Scarlett's POV
The guards dragged me down to the kitchen. All the female servants were already gathered there, their eyes burning with familiar hatred.
They dumped me onto the ground, kneeling before Head Maiden Angela.
As I looked up, a loud slap landed across my cheek. The force sent me stumbling to the side. My vision blurred. I gasped as a sharp sting burned my face. The awful taste of blood filled my mouth.
"How dare you steal from the kitchen purse?!" She screamed.
"Steal? No, I–"
"Don't lie to me!" She snapped. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small leather pouch, the one the staff used for market runs.
"The guards searched the servant quarters after the cook noticed the week's grocery cash was missing. Guess where they found it? Hidden inside your pillowcase, Scarlett."
Another slap landed, harder than before. I shook my head in disbelief. I hadn't touched that purse. I didn't even know where it was kept. Someone had planted it to frame me.
"I didn't do it!" I cried out, but Angela's expression remained frozen in hate.
"I should have known. You're a rogue traitor's daughter, and now you're a common thief," she sneered. "You think you can steal from the very pack that feeds you? Guards! Tie her to the pillar. One hundred strokes."
The guards grabbed my arms, their grips bruising. My heart pounded against my ribs as they dragged me out into the harsh sunlight of the courtyard. They shoved me against the wooden post and bound my wrists tight with rough hemp rope.
I closed my eyes, bracing myself. I had been whipped before, but the weight of this false accusation was painful.
WHIP!
The first strike tore through the back of my thin uniform. I gasped, my skin erupting in a line of fire.
WHIP! WHIP!
I muffled my screams, biting my lip until it bled. Mansion workers and warriors gathered to watch. Some were entertained; others whispered, and a few stared at me with sympathy.
I squeezed my eyes shut and prayed for my twentieth birthday to come faster. When my wolf awakened, I would heal quickly. I would not be this helpless.
Suddenly, a cold, familiar voice echoed through the yard.
"Enough!"
The whipping stopped instantly. I opened my eyes, blinking away the sweat and stinging tears.
It was Liam. Standing at the edge of the yard.
His presence silenced everyone. He looked at my shredded uniform, the blood soaking the fabric, and then turned his piercing green eyes to Angela.
"What is the charge?" he asked, his voice low but authoritative.
"She stole the kitchen cash, Alpha," Angela bowed. "The pouch was found hidden in her bed."
Silence hung in the air as everyone waited for what he would say.
Liqam walked toward me.
"Untie her," He commanded.
For a split second, I saw his gaze flicker to my bleeding back. But his gaze quickly turned back into ice. The guards quickly sliced the ropes. I collapsed to the gravel, my breath coming in ragged sobs.
Liam's gaze remained cold.
"Kneel," he ordered.
My breath hitched. "Liam… please…"
"It's Alpha Liam," he snarled, the power of his command forcing my head down. He looked at the guards, then back at the crowd. "The whip is too merciful for a thief. If she likes the kitchen's money so much, she can spend the day thinking about it here."
He grabbed me roughly by my arm, nails digging into my skin and dragged me to the centre of the yard where the sun was the strongest.
"Kneel here until the sun goes down and think about what you've done."
The guards forced my knees onto the rough gravel. The scorching sun burned my back. I clenched my jaw, holding back another sob as Liam walked away.
There was no one to save me. Not any more.