After My Alpha Tortured Me, I Learned the Truth About His Lies

Three years. Three long, torturous years since I'd made my deal with the devil.

I scrubbed the marble floor of the packhouse entrance on my hands and knees, my fingers raw and bleeding. The cold seeped through my thin Omega uniform, a far cry from the Luna robes I should have worn as Jacob's mate.

"Put your back into it," Ivory's voice dripped with honey-coated venom as she circled me like a predator. "You missed a spot."

I kept my head down, focusing on breathing through the pain. My inner wolf, once vibrant and strong, now whimpered weakly inside me. She'd been beaten down by Jacob's Alpha aura so many times that she rarely stirred anymore.

"Look at me when I'm speaking to you," Ivory snapped, her perfectly manicured nails digging into my shoulder.

I raised my eyes slowly. "I'm sorry, Miss Ivory."

"Sorry?" She laughed, the sound like shattered glass. "Being sorry won't get these floors clean."

She deliberately dragged her muddy boots across the section I'd just finished, leaving dark smears across the wet marble.

"Clean it again," she ordered.

Jacob stood in the doorway, watching with cold detachment. His dark eyes held no trace of the boy I'd once loved—only hatred and satisfaction at my suffering.

"You're taking too long," he said, his Alpha tone vibrating through the air. "The pack meeting starts in twenty minutes."

I nodded quickly, returning to my task as tears threatened to spill. I wouldn't give them the satisfaction.

---

By evening, my stomach cramped with hunger. The pack dining hall buzzed with conversation and laughter while I lingered in the shadows, waiting for scraps.

"Here," a young Delta tossed me a plate with a few bites of meat and some wilted vegetables. "Don't take too long."

I ate quickly, standing in the corner where I wouldn't be seen. The food was barely enough to sustain me, but I'd learned to make it last.

"Jovie!" Ivory's voice cut through the noise. "Come clear the tables."

I moved mechanically, collecting plates and avoiding eye contact with the pack members who once might have shown me kindness. Now they looked through me as if I were invisible.

When I reached Ivory's seat, she deliberately knocked over her water glass, soaking my already threadbare uniform.

"Oops," she giggled. "How clumsy of me."

Jacob watched from the head table, his lips curved in a slight smile that never reached his eyes.

---

My "room" was little more than a closet at the far end of the packhouse, far from the warmth of the main living areas. A thin mattress on the floor, a threadbare blanket, and a single light bulb hanging from the ceiling were my only comforts.

I curled into myself, shivering as the cold seeped through the walls. My wolf stirred briefly, offering what little warmth she could.

"Jovie?"

I startled at the soft voice outside my door. Oliver's scent reached me before his face appeared in the doorway.

"You shouldn't be here," I whispered, glancing nervously down the hall. "If Jacob finds you—"

"I had to see you," he said, his eyes filled with anguish. "I can't stand watching this anymore."

He stepped inside, his tall frame filling the tiny space. "Let me help you. Let me take you away from here."

"No," I said firmly, though my heart ached at his offer. "Jacob would hunt you down."

"I don't care—"

"You should," I cut him off. "I sacrificed everything to save you. Don't throw that away."

Oliver's jaw tightened as he looked at the bruises on my arms, the hollows in my cheeks. "This isn't what I wanted."

"I know." I touched his face gently. "But it's what I chose."

A crash from down the hall made us both freeze. Heavy footsteps approached.

"Go," I pleaded. "Please."

Oliver hesitated, then pressed a small package into my hands. "Food. Medicine. Take it."

He slipped away just as Jacob's shadow fell across my doorway.

"Who was that?" Jacob demanded, his Alpha aura flooding the room like a physical force.

I clutched the package behind my back. "No one."

His eyes narrowed dangerously. "Don't lie to me."

"I wasn't talking to anyone," I said, my voice steady despite my racing heart.

Jacob stepped closer, his scent—once so comforting—now terrifying. "Remember your place, Jovie."

I lowered my eyes. "Yes, Alpha."

As he turned to leave, I caught a glimpse of something in his expression—a flicker of doubt, perhaps. Or was it something else?

Either way, I knew one thing with absolute certainty: my hell was far from over.