Nolan gently pushed Ashelin's hood from the top of her head. She quivered with desire but stayed as still as she could as he leaned down, nuzzling his nose into her unruly crimson hair.

He inhaled deeply and a low groan rumbled in his throat, like rocks brushing against each other. She wondered if she was as heady to him as he was to her, if her natural scent mixed with the musk of her arousal drove his wolf to the brink of insanity.

"Are your arms sore, little Siren?" he asked, his tone taking on almost a teasing lilt. He glided through the sand until he was behind her, his hands ghosting down her shoulders, tracing the intricate knots across her back.

She shivered. "No." It wasn't fully a lie. She knew if he untied her that her shoulders would be stiff from being in the same position for so long. But she was good at dissociating from pain and discomfort when she wanted to.

And she was a lot more focused on Nolan and his presence than anything that was happening inside her own body.

He growled, snaking an arm around her and taking her throat in a large hand. The silver warmed between his palm and her delicate flesh, and her eyelashes fluttered as he pressed his thumb and forefinger into either side of her neck.

Collared, bound, unable to breathe—not to mention hungry and thirsty and tire and overexposed to the sun and—

She gasped a moan as he relaxed his fingers, allowing her a breath and for blood to rush to her brain.

"You are a filthy thing, aren't you?" Nolan purred the words into her ear, sliding his free hand across her belly and pulling her flush against him. "A whimpering fucking mess over your own degradation."

He squeezed.

Ashelin closed her eyes, tilting her head back, pressing against his strong chest as her ears rang. He flattened his palm against her stomach and she wanted to roll her hips, encourage him to touch her somewhere needy.

Her wolf whimpered in wanton desperation, an inner voice because the outer body had no breath to make sound. Which was likely a blessing, because she couldn't trust her tongue not to beg him.

Beg him for every glorious second of that filthy degradation.

He growled, low in his throat, and then shoved her away from him suddenly. She tried to keep her balance, but days without nourishment and the intensity running through her caught up and she hit the sand face-first.

She rolled onto her side to avoid a mouthful of beach, blinking up at the alpha's stiff form through her unruly crimson locks. His back was turned, muscles knotted, his hands behind his head. He clawed at the nape of his neck for a moment, as if he were overcome with indecision, and Ashelin's gut clenched.

She could almost taste his frustration. There was a thrill there, a thrill that she affected him, but she couldn't help but chastise herself. She'd let herself fall too hard into the moment, and in turn, came on incredibly strong. This could hurt her chances. Her mind reeled with what to say, what to do, but she came up blank and decided her best course of action was to stay where he'd put her and wait.

Finally, after what felt like forever, he lowered his arms.

Without turning around, he said, "Nobody removes your ropes but me." He turned his head slightly, giving her a profile, but only seemed to eye her from his periphery. "Understand?"

The tone of his command ripped through her like wildfire.

"Yes," she said, biting off the sir that wanted to leap from her tongue. She had a feeling he would like it—but right now he didn't seem to want to like it. She needed to shove her libido back into its box and play it safe for the time being.

As soon as Nolan stalked up the sand, guards moved out onto the beach. One of the two that had picked her up at the docks came back, and this time leaned over to help her to her feet. They were allowed to touch the Offerings now that the alpha had collared them.

"Congratulations," he murmured, voice thick with some kind of Scandinavian accent.

Ashelin nodded as she stood. "Thank you," she said hoarsely, trying to raise herself to her previous poise. It was as if laying down had told her body that it could give in to the exhaustion now, and it flooded her in time with the washing waves.

Her stomach growled as well, and she fought it, inwardly punching her gut into submission. You're fine, you're fine, she chanted in her head. It wasn't long now. They'd be taking her to her accommodations, and she could rest and eat.

It would be an interesting endeavour with her arms behind her back, but she would make do.

Nobody removes your ropes but me. The words echoed in her mind, Nolan's low husk bouncing around in there. How long would he leave her like this? She couldn't be sure. Everything that had happened thus far had gone just as ritual events were supposed to go—or at least as her grandmother and mother had described them to her, countless times.

So if the Valknut pack was following traditional procedures, Nolan would be visiting the Offerings each in turn within the next twenty-four hours privately before the first trial. Hopefully he'd untie her then.

Or maybe not. Maybe he'd leave her like this. She swallowed hard.

She drew her bottom lip between her teeth and bit down hard. Focus.

"What is your name?" she asked softly. She had to get to know as many pack members as she could. The benefit to showing up as a demure submissive little omega made her the least-threatening possible, and using that to her advantage could mean pack members letting their guards down.

"Bo," her companion replied. "And you are Ashelin."

She nodded. He must have heard her telling Flower Shirt her name earlier.

"Nice to meet you, Bo," she said as they hiked through the last few metres of the sand bar. "Do we have far to go?"

He shook his head. "You will be staying in the villas up here." He motioned ahead to a smattering of little yellow buildings.

Ashelin studied the layout, the walkways winding around and the parking lot on shore side. She was happy to have her own space rather than be in a hotel so she would be harder to corner, however that also kept her more separated from the other Offerings.

She wasn't here to particularly make friends with them, but she didn't want to make enemies either. The more people here that trusted her or at least didn't see her as a threat, the better.

She caught a glimpse of Flower Shirt amongst a group of wolves folding up their chairs from the grass. "Will the villas be guarded?" She pointedly gazed at the group, lingering long enough for Bo to notice.

"You do not have to worry." His tone was no-nonsense, leaving no room for argument. "No one on this island would even think of interfering with the ritual let alone an Offering."

"That's comforting." She looked up at him and offered a grateful smile. "I'd still sleep better if I knew you were prowling around, though."

He nodded, but didn't meet her gaze. "I will be here."

"Good."

They were the first to reach the villas out of all of the Offerings, a perk of having been on the very end of the beach. Bo led her to one and opened the off-white door for her, stepping aside so she could enter.

"Thank you," Ashelin said politely, and he simply nodded in response. She didn't expect him to join her inside, and he didn't, the door clicking shut behind her.

The villa was quaint and cozy, a queen-sized bed next to a glass wall overlooking the ocean. There was a small kitchenette immediately inside the door with a breakfast nook, and a slim door to the left which she assumed was the bathroom.

This was all well and good, but she'd been hoping for food. She'd water-fasted for the five-day boat ride from the mainland to prepare herself for the first phase after arrival, and now that nourishment was so close it was impossible to ignore. Wolves had a high metabolism, and needed more food than humans, and even though Ashelin had excellent self control and discipline in many aspects of her own physiology, she still needed food to live just like everyone else.

At least she could slake her thirst in the meantime. She turned and leaned over the sink, glad that the handle on the tap was long instead of a twist one, and used her nose to push it open. The pipes hissed for a moment, likely from under use, and she had a frustrated moment wondering if there was even running water on this part of the island before it finally spit out.

She leaned below the tap, her hair getting in the way as she lapped at the stream of cool water, taking small sips so that her stomach wouldn't go into revolt from not having anything in it.

When she finally felt full, she stood up, water dribbling down her chin and soaking the front of her robe, a good portion of her hair now matted to the front of her face. She couldn't blow it aside due to the heavy moisture, so she moved to the bed, flopping down onto it face-first.

Ashelin wriggled and writhed, wiping her face against the blankets to try to smear her hair off of her face. When it was finally slicked back, she slithered like a snake up the bed and shifted onto her side, resting her tired head on one of the plush pillows.

Despite an angry growl from her belly, she was asleep in seconds.

By the time Ashelin awoke, the sun hung low on the horizon, and her sluggish brain struggled to come to terms with what was happening. Voices came through the thick fog and suddenly gravity didn't exist anymore, and her wolf thrashed in its cage.

That snapped her up to the surface of wakefulness, and her stomach flip-flopped at bouncing grey asphalt moving in the sky.

No, she was upside-down. Over somebody's shoulder. She took in a deep breath through her nose, but the scent that overwhelmed her was foreign.

"This is unconventional," somebody said, and at least that voice she recognized.

"Bo?" Her voice was still hoarse from sleep as she turned her head to address the back of the guard walking next to her captor. "What's going on?"

"I can not tell you why, but..." He slowed a step so that he walked next to her, though didn't look down. "The Alpha wants you brought to him instead of coming to you." There was something in his voice, an edge that betrayed he was leaving something out.

She knew better than to ask. If they were alone—if it was him carrying her off to whatever was about to happen, she might have asked. The fact that Bo had been reassuring of her safety felt like there was a budding connection there, that he had the potential to be a protective force, but she still had to build that rapport. And she had to make sure she wasn't putting him in jeopardy by openly asking him questions she knew he probably shouldn't answer her in front of other wolves.

"I'm guessing he didn't do this with the others," she murmured instead.

Neither man said anything, but by the way Bo stiffened, she had her answer.

This could be very good or very bad. Having him single her out had been part of her hopes for this, because standing out from the other Offerings ensured she would be around for more of the ritual events to gather intel. But standing out too much—that could put a target on her back.

Ashelin knew this—she'd known this going in. She'd known that showing up in ritual robes trussed up like a Christmas present would get some attention. She'd anticipated just piquing his interest, though. Making a good impression.

Not being hauled off in the middle of sleeping.

She looked left and right as they walked, trying to keep her body loose as she did so neither of them would know she was studying her surroundings. Because she'd been in a sleep daze when they left the villa, she hadn't seen what direction they'd gone, but the ocean was on her right so it seemed they were heading west.

She wiggled her fingers and her toes, making sure that her muscles were fully awake. She had to be as on-guard as possible, despite being as helpless as ever. If she wasn't collared, she could have shifted into her wolf to get out of the ropes, but with the silver her only escape was her human legs, and that wouldn't get her very far.

Keeping her body limber was important but her mind needed to be sharp to get through this. "I can walk, now that I'm awake."

Neither of them answered, and Bo darted a little ahead out of her vision. There was the telltale swish of a door opening, and then her captor carried her through it, leaving Bo outside, looking at her through the glass.

Well that's great, she thought. One potential ally left behind.

She studied her surroundings once again, and from the marble floors and concierge desk, it appeared they were in a hotel, and an opulent one at that if the gold finishings were anything to go by. She wondered if this was where Nolan was staying while he was near the Offerings, or if this building was just used for interrogations—or whatever they were going to do to her.

The guard stepped into the elevator, and it suddenly clicked for Ashelin that there was electricity on the island. She hadn't noticed when entering the villa earlier because it had been daytime and she hadn't tried flicking any switches. But this place was fully lit inside, and the hum and ding of the elevator as it descended made it almost feel normal.

Like she wasn't trussed up in Bermuda in the apocalypse.

As her captor carried her into a concrete parking garage, Ashelin's gut clenched, and not just from hunger. This wasn't about to be the scene of some nice special Offering surprise.

Fear fluttered in her chest, feeding the excitement pulsing her veins.

The guard put her down gently on her feet, the concrete cold against her soles. She locked her knees, keeping her legs at hip width to stay steady. He reached above her head, and metal clinked before he pushed her hood aside something cold pressed against the back of her neck.

As her collar went taut, she realized he'd hooked it to something, and she tilted her head to the side, testing the boundary. He moved to the wall and tightened a chain on a hook there, and she followed it with her gaze all the way to a pulley in the ceiling and then down to her.

He pulled it tight enough that she rose up a little on her toes to give her throat some room. Before she could ask him any questions, he left, footfalls echoing in the expanse of the parkade.

She twisted a bit, taking in the little bay she hung in. There was a power washer and hose on the wall, and as she adjusted her stance her toes brushed against a lip in the floor. Directly beneath her was a metal drain cover.

Well, that's not a good sign. She could think of a hundred reasons why someone would string someone up over a drain, and about ninety-five of those things were pleasant. The other five percent were nerve-wracking.

But a thrill ran up her spine regardless.

Her stomach growled and she closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath and trying to focus again. Tap into that subspace she'd used on the beach, that comfort that she was where she was supposed to be.

Creakkkkk, click.

A door opened and closed somewhere, and Ashelin's heart hammered against her ribcage. His scent preceded him, and she let it encircle her essence, entwining with every nerve ending in her body and setting it aflame.

The footsteps stopped in front of her, and she didn't open her eyes, focusing on her hearing, a low chuckle rumbling in his throat.

"Now, snowbird, why don't you tell me why you're really here?"

DUN DUN DUN. Do you think Ashelin is boned?

... *smirk*