The Hunter's Fated Child (Book 2 in the Hunter series.)

CHAPTER 3: BLACK RIVER.

AMIE

My life at Black River had been good so far. I was one of Alpha Coleman’s mistresses. I lived on the Alpha floor of the pack house in a gorgeous room. My meals were all served to me and were of the finest quality. I felt a pang of sadness whenever I thought about the child that I had given up, but I knew that it was for the best. Alpha Coleman was not the type to tolerate another man’s child, let alone raise him. Keeping him with me would have meant living a life of poverty, working every day just to put food on the table and clothes on our backs.

Black River wasn’t like Dawn Sky. There, no pack member would ever need to go hungry as the pack house dining hall and kitchens would provide for everyone. Here at Black River, only werewolves ranked gamma by blood or above were permitted to eat in the pack house. The only exception were the pack warriors, and even they had a separate dining room with lower quality food. I was an omega by blood, so wouldn’t be allowed. However being the Alpha’s mistress opened doors that would otherwise remain closed. Besides, I had only gotten pregnant in the first place so that Jake would be forced to tale me as his Luna. Now that was off the table, I didn’t really need the child.

I had hoped that Alpha Coleman would take me as his new Luna after the old one had been arrested, but instead, I was just a mistress. He had promoted one of his other mistresses to the Luna position. I actually enjoyed being his mistress. He was hot as hell after all, and it came with plenty of perks. I wanted more, though. I wanted to be a Luna and craved the power and respect that the title would give me.

The new Luna of Black River, a whiny bottle blonde called Natalie, summoned all the Alpha’s mistresses to her sitting room. We all looked around at each other, wondering what the hell we were doing here. Natalie sauntered into the room, full of self-importance, and perched on the edge of a chair. I was too busy looking around the room to pay her much attention. It was gorgeous. I had thought my room was nice, but it was nothing compared to this. The Luna had her own suite. She didn’t share quarters with the Alpha. I was eyeing her royal blue crushed velvet sofa enviously. It looked so comfortable, as if you could just sink right into it. I had just begun to wonder about the size of her closet when she began to talk.

I found her high-pitched nasal whine irritating. Goddess only knows how Alpha Coleman can stand it. “I have brought you all here because now that I am Luna, I plan to make some changes around here. For instance, I plan on being much more hands-on with my Alpha than the last Luna, so you may find that your services are less required. Some of you may even end up back in the servants' quarters where you belong. Don’t get any ideas about trying to replace me either, I plan on being Luna for a very long time. I have decided to make you all my servants as well. You will work in shifts. That way, there will always be someone to see to my every need. You will all receive a schedule in the morning. I expect you to stick to it, or I will have you punished. I have also decided that you will no longer have the free roam of the pack that you have now. From now on, unless you are serving me at the time, you will remain in your rooms at all times. You will also eat the food that the warriors are fed rather than the ranked members of the pack.” She announced, clearly pleased with herself.

There was an outcry of annoyed disbelief from some of the women. “Does the Alpha know about this?” one of them asked. Natalie looked angry “How dare you question me. You will all remain silent in my presence at all times unless given permission to speak. I do not need permission to remind you all of your place. I am the Luna.” She raged, her face turning an interesting shade of pink. “Now get the f**k back to your rooms before I decide to make some changes there too.” She yelled. The girl who had asked about the Alpha earlier rolled her eyes as she stood from her seat on the floor, which was where we had all been told to sit. Natalie suddenly grabbed her arm, spinning her around and punched her in the face. The girl’s long, red curls flew as her head was thrown sideways by the force. She looked at Natalie in shock, holding her face. “Let that be a lesson to you all. You will show me respect, or you will suffer the consequences. Now get the f**k out, I’m sick of looking at you.” Natalie said, sounding bored. We all made our way silently back to our rooms.

Later, when dinner was brought up, there was a note on the tray. I knew what that meant. Alpha Coleman will be visiting my room later. This was how he let us know. I opened the note and read it as I poured a cup of tea from the pot. “I shall call on you tonight at nine o clock sharp. Bathe beforehand and wear the lacy black negligee with nothing underneath.” It read. I smirked a little, thinking that Natalie would be furious. She genuinely seemed to believe that now that she was his Luna, Alpha Coleman would have no need for us mistresses. Not so long ago, she was one of us herself, so she should know better. Alpha Coleman was the type of man who liked to have his cake and eat it, too. He would never settle for just one woman. She must be f*****g crazy if she thought that she could change that.

I would make sure that he enjoyed himself tonight. I f by some miracle she managed to get him to cut down on his mistresses, I wanted to be sure that I would be one of the ones he kept. I lifted the lid off my dinner and grimaced. She had already had our meals changed. Instead of the luxury fine dining that the mistresses usually ate, I had been given some dry chicken, lumpy mash, and shrivelled up vegetables. It was a wonder that the pack warriors ever won a fight if this was the food that they were given. I ate it anyway as I was hungry, and I would need my strength for later. No longer was there a glass of champagne on the tray, just a glass of tepid tap water. I decided to stick to the tea.

I took a long soak in the tub and groomed myself ready for his visit later. Once I was dry, I styled my hair, applied make-up, and slipped on the lingerie that he had requested. Twenty minutes before the Alpha was due to arrive, there was a knock on the door. I put on a robe to cover myself and opened the door. There was a member of the kitchen staff who stood there holding a glass of champagne and a small bowl of chocolate covered strawberries. “A gift from the Alpha.” She said, her voice a little shaky. I stepped outside to take them and saw that all the other mistresses were receiving the same thing. I thanked her and took them inside, placing them on the table.

Zoe was shouting inside my mind, telling me to stay away from them. I hadn’t taken her advice during the whole Jake thing, and clearly, that had been a mistake. She had barely spoken to me since I had given birth. She was mad at me for sending away our child. So, for her to be telling me not to touch the strawberries and champagne must mean it was important.

It was highly unusual for Alpha Coleman to have sent something to everyone anyway. He would sometimes send little treats or gifts to the woman that he wanted to spend the evening with, but he had never sent a treat to everyone before. I was about to go next door and see if my neighbour had eaten and drank them. If so, had they been ok? I was walking towards the door when it opened, and the Alpha walked in. I immediately dropped the robe, and his face lit up at the sight of my body covered only by the thin black lace. He growled appreciatively and approached me.

We f****d for a few hours, I knew that I had pleased him multiple times. He was getting ready to leave when he picked up a strawberry and looked back at me, still on the bed. “Why did you order these if you weren’t going to eat them?” he asked. I explained that I hadn’t ordered them, that I had been told that they were a gift from him. He looked puzzled. “I didn’t send them up. Although it would be a shame to see them go to waste.” He said biting into a strawberry and draining the glass in one gulp. He blew me a kiss and headed for the door.

I pulled on some jogging bottoms and a t-shirt and went next door. There was no answer when I knocked, but the mistresses doors were never locked. I pushed it open and popped my head inside. “Hello. Mandy?” I called into the dimly lit room. She had had a fire going in the marble fireplace, but it was dying. I flipped the light switch by the door, hoping that she wasn’t trying to sleep. “MANDY!” I exclaimed, running into the room when I saw her laying in the middle of the floor. Strawberries scattered where the bowl had fallen from her hand. The empty champagne glass was next to her broken.

I checked her pulse and was relieved to find that she was still breathing. I picked her up and placed her on the bed. Realising that the champagne must have been drugged. Obviously, Natalie was playing games. She wanted us all out of action so that the Alpha would have to turn to her to satisfy his desires. I chuckled, thinking that it hadn’t quite gone as she had planned and that she was probably pretty pissed off. My laughter turned to horror as I realised that the Alpha had drunk the champagne meant for me. What if he thought that I had deliberately drugged him for some reason? Would he believe that his Luna had meant that sedative for me? I guess only time would tell.