Chapter 3

• Anna Gold was growing sick of what she was enduring at Fight Core, a human-Lycan street fighter club based on pro wrestling. She was the biggest star in the second-largest fight show in television history. One of the few humans to be able to stand her ground against powerful Lycans, Anna held her own.
• Unfortunately, her talent manager was insufferable. Although having her best interest at heart, Grayson was always pressuring her about not revealing who she was to the public to keep the illusion of her mysterious golden empress persona. She wished it was for the job that he forced her to stay in her golden cage, but the reality was far grimmer.
• “I hate this stupid metal mask,” she said, adjusting it over her mouth.
• She felt exotic in the golden queen costumes, but it was depressing to not be able to show her face to fans, or anyone backstage, for that matter. It was lonely being forced to separate herself from everyone, day in and day out. The rumors that she was disfigured under the mask were even more of a torment, scarring her emotionally. No one knew it was just Grayson’s idea of keeping her protected from her past.
• Since the announcement of Lycan’s living amongst humans, the rumors were worse now, with fans thinking she could be any type of monster. Truth was, she was just a human girl trying to live her life as best she could.
• The gold of her stage image was the only thing that represented who she truly was, a stunning beauty, inside and out. Only a handful of people knew what she looked like under the golden costumes and gilded mask, and it was becoming her prison as the days passed into weeks.
• At times, Anna felt like she was living a double life. At home, she was a nobody. Then there was the mysterious woman behind the mask and the dominant force on stage.
• Fans saw her as the Fight Core version of the famous Dark Order sister, Allora Danes, which she was proud of. Even being a rival fight company, she looked up to the Laycan fighter. Anna, aka Lady Gold, loved Allora and saw her as the one person who changed the face of women’s battle fighting.
• The feisty female wrestler wasn’t only her idol, she was the sister to Anna’s long-time crush, Fallon Danes. She once thought he was just a regular run-of-the-mill wrestler. When she found out that he was really a Lycan hidden in plain sight, it gave her even more of a thrill. The idea of being ravaged by a sexy Lycan man made her toes curl.
• It was crazy of her to fall for a guy she didn’t even know, so Anna would just admire him from afar, and listen to stories from others who knew him. The Danes family was the epitome of what she had once dreamed her career to be. Since the rise of Lycan battle fighting came mainstream, her fighting carrier has skyrocketed. Being held under the mask, she couldn’t even enjoy it.
• Five years in the business and the legendary Lady Gold were still waiting to be free of the chains of her past. The chance of her ever having a relationship again was far out of reach. Being with a sexy Lycan man was unheard of in her position, at least until the man who was the center of her torment was out of the picture, and she could get her life back.
• A knock came to the door and Luka Oliver, co-owner of Fight Core, peeked his head in. “Ready for the show, Anna? We have a full house tonight.”
• “Ready as I’ll ever be, sir. Luka, when can I take the mask off? It’s hard to wrestle when I can’t see what the hell I’m doing. Grayson promised it was only temporary, but he keeps making me keep it on.”
• “Soon, sweetie. Soon. I know you hate it, but it’s for your own good. We’re just trying to keep you safe; you know that.”
• “I know,” she said with disappointment.
• “It’s going to be okay, Goldie. I promise I’ll talk to him about it again.” With a nod of sad understanding, Luka softly closed the door behind him.
• Standing to look at herself in the mirror, she didn’t even recognize the woman before her. Even when the veil was taken away, would she even remember who she once was?
• Not long after Luka left, a cleaning person stepped into Anna’s locker room to take out the trash. She shyly said hello while the man remained eerily silent.
• Noticing he had lingered a little too long, his back was always turned, giving her chills. The man suspiciously peeked over his shoulder, and she assumed he was trying to see if she was a monster or a girl under the mask. It was typical at this point for people to speculate.
• When she spoke again, asking if he was all right, a sly grin crept across his face.
• “Where has my sexy lady been? Look at you trying to hide under that piece of tin. Miss me, baby?” he said in a cold, callous voice.
• She could almost feel his sneer as her ex stepped closer.
• Feeling her skin crawl, Anna hadn’t heard that voice in four years. Years later, he still instilled fear in her heart. Now knowing he was a murderous werewolf under that human façade, it put her more in peril. Quickly, she tried to jump from her chair to the door. Rushing her with full force, the man knocked her to the floor, ripping off the golden mask.
• “You stupid whore! Do you actually think that dumb mask would keep me from figuring out where you were? I told you the last time we spoke that you were mine. Damn it, I meant it! I would have made you my mate. Now you’ll be my human slave for defying me!”
• Her ex, Dylan, slapped her hard across the face as she screamed for him to stop. Lifting her from the floor, he covered her mouth with his hand, overpowering her as he struggled to break free. She could stand in the ring with men twice her size, but this man, half that, was able to subdue her due to his wolf DNA. Even though he was unable to shift unless it was a full moon, he still overpowered her.
• Dragging her through the empty halls, to a nearby shipping dock, he hit her again across the face as she struggled to scream for help.
• “Shut up, bitch, or I’ll kill you,” he growled in her ear, hoping no one heard her cries.
• She knew his rage, and there was nothing that would save her now. As a human, he was a violent man, but now he was a cursed being, it was twice the threat. She stopped the struggle as the tears came and her body fell limp, in hopes the weight would slow him down, but to no avail. She was once again becoming his victim.