Chapter One
I gasped as my vision was blinded by a splash of water. I rubbed my eyes and scowled at the laughter that followed.
“You needed a bath,” Kate said.
She and her friends grabbed their laundry and walked back to the pack village.
“Make sure you use soap if you’re working the Prince’s coronation tonight!” Another girl cried.
I didn’t want to work the Prince’s coronation but had no choice. I finished doing my and Grandma’s laundry. One of those days, the pack didn’t have running water, so everyone came down here. Unfortunately, that meant I was tormented by the taunts and teases of the omega girls.
Being a human I was the lowest rank. I technically wasn’t included in the pack but because my Grandmother was a respected person in the pack I was given the status of slave.
Not the best status to have.
I bundled my curly hair into a bun of my head and carried the laundry back home to hang dry. Grandma Amy waved and smiled at me. She was my only family.
My Father died in a raid before I was born. The Mystic Pack raided and killed many of our own because of a dispute on a piece of land that supposedly had gold and underwater caves. The Mystic Pack won the dispute over the land hence our ongoing water issues.
And my mom is gone too. Grandma said she left the pack when I was one and died in the city. It’s been the two of us ever since.
“You work too hard, Delanie,” Grandma said.
I laughed. “I work so you don’t have to!”
“I feel awful.”
“Don’t. If I don’t work what am I going to do? The Luna won’t let me do anything else.”
Pack positions are for people with rank. I can’t teach, can’t work in the hospitals as anything other than a cleaner. Goddess forbid I work in the Alpha’s home. They don’t even acknowledge the few slaves in the pack.
She coughed several times. I rushed to get her water.
“You should rest.”
“No, no, I’m fine.”
She wasn’t. She was almost ninety years old. I feared for her health every day. If she goes, what’s going to happen to me? I had one friend in the pack. He’s a rogue but he can shift so life’s better for him. They could take our home away from me if she dies and I won’t have a say on it.
“Really, Delanie, don’t worry honey. Don’t you have to go to the village? The prince’s coronation is tonight and you need to get your uniform.”
“I’d rather stay and take care of you.”
She coughed and waved me off. “Nonsense. I’ve got a book to read and if you’ve read it twice you’ll ruin it for me.”
I laughed. “Fine. I’ll be back in an hour or two.”
“Take your time and chat with the nice boys.”
I sighed and smiled.
Grandma Amy didn’t know how hard it was for me to meet the nice boys. Everyone wanted a strong mate who could give birth to healthy and strong pups. With me the risk of not having a pup baby was high. Of course, I got offers for casual sex but I didn’t want my heart shattered over a one-night stand.
I walked to the busy village. It had grown quickly in recent years but the problems were vast. We needed more land and more modern things. No one questioned the Alpha and Luna though, rule number one.
Madam Freya was in charge of all the functions that took place in the pack. She was Luna’s right-hand woman. She despised me because I was constantly messing up and because the other girls didn’t like me she had to listen to them moan about me.
“Thank you for joining us, Delanie,” Freya said with a sigh.
I bit the inside of my cheek and stood in line besides, my nemesis, Kate. She was belittled too for being an omega but that didn’t stop her from doing the same to me and worse!
“The soap didn’t work,” she growled.
Be calm I thought to myself.
“Slaves shouldn’t attend pack functions they should wait to clean up,” a girl named Uriah spat.
“Enough! The coronation is tonight and you must all look exceptional in your uniforms. There will be dignitaries and other Alphas and Lunas available.”
“And betas?” Kate asked excitedly.
Freya nodded with a smile.
The girls burst into excitement. “Finally new men!”
“I can finally find a mate.”
Heat rushed to my face. What were the odds of me finding someone who thought I was worthy at the coronation? That would be a dream.
“Don’t get excited, Delaine. No one wants a slave,” Uriah laughed.
The other omegas burst into hackles. I balled my hands into fists.
“I don’t want a wolf anyway.”
“No, they don’t want you,” Kate laughed, “get real.”
“Enough, pick your uniforms.”
Our uniforms were fitted black dresses with no straps and no slits. The smooth black dress came with a simple black mask. I thought about all the ways to do my hair. I didn’t have much time to do anything extraordinary.
“Are these our staff members, they look so lovely,” a feminine voice interrupted us.
We turned to find a young woman with bright blue eyes, dressed in a simple purple dress that hugged her hourglass figure. She smiled brightly at us. I’d never seen her in the pack before.
“Ladies, this is Emilia. The daughter of the Jade Moon pack beta.”
“I’m engaged to Prince Blaise. We’ll be seeing each other more often.”
We returned to our line formation. Emilia walked in front of us, taking us all in.
“Omegas are very important to a pack. You carry all the weight, really,” she laughed.
The girls laughed too. Her eyes were piercing and something about her demeanour made my hair stand instead of my muscles relax. She stopped on me and took me in from head to toe. Her smile never wavered but I felt the heat of dissatisfaction radiate off her.
“We’ll be seeing each other in a few hours. I know the service will be amazing.”
She turned to walk out.
“Not if Delanie has something to say about it,” Uriah muttered.
Emilia stopped for a second before walking out the kitchen door. I swallowed. I hoped this wasn’t the start of a problem.