I hurried down the cold, polished stone hallway, my heart still a frantic drum against my ribs from the encounter with Alpha Draco.
The air, which had felt charged and wild in his study, now felt thin and empty, a stark contrast that left a lingering tremor in my limbs. Every muscle in my body screamed to run, to escape this place, but I forced myself to maintain a measured pace towards the Chief Maid's chamber—
Omega Tatiana's quarters.She had never liked me. Not one bit.Tatiana was a woman carved from granite—stiff, sharp-tongued, and cold to the bone. Her eyes, usually narrowed in perpetual disapproval, seemed to hold the weight of every mistake made by every maid under her rule.
Stories floated around the servants' quarters like bitter whispers: how Tatiana had once dreamed of being mated to an Alpha, how that coveted dream had crumbled, leaving her with nothing but the bitter taste of reality. Now, she ruled the maids with an iron tongue, a constant reminder that she was just another Omega, just like the rest of us. Or worse—nothing at all in the strict, unforgiving werewolf hierarchy.
Every error, every perceived slight from us, was magnified by her own frustrated ambitions, ensuring we all knew the cost of her shattered dreams.
"Omega Tatiana," I called softly from a distance, careful not to step too close to the aura of bristling annoyance that always seemed to emanate from her.
"The Alpha sent for you."She turned, her movements abrupt, her glare cutting through me like a physical blade. A sharp scent of alarm, tinged with old resentment, suddenly permeated the air around her.
"What did you do?" she snapped, her eyes wide with a frantic, desperate fear that I'd somehow landed her in insurmountable trouble.My gaze dropped to the floor, my fingers tightening their grip on the now-empty coffee mug.
"I… I didn't knock before delivering his coffee," I confessed, my voice trembling despite my best efforts. "I just went in."Tatiana's expression twisted into something feral, her lips pulling back in a silent snarl. "You swore you'd do the work efficiently, Elara. And now it falls on me? After all my warnings, all my instructions to maintain proper decorum around the Alpha?" she barked, her voice low and dangerous.
"I'm sorry, ma...""This is your first strike. Three and you're out!" she hissed, her voice cutting through the space between us like a poisoned dart. The threat hung in the air, cold and definitive.Without another word, she stormed off toward the Alpha's study, a whirlwind of stiff, furious movement. She grabbed my arm, her grip surprisingly strong, dragging me behind her like a prisoner on trial. My feet scrambled to keep up, the sudden roughness of her action a brutal reminder of my lowly status, my total lack of agency in this foreign, dangerous world.She left me at the closed door of Alpha Draco's study, the massive oak intimidating in its silence.
I stood outside, waiting, the hollow pit in my stomach growing with each passing moment. The muffled shouts from within made me flinch, each one a fresh lash. His voice was raised—furious, undeniably so.
Tatiana had clearly taken the full brunt of his displeasure, and a part of me, the part still reeling from my clan's own injustices, felt a perverse satisfaction. He was powerful, yes, but still prone to rage, still mortal in his temper.As the shouting died down, an eerie silence settled over the hallway.
Then, I felt a shift. A presence behind me, a low hum of power that was distinct from the Alpha's, yet equally heavy.I turned slowly, my breath catching in my throat.Standing there was a man, perhaps two years younger than Alpha Draco, with a leaner, almost predatory build. His eyes were sharp, like a hawk's, and a smirk played on his lips, though it never quite reached the cold calculation in their depths.
Beta Silas. The Alpha's step-brother.And a man with a dangerous reputation, one I had already learned from the hushed whispers in the kitchen and the frantic warnings exchanged between the more experienced maids.
As he stepped closer, his gaze locked onto mine, no, devouring me with an unmasked, lecherous hunger. The air around him was thick with a cloying, unpleasant scent—stale power mixed with something aggressively possessive, completely unlike the sharper, wilder, yet strangely compelling aroma of the Alpha. A shiver of pure repulsion snaked down my spine, a reaction so visceral it felt alien. My wolf, even sealed and dormant, seemed to stir uneasily within me.I'd read enough about him. Heard enough. He was known for bedding maids, discarding them when bored.
Manipulating others with practiced ease. Using the Alpha's power as a weapon to silence those who dared refuse him.I bowed slightly, keeping my eyes down, just as I had been taught, trying to project submission, invisibility.
"Nice ass," he said, his voice a low, gravelly purr as he began to circle me slowly, like a predator assessing its prey.
"You're even hot—for a maid."I froze. My mind raced, calculating, analyzing, desperately trying to find an escape route. His tone was repulsive, disgusting, but reacting impulsively was a death sentence. I didn't respond. I couldn't.I needed the Alpha's protection, no matter how fleeting or conditional. Or at least, the illusion of loyalty to him. Silas was a clear and immediate threat—one I couldn't afford to trigger, not when my very survival, and my clan's vengeance, hung in the balance.
"I… I'm sorry, Sir," I muttered,
the words tasting like ash in my mouth, though I didn't know what I was apologizing for—my existence, perhaps, or my inability to disappear on command.The door behind me flew open with a sudden, jarring slam.Omega Tatiana stepped out, her face pale, her eyes red-rimmed with a mixture of fury and shame that was almost painful to witness.
She brushed past me, her shoulder hitting mine with deliberate, bruising force.
"Slut," she muttered under her breath,
just loud enough for Silas to hear, the word a cutting lash meant to wound.He chuckled behind me, a low, guttural sound, clearly entertained by the drama.
The Alpha's gaze met mine briefly from within the dimly lit study—cold, unreadable, but beneath that familiar ice, a flicker of something new ignited in his depths. It wasn't just curiosity; it was a raw, undeniable recognition, a flash of pure, unadulterated possessiveness that he quickly smothered.
It was a dangerous, unfamiliar awareness that sent a startling jolt through me, a deeper tremor than fear.I lowered my eyes quickly, my heart plummeting to my stomach, and whispered a brief excuse, chasing after Omega Tatiana.
I hurried away from the two Alpha-bloods, my breath coming in shallow gasps, sinking deeper and deeper into this volatile den of power, ancient secrets, and terrifying, undeniable danger.