Chapter 2- Not A Damsel In Distress

"Hushhhh! Nobody will find out. Just come with me," the old man said, raising his hand for me to hold it, but I started shaking my head. He had an eye patch on, his old rusty clothes smell foul. He had some gray hair and the hand reaching me was subtly shaking too. "Fine, don’t come. But give him to me. He needs care," he continued, pointing at the baby I held close to my chest. "You will kill him," I uttered, my vision blurred. "I won’t. Trust me, I’ll keep him safe." his face started to contort into something uglier, his nails poking out like a monster ready to devour its prey. "No! No! I won’t give him to you—not this time!" I yelled. A hard rock hit my cheek and I broke awake, sitting up panting and covered in sweat. The long brown oversized shirt with baggy jeans and no shoes made me look homeless. But that was how I dressed all the time, it was my style. With a hat that covered my hair, I have prevented myself from men’s attention. I looked around and found myself in an unfamiliar place. I was in a cage. There were many cages in the hall. The hall itself was huge, really—with high stone walls that looked like they were carved a long time ago. Everything felt old. The air was cold and smelled like metal and dust. It was quiet, the kind of quiet that made your skin crawl. The torches on the walls flickered weakly, casting shadows that moved like ghosts. The cages were lined up on one side of the hall, each one divided by thick iron bars. The metal was scratched and stained, and I didn’t want to think about what had happened here before me. On the other side of the hall, more bars blocked the view outside. But through them, I could see where this hall was, probably in the woods. It was nighttime. The moon hung above the trees, glowing softly. The forest outside looked quiet and still, like it was holding its breath. Tall trees reached toward the sky, their leaves gently swaying in the breeze. And far behind them, mountains rose in the distance, dark and quiet, their peaks touching the stars. It looked peaceful out there. But sitting here in a cage, I felt like an animal who must be kept in chains. "Thank you for waking me up," I groaned tiredly, thanking the person sitting in the corner, barely responsive. He wasn’t hurt or anything, he just seemed hostile. Dressed in all black, with tattoos on the backs of both hands and a head full of black hair—that was all I could see of him. But he wasn’t my focus of attention. I was grateful he woke me up from a nightmare, but the real nightmare was still not over. I had heard about this place. It’s called the Transition Stage. This is where they bring the candidates who are being difficult. "What is your name?" I asked him, trying to fill in the deadly silence, "I am Clementine Stark." I introduced myself, realizing he probably didn’t want to be here either. "Hey, can you get me that thing—" I gulped, reaching toward his cage, gripping the bars with my hands and pointing at the small, very thin rod next to him. A small piece of broken debris from probably the cage had loosened over time and fallen in front of his cage. It could work in our favor. But the guy was so odd. He sat with his legs bent close to his chest, arms resting loosely on his knees. His fingers met in the middle like they were locked in thought, and his head hung low. There was something quiet about the way he held himself—like the world could fall apart around him and he wouldn’t flinch. "I can open these cages if you get me that thin wire next to your cage," I whispered, making sure the others on the right were still asleep. It was just me and the silent guy awake. I was not the type to wait for someone to lead the way. I mostly came up with my own ideas and worked on them whether I had anyone on my side or not. But I needed his help tonight. He stayed quiet for a moment before turning his head to the left to look at the object I was pointing at. "Listen, I can pick locks. I’ve done it my entire life. If you can help me get that, I can get us both out," I whispered in urgency. Not only was I still hurting from the arrows shot at me earlier, but I couldn’t heal either as we have been given more wolfsbane after we were abducted from the comfort of our homes. The silent guy finally stood up, and seeing how tall he was made me thank the Moon Goddess for putting him in the cage beside mine. He extended his arm out of the cage, and I was left with my jaw hanging at how long his arms were. He grabbed the wire and stared at it, head down, his hair hiding his eyes. He had a sharp jawline, so sharp I could’ve used his jaw to open the lock, a thin chin, and full lips. His long neck had veins and an Adam’s apple so prominent. I had never seen a guy so godly before. I wondered what his eyes looked like. He didn’t lift his head as he strode toward me. He stopped right on the other side, and I gently stretched my hand out to take the wire from him. He towered over me, his presence radiating such a strange and mysterious aura. He finally lifted his head, and I almost gasped at the color of his eyes. They were a gorgeous shade of gray, like two glowing bulbs staring right at me. His thick black eyebrows made him look even sexier. I couldn’t believe I was thinking this. But Goddess, men are beautiful. "Take it," he said, and I nodded. His voice sent chills down my spine. It was notably low, with a rich, husky texture that felt raw and edgy. I grabbed the thin wire and reached for the lock. "Come on, come on," I muttered under my breath, pressing my skin against the cold bars, twisting the thin wire carefully inside the lock. I could feel his eyes burning, steady, watching me from the other cage. Part of me wanted to glance up, to meet that confident gaze. Instead, I straightened my shoulders and bit back a smirk. If I was going to be stuck here, I might as well get his attention. I wanted to impress him so badly at that moment. The lock clicked faintly, and I held my breath. One more twist and freedom felt just within reach. The hero act wasn’t just for me anymore. It was for him, to show that I wasn’t some helpless girl. I was the Alpha’s daughter. And I’d break out of this cage and save his gorgeous ass too. And then it happened, I opened the lock. "You’re good," he said, and the way he complimented me in that deep, husky voice made my cheeks burn. I swear I was turning tomato red. I snuck out and stood in front of his cage, noticing how calmly he’d been watching me. Even if he didn’t want to be here, and that’s why he was in the cage, he didn’t seem in a hurry to leave either. "What is your name?" I asked in a hushed tone, opening his lock. "Ian!" That was all he said. Didn’t even mention his rank or anything like most handsome men would do. Or maybe he wasn’t trying to impress me afterall. Once I opened his cage, I stepped back and watched him get out. He was probably six-foot-seven, tall with broad shoulders and a slim waist, straight out of a manga. He walked right up to my face, dipped his head low, and gazed into my eyes before stepping to the side and walking past me. I followed him until we reached another set of bars to the outside. "The keys are hanging over there," I said, pointing at the wall on the other side of the bars. "But you’ll have to jump through the bars and open it for me," I added, and he turned to me, scrunching his eyebrows. "I have wolfsbane in my system and I’m injured. I don’t think I can crawl this gate like you," I uttered. Ugh! I hated saying it out loud, and hated asking for help. It’s usually me helping others. I’m the one every girl at school would come to when they needed help with the bullies. I’d help them deal with those damn losers and cocky playboy jocks too. "Got it," he replied. He wasn’t very talkative. He started climbing the gate, and I got a front-row view of his ass. He was perfect. The pants fit him so well. His long legs moved effortlessly as he scaled upward, and then he jumped down to the other side. "The keys!" I called, impatiently jumping up and down, pointing toward the wall. He looked at me, his gray eyes peeking through his ruffled black hair and then at the keys. There was a moment of pause in his body language where he was contemplating something and then, he turned around to run behind the wall instead of grabbing the keys for me. "Hey! The keys!" I hissed, frowning. "He’s fucking leaving me behind," I growled in disbelief, stunned and pissed. "Hey!" I called again, this time my patience cracking completely. That asshole. He could’ve helped me, but instead, he bailed? What a prick. Anger surged through my veins. If I couldn’t leave, then I sure as hell wouldn’t let him leave either. "Somebody stop him—he’s escaping!" I screamed, running toward the right side of the hallway where some rooms housed resting warriors. I started banging hard on the doors, waking them up, before racing back to my cage to guide them toward the direction he ran. The warriors rushed out through the side doors, but at the same time, I saw the silent guy again, running back toward me with keys in his hand. "Huh?" I blinked, stunned, as he approached and started unlocking the door. "But the keys—" I pointed at the set hanging on the wall. "They’re fake. The real ones were hidden behind the wall. I had to go get them," he explained in that same deep, velvety voice. "But I thought you had left me behind," I murmured, covering my mouth when I noticed the warriors reaching behind him. He stopped. Slowly, he turned around, then looked back at me with betrayal burning in his eyes. "You fucking bitch," he grunted just before one of the warriors slammed a rod against his head, knocking him out.