[2 years ago…]
“You are sure?” Aysel asks me for the hundredth time. I place the gray, threadbare t-shirt inside the duffle bag and turn to look at her. She pointedly stares at me, arms folded. I sigh before removing a few clothes from the bed that is strewn along with other essentials and make her. She doesn’t protest, only continues staring at me expectantly. I sit beside her, balancing my elbows on my knees.
“The money…”
“I fucking know that you are going there because the pay is good, but you know they will grill and roast you, and treat you like a slave if you don’t meet their expectations and even if you do they won’t be ready to accept and-” I place a hand on her knee, interrupting her rambling.
She deflates, her shoulders sagging.
“You know me, Ella. I’m not someone who will just bow down to anyone.” Aysel doesn’t respond but nods slowly. I can practically feel her apprehension.
“Don’t worry,” I say, nudging her shoulder. Aysel doesn’t smile at that.
“This will help mom and dad,” I finally resort to the only option and Ella also knows that. She looks at me immediately, her gaze filling with mild reproach.
“Dad has not been in the picture since we began high school and you know that very well, Kai. Stop bullshitting me. Just because mom believes in him, doesn’t mean we do as well.” I exhale slowly. Patience, Kai, patience.
“Ella, you know that I need this job so that you can complete your medical school, right?” I ask her. Can she not understand our financial condition right now? Even her scholarship won’t help. Aysel averts her gaze.
“I have been looking for a job-”
“No.” I stand up.
“You will not do anything other than study and complete your degree, get it?” When did she begin to think that her brother was useless enough to not be able to afford her school fees?
She looks up at me, her eyes are glistening. “Think about it once more before going.” She stands up and moves past me. Great, now she is annoyed even more than she was before.
“Ella-” I call after her as she storms out of the room, slamming the door shut.
~~~~~
“Give this to mom,” I say, handing her the packet containing this month’s expenses.
Aysel gives me a dry look. “Seriously? You know the nurse.” I close my eyes before speaking. Sometimes my sister just gets on my nerves.
“Ella, she is our mother. I know you hold resentment towards her, but that doesn’t entitle you to treat her like shit.” Aysel flings her arms up exasperatedly.
“Well, why not? She left us and said her health was bad, but then what do we hear? She has hooked up with some guy,” she says contemptuously. I heave a sigh. It was true. Even though her health was downhill, she was not ready to stop living her life on her children’s money. But she is dying, that is true, and I do not want to have regrets.
“Give it to her,” I say, placing the packet on the coffee table. I hitch the duffle bag before moving forward and engulfing my sister in a hug. Who knows when I’ll see her next? I pull away and ruffle her hair. She swats away my hand.
“Be good. Don’t neglect your health and don’t do anything to make mom mad.” Aysel promises nothing, but she remains silent.
“When will you return?” she asks, her tone glum. A small smile tugs at the corners of my lips.
“I will look into that. Get your degree quickly so you can join me as well.” Her head snaps up and slowly, understanding dawns upon her. Her lips stretch into a wide, hopeful smile as she gives me a nod. “Yes. I will.”
~~~~~
“Ya know this place is not for stray dogs, don’t you?” Gracia, a gamma comments, loudly chewing gum. I remain silent as I complete another rep of bicep curls. My gaze darts towards her where she is stretching or more like trying to be provocative. I won’t say it’s not working, but for now, I need to secure my position.
I stand up from the bench and place the dumbbells in their allotted place.
“I know but I don’t care,” I murmur over my shoulder before leaving the dingy basement gym. I feel frustrated. It’s been two months and I am still given menial jobs that even an omega can do. No wolf is willing to spar with me and I know this is because of their noses stuck behind their asses. Gyming is not even doing half of the work that sparring does. I sigh, clenchin my teeth.
Another month, and I will leave. As I am walking towards the main office, my phone rings. I rub my sweaty palms against my sweatpants before fishing out the device. Aysel’s name flashes across the screen. I contemplate whether to answer because I know her questions and she probably knows what answers to expect. I am about to swipe the call to answer when-
“You must be the new trainee beta?” I turn, pressing the power button to silence the call. The alpha stands a few feet away.
I nod. “Yes, why?”
I feel the familiar irritation roil in my gut. Another alpha, another menial job. He raises an eyebrow as if not expecting this kind of response. Well, he clearly hasn’t met them all.
“Spar with me,” he says after a beat of silence before turning back and walking away. I stand dumfounded because what the fuck just happened? However, he hollers again, “If you don’t want to, then continue slaving away for the other morons.” I compose myself and hurriedly follow him.
~~~
Within the first 10 minutes of sparring, he has already defeated me twice. I pant, lying on the dirt ground while he gazes down at me. “You are not in good shape.” He walks to the small table that stood inconspicuously at the far end of the arena and picks up a bottle while I sit up. I wince as I stand.
“Yeah, no one wanted to spar with me.” I sound petulant, but it might also be due to the fact that I have hardly been in proper training ever since I turned 15. This guy seems like someone from the royal family.
He offers an unopened bottle to me which I take gratefully and chug down the contents in a few gulps.
“You need to train better. From now, you’ll be training with me at this time. You are just a bit rusty, is all.” Without expecting any answer, he begins to leave. I frown. Why is this guy being so nice to me?
“Who are you? No offense, but no one, not even a gamma has agreed to spar or train with me, forget about an alpha.” He turns to look over his shoulder.
“It’s because they are all my father’s lackeys. I am the black sheep and I am not doing you any favors. It’s for my benefit. If you want to become a royal beta, then show up tomorrow or pack your things and go back.” He leaves without another word while a thousand questions swirl in my mind.
That was Alpha Azriel, wasn’t he? I let out a chuckle. So I have been picked up by the most dangerous member of this royal family, huh? Interesting.
To be honest, I should thank Alpha Aiden for helping me, and for speaking in my favor, but I wouldn’t dare, not now. The emotional turmoil that roils inside my heart is carefully hidden by my blank looks and steady voice. No one knows how much it pains me to be here. I lean against the wall as soon as I round the corner, out of sight from the curious eyes of the guards that stand outside the King’s spacious and ornate office. I tremble as I try to hold back my tears. My palms are sweaty, and I feel a lump lodged in my throat that won’t go away. My heart is aching. My mind is a jumble of thoughts. In another word, I feel horrible. Horrible to the core. Why did you do this to me, Kai? “You will join from today onwards, then.” The Alpha King spoke as if I wasn’t stepping in my dead brother’s role, but just applying for a job. The show of concern had evaporated when I refused to show them the entire copy of the letter. Luna Dakota acted like a mediator, but more of the submissive kind.
The division was impulsive. I did not plan to make Kaizen’s sister tag along, let alone make her stay for over three months here. It’s better if she doesn’t. At least she will live. I suppress a sigh, trying to ignore the woman’s presence behind me. Why am I doing this again? I have no fucking clue. I have to answer my father about this because the man is going to know about this before the neds that I am certain of. “Where are we going?” Aysel asks, her voice unsurprisingly firm. “My wing,” I reply crisply. “What am I expected to do?” she asks, and by her voice, she is just a couple of steps behind me. Unlike her brother, who had no sense of rank, Aysel pretty much knows where to draw the line. Not that I cared, but in Aysel’s case, this will work on her side. “What a beta is expected to do.” I throw her a back glance. “You know what they are right?” Aysel remains silent. Dear Goddess, how did Kaizen raise her dear sister?When we reach my wing, I take her straight to my office
It’s odd how some emotions can be so overpowering than another. In the morning, all I was feeling was over-consuming grief, hurt, and a sense of loss, but now? Now all I am feeling is fury and frustration, a slight regret as well. I plop down on the desk and bury my face in my hands. A frustrated scream and growl rip out of my lips. “How did Kai even tolerate this guy?” I wonder aloud. He didn’t really do all this stuff, did he? When I peer at the pile of papers again, I let out a groan. This can’t be fucking real. My stomach chooses to growl at that very moment, making me aware of how realistic the situation is. Angry tears well up in my eyes.I snatch a file and open the laptop in front of me — an old ratty device. Aren’t these people supposed to be rich or something? It takes some time to boot up and within that time my thoughts have wandered back to the arrogant alpha who has already begun making my life a nightmarish experience. I shudder as I remember, how close he had stood a
“Wait. Why are you dragging me into this mess?” I demand, resisting his hold. I look back to find alpha Aiden staring at us, his gaze reproachful but also sad. Before I have any time to process this information, I find myself back in the office. Azriel lets go of my hand and I almost stagger before steadying myself. I glare at his back, but the moment he turns, I feel my heart rate spiking up. Why the hell is he so angry?“I… I did not say anything that I shouldn’t have said to Alpha Aiden. He was just asking me why I was working at this time of the day,” I grumble even though I stutter initially. I look away when he doesn’t answer. “I want you to not speak with alpha Aiden from now on,” he growls, and I gasp when I notice him standing a couple of inches away from me. When did he close the distance? “Why?” I dare to ask, already digging my grave slightly deeper than I already did. His gaze darkens further, turning dark amber to pitch black. When he speaks, my gaze is drawn to his l
While sitting in the car, I gaze at the small wooden cabin-like house – unpainted, and slightly dilapidated, standing oddly on a barren land with no amenities nearby. How did Aysel or Kai live here? How did Aysel manage to even get a car or any kind of transport to reach the palace? Then again, she is Kaizen’s sister, so I wouldn’t expect anything else from her. I have never visited before but never imagined Kai staying in any lavish apartment. The guy is… was too modest for his own good. I wanted to go with Aysel but then decided to give her some privacy. She had been quiet during the whole journey. I am not sure why I signed up for this, but I did. I regarded Kai as my… friend. Therefore… I growl in frustration, raking my fingers through my hair. I purse my lips as I reflect on my unreasonable actions. My fingers wrap around the steering wheel. Why did I get mad at her? She was about to spill everything to the dearest alpha. My knuckles turn white at the thought. Aiden can take
For once I an thankful about being the least acknowledged member of this pack. At least in the inner circle. Apart from Azriel, hardly anyone asked about me or how I have been. Not even my brother, or should I say, half-brother? Aiden and I hardly share anything in common, more so because he always tries to be good to others, always a people pleaser while I am far from it. I hear whispers behind my back that I am like my mother. I bite my tongue from saying, “Only if you knew.” For when my father was alive, and mom was having a practically open affair with the alpha king whose luna queen had passed away when Azriel was probably 14, my father never said anything. He merely looked at mom sometimes with longing and a maybe sympathy. I have never understood why he even let us stay, or her stay in the pack when every member knew about the promiscuity. No one could say anything openly though. After all, the alpha king was involved in this. The alpha king is by far the strongest alpha and
As the days go by, I find myself stuck doing things that I never liked doing. Data work. I miss my early morning rounds now, miss my supervisor’s droning, heck I even miss the nitpicks of the senior doctors, who always seemed to glare at us and made us do all the grunt work in the beginning. I have already heard enough whispers about Azriel, about his ill-temper and attitude, about him being arrogant and recluse. In his wing, there are a lot of people working, but none of them seem to look happy. Only James is cordial enough while the others don’t even bother to spare me a glance or give me the respect that a beta deserves. I blink back to reality, blink blearily at another excel sheet that yet again contains details of members working in the palace. I am not sure why I am matching and verifying their details, but I can say that there’s funny business going on in this palace. Frustration also built as neither Azriel nor anyone said anything about the letter. I stab the keys with my
Aiden just made things easy for me. Good riddance. Does she think she will survive for three months here? She is fucking wrong. But why am I feeling so worked up because of that girl? That stupid woman is too impatient. I would tell her regarding the letter if I got a substantial clue, wouldn’t I? But she doesn’t trust me. She thinks I am hiding information from her, withholding it. But that is not true. I have tried to make the investigation private but until now, they couldn’t give me solid proof. Although I had my hunch, I can’t act upon it, can I?And now… now she just agreed to go work for that golden boy. ‘Well now you have to find another person who can be your beta,’ Rowan leers, emphasizing on the word ‘you’. I ignore him as I walk down the corridor. I had left Aysel standing in the back office, too enraged to risk being in the same room as hers. My anger was directed more toward Aiden than at Aysel. How dare he waltz in and snatch my beta. Ever since Dakota entered this p