The Alpha's love slave

CHAPTER TWO: INSURGENT!

“W…why am I here?” Maera stammered incoherently as she stared back into those fierce charcoal grey eyes. She could feel Amethyst’s fear and she struggled to soothe her wolf as she faced the enemies of her pack with defiance.

Her ill-fated mate had still not glanced in her direction yet, and she wondered if he regretted rejecting her. It was highly unlikely. Eaton Miller was a mere puppet who merely functioned under the orders of his Alpha Dastan.

“Now, that is a very interesting question,” Dastan drawled gleefully, rubbing his hands together in obvious pleasure. Maera had the uncanny suspicion that he was thoroughly enjoying himself.

Fear like nothing she had known before took over, and she gulped as her eyes wandered towards the fierce looking men and women inside the room. It was most obvious that the pack had gathered to witness her humiliation. Each pair of eyes which ogled back at her contained an amount of hatred and contempt she didn’t deserve but which was powerful enough to make her tremble.

Those were her cruel father’s sworn enemies – they would require no excuse to harm her in the name of justice. Like they had done last time. Nobody had defended her when Eaton had openly rejected her in front of the whole world.

With bleary eyes, she recalled that traumatic incident like it was yesterday itself, although it was actually two years ago. One week after her eighteenth birthday.

Clueless to what was waiting for her, she’d dressed up for the annual werewolf gathering, even though her father had strictly prohibited her from attending. It was not fair that Xander was going to attend the ceremony for the third year in a row, but she’d never been allowed to.

Normally, only those whose wolf had awakened were allowed inside the party, an initiative by the UWO – United Wolf Organization to promote the reunion of mates, especially if they came from different packs.

Maera had been so excited when the date of the ball had been announced on the UWO website one week after her birthday. That meant that she was legitimate to be a member now. However, her father had been more than ready to clear away her disillusionment.

“You are not going to that party. Your wolf is like a pup – weak and had not even showed its face yet. Do you want to defame me in front of the entire folklore, you little i***t?” her father had shouted when she’d asked for some money to buy a new dress.

Tears had stung her eyes and she’d sent a pleading look to Xander – he would be the one to carry forward the argument.

That time though, it seemed that Xander was in complete agreement with their father. “Mae, I don’t think you should go. Our enemies would be there, and I don’t want you exposed to them. Who knows what they might come up with this time?”

Deflated with defeat, her shoulders had sagged back. Usually, she would listen to Xander who unlike their father bore no resentment towards her because of their mother’s demise. But she’d been so excited at the prospect of meeting her mate that she had no room for rationality.

“But Xander, what if I was destined to meet my mate tonight? How will I meet him if I am not allowed to the ball? I am not…”

“ENOUGH!!!” her father had roared in his Alpha voice, causing her to fall back quickly with her eyes cast downwards and neck presented forward in submission. Her weak wolf crawled inside her body against the unmistakable ring of command of the mighty leader of the pack. There was nothing she could do against the man who controlled an entire pack. “How dare you question my command? You seem to forget that I am your Alpha.”

Her wolf retreated to the back of her mind, while Maera tried to stand her ground in a piteous attempt. “I want to go,” she said in a thick voice laced with tears. It was her prerogative! Even omegas were allowed to attend the ball for the first year following their wolf awakening. “It’s my right.”

Her father’s wolf grew more enraged with her defiance, the beast surging behind the man making her shrink back in fear, this time to make her cower. “You lost every right the day you killed your mother. Now go back to your room and I don’t want to see your face for the whole week.”

Maera had fled without a further protest, her small heart breaking over her father’s cruel words. How could she be at fault if her mother had been too weak after giving birth to her? It was hard to blame a child who’d just arrived in the world. It had been an accusation she’d shouldered for all of her life.

Tears of maudlin self-pity flooded her cheeks and she brushed them aside with impatience. It was not like her to give up. All she’d been waiting for since a long time was to meet her mate. He would be the one to cure away all that pain, to take her away from that undeserving treatment. Hadn’t she watched enough movies where the abused heroines get to have their happy endings? Now was her turn.

With fierce determination, she’d rummaged through her mother’s belongings and removed an old black dress, one which never grew out of fashion. It should fit her right since her mother had been thinly and frail as well. There were some accommodations to make which she deftly took care of, courtesy of constantly fixing things for her father and brother. Her cinderella moment was going to be even more gratifying than the fairytale book.

It was a wonder that her father had not slapped her or locked her up, maybe it had been because of Xander’s presence. With blurry eyes, she managed to fix the dress and was satisfied with the outcome although it wasn’t perfect.

When the dress fell over her body, the silky cloth slipped over her frail body and the décolleté surprisingly put her breasts into display. Even Maera was impressed with the outcome – she hadn’t realized that her boobs had grown so much over the past years.

With so many things going on in her life, she barely had time to look after herself, joggling between house chores and studying. Complaining had never been on the agenda as she was the only one among her friends allowed to go to school. The rest of the omegas were treated even worse than her, they were beaten and forbidden to even think.

That was the way things had always been in her pack – omegas and hunters were considered inferior and only good for serving the high-ranked wolves. They were dispensable. Her father was only following the steps of her ancestors – she so hoped that Xander would prove to be a better Alpha.

However, it was not her place to protest – she was insignificant and would never dare question the authority of her tyrant father. Except for tonight. She would make sure to remain hidden amongst the omegas of their packs, wishing fervently that she would finally meet her mate.

Her heart did a little somersault at the idea of meeting her mate and Amethyst emerged from her hiding place.

I’m so excited to finally feel him, her wolf mused dreamily, and although Maera wished that the latter was stronger, she could hardly blame Amethyst for her lack of willpower. It would be unfair towards the animal. The poor soul was betting on their mate to help them from their current situation.

We will. Nobody will find out that we were at the ball. We’ll just take a peek and as soon as we find our mate, we’ll tell him everything. He will make my father pay for his atrocities. You’ll see.

With a smile, she’d donned a red cape to cover her face and infiltrated the omegas who were getting onboard for the party. Her father was against the unified front which he thought was unnecessary and superficial, but he didn’t dare refuse the UWO authority. Not even when the Ackers were at the head of the treaty.

Dastan Acker, Alpha of the Blood Rose Pack territory was the one who’d initiated that organization in the name of peace when his pack had been attacked by her pack some years ago. From what Maera had heard, there had been many deaths from both sides, but most of the victims had been from the enemy side.

Nobody knew about the reason of the attack – Maera had assumed that her greedy father had invaded the rich pack to steal their resources. Truth was she never bothered to interfere in the political matters, not that she would make a difference anyway. Neither her father nor Xander was interested in her opinions.

It was a long journey to the Empty Playground where the ball was usually held every year, and Maera dozed off during the ride.

When she awoke, it was already late evening, and the bus came to an abrupt stop on the bumpy road, the jerky motion almost flinging her across the other side. With a panicked grip on the metal bar, she clung to keep her body steady before peeping out in the dark. There it was.

Empty Playground, like the name suggested was an empty unclaimed piece of land which was a neutral territory for all the werewolves. No werewolf was allowed to kill another on that piece of land.

With apprehensive steps, she climbed down the bus, adjusting her cape so as not to be recognized in the dark. She shrunk back a little when her father’s Mercedes followed through, and both her father and brother alighted the vehicle to be greeted by a phalanx of reporters.

A grim smile decorated Xander’s mouth as he tolerated the privacy invasion for a moment before bringing the lapels of his suit jacket together to climb the stairs. Her father stayed a while longer, boasting about his latest prowess before following Xander inside.

It was only then that Maera heaved a sigh of relief. Her ruse had worked. Now, she only had to remain among the omegas and keep up the pretense until she found her mate. How hard was that going to be?

Almost on tiptoe, she went inside concealed by her cape and was terrified when the doorman asked for her coat. With trembling hands, she uncovered her face, bracing herself for being discovered. When nothing happened, she visibly relaxed and scooted apart from her group. If somebody from the pack recognized her, she would be dead.

So, she infiltrated another pack, wandered aimlessly around and was sorely disappointed when there was no mate alert. Maybe she’d been so wrong to get her hopes so high. After all, Xander had been attending those parties for so long and he still hadn’t found his mate yet. It was becoming rarer for mates to find each other, a calamity for the werewolf community.

Just when she was about to give up, she saw a pile of soufflé on the table and her stomach growled appreciatively. It felt like she hadn’t eaten in a century. Being treated as a lowly omega, she had to wait for the high-ranked werewolves and the omegas to finish eating first before serving herself with food back home. Which meant that almost nothing was left by the time everyone had their fills.

Her mouth watered, and she accosted the lavish tables with hesitant steps. Out of habit, her whole body rigidly waiting for someone to chastise her. Nobody said a word, and she moaned in decadent pleasure as she bit into the lush and light texture.

“Is it really that good?” an amused male voice asked causing her to drop the soufflé to the floor as she was caught up by surprise. With a saddened sigh, she watched the food from the floor debating with herself whether to pick it up and swallow it.

At home, she was not allowed to waste food since she barely had any, and at that moment she forgot that there was a huge plate of soufflés on the table.

“Look at what you did, you i***t!” she scolded gruffly. “I only had a morsel!” she sighed with envy, still staring at the food like it was her lifeline. It was only when a delicious smell of freshly baked pastries mixed with cinnamon and maple syrup hit her that she turned around to locate the source.