~ The Red Moon pack ~
“Out of the way!”, Anna spat angrily while carrying a stack of plates into the kitchen.
Talia quickly stepped to the side, not wanting to attract attention. She never understood why Anna or other Omegas were treating her like trash, she was an Omega, just like they were.
The only difference between them and Talia is that they all have families, while Talia is an orphan. No one will stand up for her and in the world of werewolves, one wins by strength or numbers. Unfortunately, Talia doesn’t have any of those, so she needs to submit or risk another beating.
Talia read in a book that a good Luna should advocate for kindness and help the less fortunate ones, but Luna Layla is not one of those. Other than worrying about herself, Luna Layla cares about the flashy image of the Red Moon pack, and that’s where her concerns stop.
Talia huddled in the corner, behind a big focus, and observed the commotion.
The whole packhouse was buzzing with activity and she overheard Omegas talking about how someone important was coming for lunch. Probably an Alpha.
The packhouse is a big mansion that is used as a home for the Alpha, the Beta, and their families. Also, guests stay there.
Other pack members have their dwellings in the area whose size and proximity to the packhouse reflect the owner’s standing within the pack.
Talia is the only exception as she is a nobody and she lives in the packhouse, but only because she stays in the attic. No one knows Talia exists as long as she completes her chores, and she doesn’t get in anyone’s way.
On a normal day, Talia thinks of herself as a house mouse who lives within the walls without anyone noticing.
Talia likes when they have important guests because that means there will be plenty of food to go around, just like during the party, two days ago.
That party was amazing. Talia listened to the music from the window she cracked open while munching on a full plate of various snacks she sneaked from the kitchen.
The only bad thing was that the guest of honour, Princess Kathrine (as other Omegas call her), bumped into Talia after Talia returned the empty plate. Luckily, Kathrine didn’t raise a fuss and she even apologized.
Talia is confident that Kathrine is a good person.
When Talia cleaned Kathrine’s bathroom while Kathrine was on one of her spa outings, Talia observed an array of beauty products she wouldn’t even know how to use, and Kathrine’s closet was full of fancy outfits which confirmed to Talia that Kathrine is the real princess. Princess Kathrine.
Talia used the less-used passages to reach her room in the attic. The things inside are old and dingy, but she keeps it clean and most of the time no one bothers her.
She smiled at the sight of two apples and a dinner roll that were on the napkin, next to the futon where Talia sleeps.
Normally, Talia stays in her room during the day. At night, she would complete her chores, and she used that opportunity to shower in a bathroom that was attached to one of the unused guest bedrooms. When everyone is sleeping, Talia sneaks into the kitchen to find food.
As Talia sees it, today is a good day. With an important Alpha coming, there will be a feast, which means more leftovers.
Talia lay on the futon that was riled with holes, and she stared at the ceiling while munching on an apple.
Talia likes to think of herself as a captured princess, waiting for her prince to rescue her, but Talia is aware that she is no princess and there is no prince. Not for her at least.
Talia was brought to the Red Moon pack, when she was a toddler, by the previous Alpha. She heard rumours that the Alpha was kind and powerful, but unfortunately, soon after Talia’s arrival to the Red Moon pack, he died, and his son, Edward inherited his position.
Alpha Edward was eager to prove himself in the world of werewolves, which is done by strength and strategizing. His strategy was to focus on warriors and military power, and he neglected everything else.
Of course, Alpha Edward’s perfect image was important, so Luna Layla was in charge of making the packhouse look glamorous and organizing parties, while their daughter Kathrine was sent to Europe to attend prestigious boarding schools when she was in her early teens, and their son James was busy with tutors even before he could walk properly.
Between all that activity, Talia is convinced that Alpha Edward and Luna Layla have forgotten about her existence.
Talia was seven or maybe eight years old when Alpha Edward repurposed common rooms for additional training areas, and at that point, Talia lost her bedroom.
“Where should I go?”, Talia asked while looking at people who were taking the furniture out of her room.
The woman paused. “The attic is not used.”
And here she is. In the attic.
That was more than a decade ago.
Since then, Talia has been living low-key with Alpha and Luna not acknowledging her existence. It’s not that they are ignoring her on purpose. Talia is a quiet, inconspicuous girl, with a talent for diminishing her presence.
Talia was a child when she came to the Red Moon pack, and she never went through the ceremony of joining the pack, so she doesn’t have the mind link. That’s one of the reasons why Alpha Edward doesn’t know about her.
But Omegas know. They tend to bully Talia for the smallest mistakes and over the years, Talia learned to keep to herself and to avoid them effectively.
She cleans the bathrooms and empties the trash in the packhouse, without anyone noticing.
Talia shifted and groaned when a hard corner hit her lower back. She reached for the book that was the culprit for her pain. That will leave a bruise.
Talia lives with the werewolves, but she is no more than a human.
If not for her wolf speaking to her, Talia would believe that she IS a human.
Unfortunately, Talia heard her wolf the last time about four years ago.
‘You are too weak to shift…’, Talia’s wolf spoke into her head. ‘If you force it, it might kill you…’
Talia hasn’t felt her wolf since then, and Talia is not sure if her wolf is sleeping or if she is lost forever.
Without her wolf, Talia doesn’t have the speed strength, or enhanced senses, and her healing ability is super-slow. On top of that, Talia is malnourished and much smaller than an average werewolf, making her look like a fifteen-sixteen-year-old (skinny) girl, instead of nineteen years old.
Talia looked at the book in her hand and observed the illustration of a princess who was smiling and running with her prince. There is a castle in the background, they are holding hands and look happy, and Talia’s eyes always wander to the princess’ shiny shoes.
The book is about Cinderella, a poor girl who is abused by her stepmother and stepsisters, and then she meets a fairy godmother who wears a fancy dress and shiny shoes so that Cinderella can go to the ball, meet her prince, and live happily ever after.
‘What nonsense.’, Talia thought. ‘The story is rubbish. One’s fortune can’t depend on a pair of shoes, but Talia still cracked a smile.
This book reminds Talia of Olivia, the only member of the Red Moon pack who treated her as a person.
Olivia left the pack about one year ago and Talia misses her dearly. Every night Talia hugs that book to sleep, and she remembers Olivia.
Olivia is two years older than Talia and her father is Dr. Scott, the pack doctor.
Olivia would sneakily come to the attic and help Talia tend to her cuts and bruises. Olivia didn’t dare to help Talia openly when others bullied her, but Talia never blamed her for it.
Olivia taught Talia a lot about plants; which one is good for swelling, which one for reducing pain, etc.
When Olivia noticed that Talia was reading slowly, she gave Talia the book about Cinderella. “Practice reading daily. This is a great book to remind you how there is such thing as magic, and dreams can come true…”
Talia thought that that was silly, but she was touched by the gesture and accepted the book.
Last year, Olivia was away for a few weeks, and when she returned she came to say her goodbyes.
“Where are you going?”, Talia asked her curiously.
Talia never thought about leaving the pack. Not because she didn’t have the courage, but more because she had no idea where she would go. Her knowledge about the world outside of the Red Moon pack was extremely limited making her feel like a frog in a well that was sealed and she couldn’t even see the sky above.
Olivia smiled dreamily. “I met my mate. I’m going to live with him. Larry is waiting for me at my house. I used the chance of Larry talking to my dad to come here and say goodbye…”
Talia hugged Olivia and wished her all the best. Talia was happy for her friend, even though she knew that she would be lonely.
Olivia found her prince and she was going to have her happily ever after, and Talia held her tears for after Olivia left.
Talia placed her hand on the book about Cinderella and dozed off.
Her duties start in the evening when everyone is sleeping, so she can rest. By then, the guests will arrive and all the buzz will be over, and Talia smiled at the thought of all the leftovers she will find in the kitchen.
(The red moon pack)It was late morning when Luciano, Caden, and Maya arrived at the Red Moon pack.Luna Layla apologized for the absence of her husband. “He is with the scouts who picked up suspicious movements on the eastern border of our territory before dawn. Alpha Edward is a hands-on leader and wants to personally ensure we are safe.”Luna Layla was welcoming enough to personally show them to their rooms on the second floor.‘Wow! This place is glitzy.’, Maya shared her thoughts with Luciano and Caden through their mind link.‘You can say that again.’, Caden responded.None of the three commented on two lines of Omegas who bowed to greet them in front of the packhouse.The floor of the entry hallway was made of white marble and the matching tall columns reached the three stories high ceiling. The marble staircase elegantly curved upward, looking pure and flawless, perfectly complimented by golden rails and the opulent crystal chandeliers that looked like they came from a fancy c
In the guestroom…Luciano sat in the comfy sofa chair and observed Kathrine smugly. She was standing three steps in front of Luciano with her hands crossed over her chest defensively.“You wanted privacy, so here we are.”, Luciano said while waving his hand, gesturing for Kathrine to start talking.“Considering our future relationship, I believe that we should be able to talk openly.”Luciano cocked an eyebrow. “Our future relationship?”Kathrine narrowed her eyes impatiently. Why is he pretending that he doesn’t understand? He wants her to spell it out? Fine!“We both know that you are here because I will be your Luna.”Luciano poked his cheek with his tongue while looking at Kathrine mockingly. He realized that Kathrine is impatient to clarify her status as his Luna. What’s with the rush? She didn’t seem to be desperate to get married, and if one was watching them during lunch, Nora seemed eager to put her hands on Luciano, while Kathrine was in a meh-mood.Luciano wondered if he sa
Luciano pushed Kathrine away from him and Kathrine fell on her butt unceremoniously.“Who is that girl?”, Luciano asked while buttoning up his pants.Kathrine was confused. “What girl?”“The one with towels! She left towels in the bathroom and left!”, Luciano roared and jabbed his hand into his hair. “Damn it!”Kathrine stared at Luciano and blinked rapidly while trying to understand what happened.Less than a minute ago…Kathrine was going down on him, and she was doing wonderfully, but then Luciano inhaled the most seductive sweet citrusy scent that reminded him of delicate freesia flowers and his cock lurched in response.‘Mate!’, Luciano’s wolf said.‘What?’, Luciano asked in disbelief while staring at Kathrine.If Kathrine is his mate, why was his wolf silent during lunch? And why did her scent change? Kathrine didn’t smell like freesia. Kathrine’s scent was coconut-like, and there were traces of it everywhere, but this new scent was gentle and seductive.His wolf growled. ‘Not h
How do I find her?’, Luciano asked his wolf as soon as he stepped out of Alpha Edward’s study.‘Follow your nose.’Luciano tried sniffing around. He went to the main floor, second floor, and… nothing.He wondered if the girl is even real, or if he imagined it.Luciano is an Alpha and his senses are sharper than the ones of a regular werewolf, yet he couldn’t pick up her scent. He was confused.Without any clues, he decided to wait for Kathrine who said that she will investigate which Omega was on the towel duty.Luciano plopped on the bed and took this opportunity to re-think the situation.His wolf told him that the girl is his mate, but she escaped. Shouldn’t mates be attracted to each other?‘Stupid!’, Luciano’s wolf growled. ‘What did you think she should do, when you had Miss Barbie between your legs? Did you expect her to jump into your arms happily?’‘Damn it! I forgot about it!’ He really did. The moment his eyes landed on Talia, Kathrine became not important.‘What if she hat
After dinner, they all moved to the living room where desserts and drinks were served.Caden and Maya had a mission, and after one drink they went to take a stroll in the garden before heading to bed.Before calling it a night, Caden and Maya will roam through the packhouse of the Red Moon pack, looking for an opportunity to eavesdrop on some conversations from the Omegas, or maybe even join in and ask questions.Luciano’s wolf was fidgety, craving to inhale the sweet citrusy scent of freesia and locate its source, despite Luciano telling him how that’s not going to happen.After an unknown measure of time, Luciano stood up abruptly. “I will retire for the night.”Everyone looked at Luciano with confusion obvious on their faces, but Luciano pretended like he didn’t notice.He turned to Alpha Edward. “I hope that after breakfast we can continue our discussion from this afternoon.”Without waiting for Alpha Edward to respond, Luciano went to his room.He opened the window of his room an
Luciano stared at the moon in silence for an unknown measure of time, when a knock on the door got his attention.‘Did Kathrine come to pick up what’s left of her panties, or did she change her mind?’, Luciano mused.No one else would come at this hour. Caden and Maya use mind links to communicate, like always, so that others don’t overhear them.Luciano went to open the door and to his surprise, Nora’s smiling face entered his vision.She took a deep breath of his masculine scent and her arousal swelled. She knew that he could smell her and she was not bashful about what she wanted.“Good evening, Alpha Luciano…”, she greeted him. “I noticed the light in your room, and since you left early wishing to rest, I wondered if you have trouble sleeping and if I can help you somehow.”Even without the scent of her arousal, Nora’s sultry look told Luciano what was on her mind, but he still asked, “How can you help me, Miss Nora?”Nora smiled when Luciano stepped into the room, silently giving
It was past two o’clock in the morning, and Luciano was unable to sleep.His room was facing the garden and there was a forest in the distance. Luciano decided to go for a run. That should help him clear his mind.Ideally, Luciano would shift into his wolf form. Feeling the soil and grass under his paws as the wind runs through his fur always feels good. However, he is in the territory of the Red Moon pack and if his wolf is seen, it will be perceived as a challenge, a threat.He came here to see what Alpha Edward was plotting, and not to start a war.Luciano descended the stairs and reached the main floor. He took a turn toward the door that leads to the garden when the sweet citrusy scent of freesia got his attention.Without thinking, Luciano’s legs moved, and he found himself in the part of the packhouse he hadn’t visited before. The kitchen.The main light was off, but he could see the surroundings among heavy shadows because the fridge was open.And there he saw a small figure s
Luciano stopped in the middle of the garden and took a deep breath in search of Talia. The wind mixed in the scent of freesia with hydrangea and roses and scattered them in random directions, and… “Shit!”, Lucaino cursed under his breath. “I lost her.” ‘Why did she leave?’, Lucaino asked his wolf. ‘Maybe because you scared the soul out of her.’ Luciano was confused. ‘I scared her?’ ‘The girl is abused and jumpy, yet you sneaked behind her. You prevented her from leaving and held her while demanding that she answer your questions, so yes. You scared her. And that was only the last five minutes. The first time you met, there was another she-wolf sucking you off and you shouted at this precious one to stop. It’s not the best first impression, if I may say.’ Luciano cussed internally. He didn’t want to think about the unpleasant things. He was unable to get Talia’s image out of his mind. Damned mate bond! An idea hit him… ‘Isn’t she my mate? Why did she run away from me? If we are