Chapter 5 Tracking Chip.

Dora's POV 

I awoke slowly, aware first of dull soreness in my neck. Blinking up at an unfamiliar ceiling, it took me a moment to get my bearings. I was in a luxurious bedroom filled with morning sunlight. 

"For a brief, confused moment I wondered if I had died and somehow ended up in heaven."

Gingerly I sat up, pressing a hand to my tender neck. Flashes of memory returned - the fangs, the chase through the rainy city streets, and King's handsome but terrifying face as he pinned me down, his teeth at my throat...

"Blast!"

I bolted from the bed and rushed to the bathroom, afraid of what I would see in the mirror. Bandages were taped to the side of my neck over two small mm puncture marks - bite marks. King's bite. 

It all came rushing back. How he had bitten me in some bizarre possessive gesture before I mercifully passed out in the SUV. Revulsion and anger churned in my gut. I had been kidnapped by that gang leader who insisted I was his "mate".   

I was halfway to the door, ready to find a way out of this place, when it opened to admit an elderly woman. She wore a nurse's uniform and carried a small medical bag. Surprise flickered over her face when she saw me. 

"You're awake! We were beginning to worry." Her voice was kind as she guided me back to sit on the bed. Carefully she examined the bandages on my neck, applying a salve before taping on fresh gauze.   

"You've been asleep nearly a full day," she informed me. "The alpha bite can be quite traumatic if you're unprepared. But a bit of rest will put you right as rain again."

I just stared at her. She spoke so casually about this bizarre attack I had suffered. And she kept calling King 'alpha' as if it were a title. 

"What...what's going to happen to me?" I finally managed to ask in a shaky voice.

The nurse blinked as though the question confused her. "Why, you'll take your place in the pack, of course. As alpha female and Luna, bonded to King. It's a great honor!"

With that alarming statement she patted my hand, gathered her things, and bustled out, leaving me reeling. 'Honor?' I had not asked for or wanted any of this. As her words sank in, cold horror trickled down my spine.

I was well and truly trapped here unless I took matters into my own hands. A fierce determination to escape ignited within me. I rifled through the armoire and dresser, pulling on jeans, boots and a dark shirt that would help me blend into the shadows. 

I rushed to the door first, only to find it locked. Gritting my teeth in frustration, I tried the windows next with no better luck. It seemed I was in some wing of a sprawling mansion, surrounded by a dense forest. The only unlocked window was the small one in the bathroom, overlooking a perilous three story drop.  

It would have to do. I tore the silky bed sheets into long strips, knotting them together. But I had only finished half the makeshift rope when a knock at the door made me freeze. I hastily shoved the evidence under the bed before calling, "Come in."

It was the nurse again, carrying a tray of food. Her eyes narrowed, taking in my changed clothes and the disarray of torn curtains and bedding. 

"Redecorating, are we?" Her tone was light but held an edge of suspicion. 

I forced a smile. "I was restless. Don't worry, I'll clean up the mess." I hoped I sounded sufficiently contrite. The nurse nodded slowly, still eyeing me. To distract her, I sat and ate ravenously. 

She remained, making conversation about the mansion and its inhabitants, until I had cleaned my plate. I hoped I had allayed her wariness. As soon as she left I resumed tearing fabric for my rope. 

By the time darkness fell, I had a rope that would reach the ground below the bathroom window. My heart pounded. It was now or never. I had just climbed over the sill and began my descent when an angry snarl froze me in place.   

I looked down to see the monstrous black wolf from the city park pacing below, gray eyes fixed on me. 

"How did he find me so quickly?"

Despair washed over me at having my escape thwarted, but I reluctantly began to climb back up. The wolf would surely rip me apart if I set foot outside.

I had nearly reached the window again when the makeshift rope shifted and my left hand lost its grip.

"Help…!"

I cried as I plummeted down, certain I was falling to my death. But instead of hitting the ground, I landed in a pair of muscular arms. 

Blinking up, I found myself cradled against King's broad chest, his expression murderous. I had never seen anything so simultaneously dangerous and handsome. 

"I can explain," I began desperately. But King simply tossed me over his shoulder like a sack of flour and carried me into the mansion. 

"Save it!" He growled, silencing me.

Struggling accomplished nothing against his preternatural strength. He brought me to some kind of medical clinic and dropped me on the exam table. Before I could react, he jabbed a syringe into my arm.

I yelped, more in outrage than pain. "What are you doing?"  

King's smile was all teeth. "A tracking chip. You'll not escape me again."

"That's barbaric!" I shouted, but King just laughed. 

"The time for games is over. You're mine now - the sooner you accept that, the easier this will be for both of us." His eyes glinted with anticipation. 

Still, I refused to surrender my free will. I had to play along and watch for another chance to get away. 

King's thumb brushed my lower lip in a tender gesture at odds with his uncompromising words. "You cannot flee your own skin. The goddess has recognized me as your mate. The sooner you accept our bond, the easier this will be."

I jerked my head away, glaring at him. "I'll never willingly be your prisoner, no matter what tricks you use to control me."

King sighed. "Still so defiant. But even after rejecting me, the bond still exists."  

He left me alone then to grapple with his ominous predictions. Exhaustion overcame me and I slipped into an uneasy sleep plagued by dreams of running wild and free beneath the moon chased by furry beasts.