Chapter 1

Chloe's POV

"You'll be safe there."

Those were my Uncle Hector's last words before he shut the van door in my face.

I remembered forcing a weak smile despite the knot in my stomach. He had told me a wealthy family needed a temporary housekeeper at their countryside estate. The pay was good—good enough to clear the debts that had piled up since my adoptive parents disappeared months ago.

I should have questioned why he wouldn't meet my eyes. I should have questioned why the men driving the van looked more like criminals than chauffeurs.

Instead, I thanked him. Now I wished I'd never opened my mouth. The van lurched to a stop. Heavy footsteps approached before the doors were flung open, blinding sunlight spilling inside.

"Out!"

A rough hand grabbed my arm. I stumbled onto uneven ground, my legs buckling after hours of being tied up.

The smell hit me first: blood, rust and damp earth. Then my eyes adjusted. Dozens of iron cages stretched across an enormous warehouse.

Each cage held frightened young women huddled together as though trying to disappear.

"What is this...?" I whispered.

The man beside me laughed. "A market."

Before I could ask what he meant, another guard shoved me so hard I nearly fell face-first into an empty cage.

"Inside."

"No." The word escaped before I could stop it. "I think you've mistaken me for someone else. My uncle sent me here for work. There has to be—"

The slap came so fast my head snapped sideways.

"Did I ask you to speak?"

Before I could recover, another man unlocked the cage, grabbed my wrists, and threw me inside.

"You've been sold by your uncle to Lord Balthazar."

My mind went blank. "...What?"

The guard crouched outside the cage, grinning.

"Congratulations. You're now one of Lord Balthazar's new breeders."

I frowned. "Breeder?"

The men burst into laughter. "You'll find out soon enough."

He stood and kicked the bars. "So shut up before I feed you to the dogs."

My knees gave way beneath me. Sold? Uncle Hector...Sold me? No, there had to be a mistake. He had raised me after my parents disappeared. He couldn't have...

Breeder? What kind of place was this even? People didn't breed people. None of this made any sense.

Before I could gather my thoughts, a bell rang somewhere above us. One of the guards straightened.

"It's time for inspection."

The warehouse suddenly came alive as keys rattled and boots thundered across the floor. One by one, guards positioned themselves before the cages.

"Everybody up!"

No one moved fast enough. The first girl was dragged out by her hair, one was kicked in the ribs, and another screamed as a baton crashed across her back.

I instinctively shrank into the corner of my cage. The girl beside mine leaned closer, tears streaming down her face.

"Don't make them angry."

"I'm not trying to," I whispered.

She glanced at me in surprise. "You really don't know?"

"Know what?" I asked ignorantly.

"They're preparing us."

"For who?"

"The Alphas."

I frowned. "The... what?"

"The werewolf Alphas."

I stared at her. "...Werewolves?"

She swallowed. "They buy breeders."

A nervous laugh escaped me. "Werewolves aren't real."

Her expression didn't change. "You'll stop saying that once you meet one."

A guard slammed his baton against the floor. "No talking!"

The cage doors flew open. We were forced into a line. Several places ahead, one girl limped badly. She couldn't keep up.

"Hurry!"

A guard shoved her. She hit the concrete face-first.

"I'm trying..." Her voice cracked. The answer earned her another kick.

She curled into herself, crying. "Please..."

I clenched my fists until my nails dug into my palms. Every instinct screamed at me to help her. But I couldn't even save myself.

The warehouse doors creaked open. We were herded outside into a massive courtyard surrounded by towering concrete walls topped with electric fencing. There was nowhere to run.

At the center of the courtyard stood a raised platform. One by one, we were ordered onto it.

A man dressed in an expensive black suit sat behind a polished desk, lazily flipping through files while another whispered in his ear.

He didn't even look at us as though we weren't people. We were only merchandise. Finally, he lifted his head.

A smile spread across his face. "So these are today's arrivals?"

One of the guards bowed. "Yes, Lord Balthazar."

This was the "Balthazar."

He looked nothing like I'd imagined—no scars and no frightening face.  If I'd met him on the street, I might have mistaken him for a successful businessman and somehow, that made him even more frightening.

He rose and began walking down the line. His polished shoes clicked softly against the stone. Every few steps, he stopped before another girl. He tilted her chin upward and examined her face.

"Too thin." He moved on.

"Average."

Another step.

"Scars."

One rejection after another. When he stopped in front of me, I forced myself not to flinch. His fingers slipped beneath my chin.

"Lift your head."

I didn't. His smile disappeared. One nod was all it took. A guard yanked my hair so violently that tears sprang to my eyes.

"There." Balthazar studied me carefully. "Hm."

He circled me once. "Healthy. Excellent complexion."

His gaze lingered far longer than I liked. "Good hips."

Heat rushed to my face. He was evaluating me like livestock. The bile rose in my throat. He reached for my wrist. I instinctively pulled away, earning myself a slap.

My ears rang. Balthazar only chuckled.

"Still has spirit."

He turned toward the man holding a clipboard.

"Class A."

The clerk wrote something down immediately. Then he added, "She'll make an excellent breeder."

There was that word again. Breeder. I still didn't understand it. But judging from the horrified faces around me, I wasn't sure I wanted to.

The guards separated me from the others, and five more beautiful women joined me. One of them immediately burst into tears.

"No. I don't want Class A..."

Another woman beside her began sobbing. "They'll sell us to the strongest Alphas."

My heart skipped. Another word I was hearing again. What kind of place kept talking about Alphas and werewolves as though they actually existed?

Has everyone here lost their minds? Or was I the only one who didn't understand what was happening?

The beauty of the next place we were taken to only made my fears worse: marble floors, crystal chandeliers, and fresh flowers.

Faint voices drifted through the hallway.

"...The guest has arrived."

"Just now."

"Everything ready?"

"Of course."

One guard straightened his uniform. "Watch yourselves." "The Alpha hates noise."

Another guard nodded. "Don't even look him in the eyes unless you're told."

The crying woman beside me trembled. "I heard he killed another Alpha with his bare hands."

Moments later, the carved doors swung open.

"Bring them in."

We were pushed forward. At the far end of the room sat a man dressed entirely in black, one leg crossed over the other. He was doing absolutely nothing, yet everyone around him stood straighter. Even Balthazar lowered his head respectfully.

He looked young; dark hair, broad shoulders, and a sharp jaw. His cold aura seemed capable of freezing the room as his icy gaze swept lazily across the line of women.

When those eyes briefly landed on me, I felt a strange stir in my chest. I couldn't explain it, and before I could make sense of it, his gaze moved away.

The feeling disappeared immediately too as Balthazar clasped his hands together with a smile.

"Alpha Gideon." He bowed slightly. "As requested, only Class A breeders."

He gestured proudly toward us. "So, which one catches your eye?"

The room fell silent. The man called Gideon didn't even spare Balthazar a glance. Rather, his deep, cold, emotionless voice did the talking.

"I have no interest in women."