CHAPTER TWO
Megan ran quickly to her father, scared she had done something wrong again.
“Megan, you like the upgrade we got as a result of our new position, I assume?” He whispered angrily to her the moment she sat down close to him
“Yes papa, the goddess really loves us” she responds shakily
“Goddess? It's not the work of the goddess you silly child! Who do you think made the Alpha to send his precious Beta to such a dangerous mission? It's important to consolidate our position so it's time you prove your usefulness to this family “ he continued
“Yes Papa, what do you need?”
“The Alpha's brother. He is mateless. What I need is for him to be yours before the next mating cycle.” He told her
“But, father, how? The mate bond is way stronger than anything” she complained
He turned to face her with a look of irritation
“You are a woman, correct?”
“Of course Papa.”
“Then find a way to get him, don't worry about his future mate, I'll take care of that” he told her with venom in his voice
“Yes Papa. I'll go sit with him now if that's okay?”
“Smart girl. Do this for me and you have done your duty to our family” he waved her away.
Every single day leading to Taylor's birthday, she was filled with increasing anticipation. The mating cycle will finally meet her old enough to get one and it was happening right on her birth month.
She may not have the most beautiful outfit to wear but she's sure her mate would not mind.
Her excitement could be felt by the moon goddess herself as she was literally skipping around the pack while doing her chores.
It was no surprise that she ran into the Alpha's second son, literally a day before the Mating Ball with the supplies she was taking to the hall that was being prepared for the ball.
“Are you blind! How can you be so clumsy? Do you know who I am in this pack? How dare you” he went on an angry tirade, berating her until spittle was flying from his mouth in anger and irritation.
“I'm so sorry Sir. Please it wasn't intentional, I didn't notice you coming, it was a corner and my wolf was sleeping so I didn't smell you. I'm so sorry” Taylor apologized profusely, wanted to enter the ground and never come out
The Alpha's brother wasn't having any of it.
“You know what? I don't want to stress my head, I'll just talk to my brother. You are sleeping in the dungeon tonight” he shouted while walking away angrily.
Thinking it was over, at least until the Alpha sent guards after her, she began picking up the decorations that were scattered all over the floor.
She stood up to deposit them in a basket and the next second, Wham! A very painful feeling started from her cheek to her brain.
Shocked, she looked up
“How dare you, you incompetent fool? You can no longer see? Then you are of no use to this pack, we should deposit you in the forest so you can meet your deserved fate! How dare you hurt my man!” Megan screeched in her face with venom laced words
“You slapped me?” Taylor asked incredulously.
The pack may treat her like a slave most of the time but no one ever physically assaulted her due to the fear of the Alpha reprimanding them.
The slap was a shock to everyone, not just her, but what surprised everyone more was her claiming Collins as hers.
It was frowned upon in the Werewolf Kingdom to be with one whom you were not mated. But not only is Megan having relations with the Alpha's brother, but she is also going around claiming him to the whole pack.
“Yes dumb dumb! And I'll do it again if you ever step 10 inches close to him again!” She reiterated and walked away after him.
By now, a small crowd had gathered and was watching the scene unfold.
“Taylor, come to my office immediately!” Alpha Johnson called for her before she could process the incident.
“Yes Alpha” she responded and ran to drop the items she dropped earlier in the ballroom
” I'm so sorry Taylor. I wasn't expecting any of this to happen. I slept for just a few minutes and this happened” Celia expressed sadly while helping her run faster to the Alpha's office
“You needed it, don't worry about it okay?” She reassured her wolf
“Alpha please I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to crash into him. Please forgive me” She began apologizing immediately after she entered his office
“It's alright Taylor. That's not why I called you. Sit down” he waved her to a seat in front of his office table.
“How old are you now?” He enquired while going through some files on his table
Taylor was confused for a second because this question sounded eerily familiar. Then she remembered the Luna asking her the same question a few weeks back. What could be the reason, she wondered?
“I'll be 21 by midnight Alpha” she replied to him
“Perfect. Now, I need you to take what I'm about to tell you as seriously as possible” he said in a foreboding tone
“You were left on the pack borders the night you were born. I still remember the pack doctor washing off the blood you came into the world with. Your birth mother deposited you right on my running track as if she had been waiting for me. You were placed in a basket with just a blanket and this package” he told her while bringing out an unsealed box.
“The instructions on it was to wait till you were 21 and I have been waiting for you to see it. Maybe you can decipher what it means because it's actually very confusing” he said to her.
Taylor took out an envelope from the small intricately decorated box and brought out one card.
It was an instruction not to give her the box till she was 21 years old.
She saw a ring with an emblem
As she went to pick it up, her hand felt another card.
It was a message from her parents, and as she began reading it, she was feeling a big drop of dread in her stomach.