Chapter 5

Violets's POV

The guards who captured me, seized me and marched me down the dark hallway. As we entered the dungeon, the harsh light flickered on and the heavy iron door slammed shut behind. My heart raced, and I fought back tears.

“Why the dungeon?” I demanded, recognizing the guards as the same ones who had encountered them when negotiating with Alpha Aaron.

The guard glanced at me, his expression cold and indifferent. "You have no idea, do you?" he sneered, dragging her along with ease. "The alpha made his decision. Your bravery, your foolishness—it's all led you here."

Immediately my  breath hitched as we stumbled in the dark, the stone walls closing in on me, the air thick with the scent of dampness and decay. Every step felt like it was dragging me deeper into a nightmare. The dungeon was colder than I could have ever imagined, and the ominous silence hung heavily in the air.

"Why this? Why not just kill me?" I choked out, my voice quivering with fear and confusion.

The guard laughed, a low, humorless sound. "Death would be too kind for someone like you. You need to learn, Luna. You need to understand the price of defying the alpha." He pulled me roughly, making sure I stumbled every step of the way.

My heart hammered in my chest. The heavy weight of the fear that had been growing inside for days now seemed to fully consume me.  The dungeon—this place—was supposed to be the end. There were stories. Stories of what happened to those who were sent here, of the ones who never returned.

"No, please," I begged, tears slipping down my cheeks despite the attempts to hold them back. "Please don’t do this. I… I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. I was just trying to—"

But the guard wasn’t listening. His grip tightened on my arm as we approached a huge iron door. He didn't even slow down as he reached for the rusted handle.

My voice cracked. "No! You can’t do this!"

But the guard was already unlocking the door, a look of pure indifference on his face as he opened it, pushing me inside. Without a second thought, he shoved me into the darkness beyond, my body falling to the stone floor with a painful thud.

My knees scraped against the cold ground as I struggled to get up, my heart pounding with raw fear. I looked up to see the massive door slam shut behind me, the sound of its lock echoing through the empty, eerie silence.

I was alone, I couldn't stop sobbing, continuously until my voice felt like it was gradually losing.

The dungeon stretched out before me, dark and oppressive. Shadows seemed to twist and shift in the corners, making the place feel alive like it was breathing. I could barely make out the faint glow of a dim light far in the distance, but the rest of the room was shrouded in pitch blackness. My breath came in ragged gasps as I backed away from the door, my fingers trembling against the cold stone.

My mind raced, but there were no answers. No way out. The air felt heavier now like the walls themselves were closing, suffocating me with the weight of the silence.

"What… What is this place?" I whispered, my voice small, barely audible.

A distant sound caught her attention—soft, but deliberate. A scraping, like metal against stone. Suddenly my heart leaped, a shiver running down my  spine. I wasn’t alone. Someone else was here.

My feet moved instinctively toward the sound, my body shaking with a mix of dread and curiosity. I needed to know who else was trapped here. What kind of place had Alpha Aaron thrown me into?

As I walked through the darkness, the scraping grew louder and closer. Then, suddenly, there was a voice—a low, gruff murmur.

"You're here, huh?"

I froze, my breath catching in my throat. The voice was rough, and pained, like it had been twisted by time and torment. I didn’t know who or what was speaking, but the words… They were clear. There was a strange familiarity to the tone, something that made me want to run, but at the same time, something that made me hesitate.

"Who’s there?" Icalled out, with a trembling voice. My eyes strained in the darkness trying to make sense of where the voice had come from.

There was a long silence before the voice answered, rough but filled with a bitter kind of humor.

"Don’t worry, I won’t bite. Not unless you want me to.”

Though the figure ahead was barely visible, I could feel the weight of his presence pressing down on me. I stepped forward, determination surging within me despite the palpable fear.

"Who are you?" I demanded, my voice steady and unwavering, even as my body trembled slightly.

A shape moved toward me, slow and deliberate, until he emerged from the shadows—standing there, chained and bruised. A man with long, unkempt hair partially obscuring his face. His eyes, intense and sharp, bore into her, a mixture of curiosity and amusement flickering within me.

"Ryker," he replied, his voice raspy yet commanding. "That’s what they call me. And you, little Luna, what name do they give you?"

My breath caught in my throat. I knew the name but wouldn't want to go into details, but the way he spoke it sent a chill down my spine. Every instinct screamed that I tread carefully.

"I’m Violet, we already know each other " I asserted, my voice steadying with each word.

Ryker scrutinized me, his expression inscrutable. "Well, Violet," he said, eyes narrowing slightly, "it seems you’re stuck here with me. Welcome to Death."

A rush of recognition tightened in my chest, but I maintained a composure, refusing to let on that I knew exactly who he was and what he was capable of. As water dripped from the stony roof of the dungeon, the chill it brought only heightened my resolve.

“Oh no!” I whispered, gripping my knees firmly as I sat at the edge of the wall. My eyes were riveted to the ground when, suddenly, I felt a warm wrap around my body.

“Ryker?”

"I'm here," Ryker replied, his voice steady with a hint of determination, as if his words were meant to anchor my amidst the chaos. His presence was unexpectedly close, enveloping me like a protective shield. I felt the reassuring warmth of his arm across my shoulders as he pulled me into his side..

My breath hitched in my throat as I looked up at him, still grappling with everything that had happened. The water dripping from the dungeon ceiling sent shivers down my spine, but it wasn’t the cold that had me on edge—it was him. Ryker.

"I’m not used to this," I said, my  voice revealing a layer of vulnerability I couldn’t suppress. "No one has ever… protected me like this before."

Ryker's expression softened momentarily before he steeled himself again, pulling me closer, as if to shield me  from the biting cold and the uncertainty that loomed around.

"You’re not alone," he stated firmly, his tone low but resolute. "Not while I’m here."

I swallowed hard, grappling for the right words. There was something compelling about him—something that ignited feelings of both safety and fear within me. His words hung between, thick with an intensity that transcended mere kindness. I felt it the way he held me, in the tightness of his grip with every subtle movement I made.

Yet it was more than mere protection. It was an undeniable magnetism I couldn't dismiss, even as I tried to keep my distance. I couldn't afford to get entangled in anything, not in this moment, not in this place.

"What… are you doing here, Ryker?" I demanded softly, my voice steady despite the tremor beneath. "Why are you in this dungeon? Shouldn’t you be with your pack? Do you really think this is the right place for you?"

For what felt like an eternity, Ryker didn’t respond. His grip tightened slightly, and when he finally spoke, his voice was calm but edged with steel. "I’m here for you, Violet.”

His words resonate powerfully in the darkness, and I  could feel my heart racing in my chest. There was something in his tone—raw and undeniable—that sent a jolt through me. This was no mere declaration. Ryker had a purpose; his presence here was no coincidence.

Before I could respond, Ryker stood up abruptly, breaking me  from his grip. His sudden movement crackled in the air, snapping the tenuous moment between us. He stood tense, his eyes locking onto hers with an intensity that made my stomach churn.

"Tell me," he commanded, his voice sharp as a blade. "Why are you here? What led you to end up in this hellhole?"

I braced myself against the weight of Ryker’s words. This wasn’t the conversation I had prepared for. I had anticipated a confrontation, but hearing him demand the truth hit me harder than I expected. My heart pounded in my chest as I recognized that escape was out of the question. He wouldn’t allow me to deflect—not with that intense look in his eyes.

"I didn’t intend for this to happen," I said, my voice steady despite the pressure. "I never wanted any of this. I thought I could fix things—correct my mistakes—but it spiraled out of control. I believed I could outsmart him, outmaneuver Aaron. I was wrong."

The words flowed from me, heavy with the reality of my failure. I could see Ryker sensing the weight of it all, the burden pressing down on me. This was the moment to own my truth. I wasn’t running from it anymore.

Ryker stepped closer, his presence enveloping me like a shadow. His intensity was almost suffocating, and his voice sliced through the tension. "Stop deceiving me, Violet," he insisted, irritation sharpening his tone. "You’re here for a reason. I want the truth."

His command landed hard. My throat tightened, and for an instant, I felt the urge to scream, to break down and confess everything—every wrong decision, every misguided attempt to mend things. But the words were stuck. How could I explain the chaos I had created? How could I articulate that I thought I could control everything, only to be trapped by my own choices?

"I don’t have all the answers!" I shouted, my voice breaking but full of conviction. "I didn’t think it would escalate like this. All I wanted was to fix things. I didn’t realize…" I paused, breath shaky, but I refused to falter.

For a fleeting moment, Ryker’s expression softened, giving me a glimmer of hope that he understood. But it vanished just as quickly, replaced by his solid resolve. "You will tell me eventually," he said calmly, yet his voice carried an undeniable edge. "And when you do, I will drag the truth out of you if necessary."

His words settled around me like a cloak of inevitability, and I shivered. I had no choice but to confront everything I had done and everything that had led to this moment. But Ryker wasn’t giving me an inch, and deep down, I questioned whether I was ready to face it all.