“Here, this is the girl.” Mark stepped forward, tugging her leash out of the blonde’s hand.
“I hate having it around my place. Make sure he takes it,” the blonde said, storming away.
“Come on, Clara,” Mark said, forcing her to move.
“Why are you selling her?”
Clara, the redhead, was covered in large clothes that hid her entire body from view. Her head was downcast, but he saw the tears rolling down her cheeks. He couldn’t begin to imagine the humiliation she would be feeling.
“She’s too fat. Her presence is making us a laughingstock of the pack, but you wouldn’t have a clue about that seeing as you’ve got no pack of your own.”
Striking out, Nick grabbed the man around his neck, squeezing the life out of him. “I suggest you watch your language,” he said.
In the background he heard the blonde screaming for him to release her husband. Ignoring her, Nick glared at the other man wanting to end his life. He was no longer an alpha, but no one was going to treat him with such disrespect without getting his anger directed at them.
“You’re outlawed,” Mark said, saying the words through gritted teeth.
Drawing him closer, Nick made sure he could be heard. “Exactly, so I don’t give a fuck who I kill now. You try to fuck with me and I’ll make sure you regret it.” Removing the leash from the man’s hand, he shoved him away, kicking the briefcase by his side toward the man as he did.
“Mark, baby, what’s he done to you?” the blonde said, running to Mark’s side. They were fucking vultures, and Nick hated them.
“Get the fuck out of my sight.” Nick waited until the two were in the car and leaving before he turned his gaze to the woman at his side.
Clara—such a sweet name for a sweet woman—stared at him, terrified.
They were selling her because of her weight. If he was the alpha of their pack, he’d make sure her parents suffered a fate worse than death. Seeing as he was neither an alpha of a pack nor part of one, their ugliness had given him a woman.
Turning her head this way and that, he sensed her fear increasing.
“I’m not going to hurt you,” he said, hoping his words would ease her. Taking her hand, he led her toward his car.
Crap. He had hoped for this night to run smoothly. From the way Clara was acting, he doubted she’d be ready to fuck when he got back home.
****
For many years Clara had heard the term “runt of the litter” when people talked about her. She hated it but pretended the words no longer affected her. Being told she was fat, ugly, and hated by all of the pack hadn’t prepared her for the final humiliation she’d been dealt this night. The words hurt, but she’d grown used to them.
Sitting alone in her room reading one of her favorite romances, she’d been pulled out of her fantasy by her mother. The leash, along with the clothes not to mention the complete destruction of her room, had been the last straw in the brutal pain.
The man who purchased her started up the car, taking her away from everything she knew. Her family and pack despised her, but at least she knew what they thought of her and nothing they said or did worried her. Apart from the bullying she’d been more than ready for whatever they wanted to dish out. The leash around her neck was wrapped around his wrist stopping her from moving.
Biting her lip she tried to force back the tears. Crying was an unnecessary weakness she couldn’t afford. The silence in the car gave her little comfort. What would happen when they were alone in his home? She didn’t know who he was or why he’d purchased her.
No matter how many diets she went on or the number of times she starved herself the weight wouldn’t drop off. When she failed to lose any weight, the name calling would start back up. After the name calling started, she’d start eating again. The cycle would never end. Their harsh words and nastiness would send her back to food.
Scrubbing a hand over her face, she tried to get her nerves under control. Her hands were shaking like crazy.
They drove for the next hour without a word spoken. Clara was pleased by the lack of conversation. Trying to talk while being absolutely petrified was hard. Stringing a sentence together was impossible at the moment with her nerves.
Nick stopped the car in front of a large iron gate. He typed in a code she didn’t see. The gate opened up, and he drove down. Glancing behind her she saw the gate close back up, trapping her inside with a man she did not know.
Looking across from the gate she saw the wall that had to be close to eight feet tall.
“I like my privacy,” he said.
Turning back to face the front, she saw the large house was surrounded by a large array of fields, trees, and bushes. The car stopped, and the man turned to look at her. “I’m going to release you. If you make any attempt to run, move, or cause me problems, then I will have you locked up in a cage, do I make myself clear?” he asked.