The Descendant and Her Mates

CHAPTER FIVE

ALICIA

It was already afternoon, and somehow, I was done with all my chores. Again.

I blinked at the hallway wall, confused. That made two days in a row. Two whole days of doing almost nothing. Just watering flowers and being left alone.

I’d expected the taskmaster to punish me today. To make up for yesterday’s light workload by giving me extra hard stuff. But no. When I went to get my assignment, he just told me the same thing: “Water the garden.”

That was it.

Even when I went back to his suite and asked if there was anything else, he waved me off like I was wasting his time. “That’s all for today.”

That’s all? Seriously?

I liked the break. Who wouldn’t? But it didn’t make any sense. This wasn’t how things worked around here. I was used to scrubbing, sweeping, carrying buckets, and working myself to the bone. Now all of a sudden, I was being spared?

Why?

The only answer I could think of was Ivan. The Alpha King. He had hugged me in front of everyone. Maybe that changed things. Maybe now they all saw me differently. Or maybe they were just scared of what I’d become.

Still, I doubted he had said anything to the taskmaster. Why would he? I rejected him. He was probably still pissed about it.

But if he didn’t order them to treat me differently, then this whole thing just didn’t make sense.

Shaking my head, I turned and walked down the hallway toward my room. I passed the kitchen and paused by the door out of habit. The other maids were inside, busy chopping up vegetables and yelling over each other.

I wasn’t needed there.

Just as I was about to walk away, someone turned. It was Blaire.

Her eyes met mine, and her lip curled up. She glared at me like I was dirt on her boot. Her gaze lingered for a few seconds before she turned back to the chopping board like I didn’t exist.

No one had to tell me to move.

I walked off fast. I knew Blaire. She hated anyone who got more attention than her, and right now, I was exactly that. I wasn’t about to give her a reason to lose her temper with me.

I got to my room and collapsed on the thin mattress on the floor. The silence was almost too quiet. The lack of work felt wrong.

***

A few hours passed, and I woke from a short nap feeling restless. My mind just wouldn’t sit still.

I glanced around my little space and noticed the pile of dirty clothes in the corner. Perfect.

Laundry wasn’t a chore I’d been assigned, but it was something I could do for myself. We maids had to hand wash all our stuff. The only ones who used the washing machines were the Alpha and his inner circle.

I gathered the clothes, grabbed a bar of soap, and headed out of the pack house to the laundry site. The sun was still out, which was good. I needed to get the clothes dry before nightfall.

Once I reached the site, I filled up a large basin with water and started washing. My hands moved quickly. I’d done this a thousand times. Rub. Scrub. Rinse. Repeat.

In no time, I was finished. I rinsed the clothes again and hung them on the long drying line stretched across the yard.

The clothes were old, patched, and plain. Nothing fancy. But they were mine, and they were clean.

I was about to start cleaning up when the urge to pee hit me out of nowhere. Great.

I dropped everything and hurried back inside the pack house. The bathroom we all shared was always disgusting, but I didn’t have a choice.

As soon as I was done, I rushed out of the building and jogged back to the laundry site.

And what I saw stopped me in my tracks.

No.

My clothes.

They were all gone from the line.

As I looked around, my eyes were wide and my heart was racing. The drying line was empty, and panic kicked in fast. I scanned the ground and there they were. Some of my clothes were scattered in the mud. The rest had been dumped inside the open waste bin in the corner.

I walked over slowly, my fists clenched at my sides. I couldn’t believe it.

They were soaked, ruined, and filthy.

What kind of person would do this?

I didn’t have time to cry or scream. I needed to get them out before anyone else saw.

I knelt by the waste bin and carefully pulled my clothes out, one by one. They were stained with old food and dirt. But at least these could be rewashed.

The ones in the mud were worse. The fabric was ruined. Thick, wet clumps of brown muck clung to the sleeves and hems. Some of them were torn.

I stared down at the ruined clothes in my hands and took a deep breath. I didn’t have much to begin with. This… this was a lot to lose.

But thank the Moon Goddess these were my own clothes. If they had belonged to someone like the taskmaster, I’d probably be thrown out of the packhouse, or worse.

Still, this hurt. I couldn’t afford to replace these.

I dropped the clothes into the pails and was about to go get fresh water when I heard footsteps behind me.

I turned.

It was Blaire. Again.

She was laughing with two of her friends. They strolled past the laundry site, heading toward the exit. None of them looked at me, but they didn’t have to.

Something about the way Blaire smirked made my blood run cold.

Could it have been them?

It had to be. Who else would go out of their way to destroy my clothes?

I stood there, frozen, watching them walk off like they hadn’t just ruined everything I owned.

Should I say something?

Should I confront them?

Before I could decide, Blaire suddenly stopped walking. Her friends followed suit.

She turned her head, just slightly, and said, “Next time, don’t stand there like you’re better than the rest of us.”

Then she walked away without even looking back.

My jaw clenched.

So it was her.

She’d done it. And she wasn’t even hiding it.

I stared down at my ruined clothes as rage boiled up inside me. I’d tried to stay quiet. Tried to be invisible. And tried not to cause trouble.

But this... this was too far.

I wiped my face with the back of my hand and stood up.

Fine. If she wanted to make me a target, I’d stop pretending I wasn’t one.

I grabbed the pails and headed toward the wash area again. I was going to wash every single piece again if I had to. She wasn’t going to break me.

She wasn’t going to win.

Just as I reached for the water tap, someone’s shadow fell over mine.

I turned and gasped.

Ivan was standing right behind me.

“Mate,” he whispered.

“Mate,” my wolf whispered in my head.

Then he turned and left without saying anything else.

What the hell just happened?