Bab 6: Sold your brother

Feeling weak, Elowen struggled to her feet, her body trembling from exhaustion and pain.

Tears streamed down her face as she watched Cassian and his beta disappear into the darkness, leaving her behind like she was nothing. But it was her choice.

'Why is my fate like this?' she thought bitterly.

All she ever wanted was a mate who would love her, cherish her, but the goddess had cruelly tied her to someone like him.

She wiped her eyes, forcing herself to move. She had to get back to her pack. She was starving, her legs felt like they could give out at any moment, but she didn't stop. She couldn't. She needed to see her brother.

Hours later, Elowen finally reached the border of her pack. Her vision blurred with fatigue, but she pushed forward until she stood in front of her house.

She knocked on the door, the sound of her fist weak at first but growing louder with each desperate hit. When nobody answered, she began yelling, banging her hands against the wood, not caring about the punishment that would surely follow. All she wanted was to see her brother.

Minutes later, the door creaked open, and her stepmother stood there, her face twisted in a scowl. "Who is it? What do you think you're doing, causing a racket like that?" she snapped, but when she saw Elowen standing there, covered in dirt, bruised and exhausted, her expression shifted to one of shock.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, eyes narrowing. "Didn't they throw you out?"

Elowen ignored the insults, her mind focused on one thing. "Where is my brother?" she asked.

Her stepmother's hesitation sent a wave of terror through her. She could see it in the woman's eyes—something was wrong.

Elowen's heart pounded in her chest as she stared at her stepmother, dread filling her veins. The hesitation in the woman's eyes made Elowen's breath catch.

She stepped forward, her voice trembling as she demanded again "Where is my brother?"

Her stepmother's gaze darted away, a flicker of something dark and twisted crossing her face. "You shouldn't be here," she muttered, trying to close the door, but Elowen shoved it open, her desperation lending her strength.

"Tell me where he is!" Elowen cried out, her voice breaking with fear. She pushed past the woman and into the house, her eyes scanning the familiar, suffocating space for any sign of him. But the house was eerily quiet.

Mara followed her inside, her voice cold and laced with disdain. "You're wasting your time, girl. He's not here."

Elowen froze, her blood turning to ice. "What do you mean…he's not here? Where did you take him?"

A cruel smile twisted the woman's lips. "He was nothing but a burden, just like you. Always underfoot, always needing something. I got rid of him, just like I'll get rid of you if you don't leave."

"Get…get," Elowen's stomach churned, bile rising in her throat. "Got rid of him?" she whispered, barely able to speak. "What did you do?"

Her stepmother's eyes glittered with malice as she leaned closer, her voice a low hiss. "I sold him to another pack, one that needed strong hands for labor. They paid well, and now he's their problem."

Elowen's world crumbled around her. "N-No," she gasped, shaking her head in disbelief. "No, you didn't…"

The woman's laughter was sharp and mocking. "Oh, but I did. You think I'd waste resources on a weakling like him? He's probably already dead by now, starved or worked to death. Better for all of us."

Rage and horror surged through Elowen, her entire body trembling with the force of her emotions. She lunged at her stepmother, grabbing her by the collar, tears streaming down her face. "Where is he?!" she screamed, shaking the woman violently. "Tell me where they took him!"

But Mara only sneered, shoving Elowen back with surprising strength. "You're too late. He's gone, and there's nothing you can do about it."

Elowen stumbled back, her vision blurred by tears. Her brother—her sweet, innocent brother—was out there, suffering, maybe even dying because of this monster in front of her. The thought ripped through her like a blade, leaving her gasping for breath.

Elowen's breath hitched, her throat tightening as she stared at her stepmother with wide, terrified eyes.

She forced the words out, her voice shaky. "Where is my father?" She prayed that he could fix this, that he had known what the stepmother had done.

Mara's expression faltered for a moment, a flicker of fear in her eyes. She quickly masked it, her lips curling into a bitter sneer. "Your father?" she scoffed, lying. "He's the one who dropped your brother off at that pack. Do you really think he'd protect a useless thing like you? No, he's already given one of you away, and he'll have no trouble giving you up too."

Elowen staggered back, her chest tightening with a pain so deep it felt like it was tearing her apart. Her father had done this? Her father had sold her brother? No. It couldn't be true. She wanted to believe that the woman was lying, that her father would never betray her like that. But the seed of doubt had already been planted, and it gnawed at her insides.

Seeing the despair in Elowen's eyes, the stepmother pressed on, her voice dripping with venom. "So, it's no use running to him, girl. He won't help you. And if you don't leave right now…" Her voice dropped, turning low and threatening. "I'll sell you too. There are packs out there desperate for escorts and sluts like you, and you'd fetch a good price. You've already caused enough trouble. Maybe it's time I rid myself of you once and for all."

Elowen's heart pounded in her ears, fear flooding her veins as the reality of the threat set in. She was cornered, trapped. Her father wouldn't help her, and if she stayed, she'd be next to be sold off like some disposable object.

"No," she whispered. She backed toward the door, her legs trembling, but she kept her gaze on her stepmother. "You're lying. He wouldn't—he couldn't…"

The stepmother's cold smile didn't falter. "Believe what you want. But if you know what's good for you, you'll leave. Now."

Elowen's breath hitched as she turned and ran from the house. She had no plan, no sense of where to go, but one thing was clear in her mind: she has to survive. She had to find her brother, no matter what lies her stepmother spun.

And someday, she vowed, she would make them all pay for the horrors they had wrought to her.

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