active

449376684318293

person_profile

eligible

NONE

266477589889684

Novel reading

120211097771400735

befant.com

Learn More

NONE

dco

❤️😍What happens next👉Click Here to read on👉

https://befant.com/market/buenovela/3?lpid=10865&utm_campaign={{campaign.name}}&utm_content={{campaign.id}}&adset_name={{adset.name}}&adset_id={{adset.id}}&ad_id={{ad.id}}&ad_name={{ad.name}}

Novel reading

https://scontent-atl3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.35426-6/438874789_1505457963649841_1746636976003465727_n.jpg?stp=dst-jpg_s60x60&_nc_cat=106&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=c53f8f&_nc_ohc=VjgC5Lg6uIwQ7kNvgEtWoIs&_nc_ht=scontent-atl3-1.xx&oh=00_AfDcdZPHbWfEqgD5-TcAfbB1metVhBtBlVRR2iQLBIm69Q&oe=663A760C

person_profile

Novel reading

https://scontent-atl3-2.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.35426-6/437661526_957701389321300_1399881581422505888_n.jpg?_nc_cat=104&ccb=1-7&_nc_sid=c53f8f&_nc_ohc=bh0TPtip0oMQ7kNvgHkRJGW&_nc_ht=scontent-atl3-2.xx&oh=00_AfAzVHmAQl963H3eMlAtVnQgcl0jCH6DnuoOkPY_duJRMw&oe=663A9579

[Xanthea Plath]

I limped into the graveyard, clutching my broken arm with the other hand. Blood mixed in the rain trailed down from my shoulder to my elbow, down my wrists, making its way to my hand that clutched the small bouquet of forget-me-not flowers.

Every flower of the bouquet was crushed and marred with blood-stains. The blue ribbon that once tied the flowers together was long lost.

The white gown, soaked by the downpour, hugged my body as if it sought to suffocate me. Inked scarlet, its hem absorbed the black tint of the ground as it glissaded over the sharp blades of overgrown grass.

Today was my mother’s twenty-third death anniversary and my twenty-third birthday.

I forced another step on the muddy grounds of the graveyard with my sprained leg. A thick curtain of rain obscured my already blurry vision. Streaks of rain trailed down my cracked glasses that hung loosely on my nose.

Panting, I dragged myself closer and closer to my mother’s grave.

Perhaps it was the tears in my eyes, or perhaps it was the rainwater tracing its way down my face. The only sensation that wasn’t a struggle was feeling the coldness of the rain being absorbed against my feverish skin.

My ribs hurt with every breath.

‘No matter how much of a struggle it is to breathe, you never stop breathing. Because you know the struggles are only temporary. What’s permanent is life that death has not yet kissed.’

My mother’s words echoed in my head. I gritted my teeth, taking a deep breath even when it hurt.

Tears stung into my eyes.

I found my mother’s gravestone.

Freya Plath

And below her name carved on the white marble gravestone was the epitaph — “Forget me not.”

I didn’t need much effort as I sank to my bruised knees and offered the blood-stained flowers to my mother’s memory.

I bowed, and finally broke into tears. The flood of emotions that had sustained me through the harrowing journey finally snapped.

I had never met my mother when she was alive, but now she lived through me.

And through her diaries, she had come alive to me. My heart filled with an unfathomable warmth and the utmost respect when I thought of her. I knew her closer than any daughter would have ever known their mother.

I knew her like a friend, like a secret keeper, like an equal. Through her words, I knew her heart and now it feels as though my heart had been replaced by hers, filled with her smiles and laughter that I never got to see or hear. Yet I felt them all so closely, it hurt.

I fell in love with everything this woman was and everything she could have become only if the alpha’s eyes didn’t fall on her.

My mother was an omega, just like me. It was a world of cruel hierarchy, where the alpha commands over all the dreams of everyone in the pack. Under his command, an omega wasn’t allowed to dream of anything greater than their rank granted. Our value was confined and limited to serving the ones who held the higher ranks.

But my mother dared to dream. She dared to have wings to fly high and higher were her ambitions. So high it seemed impossible for an omega to achieve in this world of power, ranks, and politics.

Her wings that I broke by coming to life. Because after that, my mother’s eyes were too lifeless to dream anymore. So I replaced my eyes with hers, transplanted her dreams into the sole reason for my existence.

And now, if I am not her dreams, her words, her ideals, I don’t know who I am.

They say you can’t miss a person you’ve never met, but I miss every second of my life as I imagine how my life would have been if she were still alive.

Maybe my bones would have broken less, perhaps I would have lesser scars. Perhaps then I wouldn’t be so lonely. Perhaps I’d know what love felt like.

But my mother passed away during the delivery and so the illegitimate daughter of Alpha Valdimir Virgo was born of an extra-marital affair.

Obviously, everyone in the palace hated me. Maybe things would have been different if I inherited my father’s alpha genes. But I was grateful that I didn’t.

I’d rather have a strong mind and a warm heart than brute strength and a cold ego.

More than anyone else, I was an eyesore for Luna Meesa Virgo. She couldn’t tolerate the mere sight of me. She wanted to throw me out of the palace the moment I was born, but Alpha kept me in the palace until I turned eighteen and then he asked me to leave.

I shifted into a small house that my mother owned, which itself was an exceptional feat for an omega, since most couldn’t afford it. They lived in either the servant quarters or in the shabby slums.

I didn’t even know how badly those eighteen years of my life had broken me. But after beginning an independent life in my mother’s home, I started healing.

My mother worked as a florist in the royal palace. She loved her job of cultivating flowers and medicinal plants. Her knowledge in herbology surpassed every book I’ve read so far. She wasn’t just cultivating, but creating new varieties, new species.

She mentioned it all in her journals, diaries and books, the legacy she left behind for me.

Alpha now had an heir to the throne, twenty-two-year-old Nikolai Virgo, the crown prince. And a legitimate daughter, nineteen years old Nathalia Virgo.

Both of them were born with true alpha genes.

I received monthly maintenance bills from him, but I never used that.

Ever since I left the palace, I have worked to support myself and my studies.

I didn’t want anything to do with the royal family or its people. I had been preparing for the International Medical Entrance Exams for years. After qualifying for that exam, I was planning to leave the pack for good.

Or that’s what I thought. The entrance exams were tomorrow.

“They knew, mom. Luna knew how important this exam was for me. That is why they did this to me…” I broke down into sobs. “How do I write the exams with a broken hand?”

Chapter 2
Earlier that day…

[Xanthea]

I left my apartment in the afternoon when the sun gently hid behind the mammatus clouds. I grew Forget-me-nots the whole year for my mother’s death anniversary. Picking some of the most vibrant flowers, I tied them in a blue ribbon.

I put on the best formal decent gown I had and set off for the graveyard. I got down from the bus a stop before my actual stop because the roads ahead were out of bounds for the public.

There was some inter-pack car drifting competition organised by Nikolai.

I knew I had to hurry before the event began, so I decided to walk to the graveyard since it wasn’t too far.

The road was the fastest way, but maybe I shouldn’t have taken the road.

***

I had walked a few metres ahead on the road when I heard the roaring of engines and several cars zoomed past me at a speed that made them look like mere glowing lights flying by.

One of those cars stopped at some distance and started driving in reverse. It was a brand new grey supra.

Lowering my gaze, I increased my pace.

“Want a lift, sis?” Nikolai put his elbow on the window, patting his car. He drove the car slowly, matching my pace. “You know, an omega shouldn’t be here at this hour. Alphas from all the packs will be here tonight. What if someone kidnaps you? Or does something worse?”

A shrill laughter came from the passenger seat.

“Come on, brother! They might just run their cars over her face. How could someone look at such an abomination and not want to crush it?” Nathalia sniggered, rolling the chewing gum.

“Now. Now. Lia. Don’t be so harsh, or she’ll start crying again. Like good old days,” Nikolai stopped the car. They exchanged some glances, and stepped out of the car.

Keeping my eyes low, I tensed up when they approached me. Clenching the forget-me-nots, I hid them in my gown’s fabric.

“How rude of you? Ever since you left the palace, you didn’t even come to visit us once. How ungrateful can you get?” Nathalia hit my shoulder, and I stumbled back.

“Woah! Calm down. It’s been a while since we saw her. Go easy on her,” Nikolai’s gaze darkened as it ran over me. I clenched my trembling fist. “Going on a date, sis?”

I shuddered as his aura thickened. The threat behind his words held me in a chokehold.

“Then where are you going with flowers in your hand and dressed so prettily? You might not be living with us anymore, but you are, unfortunately, linked with the royal family. And if you were to stain our reputation, then as you brother, it’d be my responsibility to put you in your place?” He growled, towering over me, and I cowered.

I shook my head.

“I-I was… going to visit my mother's grave. It’s her death anniversary t-today,” I stammered.

There was a sudden shift in his darkening aura.

“Oh! It is indeed your birthday today. Happy birthday, sis!”

I flinched when Nikolai reached out to my shoulder.

“Oh, come on. We’re family, sis. And until you were doing something that you shouldn’t be doing, I would never hurt you. Ok! As a birthday gift, let me give you a ride to the graveyard. These roads will turn scary soon. Cars will run wild here. I don’t want you to get hurt badly.”

Nikolai turned to Nathalia.

“Lia, you can join Karl in his car, right?”

Nathalia gave me a smirk and nodded. “Of course.”

“Hop on, sis!” He opened the car door for me. “It’s our omega mother’s death anniversary. Let me correct my mistake and drop you safely to the graveyard. I know a shortcut. Come on! Get in! It’s a dangerous road ahead.”

Nathalia scoffed with a menacing smirk crossing her face. “I’ll keep a watch from behind.”

Another car stopped, and Nathalia got into it.

Nothing they had ever done to me had ever led to anything good for me. I had been an eyesore, proof of Alpha’s infidelity. So, luna had always done everything she could to keep reminding me how illegitimate, unwanted and burdensome I truly was. She had taken every chance to hurt me in all the ways she could.

Physically. Mentally. Emotionally.

And luna’s biggest weapons to inflict all that pain on me had been Nikolai and Nathalia.

“Get in, sis. Trust me, I am truly concerned about you,” Nikolai yelled as several cars zoomed right across the road. “Father will be upset if you get hurt or some random car hits you. Ever since you left the palace, we rarely meet. Let’s catch up.”

I should have run the other way, but several cars stopped by. Boys and girls took out their head out, laughing and giggling.

Nikolai seized my hand in a bruising grip, and I yelped slightly.

“You don’t plan to embarrass me before those insects, do you?” He spoke through his gritted teeth. “Be my good doll like you’ve always been and get in while I am still being nice.” He hissed.

Blinking back the mist in my eyes, I got in his car.

The foreboding screamed at me to not get in his car, but he had left me no other option.

“Put on the seat belt,” Nikolai said with a dark smirk cutting through his face.

I fumbled with the seatbelt, but put it on. In a matter of a few seconds, I was tightly clutching on the seatbelt, trying my best not to crush the flowers. The car was racing at its extreme limit.

I looked at Nikolai, who seemed to be enjoying himself handling the steering wheel deftly, making his car drift on the road. The car turned in circles with the rest of the cars and there were moments almost every second that I thought the car was going to crash into the others.

Nikolai laughed. I shut my eyes tightly.

“Sis! Open your eyes! I am going through all this trouble for you! Enjoy!”

“Wooohooo~~~” Nathalia hooted, taking half her torso out of the car’s window that drifted into circles right behind Nikolai’s car. She shot fireworks into the sky and several other cars followed the suit.

Soon, enormous flags of several packs fluttered in the car as their cars flew by. The rear wheels of almost all those cars were hidden in the fog created by the drifting tires on the road.

“P-please slow down…” my words trembled.

“What? I couldn’t hear you, sis! Say that louder!” Nikolai mused as raced the car towards a steep curve.

Covering my face with my hands, I shut my eyes tightly.

He drifted the cars along the curve, and I was pressed against the seat.

“Let me out!” I screamed, panting. “Please, let me out!”

Nikolai gave me a hostile side look as he sped, tearing against the winds.

“With pleasure, sis…” he smirked, unbuckling my seatbelt. The door opened on my side and before I could realise, he pushed me out of the speeding car.

My right hand and left leg crashed against the road before I rolled and skidded on the black road. A sharp pain numbed me before I completely blacked out for a few seconds from the impact.

The road and cut through my skin like a blade until the world finally stopped spinning.

I laid on the road for I don’t know how long, but in the daze, I remember crawling towards the Forget-me-nots when Nathalia’s car zoomed inches away from my hand, crushing the flowers.

Her laughter thinned as her car, and Nikolai’s car drifted in circles all around me. Now and then, Nikolai’s car would zoom right past me and I would try to avoid coming under the tires by rolling over.

“Please… stop…” I shivered badly. “I am sorry. I am sorry…”

“You should be sorry!” Nathalia spat. “Sorry for being born! You should have expired with your mother!”

“No Lia! Had she expired, we wouldn’t have such a great toy to play with. Let’s play a little more. Let’s see how well my car’s brakes are. Stay where you are, sis! And pray the car doesn’t drift over you, ha-ha. I am going to do a small experiment! Everyone back off!” Nikolai roared, and all the cars circling around me emptied the road around me.

Nikolai reversed his car until he was almost out of my sight. Crawling to the Forget-me-nots, I picked them up and then put on my cracked glasses. I had to get out of that place.

The roar of the car’s engine haunted the road as the headlight flashed right into my eyes, blinding me.

Nikolai accelerated the car right towards me.

My hand clutching the flowers fell limply to my side. My heart gave a painful throb, and I knew what raced towards me was my death.

The car came closer and closer and—

Screech!

Chapter 3
[Xanthea]

The engine gave out a majestic roar as an unknown car drifted right between me and Nikolai’s car. A screech of the tires against the asphalt, left behind bold tire marks on the road. Then the car raced right at Nikolai’s car.

I gasped as my heart pounded horrifyingly at the sight.

Two other cars zoomed in, flanking Nikolai’s car from the rear.

The three cars trapping Nikolai’s car decelerated until all the four cars came to a stop. The rev of their engines rattled me to my bones.

The loud thunder cracked in the dark cloudy sky, snapping me out of my paralysis. I scrambled to my shaking legs. Limping, I tried to get away from all of them as far away as I could get.

Nathalia glared at me, but the crowd rushed towards the four cars. Using the other as a facade, I tore through the crowd.

I hadn’t even covered halfway to the graveyard when it started pouring down.

By the time I was in the graveyard, I struggled to breathe. The numbness made the pain stand out even more.

The cold of the rain caressed the pain throbbing in every inch of my body. As if through the rain, my mother was telling me to pull myself together and keep moving forward.

‘It is in times like this the conviction of one’s dreams is tested and it is the turning point in one’s life. What you decide at that moment either makes you or breaks you.’

My mother’s words came to me and I don’t know how, but I pulled myself to the hospital. For the first time in my life, I used the bills Alpha had been sending to get myself treated as best as the hospital could offer.

The x-rays showed my ulna was broken and there was a hairline fracture in my wrist. It would take at least a week to heal with the best medication available. Alpha’s healed faster, but omegas had weaker healing abilities.

There was no miracle I could perform to heal my hand, so while I stayed in the hospital that night, I practised bubbling the circles with my left hand. During the exams we gave our answers by bubbling the one of four option bubbles which we believe to be the correct answer to the question.

After the night’s practice, I was able to bubble the circles.

The next morning, I left the hospital and took a taxi back home with my plastered hand. The doctors said I should rest for at least a week for proper healing. But I convinced them to prescribe me some best painkillers to get me through the day.

I was working completely on painkillers. I just had to go through this day and the exam. After that, I could finally rest a little after four years of working tirelessly.

The exams would start in the afternoon. I reached the centre an hour before. The organisers of the exams asked about my hand and all I told them was I met with an accident.

It was a three-hour exam with all objective type questions. One out of the four options was right. One hour into the exams and I was struggling with my broken hand and left hand. Two hours and I was halfway through the questions. The effect of the painkiller was fading away. I solved questions through the pain.

The organiser strolled to me. She leaned in and whispered.

“Please come with me outside,” she said.

“Out? But I still have one hour—”

“Please, just come out. You are not eligible to give this exam anymore.”

I froze at her words. At that moment, it felt like my entire world had come crashing down.

“W-what? But why? I filled everything—”

“Please, just come out with me. Don’t disturb the other candidates.”

I bit back my tears.

“I will. Please, just let me complete this exam. This really means everything to me. Please?”

“I am sorry, but we have a direct instruction from luna. His highness, the crown prince, is here to take you. We are extremely sorry, but there’s nothing we can do.”

My heart dropped as soon as I heard Nikolai was there.

“P-please…” I begged. “Just half an hour. I am begging you. Please…”

My heart thundered as if it would break all my ribs.

She gave me an apologetic look.

“What’s taking so long?” Nikolai stormed into the room.

Paralyzed, I widened my eyes. Tears welled up in my eyes. My stomach twisted and dropped with every step he took.

He stopped near my table and winced at the question paper and answer sheet. He smirked as he leaned on the table and whispered, “Were you preparing to run away from the pack again, sis? You found a legal way this time, didn’t you?”

“Please. Please don’t take this away from me,” I gasped, as tears trailed down my frozen eyes. “Please. I’ll do everything you say, just let me… ah!”

He grabbed my upper arm and, with brute strength, pulled me to my feet.

“I am extremely sorry for disturbing you guys. As you can see, my sister is hurt and we are extremely worried about her wellbeing. That is why my mother asked me to get her back to the palace. My naïve sister doesn’t know what’s good for her and what’s not. I apologise for the disturbance she caused.”

I struggled when he yanked me closer, whispering against my ear, “stop! Or I will break every bone in your body.”

“Please. I am sorry. I promise I will do better.” Even though I knew it was useless, I tried to talk to him as he dragged me through the empty hallways of the college and threw me in his car.

I pressed my hand against the glass as he slammed the door on my face.

“Please, Nikolai! Please, just half an hour. Just give me half an hour. I promise I will come with you wherever you want.”

I wasn’t begging; I was desperate.

He got in the driver’s seat and I clutched his hand before he could start the car, “please Nikolai. Please, just once! I have never asked for anything. Just once, give me a little time. Let me complete my exams. Please.” I bowed in front of him.

“Breaking your hand wasn’t enough. Should have broken your legs as well. Ugh! But mother said not to hurt you today!” He hit the steering wheel.

Gritting his teeth, he grabbed my cheeks.

“Don’t you understand, sis? You are not even allowed to breathe if we don’t approve of it. You thought you could give this exam without us noticing?”

I yelped as he grabbed my hair. Pain throbbed through my head.

“Don’t you remember your promise? You said you would be my obedient doll. What’s with this defiance? I am already frustrated. Don’t get on my nerves anymore. I came all the way here to pick you. You don’t appreciate it even a bit, do you?”

He left my hair. I clenched my jaws, trying to remain as silent as I could.

Pinning me against my seat, he put the seatbelt across me.

Nikolai started the car and drove it out of the college. I watched the college go farther and farther away from me and so did everything I was living for.

“I am warning you, if you tell anything about this broken hand to father, I will make it worse!”

“AHH!” I muffled my cry as he clenched my plastered hand.

“Now, sit like a good girl and no more crying. Although I love the way you look when you cry, you need to look the best tonight. A family dinner and there will be very important guests. So mother wants me to make sure you are in your best behaviour.”

Chapter 4
[Xanthea]

The maids gingerly removed the plaster from my hand and wrapped it in fresh elastic bandages.

I sat in front of the ornate dressing table with shut eyes. I didn’t want to look at myself, not when Nikolai’s unsettling gaze scorched disgustingly over me.

I wore a thin, white undergown that concealed nothing. It clung to my body, revealing far more than I was comfortable with.

A sick churn bubbled up in my stomach with apprehension when he approached the dressing table, asking the maids to leave.

I clenched the gown over my knees into my fists. He placed his hand on my shoulder, the searing warmth of his palm sinking into my bare skin.

I tensed up, bringing my shoulders closer to my neck when he leaned closer to my ears.

“Now, wouldn’t you look prettier with this piece of cloth off you, my pretty doll?”

My fists trembled as he slipped the sleeve of the undergown down my shoulder.

He took a sharp breath with a chuckle, distancing himself from me.

“Look at you tremble, sis! What did you think I’d do? I am your half-brother. Come on! How disgusting can your thoughts get? I was just joking with you. Take these painkillers and be on your best behaviour, sis. I am not joking when I say these are important guests,” he said.

His hand slid over my fist.

“Take these painkillers. Trust me, I am only trying to help you. It might be a long night for you,” Nikolai forced open my fist and put the painkillers in my palm. “Here’s your water. I know you won’t be able to hold with your right hand. Let me help you drink.”

I stared at the pills in my palms. Shutting my eyes, I swallowed them, allowing Nikolai to help me drink the water.

“Good doll,” he said, running his thumb across my chin, wiping off the water. “If you were this obedient all the time, I wouldn’t have to go through all the trouble you force me through. The maids will now dress you up.”

He left and the maids soon walked into the room when I finally looked at myself in the mirror…

The bridal veil ran down from my hair all the way to the floor across the gown. The one who looked back from the reflection was a pretty bride dressed in a lavish full sleeved, off-shoulder, revealing white wedding gown, just like a doll.

I guess that’s what I was always supposed to be. A doll for someone to dress up. A doll who had no mind of her own, the one who had no luxury to dream or think for herself. I was always supposed to listen to others and have no opinion of my own. That’s what omegas have always been.

I lowered my gaze.

I didn’t even want to look at the one standing in the mirror.

My stomach convoluted with foreboding and apprehension.

Why was I dressed like a bride?

What was going on?

What exactly was going to happen to me?

What did Nikolai mean when he said it would be a long night for me?

The door opened, and someone walked in. From the sound of heels striking the marble, I knew it was my stepmother, Luna Meesa Virgo.

I held my gaze low as she took me in.

“She looks perfect. Bring her when I call,” she talked to the maids and left.

I had a powerful urge to ask her why I was wearing a wedding gown, but I knew it was better to let things unfold according to them than to question or fight them.

I slumped back on the white and golden couch.

My heart thumped louder with every ticking of the clock.

Hours later, something happened that had never happened before. Alpha Valdimir walked into my room, and I instantly sprang to my feet. It felt like blood had drained off my body as he stood near me. But at the same time, I was a little hopeful about something.

I didn’t know what I hoped for from him, but it was all in vain.

In the twenty-three years of my life, this was the third time I was standing face to face with him. He was never cold to me or hostile like Luna Meesa, Nathalia and Nikolai. But he was never warm either.

He was my father, but we were complete strangers.

I bowed, keeping my gaze low.

He contemplated me for a while before he spoke.

“You are… getting married to the…” he gritted his jaws then continued. “… to the triplet Alphas of the Infernal pack tonight,” he said in his usual calm voice and a hint of hesitation.

My breaths had stalled as the meaning of his words sank in.

“I thought it was… important that you know and understand… the situation. The Alpha King has chosen our pack this year to make the offering to the demon lords. I had no choice, Thea. Nathalia is too young. The fate of our pack is… now in your hands. As your father, I don’t want this to happen to you—”

“Please leave,” my voice trembled as I turned away from him. Tears brimmed in my eyes.

“Thea…”

Pain knotted into my body.

“An alpha is offering an omega from his pack to the demon lords to protect his pack and his people. There’s nothing more to this situation, your highness. You could have sent your servant to relay the message like you always did. It’s not like you ever considered me as your daughter. And if by any odd chance you feel guilty, then think yourself forgiven, for I never expected anything from you.”

The bitterness mixed with fear and pain made me speak words that I never could have dared say to him otherwise. And I instantly regretting letting my inner thoughts come to life in front of him.

I don’t think he was there to say a sorry. Maybe he was there to warn me or tell me to behave myself.

He let out an exasperated sigh. “Is there anything I can do for you?”

Tears trailed down my eyes.

“I am sorry, Thea. All of this happened so suddenly since yesterday, even I don’t understand how things led to this. It’s Alpha King’s instruction. So, I hope you understand the gravity of this situation.”

Of course, I knew what it meant to be offered to the Triplets. I knew how serious the situation was.

Now that I knew the reason for wearing the wedding gown, its fabric felt like molten silver on my skin.

I was being offered to the Triplet alphas.

There were three Pack Realms in this world — the Earthly Packs realm, the Celestial pack realm, and then the most dreaded pack ever, the Infernal pack realm.

The Celestial pack was known as the purest pack and was ruled by the Moon Goddess herself. It consisted of immortal werewolves, descendants of the angel, dragon, or god races. The Earthly packs relied heavily on the blessings of the Celestial pack, which was believed to be a pack hidden in the sky.

The Earthly packs realm consisted of the twelve werewolf packs inhabiting mortal werewolves. The Virgo pack, my pack, was one of the Earthly packs. Each pack was ruled by an alpha and the Alpha King ruled over all the twelve alphas. He was also known as the Alpha of the Alphas and he was responsible for maintaining peace with the Celestial pack and the Infernal pack.

The Infernal pack was infamously known as the pack of the underworld, and it was ruled by the triplet alphas or the demon lords. The Infernal pack was also inhabited by the immortal werewolves, but they were all descendants of the evil, the demons, the curses, the banished and the ones who turned rogue.

No one knew why, but it started three years ago. Every year, the Alpha King chose an Earthly pack to make an offering to the Triplet alphas of the Infernal pack.

From what everyone believed, offering the demon lords a bride of royal blood every year was the only way to maintain peace between the Earthly packs and the Infernal pack.

No one knows what happens to the brides in the Infernal pack. But by the end of the one year time, all those brides from all the Earthly packs were found expired in the most gruesome way and hung outside the royal palaces if the packs they belonged to.

The triplet alphas took over those fallen packs and ever since, their inhabitants live at their mercy.

I gulped hard, trying to manage my breathlessness. But everything was turning dark in front of my eyes. I held my head. Cold fear rattling through my bones as I imagined myself meeting the same gruesome end.

Until today, three brides have been offered to them and no bride had survived those ruthless alphas. All of them were alpha blood. I was an omega. I wouldn’t survive a day—

“Thea!” Alpha held me before I slumped to the floor.

A cry escaped out when he held my broken hand.

I instantly withdrew my hand from him.

He tensed his brows. “Thea, are you hurt?”

I restlessly looked around the floor and shook my head.

He seized my hand, making me wince. He made me sit on the couch while he sat beside me. He lifted the sleeve of my broken hand. His furrow deepened when he saw the bandages wrapped around my arms.

“How did this happen?” He asked.

Nikolai’s warning rang in my head.

“Alpha!” I heard Luna Meesa’s panic-stricken voice as she stormed into the room.

Catching her breath, her wide eyes fell on my hand and then at Alpha. Rage flashed in her eyes as she glared at me.

“Did you know she was hurt?” Alpha asked and Luna Meesa’s aura instantly shifted.

“She’s hurt?” she strutted towards me. “I didn’t know. Why didn’t you tell me you were hurt when I asked you before?”

“What happened, Thea?” Alpha turned to me.

My breaths sped up; tears streamed down my eyes.

Luna grabbed my shoulder. I suppressed a wince.

“Yes, sweety. What happened? Tell your father, how did you get hurt?” Her tone was sweet to ears who didn’t know the threat lurking behind that sweetness.

Sniffling, I said.

“I-I… fell… from the stairs.”

“Oh my! That is I didn’t like the idea of her shifting to Freya’s house. She’s all alone there and you know she never shares anything with us. She doesn’t even consider us a family. Or else she would have told me,” Luna Meesa said.

There was a knock at the door and the royal doctor walked in. Luna Meesa glared at me and then at Alpha, looking as shocked as I was.

Alpha got up from the couch as the doctor examined me thoroughly.

He told father about my broken hand and sprained ankles.

“Father…” Nikolai walked into the room.

“Is Alpha King here to take her?” Father asked, facing him.

Before offering the bride to the Triplet Alphas, the Alpha King collected the brides himself and then took her to his kingdom from where she was sent to the Infernal pack.

“No,” his stern voice hinted of fear. “They are here…” he panted anxiously. “The demon lords are here themselves.”

Blood froze in my veins. Doctor and Alpha blocked Nikolai from my vision. But I wished he said he was joking even when I knew he wasn’t.

“They sent a messenger. They’ll be here by midnight,” Nikolai said.

“Call an immediate meeting in the court,” Alpha said and Nikolai hurried out of the room. Turning towards Luna, Alpha said. “Get Nathalia ready for the offering. Thea can’t marry the Triplets in this condition.”

Chapter 5
[Xanthea]

Luna Meesa’s face lost all color.

“What? Alpha…”

He raised his hand, silencing her.

“We don’t have time for arguments. It’s an instruction and I expect you to follow it.”

With that, he left the room.

Luna Meesa shot me an outraged gaze. She flounced in front of me and slapped me across my face.

The stinging pain pulsed through my cheek like a thousand needles, overwhelming my senses.

“Are you happy now?” She snarled at me. “You’ve finally destroyed my family! You and your filthy blooded mother!”

I peered blankly at the floor. A mix of emotions crashed upon me, strangling my heart with their unforgiving claws.

Her grip tightened on my broken arm as I stifled my cries into mere whimpers. For the first time in my life, I felt as if I deserved the pain.

The royal doctor lowered his gaze. It was nothing new for him. After all, he was the one to heal me for eighteen years after every time they broke me. He never asked about my wounds. All he did was treat me, keeping silent just like today.

She grabbed my cheeks with her other hand, her nails dug into my cheeks. My eyes stung with tears at the pain. I clenched my jaws to arrest the sob.

“Useless and burdensome, as you always were…”

“Mother!” Nathalia burst into the room, breaking into tears. “I don’t want to marry them! Mother, please do something!”

I had expected Nathalia to unleash her anger on me, but she clung to Luna, sobbing bitterly. We shared the same fear in that moment and maybe that was what bound us.

Nothing really matters when you can see your death right on your doorstep. Especially not when death was coming to marry you and take you away to the underworld as an offering.

Another agonizing hour passed, with Nathalia’s sobs and cries echoing the fatal silence of the palace. She was in another room, but I could hear her painful cries all the way to my room.

I didn’t know what the royal doctor had injected into my hand, but the pain had lessened. I gently cradled my broken hand, wanting to feel relief, but restlessness gnawed at me with every passing second.

The air inside and around the palace was thick with a kind of fear that came with the threat of an impending tsunami. A fear of destruction with no escape. All we could do was let the tsunami pass and hope to still be alive once it had.

I was left alone in the room, forgotten now that everyone’s attention was on Nathalia.

The sound of the clock had become much more pronounced and so did the hurried footsteps in the corridors.

I rose from the bed and paced near the dressing table, fidgeting with my hands as restlessness grew wilder.

I wanted to go back home to my mother, her diaries. Maybe then I would find some courage.

My head snapped up as my room door creaked open.

This is what I feared the most. He is going to be mad again! He'll hurt me again.

With bated breath, I looked at Nikolai, who wore a deep frown when he walked into the room. But his face turned impassive as he took me in.

His eyes widened in a daze as his gaze traveled down my body to my wedding gown, lingering on each detail.

My heart hammered against my ribs.

“I didn’t tell Alpha about my arm. I promise. He… sort of… found out on his own. I didn’t tell him anything about you or the car thing…” I spoke in a breath, well aware of what was coming regardless of my words. He wasn't going to trust me.

He stepped closer and I shut my eyes, my body trembling.

He is going to hit me…

But he stopped. I glanced at him, confused.

His gaze flickered briefly to my body, with a sneer he gritted his teeth and stormed out of the room without a word.

I took a quick gulp.

What just happened?

The voices in the corridors grew louder and more rushed. So did my heartbeats.

I looked at the watch. It was ten minutes to midnight.

I could no longer sit back in that room. I walked out of the room. Walking some distance in the corridor, I heard Nathalia whimpers.

“Brother please. Do something. Please… they’ll destroy me. You know them, they are devils,” Nathalia clutched Nikolai’s hand, pleading.

She was dressed in a sparkly white wedding gown, adorned in the best of diamonds. Something she always flaunted, something that no longer held value. I lowered my gaze. At least there was someone she could plead with.

I would have to bear it silently. A knot formed in my heart, tightening with Nathalia’s cry for help.

“They are in the pack, you should… prepare yourself, Lia. Stop crying. You need to look… good for them,” Nikolai said, clenching his jaws. An unfamiliar powerlessness lingered in his eyes.

Nathalia broke into silent sobs. She had been crying for hours now. Her eyes were red, her voice hoarse, but she kept pleading sometimes with Luna, sometimes with Nikolai. Both of them could only listen.

“It’s all my mistake.” Nathalia slumped against the wall. “It’s karma. That is why this is happening. It’s all my fault. I broke her hand. It was my idea…”

I widened my eyes, feeling a strangling pain throb in my heart at her words.

“I am the one to blame. It’s all my fault…” she slumped against the doorframe.

As the clock struck midnight, the main clock chimed loudly. Nathalia’s eyes widened, tears streaming down incessantly.

“No, no.” She ran into her room, slamming the door behind her.

A sudden gravity filled the palace as the air crackled with power and dominance. The demon lords, the triplets, had arrived.

Nikolai kicked on her door. “Lia! Open the door! Lia! Don’t do this!” He mumbled, hitting the wall helplessly.

For a moment, he remained calm, probably mind linking with the Alpha. Then, with a forceful push, he opened the door and dragged Nathalia out.

She was no longer screaming. Suppressed sobs were the only sound.

I watched it all hiding behind the wall.

Nathalia’s teary gaze met mine before she was dragged away, and her face kept flashing in my eyes as if it might remain imprinted in my mind forever.

I pressed my hands over my face, breaking into tears. Leaning my head against the wall, I slumped to the floor.

Holding my aching head in my hands, I cried until I could no longer fight the weight of my own conscience.

With the support of the wall, I got up. Lifting the hem of my wedding gown, I ran as fast as I could with my sprained ankles in the empty corridors of the palace.

Everyone had gathered in the ballroom for the marriage ceremony. Even the maids were nowhere to be seen.

I ran through the web of corridors, finally stopping when I reached the backdoor of the ballroom. That was the place from where the bride would walked to the hall. I could feel the heavy aura lurk in the air.

Panting, I hesitated for a moment before finally making up my mind.

I saw Alpha waiting with sobbing Nathalia, hidden in the darkness. I didn’t dare glimpse whatever ceremony was going on in the ballroom.

The ballroom had been hastily decorated for the marriage ceremony, yet it looked gothically beautiful.

Dark clouds rumbled in the sky with thunder and lightning, adding to the frenzied ambiance.

The crowd surrounding Nathalia parted to make way for me.

Luna Meesa’s bleary gaze fell on me, but she didn’t react with hostility as usual.

I stepped closer to them.

Nikolai blocked my path to Alpha and Nathalia.

“What are you doing here?” He spoke through gritted teeth. “Came here to enjoy our suffering?”

I met his eyes, my voice unwavering. “Only you can find happiness in someone else’s suffering, not me.”

Nikolai frowned; rage dimmed in his eyes with a glimpse of tears.

I passed by him and everyone else until I was face to face with Nathalia and Alpha.

I looked into Alpha’s eyes.

“I offer myself to the demon lords. Please let Nathalia go,” I said.

The crowd seemed to gasp in unison. Nathalia stared at me in shock.

“Now comes the bride with Alpha Valdimir,” a voice echoed from within the ballroom.

Everyone stood frozen until Luna Meesa yanked Nathalia away from Alpha.

“Thea… daughter…” Alpha looked at me, his eyes unreadably warm.

Raising my hand over my head, I pulled down the veil over my face. Lifting my right hand as high as I could, I placed my hand over Alpha’s arm.

Alpha didn’t say another word.

I had nothing to lose, and my death would be no one’s loss. I never had a family. No one would cry at my death. I would no longer be the reason for someone’s pain.

If I was lucky, I might meet my mother. Maybe then I could apologise properly for disappointing her. In the end, I couldn’t fulfil her dreams. The very day I had already lost everything that meant something to me.

‘You can live with regrets, but guilt… it disturbs you every day you live.’

Mother’s words flashed in my head.

Nathalia stumbled to me, proffering the bouquet of Forget-me-nots in my hand with her trembling hands. She dropped her gaze when I looked at her through the veil as I took the bouquet from her hand.

I shut my eyes and inhaled deeply as the lights fell on me.

Alpha held my hand gently as we strutted down the aisle. The ballroom filled with decent claps. My gaze remained fixed on the red carpet beneath my feet.

My steps faltered halfway to the altar.

A dark stain crawled from the hem of my gown all the way up to the fabric, turning the white wedding gown into a black gown. Even the veil over my face had turned black.

A shudder ran down my spine as the Forget-me-nots in my hands turned into a bouquet of red spider lilies. I almost dropped the bouquet, my heart heaving faster.

Steeling my heart and tightening my grip around the bouquet of spider lilies, I made my way to the altar.

Alpha let go of my hand at the foot of the altar.

Three figures stood on the altar.

Chapter 6
[Xanthea]

Squalls gushed into the ballroom, announcing the arrival of a storm. I stood near the foot of the altar as they swirled around me.

A quiet gasp escaped out when a swift wind fluttered my veil off my face.

Entangling with a strands of hair, the winds tucked them behind my ear.

My breaths shivered when I realized it wasn’t the air that brushed past my cheeks. Goosebumps ran all over my body as another zephyr caressed my neck.

I let out a silent, shaking breath.

‘Sweet.’ A whisper kissed my ear.

I gulped hard.

Seconds felt like an eternity as I lifted my eyelids.

Maybe those seconds were enchanted, or maybe my existence had come to a halt. But something surreal lingered in the distance between us when my eyes locked with the three demon lords.

I half-gasped and half-gaped at the three of them. My heart pounded faster and faster as the three of them gazed back at me with their dark and cold eyes, holding the mystery of the night.

The power they emitted was so overwhelming it made my existence seem insignificant.

They were dressed in shades of gray and black three-piece suits that hugged their well-built and tall frames in all the right places, highlighting their chiseled features that only enhanced their otherworldly sinful charms.

Their sharp jawlines and palely charismatic faces drew me into a blank space and their alluring eyes trapped me in an abyss. I could feel my fear amplifying with every heartbeat. Danger lurked in their eyes and it appeared they had already possessed my heart, my body, and my soul.

There was no escaping them, but I wasn’t sure how long I would survive them. Or maybe there was no survival in this marriage at all. There was only surrendering. Surrendering my life, my fate and my destiny to them.

As long as I surrendered to the three of them, I might survive.

“Requesting the bride on the altar.”

The voice of the man, dressed in a hooded black robe from head to toe, brought me out of the triplet’s bewitchment.

Stalling my breaths, I gingerly walked up to the altar. It felt as if, even if I breathed the wrong way, they would break me apart.

I didn’t dare look at any of them again.

There was no priest on the altar, but a sorcerer. In fact, there was no one anywhere close to the altar.

I glanced at Alpha, who peered at the triplets, then lowered his gaze when he looked at me.

My breath hitched as a shudder ran through my body when one triplet held my face. He lifted my chin, making me look into his eyes. Up close, his light gray eyes were even more predatory. And my heart ran wild, just like a prey.

An unsettling dread ran down my spine, breathing in the same air as him.

His gaze dropped to me. Sucking in a quick breath, I lowered my gaze. He let go of my chin and stepped back, standing in the middle of the other two.

I stood in front of them, clutching my hands near my belly even tighter.

“We are here to witness the soul pact being formed between the Infernal Triplets and the Earthly princess of the Virgo pack, princess Xanthea Virgo,” the sorcerer said. “A wedding.”

I knew a wedding with the demon lords would be anything but normal. But a pact? It wasn’t just my body they’d claim in this marriage. They’d imprison and imprint my soul with theirs.

My nails dug into my skin as tears stung my eyes.

Is this really how my life will end? A soul trapped for eternity in the shadows with no escape, no light, no salvation?

“Alpha Raven Xipher step forth and create the first soul pact with your bride,” the sorcerer said.

The Alpha standing left to the gray-eyed Alpha stepped closer to me until he stood right in front of me.

His eyes contemplated me. He had long hair tied in a ponytail, his hair styled in a wolf cut.

“Look into my eyes,” his deep voice cut through my heart. His words were impassive and colder were his scrutiny.

The sorcerer walked close to us and lifted a double-ended dagger between us.

I peered at the dagger that hung in the air, levitating between us. I gasped at the sight of the sharp blades.

“Princess Xanthea Virgo and Alpha Raven Xipher, I will request you to stab your hand at the ends of the pact dagger,” the sorcerer said. The handle in the middle of the pact dagger had a huge gem that looked as if glowing blood was constantly flowing in it.

I stepped back, curling my hand into fists.

Raven held my gaze, and my body stiffened. My body wasn’t under my control. I involuntarily stepped closer to the pact dagger and stabbed my hand at one edge of the dagger while Raven stabbed his at the other end.

The double-ended dagger absorbed our blood and the gem in the middle hilt glowed even redder.

A sharp pain ran through my body as, for a few seconds, it felt like I was having a heart attack. I struggled to breathe. Holding back my tears, I clenched my arm.

I glanced at Alpha Valdimir, pleading for help, but all he did was lower his gaze. Everyone in the ballroom stood with their heads low.

My head snapped back towards Raven. It seemed as if invisible hands were controlling my body. I looked into his eyes as the sorcerer read.

“Do you, Xanthea Virgo, entrust your body, blood and soul to Raven Xipher, your lord, your owner and your first husband?”

I sobbed.

I wanted to run away and hide somewhere far away. A grave seemed like a safer place to belong than with the triplets.

I wish I had an option to leave. But I chose this destiny for myself. I had to take the responsibility.

“I-I… do,” I said, through the pain.

“Do you swear your eternal loyalty, obedience, and submission to him and his will?” the sorcerer asked.

“I… do…” I said, breathing heavily as a feverish sensation ran up my spine.

“Do you promise to accept the punishment if you breach the first two vows?”

I knit my brows as tears trailed down my cheeks.

“I… do!” My words came out as a sob.

“And do you, Raven Xipher, tie your soul to hers?”

“I do,” he said, stoically.

I stumbled back as I got back the control over my body and I instantly withdrew my hand from the dagger’s pointed end.

“Alpha Ezra Xipher step forth and create the second soul pact with your bride,” the sorcerer said.

This time, the eyes that forcefully locked with mine were deep blue. He had short, frivolously styled hair. A mischievous glint flashed in his eyes when he saw my tears. My body was under Ezra’s control. I was losing control, even over my tears.

I stabbed my hand again at one end of the dagger while Ezra stabbed his on the other end.

“Do you, Xanthea Virgo, entrust your body, blood and soul to Ezra Xipher, your lord, your owner and your second husband?” the sorcerer said.

I accepted the same vows with him as I had with Raven.

“And do you, Ezra Xipher, tie your soul to hers?”

“I do,” he said in an amused tone as he took me in.

“Alpha Asher Xipher step forth and create the third soul pact with your bride,” the sorcerer said.

Ezra stood back while the gray-eyed man with ruffled shoulder length hair.

With him, my body was more under my control and he waited for me to stab my hand with the dagger’s end instead of forcing me to do it.

“Do you, Xanthea Virgo, entrust your body, blood and soul to Asher Xipher, your lord, your owner and your third husband?”

The pain during the vowing process was no less excruciating, but at least I was ready for that pain now.

“I do…” my voice was weak.

“And do you, Asher Xipher, tie your soul to hers?”

“I do,” he said, holding my teary gaze.

“I pronounce their souls pacted. In the words of the earthly realm, I pronounce them married!” The sorcerer said, and polite claps filled the ballroom.

The double-edged dagger in the sorcerer’s hands turned and twisted itself until it took the form of a pointed thorny crown with glowing blood adorning it as gems.

“Alphas, I request you to place this crown on your bride’s head and seal the pact for eternity,” the sorcerer said.

The triplets held the crown and placed it on my head together. Its thorns and pointed ends pierced through my skin and hair. I could feel blood trail down my forehead, over my face.

I shut my eyes, feeling my blood leave behind its fleeting warmth on the cold skin of my eyelids.

The crown got heavier and heavier on my head. It felt like I would be buried right under its pressure. Every inch of my body was throbbing with pain like I had never felt before. It was worse than having a broken hand.

My soul was tearing apart, and I could feel it in my veins.

The ballroom spun before my eyes.

My vision faltered and so did my struggle to fight the pain and stand strong when I was breaking from inside. My heart heaved faster.

Before my failing body hit the ground, Raven grabbed my upper arms. Ezra held my shoulder while Asher’s firm arm wrapped around my waist as my back rested against his body.

“You can’t be weak, wife. You now have three husbands to please. Tonight’s the night we claim you. You can’t let a simple wedding tire you, for our nuptial night holds trials far more demanding.” Ezra whispered huskily, tucking my hair behind my ear. My heart pounded with its left over strength as I shook my head slightly.

“Please…”

I succumbed to the darkness before my words could find their voice.

Chapter 7
[Xanthea]

***

A caressing, hypnotic fragrance slowly enveloped my senses. It was a sophisticated blend of jasmine, patchouli, and hints of exotic spices.

With every breath, the scent seemed to suffuse deeper and deeper in my body. My pulse quickened, and I could feel the heat crawl up my cheeks.

With the fragrance that dazed my mind and relaxed my body mixed three prominent scents that I could never mistake. They were there in the room with me. The demon lords.

I could feel the silk bedsheet and the bed beneath my palms. But I couldn’t open my eyes because of the blindfold.

I panicked subtly from the inside, but I was too scared to show it.

My breaths hitched as the silk blanket that had been covering my body until now slid down with every intention of tracing every inch of my skin. I could still feel a thin fabric around my body.

One of them tried to hold my wrist but in an impulse I pulled it from his grip.

The air crackled with their dominance and I knew I had displeased them.

Maybe if I just lie down and let them do what they want with me, at least I wouldn’t upset them.

My heart ravaged as I held my trembling hands close to my arms.

I reached out my blindfold when I felt the air around me flush with their maddening pheromones. My hands limply fell to my side.

They didn’t want me to take off the blindfold. But why? Not being able to see them only added to my nervousness.

My whole body was burning. The fever felt as if it were breaking every bone in my body. I instantly grabbed my broken right hand to feel the pain, but there was none. Even my ankle was healed.

Still, something in my body didn’t feel right. It felt like I was in heat but a heat that was ten times stronger than all the heats I had had in my life.

“Little toy.”

My head followed the direction of the amused, deep voice that held a dark tease behind every word. That was probably Ezra.

“Why don't you let us know how much you want us?" Ezra asked.”

“You heard him. Didn’t you?” A stoic voice came from my left. Raven. There was a harshness in his voice. Hatred in his tone, as if I disgusted him.

I hugged myself. Knitting my brows, I shook my head.

“Please…” I don’t know why I begged them, even when I knew it was useless.

“Hey! Hey! Don’t tell me you are first time, little toy!” Ezra’s tone lit up with a dangerous excitement.

“I—I am…” My words shivered.

Ezra broke into laughter.

The next second, I flopped, my wrist pinned over my head.

My heart raced.

“Ah! Wait! Please…” I spoke through broken breaths.

“You made us wait enough, my innocent toy. How dare you hide this from us? You deserve to be punished.”

I thought I had prepared myself enough for this, but now that it was about to happen, I was trembling. My tears disappeared somewhere within my blindfold.

My heart pulsated against my ribs as I clenched my fists.

“Back off, Ezra. Not now.” A husky, authoritative growl came from my right. Out of all the voices, hearing Asher’s voice settled down my heartbeats. And I don’t know why.

With a disappointed grunt, Ezra backed away from me, leaving me disheveled and open to all their gazes.

I sat up again, burning with shame. Now I was grateful to the blindfold. At least I couldn’t see them looking at me.

“Take off your clothes, omega,” Raven commanded.

I clenched my dress.

“If you make me repeat, I will tear them off you and defile that lowly body of yours. This is already a waste of time, anyway,” Raven said.

Shivers ran down my spine at his raw threat. I knew he hated me, and deep down, I knew it was because I was an omega. I slowly did what he instructed.

Now I completely wore nothing to their burning gaze that I could feel on my skin. I gulped hard, trying to hide, but two hands seized me at the same time.

I bit down a sob at their bruising grips.
…

I couldn’t understand what was happening to me or why it felt so sinfully right. Now that it was going to happen, a dark desire took over me.

“You are such a masterpiece, omega.” Raven scoffed.

The pain rushed through my body, making me feel a hunger I never knew existed inside me.

“We are going to take turns with you. Let’s play a guessing-who game. If your answers are right, we will do it like you want and if they are wrong, we will do it like we want,” Asher said. “I hope you are ready, Xanthea.”

Novel reading

https://facebook.com/61558396135596

LEARN_MORE