CHAPTER 52

MIA POV:

The sound of hurried footsteps echoed outside my cell, making me tense. Ek held my breath as the door creaked open, but to my relief, it was Elizabeth standing there. Her eyes roamed over me with shocked wide eyes that were mixed with concern. I sighed internally in relief whilst I remained calm and collected on the outside. "Mia, are you alright?" she asked softly, her voice filled with caution as her eyes continued to look over me. I knew I must look a mess with my clothes torn and shackled to the floor, but I managed to give her a small smile as I welcomed her warm presence in the cold and silent room.

As she approached, I noticed her gaze darting to the whip lying discarded on the floor and then to my behind. Her expression faltered, and for a moment, I saw a glimmer of empathy. The whip that Dominic used must have left angry red welts where he struck me. Elizabeth knelt down in front of me, her hands trembling slightly as she unlocked the chains that bound me. The metal fell away, clattering to the ground, and I felt a surge of relief and freedom. I gently rubbed each of my wrists as I managed to sit up fully on my knees for the first time since this punishment of Dominic started. Despite my ordeal and the slight pain, I got to my feet and stood tall, refusing to show weakness.

Elizabeth's eyes widened in surprise again. She must have expected to find me in a crumpled heap of snot and tears, but here I was getting up by myself with a show of indifference. Elizabeth also got to her feet. She looked more shaken than I was. "Mia, what happened?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper, as though she was afraid of being overheard.

I met Elizabeth's concerned gaze. "Mia, what did he do to you?" she asked further when I didn’t immediately respond, her voice laced with empathy and genuine concern. I shook my head, forcing a reassuring smile. "It's nothing, Elizabeth. Just another one of Dominic's intimidation games. "I said, downplaying what happened and preferring not to go into detail. Elizabeth looked skeptical. "Games?" she repeated, her voice tinged with disbelief.

I stood tall, squaring my shoulders. "I won't give him the satisfaction of breaking me, Liz." I declared, my voice firm. "And I will not play along with his games. ”I added, and I saw something shift in her eyes. Was that respect I saw? Proud perhaps? "You're stronger than what everyone thought, Mia. I think that even the alpha has underestimated you. ”She spoke. “Not everyone who comes down here is able to leave as unfazed as you, which only proves how strong you are.” Elizabeth said, her words meaning a lot to me. “You will be a strong luna for us and a fierce leader.” She said and I smiled at her encouraging words. “Thank you, Liz. That means a lot coming from you. ”I said as we started to leave.

Together, we walked up the stairs, my body stiff and pained, but with Elizabeth's supportive and comforting presence, I managed to make it to my room. I was just grateful to not have run into anyone in the halls as we made our way to my room and I sighed with relief when Elizabeth closed the door behind us, locking us in the safety of my room, but I gasped as I took in all the destruction that littered my room. I felt violated… more than what I just went through as I looked around my room at all my clothes and things that were thrown on the ground.

Elizabeth clucked her tongue in disapproval before she stomped forward and threw everything off the bed to make place for me to go and lie down. “Don’t worry about this mess, I will sort this out in no time.” She said as she indicated me to go to bed. I tried not to wince as Elizabeth gently started to clean and dress my wounds. I gazed at her with gratitude before I got curious. "Elizabeth, can I ask you something?" She looked at me, her eyes attentive. "Yes, of course, Mia." She said before focusing back on what she was doing but waiting for my question.

"What is the basement for?" I asked. Elizabeth's hands faltered slightly, but she continued wrapping a bandage around my wrist. It had angry cuts where the handcuffs but into my skin and was swollen. "It is used for initiation ceremonies.” Elizabeth said and I looked at her curiously. “But he also uses the room to uhm… asserts his control over others that disobey him. "She said, her voice measured as she didn’t meet my eyes. I uttered a mirthless laugh. "Control?" I asked, my mind replaying my little victory over Dominic that went down earlier today in the basement. “I don’t think he had much control over me today.” I spoke. Elizabeth didn’t reply, but I could see she had a smile pulling at the corner of her mouth.

"The initiation ceremonies… what do you mean by that?” I asked, and I felt a shiver of unease run down my spine at the haunted look that entered Elizabeth’s eyes. "The chains weren’t always used for punishment…” Elizabeth began. Those were used as part of the initiation for family members, a sort of rite of passage to prepare them for the future and to test their loyalty to the family." Elizabeth explained. She sounded weary. It was like she was uncomfortable to talk so openly about the basement.

My mind reeled. "Does this mean that I am part of the family now?" I asked as my thoughts went back to earlier today, but her expression turned grim. "No, Mia. You're not. At least not yet." She spoke and looked me in the eyes for the first time in many minutes. “This display of punishment was just Dominic trying to dominate you, trying to make you submit to him… which he evidently did not succeed in.” She confirmed and that proud look in her eyes returned before it turned grim again. She continued, attending to my other wrist.

"The family's rituals are... harsh. They test your loyalty, push your boundaries and there are very few who are able to emerge from the basement unscathed or traumatized. "She explained, and I felt a chill creep up my spine. "What type of rituals?" I pressed, my voice a bit uneasy. Elizabeth's lips formed a thin line. It looked like she didn’t want to talk about this anymore, or perhaps it was not allowed? I wondered. Before I could press for more, Elizabeth got to her feet. Her mood changed just like she suddenly changed the subject.

“Here, get rid of those ruined clothes and put this on.” She said, handing me my pink gown. She turned to start cleaning up the mess on the floor, so I took this time to quickly discard my old rags and put on my gown. The soft fabric wrapped around my body in a comfortable bubble.

I was just about to help, but Elizabeth stopped me. Ordering me to get back into bed and to concentrate on resting. Knowing Elizabeth by now, I decided to do what she said and lay down onto the bed as she tidied up. All the while she was mumbling under her breath and cursing all the warrior men for leaving such a mess. I giggled. It was actually adorable to see her get angry at a bunch of grown men, even though she didn’t know which ones helped Dominic to overturn my room.

“I’ll make them feel very sorry for this, I will!” She made a threatening promise under her breath. I will make all of them soup for breakfast, lunch and supper and I will give them forks to eat with… and they will eat every last drop!” She chastised, and I had to wrap my hand over my mouth to stop me from laughing out loud. “And may the Moon Goddess be with the assholes who dare to complain about it.” She continued to mutter under her breath but this time I couldn’t contain my laughter.