CHAPTER 10: HOW TO USE A WHIP (II)

Rhea’s grip tightened on the whip handle, her smile feral. She snapped her wrist, and the pink leather split the air with a violent crack that rattled the walls.

The next strike carved across Nikki’s shoulder.

"AHHHH!" Nikki shrieked, stumbling back as her hand clawed at her skin. A welt rose angry and red against her pale flesh. "Have you gone mad?!"

The whip whistled again, curling across her thigh. The crack was deafening, like gunfire in the small room. Nikki’s scream climbed higher, her legs folding beneath her.

"Stop! Stop, you mongrel!" she sobbed, her voice raw. "I’m the Alpha’s chosen mate, you’ll pay for this! I’ll make you beg before I’m through!"

The third strike tore across her back. Nikki collapsed to the rug, clawing at the floor as sobs ripped through her throat.

"Smile, Nikki," Rhea snarled between lashes, her voice thick with dark satisfaction. "Smile while you choke on your own medicine."

"Whore!" Nikki spat through her tears, her face twisted in rage. "You’ll die for this, and I’ll dance on your grave..."

Her curse broke into another scream as leather bit into her arm. The words unraveled into broken sobs.

Seraphine lunged, her daughters rushing behind. "Stop her!" she roared, fury distorting her face.

Rhea spun like a storm unchained. The whip lashed sideways, carving across Seraphine’s forearm. She hissed and recoiled, shock flashing in her eyes at the sting.

"Who’s next?" Rhea growled, the whip snapping once more.

"You crazy bitch!" Lena shrieked as she dove for Rhea’s arm. The leather cracked across her cheek, splitting skin. Blood welled in thin, vicious lines. She screamed, clutching her face.

Lyra came from the side, but the whip coiled around her wrist mid-lunge. Rhea yanked viciously, dragging her down to her knees. Lyra cried out, tears springing as her arm twisted painfully.

"You like watching?" Rhea spat, her arm a blur as the whip lashed again. "Then watch this! Every lash you dreamed of giving me, you’ll taste it instead!"

The leather cracked wide, catching Lyra’s shoulder and Seraphine’s ribs in the same merciless swing. Both women staggered back, crying out, writhing as pain burned hot across their bodies.

The room dissolved into chaos, screams, sobs, the relentless rhythm of the whip striking flesh.

"She’s insane!" Lena shrieked, curling into the rug, shielding her face with trembling arms.

"You’ll pay for this!" Seraphine gasped, another lash ripping across her side, her voice breaking.

Lyra sobbed, her words shaking apart. "P-please, stop! You’re insane! Stop, Rhea!" But the whip cracked again, merciless, striking wherever it landed, backs, arms, legs. Rhea didn’t care. Every inch of them would pay.

And all the while, Nikki writhed on the floor. Her once-perfect face was swollen and blotched red, her sobs hitching in broken hiccups. The smugness that once dripped from her voice was gone, replaced by desperate, shuddering gasps.

Another lash. Another scream.

Rhea’s chest heaved, her face flushed with fury. She raised her arm again. The whip came down with a thunderclap crack that shook the room.

Then—

The door burst open, slamming against the wall with a violent bang.

"What the hell is going on here?" a voice bellowed, sharp and commanding, slicing through the screams like a blade.

The room froze in an instant. The whip dangled from Rhea’s hand, trembling with the heat of violence. Seraphine and her daughters writhed across the rug, clutching fresh welts. Nikki lay crumpled by the chair, her sobs broken, her body trembling in ruin.

Eberhard filled the doorway, his presence swallowing the air. His sharp eyes swept the scene, Nikki writhing and sobbing on the floor, her face streaked with tears; Seraphine doubled over, clutching her side; Lena and Lyra curled near the vanity, their skin striped with angry red welts.

And in the center of it all stood Rhea. Upright. Whip in hand. The pink leather dangled loosely from her fist, her chest rising and falling with steady defiance.

For a heartbeat, Eberhard’s face froze in disbelief. Then the shock burned away, leaving only rage. His lips pulled back in a snarl.

"What the hell do you think you’re doing, you useless, wolfless bitch?" His voice thundered through the room, venom dripping from every word.

Rhea tilted her head, her expression almost casual, the whip dangling loose in her hand. She gave a small shrug, her tone maddeningly calm.

"Teaching them how to use a whip, of course."

Eberhard’s face darkened, veins standing out along his temple. With a roar, he surged forward, his hand shooting out to rip the whip from Rhea’s grip.

"You filthy weakling!" he bellowed. "I’ll tear you apart with my bare hands!"

The whip cracked before he reached her. The leather lashed across his chest, leaving an angry welt that burned through his shirt. He staggered, shock flashing across his face, but rage carried him onward.

"You think you can strike me? Me?" he spat, lunging again.

Rhea yanked the whip free of his grasp, her eyes narrowing. "Looks like I just did."

Eberhard’s hand darted out again, clawing for the handle, but Rhea lashed downward, the tip of the whip curling across his arm. He snarled, jerking back with a curse.

"Bitch! I’ll break every bone in your body!"

He lunged once more, and this time Rhea lifted her leg sharply, her knee driving into his. The impact cracked through the room. Eberhard howled, dropping down on one leg as pain shot through him.

"Not so steady now, are you?" Rhea taunted, swinging the whip again. The leather snapped across his shoulder, then his thigh, forcing another guttural curse from his throat. He swung at her in desperation, but she darted back, her strikes unrelenting.

On the rug, Nikki shrank into herself, pulling her arms around her body. Her earlier bravado had evaporated, replaced with wide-eyed fear. She pressed back against the chair leg, making herself small, terrified to be on the receiving end of the whip again.

Across the room, Seraphine pressed a hand against her welted ribs, her voice sharp despite the tremor in it. "Lena, Lyra, go! Call the Alpha now!"

The two girls scrambled to their feet, their faces pale as they darted for the door.