01 Preparing For Guests

Annabel’s POV

The floors still weren’t clean, and I could feel my mother-in-law’s cold eyes on me, sharp and impatient. “The floors need scrubbing, Annabel. We don’t have all day. A lowly Omega like you belongs in the pleasure houses or the kitchens. So, pick a place, and I’ll make sure that’s where you end up,” she sneered.

Her words cut deep, but I had no strength left to argue or even look her in the eye. I simply bowed my head, feeling my face grow warm with shame.

“I’ll be done soon,” I whispered, each word trembling with the effort to keep my emotions hidden. I couldn’t risk speaking up or letting anything slip that might provoke her. Since Maxwell—my mate, my Alpha, my everything—had died in battle, everything about my life had been turned upside down.

His half-brother Alfred and his stepmother now ruled over the pack, and I had been stripped of any respect, of any place I once held. I was reduced to being their servant, their help, nothing more.

Today, I was preparing the house for a special guest: the woman who would become Alfred’s Luna.

They wanted everything perfect for her, every corner spotless, every surface gleaming. And so here I was, scrubbing the floors on my hands and knees, the smell of cleaning chemicals burning my nose, my hands raw and sore from hours of hard work.

Some of the kinder souls in the pack had urged me to leave. They saw how I was treated, how hollow my life had become since Maxwell’s death, and they encouraged me to find a new life elsewhere. But where could I go? I had no family, no home outside these walls, no one who would welcome me or keep me safe.

The world outside this pack was dangerous, especially for an abandoned wolf with no one to protect her. I knew all too well that other packs wouldn’t be kind to an outsider like me. There was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.

So here I stayed, keeping my head down and scrubbing these cold, unfeeling floors, hiding the emptiness that had taken root inside me ever since Maxwell was gone. I missed him so much it hurt—hurt in a way that no one could understand.

The pain was a constant, aching throb, a hollowness that nothing seemed to fill. The loneliness was like a shadow that clung to me, whispering that this emptiness was all I had left of him.

Sometimes, I thought it would have been better if I had joined him in that battle. At least then, I wouldn’t be here, hollow and broken, treated as nothing, unloved and unseen. At least then, I wouldn’t be alone. But I wasn’t given that choice, so I continued, day after day, bowing my head, hiding my pain, and praying that one day I might find a way out—if such a thing even existed for someone like me.

I finished the chores just in time. My hands were trembling from exhaustion, but I took a deep breath, straightened my back, and prepared myself for the inevitable—the arrival of the guests. The Alpha of a neighboring pack had finally arrived, along with his daughter, Leah, who was meant to be Alfred’s future Luna. Maxwell had maintained a strong alliance with this pack, and I assumed that goodwill was why this Alpha was willing to allow his daughter to marry Alfred.

They were escorted into the dining room, and I was summoned to serve them. As I walked in, balancing the tray carefully in my hands, the Alpha’s gaze fell upon me, and his face softened with recognition.

“Luna Annabel,” he greeted me, his voice respectful, warm even. My heart skipped a beat. I hadn’t heard that title spoken in so long. But in this house, I was no longer allowed to be Luna, so I kept my gaze lowered, saying nothing, my silence heavy with the weight of lost dignity.

My mother-in-law’s voice cut through the air like a blade, cold and dismissive.

“She is no longer Luna,” she declared with a smug smile, as if she were announcing a simple fact.

“She lost that title when Maxwell died. I am Luna now, though only temporarily, of course—until Leah and Alfred are joined,” she added, her tone bright but hollow.

The Alpha’s expression darkened. He looked genuinely disturbed, his frown deepening as he processed her words.

“That’s wrong. Maxwell may no longer be here, but Annabel should still be in charge. She was his fated mate, his Luna. What is the meaning of this?” He looked between Alfred and his mother, a hint of anger simmering in his voice. “Is this because Maxwell wasn’t your blood?”

A flicker of discomfort passed over my mother-in-law’s face, but she masked it quickly, folding her hands neatly in front of her and maintaining a cool smile.

“Alpha Jackson, that is simply not the case,” she replied smoothly. “I loved Maxwell as if he were my own son.” She let out a heavy sigh, feigning sorrow.

“My husband was Alpha before Maxwell, and we must uphold the family’s legacy. Annabel was brought into this pack as an outsider, a charity case, really. It would dishonor my husband’s memory if I allowed her to…”

The Alpha cut her off, his voice suddenly sharp and commanding. “Enough.” The dining room fell silent, everyone’s eyes on him.