Selena was cautiously helped into the limo's backseat by Cayden. "You are acting nicely right now, Pet. Maybe I won't even need to use the cage tonight." As he twisted his arm around hers, he murmured with a smile that bordered on sadism. She remained silent and watched, saying nothing. The sound of the car door opening distracted her from what she was thinking. She slowly turned to glance around when she noticed they were standing in front of a gigantic structure.
She followed him reluctantly out of the stretch limo. She didn't try to get as far away from him as possible; she stayed close. Knowing how intimidated and scared she felt about the unknown, Cayden couldn't help but giggle quietly at her antics. As they walked through the enormous doors that opened onto the opulent foyer, he grinned to himself and thought, "If she only knew...
Selena whispered as she stepped inside a big elevator, and it climbed.
"What is this place?" She asked gently, timidly, raising an eyebrow at him.
Cayden leaned up close to her ear and grinned as his hand delicately touched the small of her back. "One of the best hotels on earth... Just keep in mind what I mentioned about acting properly, Little One..."
Knowing that Cayden has something in store for her made her anxious once more. She didn't know what it was, but like always, when it involved him, she knew it wasn't going to be good for her.
"Now..." Cayden started by adjusting his tie while putting one foot outside the door. "I'm confident that you already know that I expect you to behave yourself around my friends. They already know why you're here and how you ended up in my control, so you may scream and cry all you want for them to save you."
Selena glanced at Cayden in a perplexing way. It just helped to increase her anxiety and hesitation around these visitors of his. Selena reasoned that whoever they were had to be as evil as he was if they were aware of his heinous cruelty.
She hurried behind Cayden while doing the best she could. Her heels quickly clicked. She wanted to ask him where they were going and who was waiting for them, but she restrained herself. She had no choice but to cross her fingers and hoped that the evening wouldn't be too hard on her.
In less than a minute, Cayden went to his left and entered the spacious chamber from the marble hallway. Selena followed quickly, but stopped at the threshold to survey the space in front of her. It shouted extravagant tastes. Anything else was overshadowed by how wealthy a Victorian sitting room appeared to be. The room's focal point was a group of plush velvet couches, each with a fire pit chuckling softly to offer most of the lighting.
She discovered Cayden's visitors seated side by side while inspecting the couches. Selena was taken aback when she saw 3 wealthy and lavishly dressed women wearing fine outfits. She had expected sinister, cunning-looking guys. All had gorgeous long, flowing hair—the second had brilliant red hair that was wavy down her back — the other one had flowing blonde hair. The other guests were men who were dressed tastefully. There were 7 people in total.
The women leaped to their feet as soon as Cayden entered the room, their cheeks beaming with smiles that were hard to determine if they were real or not. They immediately gave him big hugs and kissed him on the cheeks. While this was going on, Selena couldn't help but feel something well up inside of her at the sight of their love and devotion for him. Selena was unwilling to confess it, since she couldn't believe she was feeling jealous.
"Hello, Cayden." As she kissed Cayden on the cheek, the redhead spoke.
The words cause Cayden's smile to grow. He enjoyed the attention based on his expression. "Sorry, ladies, for the delay. I'd want to show you my new toy." He turned around and made a gesture in Selena's direction.
"My new pet I recently gained." He nearly had an admiring tone while talking about his favourite thing, almost like a young child.
As he pulled her into an embrace, his arm was thrown around her shoulders. He grinned and observed the other two girls in front of him. He nodded slightly toward the blonde and said, "This is Stela... and that is Roxy. And that is Clara."
The females gave Selena a low-key, businesslike nod.
"She is pretty." The young blonde spoke. The young blonde was praising and admiring her, but her tone of voice was icy and harsh. "You undoubtedly possess a sense of beauty."
As they were introduced, Selena remained motionless. She couldn't help but sense that they were sincerely envious of her when she looked at them. When they gave her caustic, frigid looks, their eyes seemed to speak volumes to her.
"She is unquestionably gorgeous, isn't she?" He jokingly enquired.
"She is the person you were referring to, then." One man asked.
Cayden turned to face them.
"She is the one, indeed." He said proudly. "They are my friends, James, Mark, Jack, and Dean. They are the Alphas of the Black Shadow pack and Blood River packs."
Selena looked at the men in shock. Even though she was barely aware of the pack politics, but she knew who they were. They were a group of rogues who attacked and pillaged other packs. No wonder they were friends with Cayden.
"We get to play with her tonight?" Belle gazed up at him with genuine eagerness. "We can help in training her."
His lips parted in a faint laugh at the query. Selena turned to face Cayden and stared up at him, a twinge of dread and confusion visible in her eyes.
"We'll see... I've been protective of her, so we'll see." Cayden spoke while gently stroking her arm with his thumb almost affectionately.
"You like her," commented another woman. Her tone was husky and alluring.
Selena didn't move.
"Why do you seem to have just seen a ghost?" A red-lipped woman enquired. "Are you easily alarmed?"
Both women started giggling. "Imagine Hawk's reaction when he would see his daughter like this."
Selena swallowed the lump in the back of her throat. Why were they so fixated on her dad? And did they know her dad didn't give a Damm about her? Otherwise, he wouldn't have sold her to Gerald. If they were planning to ransom her, their plan was going to fail. Selena moved to sit next to Cayden as the women moved to join the men.
"Pet, your spot is here, near my feet," Cayden said.
Selena's eyes grew wide, but she made no noise. She approached Cayden and sat on her knees near his feet. Dinnertime had started. They conversed and laughed like a typical party.
Selena felt Cayden's hand descend and brush against her spine. He gave her a piece of steak, which she promptly consumed. He gently comforted her by moving his fingertips up and down, reassuring her. Like a pet cat, he continued to feed her throughout dinner.
She could not grasp what was being said. She thought it was just idle conversation until she overheard Cayden say.
"You went too far with the attack on the Black Stone Pack. The family had a right to mourn their loved one there because it was sacred ground."
Another voice replied, "But you had declared earlier no mercy."
"Death was not the solution," said Cayden. "We launch an attack and occupy the packs. Kill the Alphas. We don't kill the pack."
"They stopped following the rules, and after everything they've done, we sure as heck aren't going to. We'll give them a traditional turf battle if that's what they want." The man retorted.
"When will we attack Hawk?"
Selena's ears perked up as her father's name was spoken.
Cayden gently stroked her spine and said, "Soon."
All eyes quickly turned to Selena. She trembled as she thought about whatever they had been planning.
With a nasty grin, Cayden continued, "I suppose it's time to play."