*Trigger warning for this book. Murder and talk of sexual assault*
I stood in blackness, darker than anything I have seen or felt before, it pulsed through me. It was me.
My parent's bodies under my feet were twisted and bloodied, indicating a death that was anything but painless; I knew they fought back until the very end.
Blood was the only thing that I could smell; its thick tang coated the air, coated my hands. I knew they were there, but my head was clouded, my vision blurry from the moment I stumbled upon them.
Looking for them for solace, to help me, but it was too late, and I could do nothing to help them.
I fell to my knees, accepting my fate. I reached for their hands, still warm from the life that was just taken from them.
I couldn’t cry. I couldn’t feel.
I sat there waiting to die with them, wanting to die with them.
I had nothing to live for, no one else to live for. Everyone was gone.
I couldn’t feel anything, but the hollowness, the complete emptiness that shook me to my core.
Footsteps sounded, and I felt something that might have been relief. My nightmare would be ended, and I could rejoin my family and my pack in the next life alongside the Moon Goddess.
Strong arms pulled me off them, away from my parents.
I screamed for them, but I didn’t hear it; I only knew I did because my throat was on fire.
I kicked and fought whoever was taking me away with my last strength. They ripped me from the death that I didn’t want until tonight when everything I knew, everything I loved, was stolen away from me.
My knees ached as I was thrown onto the cold ground. Senses that felt numb and far away.
“Here she is, Alpha. In one piece as you requested.” A cold hand pulled my hair back, baring my face to him.
“Good, keep her that way,” I swayed even on my knees. The last thing I remembered was his cruel blue eyes, devoid of any emotion except a flicker of amusement at my suffering.
The hollowness in me burst into flames and turned into raging, unshakable hate that was too soon quelled by the darkness I slipped into.
Four years Later
“Aren’t you looking lovely? Is that for me, because you shouldn’t have?” Dominick leaned against the large entryway attempting to block my way, I tried to brush past him, but Hunter showed up right behind him.
“Going somewhere? Hunter leaned against the other side, a dangerous glimmer dancing in his cold blue eyes, “We wanted to have a closer look at what will be ours in a few short weeks. Oblige us, won't you?” He reached out to touch me but pulled back at the last second, I fought a smirk, looking to my feet instead.
Were they not sick of hearing their idle threats? They couldn’t touch me anyways, not until I was eighteen. Commanded by their father, their Alpha, an Alpha who would never be mine.
Hunter kicked off the wall and stepped towards me; Dominick followed him. Dominick might have been older, but Hunter was by far the cruelest and the most wicked of the three brothers.
They both got their dad's light brown hair, dull, and lifeless, like them.
They started circling me slowly, like animals that had already caught their prey and were just toying with it now. I knew how this would go, how it always went, and I settled into my character effortlessly.
“In just a few months-,” Hunter chuckled.
“A few weeks, actually,” Dominick cut in his brown eyes roving over my body, Hunter nodded in approval.
“A few weeks, and then you belong to us. Play coy all you want. It will just make it more fun when I take you,” He took a step closer to me although he couldn’t touch me his hot, wet breath could.
It fanned over my neck and made me shudder against my will. I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction, “Over and over again, you’ll be locked in my room nothing but an Alpha’s w.hore. I hope you fight it; it will be that much more fun to break you.”
“Who said that it will be you?” Nolan, the youngest, strolled in, looking bored assessing the situation. He was the only one that got their mother's sandy blonde hair, or what I assumed was her natural color under all that bleach blonde.
“It’s not going to be you anyways.” Dominick scoffed, barely taking notice of his younger brother, who was never a threat to him
Nolan crossed his arms and watched, “Whoever gets her, let's just all take a turn with her,” he suggested, not even looking at me, always the peacemaker.
“I’m not sharing,” Hunter growled. To be fair, it probably would be him that would become the Alpha.
They did things differently here at Black River, now Blood River. I couldn’t stomach even thinking about part of the name that they stole from my pack, Blood Moon. Here the title wasn’t inherited by the oldest, the Alpha’s sons fought for the title. Nothing was more important than a strong bloodline to them.
Which is why I was here. Alive. The last living direct line of the great, unbroken, and ancient Blood Moon pack. The word ancient now had a new meaning, I was the last living pack member.
I would be the next Alpha’s breeder, not Luna, never Luna, never a position of power. I would produce heirs with a strong bloodline, and they would compete with whatever heirs were born from their mate or chosen Luna for the next title.
No one even bothered to think what their actual Luna would think of this, and no one cared. She would accept it if she wanted to become Luna, and if she didn’t, then they would find another suitable alternative.
“I want to be the one to break her in,” Dominick shrugged, “Once I’m done with that, I might let you guys take a turn just to see what you’re missing. That is if you live long enough.” He chuckled darkly.
There was a chance that not all of them would survive to see who was crowned the next Alpha. The fewer of them to deal with, the better.
“Our father said that he would let us be there for your first shift. Did you know that?” Hunter stopped in front of me. I didn’t. I fought the look of confusion in my eyes and tried to keep them blank, scared.
“Just to see if you are actually one of our mates,” He went on. I doubted The Moon Goddess hated me that much, “But that’s not why we’re coming, of course, mate or not, you’ll belong to the next Alpha.” He curled a side of his mouth in a smile that told me he thought it would be him.
“We’re coming to see you strip bare in front of us.” My heart caught in my throat; the thought of them, of the Alpha, seeing me like that made me shake.
“Now, now, don’t be nervous,” Dominick stepped up and bent to my ear, “We won’t f.uck you that night. That honor is saved for the heir.” He stepped back and crossed his arms, studying my face, “But dad did mention that we could touch.” I swallowed, I didn’t have to pretend to be scared anymore.
This was happening too soon. I thought I had more time, not just a few weeks. I wasted too much d.amn time preparing and took no action.
“Stop acting shocked,” Hunter had a mad glint in his eye that always unnerved me, I could deal with anger and cruelty, but unchecked madness, that was unpredictable, “You knew since the moment you arrived here you were to be nothing but an Alpha’s breeding w.hore. I’m surprised you haven’t been practicing.”
“I wouldn’t want used goods,” Dominick scoffed at his younger brother. I stood there, arms at my side, looking downcast. I learned early on they would get bored sooner if I didn’t react, didn’t give them anything that they wanted besides scared submissive.
“Mom wants us at the front; the visiting Alpha is early.” Nolan cut in, and Hunter shot him a glare that promised death. He was a cat that wasn’t done playing with his mouse.
A plaything that was all I was reduced to, something to torment out of boredom or to try to get a reaction. I noted my anger at that thought and locked it away for later when it would be useful.
“You should get dressed,” Hunter crooned, “Wear something pretty for me, something fit for my chosen whore.” Dominick laughed and turned on his heel, following Hunter out the way they came.
Nolan gave me a wary glance, and I was left there alone. I let my shoulders sag for a split second under the weight of their words before I straightened myself up and headed to my room. I was an Alpha’s daughter, after all, and that's who I still was even if I had no pack.
I stopped by the kitchen, where it was a bustle of activity.“Miss Simone, can I help you with something?” The head omega, Amelia, wiped her hands on her apron and offered me a genuine smile.The omega’s here always treated me kindly and respected the station I once held, now reduced to nothing besides my powerful bloodline.I shook my head, “I don’t want to be any trouble, I just came for a snack.” She nodded and let me pass. I knew where everything was here; this place has become my refuge since I was allowed out of my room.This kitchen was the only place that I felt remotely comfortable in since I lost my home. I craved the warmth of the place and the constant activity that helped to distract me from those thoughts and memories that replayed themselves in my mind whenever I had a moment of solitude.I went right toward what I was looking for. I knew this kitchen and the rest of the castle well from hours spent wandering alone. I made to pick up an apple slice covered in cinnamon a
“He will reject me, please; there will be so many omegas that would want to sleep with you.” The words were clearer as I inched closer, I could smell her fear; she knew that no one was coming for her. I knew that feeling all too well.“But I want you,” That boy crooned, “And I always get what I want," He growled.I took a few more steps until I was around the corner facing the alcove where he had her.“Now,” He carried on, his voice made me shudder, “Turn around and pull up your dress for a future Alpha, or will I have to do it for you.”I took a few loud steps, and they both stared at me, the omega with tears streaming down her face. Young, I didn’t know her name actually, and the visiting Alpha’s son, whose name I never wanted to know, stared back at me.The Alpha's son gave me a lazy grin but didn’t loosen his grip on the terrified girl.“Oh, I was just going to my room. I didn’t mean to interrupt.” I looked away from them, ashamed of what I walked in on.I took a risk and made to
*FLASHBACK*It was my favorite night of the year. A celebration that was just for our pack that everyone took part in.We lived on blessed lands, ones gifted by the Moon Goddess herself, and tonight we thanked her for it and honored our history.Most of the pack thought that at least, but I, as an Alpha’s daughter, knew that it was much more than a celebration.Tonight was the night that our lands regenerated.It wasn’t the Alphas who were blessed but the land itself that we took our strength from. We had a reputation for being fair but we were strong, and my dad made sure that we lived up to the gift we had been blessed with.Our pack was known for being fearless warriors, some mistook us for ones that had an insane amount of bloodlust, but we never went in a fight unprovoked. We trained to defend our lands so that no one thought of going up against us. We had a reputation to uphold long before my dad became Alpha.We were untouchable. The Blood Moon pack hadn’t lost a battle in a h
must have fallen asleep, but I didn’t know when. I had a fitful night of sleep, I kept waking up nervous, my heart pumping, and then found it hard to latch back onto slumber.I wanted to know what was going on. I wanted it to be morning already so that I could find out for myself.I replayed the night, again and again, noting what I could have done better for next time and retracing my steps. I was convinced that I left no evidence, but that did little to quell my nerves, or maybe it was lingering adrenaline coursing through me.Finally, dull light filtered through the windows, and even though my body felt tired and protested my dragging it out of bed, my mind was fully awake.I forced myself to take time getting showered and to make sure there was no lingering trace of blood on me. I also didn’t want to show up to breakfast too early, everything had to be as it was yesterday, well, without the visiting Alpha’s son there.That thought curled my lips upwards, and I might have been wor
I wandered without a shadow. Everywhere I used to go if I was allowed to leave, I was followed by a few warriors. Later that changed to a few omegas, and then just one.The fact that they let me leave now was a combination of years of the persona I carefully built and their complacency.They should have been worried, even if they thought the threat followed the visitors here; there was obviously a breach in security.I wandered seemingly aimlessly around the place until I reached the edge of the forest and slipped between the trees. I pulled out the map I’d been working on slowly over the last few years in bits and pieces. I knew where I was going, or I thought I did.I picked some Perscyth’s for myself, a bright white flower with thick petals that were stark against the muted browns they pushed through.These flowers broke through the rough patches that didn’t get much sunlight. I always admired them, the ones that were able to grow into something beautiful despite their circumstance
Everything seemed to settle down in the next few days. At least, I didn’t hear of any new developments, and like the ignorant assholes they were, The Alpha and Luna seemed to forget about the incident completely. You know, the small incident of an allied Alpha’s only son getting murdered inside your packhouse..probably nothing to worry about. I spent time in the kitchens, idly arranging flowers there and listening to the gossip of the omegas. But that’s all it was, gossip. There weren’t any new developments, thankfully, no evidence. The visiting Alpha and Luna left with their son’s body. I was still waiting to hear if they found anything, but if Alpha Raymond got a call about it, he didn’t share it in front of me.I brushed my hair idly in the mirror, resuming my nightly position before Alice came in and helped me brush it again before dinner. I wondered if she was smarter than she let on if she was a spy for them. She never asked questions, though, and never seemed to notice anythi
I made a detour through the kitchen, the best source of news. The omegas rarely noticed me anymore. I busied myself, getting a glass of water and fanning my face in case anyone looked my way. “There are some cute ones out there.” “None that are my taste; when it comes to warriors, they’re all the same,” “Why are they all still outside? It seems so dumb to keep them in that tent instead of going to their rooms.” “I heard it was so the sons could inspect them.” “Like cattle.” “I guess warriors are no better than omegas,” A few of them laughed. “Not tonight, they aren’t.” I slipped out, no one noticing. I grabbed a cloth and scissors. I went into the hall and almost bumped into him. “There you are.” He tilted his head, crooning. I looked down and shifted from foot to foot. I couldn’t decide if this was a good or bad development. “Look at me when I’m talking to you, bitch,” he spat, and I looked up, blinking a few times. “You turned out to be quite pretty, you know?” he said,
The place was quiet, eerily so. The kind of quiet you only got after a night of activity and a rush of adrenaline felt by all. I debated using the window, but there were too many extra warriors around. Besides, I was more shielded under the mask I created—a terrified shell of a girl looking for water and comfort after a trying night of mysterious death. No one was outside the door and no sound at all in the hallway. I didn’t bring a light source; instead ran a hand along the familiar corridors. I didn’t waste my time here. The past few years were spent memorizing, learning, and planning. I knew this place better than anyone. I spent days walking the packhouse before I was allowed out of it. I counted the stairs, memorized the turns, knew the feel of the hallway when it curved slightly, telling me I was about to reach another alcove. I could walk this place with my eyes closed, and I have done it before.No one was downstairs, not even nurses, but who needed to guard a dead man anyw