Nina's eyes fluttered open.
The first thing she saw was firelight dancing on rough stone walls, casting shadows overhead.
A cave.
She pushed herself upright, her hand flying to her injured shoulder. Her breath caught.
There was no pain.
She frowned, fingers trembling as she pulled the torn fabric of her dress aside and stared.
The wound was gone. Completely healed. Not even a scar remained.
The Alpha had healed her.
Nina looked around quickly, her gaze sweeping the small cave. The fire crackled softly in the center, the warmth barely reaching the cold stone walls. But he was nowhere to be found.
Just then, footsteps echoed from the entrance.
Nina turned just as Rodrigo walked in, two fish dangling from his hand. He was shirtless, his silver-colored hair pushed back from his face, a few strands falling over his forehead. Water still glistened on his skin, catching the firelight.
Nina's throat went dry. She looked away immediately, heat creeping up her neck.
"You're awake."
His voice was calm. Too calm.
Her heart thudded against her chest.
He had found out she wasn't a pure wolf. What was she going to do now?
Nina's lashes fluttered as her mind raced, searching desperately for a way out of this. Some excuse. Some explanation that wouldn't get her killed on the spot.
What would he do to her? Kill her? Punish her? She wasn't sure. But at least he'd saved her. He wouldn't have done that if he planned to kill her.
Right?
Nina forced herself to sit up straighter, squaring her shoulders. "Thank you," she said quietly, her voice barely steady. "For healing me."
"Don't thank me yet." Rodrigo crossed to the fire and crouched down, laying the fish over the flames with careful precision. "Your answers to my questions will determine if you live or not."
The color drained from her face.
Nina's heart pounded so hard she could barely breathe.
She was in trouble. Deep, deep trouble.
The silence stretched, her eyes hovering all over the cave, everywhere but at him.
The cold night air blew into the cave, and Nina trembled, biting on her lower lip.
"Are you human or half wolf?" he finally asked.
She swallowed hard. "Half wolf."
Another silence.
Rodrigo didn't react. He just flipped one of the fish over, watching the flames lick at its scales.
"Do you know what happens to those who lie to me?" His voice was low and deadly.
Dread curled up Nina's spine. She looked away from him, unable to meet his eyes.
"No..."
She let out a shaky breath.
Rodrigo's eyes lifted to hers, sharp as winter frost. "What do you think would happen to you, who lied to me, and your family, who dared to deceive me?"
Nina's hands twisted in her lap, her knuckles white. Finally, she dragged her eyes up to look at him. She couldn't tell what he was thinking. His face was blank, expressionless, carved into stone.
She shifted where she sat, her legs folded beneath her.
If he was this angry that she was not a pure wolf, what would happen when he found out she was not even who she said she was?
She hoped she would be dead before then.
Nina gulped. Then, she dragged herself up from the ground and went down on her knees, bowing her head low.
Her life wasn't important right now. Whether he chose to kill her now or let the curse take her in nine days made no difference. But her parents dying too? That would mean she had died for nothing. They didn't deserve it, but she couldn't bear to watch them die.
"I beg of you," she said, her voice trembling. "Punish me, and spare my family."
There was quiet. Nina could hear the loud beating of her heart in her chest. She glanced up at him through her lashes. He was looking at her, his gaze unreadable.
"You aren't going to beg for your life?" his voice was low, deep.
Nina blinked, her eyes falling to the ground.
"I'm going to die either way. Today or in nine days." Her voice was quiet but firm. "I would rather plead for the lives I know I can save."
Rodrigo was taken aback. He stared at the woman kneeling before him, her dress torn and dirtied, her hair falling loose around her pale face. She didn't look afraid of death. It was as though she had made peace with it.
There was silence between them for a moment. Then he picked up one of the roasted fish and stretched his hand toward her. "Take," he said flatly.
Nina's eyes widened as her gaze fell to the fish.
He was offering her food? He wasn't going to kill her right now? Did this mean—
Quickly, she stretched out her shaky hands and took the stick of fish from him before he could change his mind.
"Thank you," she murmured, sitting down on the ground and picking at the fish with trembling fingers.
"Don't thank me yet. I haven't decided what to do with you." Rodrigo's voice was emotionless, giving nothing away.
Nina pursed her lips. "What about my family..."
"They will be punished." He cut in flatly.
Nina turned to him, her eyes glazing with unshed tears under the firelight. "Alpha, please..."
"It is not up for discussion."
Nina swallowed hard, her shoulders falling in defeat.
She picked at the fish, but her stomach suddenly felt full, tight with anxiety and dread. The food tasted like ash in her mouth.
A gust of cold air blew into the cave, and she shuddered violently, instinctively drawing closer to the fire. She blew hot air into her palms, trying desperately to warm them.
She'd been so distracted by fear that she hadn't noticed how her ribs felt like they were splitting in half from the cold. The chill had seeped deep into her bones after falling into the river.
Her hands were white, bloodless.
Nina rubbed her palms together vigorously and glanced at him.
He was still shirtless, sitting there as though the cold didn't touch him at all. Another advantage of being a wolf—they could warm themselves from the inside out.
"Alpha," she tried again, her voice small. "I know I shouldn't plead for them, but if they are killed, then I would have died for nothing." Her voice cracked slightly. "Please, for my life, I beg of you to spare them."
Rodrigo looked at her for a long moment, his expression unreadable.
"If you're done eating, then sleep."
Nina's lips shut close as she blinked. There was no need pleading with him anymore. He'd made up his mind, and nothing she said would change it.
She set the fish aside and lay back down, curling her legs to her chest and hugging herself tightly. She blew air into her palms, trying to generate any warmth she could.
Nina shifted in her spot noisily. Rodrigo glanced at her.
Her teeth chattered as she breathed air into her palms, her whole body trembling.
Her face was deathly pale, and her lips had turned blue. She was trembling from the cold, her small frame shaking with each breath. At this rate, she would die before morning came.
Rodrigo flipped his fish over, his eyes staring blankly into the flames as though contemplating something. His jaw tightened almost imperceptibly.
She shifted again, another violent shiver running through her.
"Come lie by my side," he said finally, his voice flat and commanding. "I don't want to deal with a dead body by morning."