, but I was determined not to let it show.

"I am the luna of the Dark Moon Pack," I reminded him. "How can I do my job if I haven't even met my people?"

Jasper didn't respond right away. He looked me over, and I could practically see the wheels turning in his mind. If I could just give him a strong enough reason to let me outside, I had a feeling he would relent.

"All I want is the opportunity to serve you and do my duty to the pack," I said quietly, bowing my head in submission. "Would you please take me outside and show me your home?"

He huffed in annoyance, but I had been right. "I have fifteen minutes before I need to leave," he said. "I'll show you around the camp, but that is all. If you try to escape, I will kill you without a second thought. Is that understood?" His dark eyes were stormy, and I believed he meant what he said.

"Yes," I answered.

He nodded and opened the door with a mocking wave of his arm to allow me to pass through. I walked outside and blinked in the sunlight. Before my eyes could adjust fully, he was out the door, ordering me to follow him.

"My cabin is here, on the end of the row." He indicated the building we had just departed from and continued walking along the front side of the row. "The cabins on this side are for my officers and warriors."

"Yours is smaller than these other ones," I noted.

"I wanted privacy," Jasper replied. "It only made sense for me to take the smallest cabin for myself. We don't have enough buildings for everyone, so most of the pack has to share."

I hadn't considered that the Dark Moon Pack was low on space, but it made sense. From what I had gathered, they had been taking in as many wolves as they could to add to their numbers. It was bound to get a little cramped on their pack lands.

What really surprised me, though, was that Jasper hadn't taken one of the larger dwellings. As the alpha, it would have been his right to do so, regardless of whether he had been sharing it or not. To take the smaller dwelling meant that he must—at least in part—care about the comfort and safety of his pack.

We walked down the rest of the row without speaking and turned toward the back of the houses. I saw that the tables in the middle of the cabins were nearly empty. The young men had finished their breakfast and left their dishes scattered on the tabletops. A handful of women were moving between the tables, placing the dishes into buckets and carrying them to a large basin near the fire.

"Are they a part of the pack?" I asked Jasper.

Most of the women appeared to be advanced in age, but there were also a few children of both sexes. All of them were dirty and unkempt, unlike the men I had seen when I had woken up from my kidnapping. I was surprised at the stark difference between their appearances.

"Yes," he replied, almost reluctantly. I couldn't fully read the meaning behind his tone, but it seemed as though he wished they weren't. I looked at him questioningly, hoping he would expand upon his answer. He sighed and obliged my curiosity.

"The women owe me their fealty, but they don't hold much of a role in the pack," he explained. "Mostly, they do the cooking, cleaning, and general caretaking."

"And the children?" I pressed.

"They're children," he said simply.

"But where did they come from? Whose children are they?"

"Runaways and orphans, mostly," Jasper said with a shrug. "The pack will take in any child under the age of fifteen who needs a home."

The shock must have registered on my face because Jasper turned away from me.

"Come on," he said. "Time to go back."

He began to walk back toward our cabin, and I followed behind him while considering what I had learned. I had thought I was mated to a man with no heart, but maybe I had been wrong about that. He was still evil and incorrect in many of his beliefs and actions, but he obviously had a soft spot for these children.

In spite of Jasper's willingness to give them a home, all of the children seemed to be struggling with their lives here. Their clothes were ill-fitting, and many lacked shoes, but I was glad to see that they appeared to be well-fed.

Neither the children nor the old women held any kind of power and would be useless in helping me escape my fate. But if I had to make a home here, then I would make it my mission to care for the pack's lowest members.

Back at the cabin, Jasper opened the door, and I went inside. He hesitated before shutting the door, appearing to be contemplating something.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Nothing," he responded before shutting the door behind him.

I heard his footsteps as he walked away, but it wasn't until he had been gone for a few minutes that I realized something. Jasper hadn't put the padlock on the door.

The only question was whether it was because he trusted me, or because he wanted to test me.