CHAPTER TWO

SALOME

He didn't take me to the palace clinic. I thought he would drop me off with the pack doctors, but instead, Alpha Williams carried me straight up the grand staircase and into his private bedroom.

The room smelled like cedarwood and winter air. It was a massive, quiet space where regular staff were never allowed to enter. He placed me down on his huge bed so gently, as if I were made of glass that might shatter completely if he wasn't careful.

"Stay still," he whispered, his voice thick with tension.

The sheets beneath me were pure white silk, and I felt sick knowing I was ruining them with my blood. My face felt like it was on fire. A throbbing, white-hot pain pulsed from my cheekbone all the way down to my jaw, making my eyes water. But I squeezed my eyes shut and clenched my fists. I had to hold the pain in. I couldn't let it show. I was just a maid, and showing weakness in front of the Alpha felt dangerous, even if he was being kind right now.

Williams disappeared into his bathroom and came back quickly with a bowl of warm water and a clean cloth. He knelt beside the bed, his massive frame towering over me, but his movements were incredibly light. He pressed the wet cloth against my cheek, wiping away the sticky, warm blood. Every time the cloth touched the cut, a sharp sting shot through my head, but I forced my expression to stay blank. I didn't make a sound.

"You're bleeding a lot, Salome," he murmured, his dark eyes locked onto mine. There was a strange, tight look in his jaw. "But you're not crying. Why aren't you crying?"

"I'm fine, Alpha," I managed to say, though my voice trembled. "It doesn't hurt."

He let out a low, frustrated breath but didn't argue. He picked up his phone and made a quick call. "Get up to my room right now. Bring a medical kit."

The pack doctor came in a few minutes later, looking breathless and terrified to see a common maid sitting on the Alpha's bed. Williams stood over him like a dark shadow while the doctor inspected my face and dressed the wound professionally. He cleaned the deep cuts, applied a soothing ointment that cooled the burning sensation, and taped a neat white bandage over my cheek.

Between the throbbing pain, the exhaustion of the day, and the comfortable warmth of the Alpha’s bed, my eyes grew heavy. That was all I could remember before I completely slept off.

"Get up! Get your filthy body off my bed!"

A violent, painful jerk on my legs snapped me awake. The sudden movement sent a spike of agony straight to my head. I opened my eyes to see Luna Mariam standing at the foot of the bed, her face twisted in absolute rage. She was dragging me by my ankles, trying to pull me off the mattress.

"Leave my bedroom, you cheap, dirty maid!" she yelled, her voice screeching in the quiet room. "Look at you, bleeding on my sheets! You husband snatcher! You think because you got hurt you can crawl into my husband's bed? You disgusting little leach!"

My head was spinning wildly. With dizzy eyes, I scrambled off the bed, trying to stand up on my own two feet. But my balance was entirely gone. My knees buckled, I slipped on the smooth floor, and I fell right back onto the mattress.

Crack!

Before I could even blink, her heavy hand swung out. A sharp, stinging slap landed across my face, hitting the exact side where the wound was dressed. The sheer impact was so brutal it actually cured the dizziness right out of my face. The pain was blinding, and I could feel the fresh heat of blood starting to seep through the clean bandage.

"Don't you dare play weak with me!" Mariam hissed, grabbing the collar of my uniform.

I didn't argue. I didn't shout. I quickly walked toward the door, wanting nothing more than to escape her wrath. But before I could reach the handle, she dragged me back into the center of the room by my hair.

"Listen to me carefully," she growled, her face inches from mine. "You are leaving this palace today. You are fired. You will pack your pathetic bags, leave the territory, and stop working as a maid entirely. If I ever see your face in this pack house again, I will make sure you don't live to regret it."

My heart dropped into my stomach. Cold dread washed over me, completely replacing the pain. This was too extreme. This was too much for me to handle.

This job was the only thing I had left. After my mum died last year, this maid position was my only hope to save up enough money to get to college and build a real life for myself. Without it, I had absolutely nothing. No home, no money, no future.

The tears finally broke through. They spilled out of my eyes, hot and fast, soaking into my bandage. I fell to my knees right in front of her, burying my pride deep in the dirt. I began to beg for my job.

"Please, Luna, I beg you," I sobbed, looking up at her with clasped hands. "Please don't fire me. I need this job. I have nowhere else to go. I won't ever come up to this floor again. I'll stay in the kitchens, I'll do the heaviest chores, just please let me stay."

Inside, a bitter thought crossed my mind. What an irony of life. She was the one who threw the bottle at me. She was the one who cut my face open. But here I was, on my knees, still the one begging for her mercy.

"Please, Luna—"

Crack!

Another slap landed across my face while I pleaded, cutting off my words.

"Shut up and get out!" she screamed.

That was it for me. The final string snapped inside my chest. I wiped the tears from my eyes, stood up, and walked out of the room without saying another word.

I went down to the servants' quarters in the basement to get my stuff out of the Alpha's house. My hands shook as I packed my few clothes and a framed photo of my mother into a small, worn-out suitcase. It was a dark, terrifying place for me at that moment. I had no idea where I would sleep tonight or how I would eat tomorrow. But as I zipped the bag closed, I closed my eyes and hoped on the Goddess of the Moon. Surely, she wouldn't let me starve.

With my shoes on and my bags fully packed, I carried my heavy suitcase out of the back door, walking slowly toward the main iron gates of the estate.

Before I could reach the pavement, three of the other maids noticed me. They dropped their brooms and laundry baskets, rushing over with sad, tearful eyes.

"Salome, oh no, she actually threw you out?" one of them whispered, wrapping her arms around me.

"We're going to miss you so much," another said, squeezing my shoulder.

They came to give me a tight hug and say a final goodbye. I tried to smile through the pain, grateful for their warmth in such a cold moment.

While we were standing there, the heavy iron gates of the palace suddenly whined and swung open. Alpha Williams's sleek black SUV drove into the driveway, tires crunching loudly on the gravel. He stopped the car right in front of us, the engine idling heavily.

The door opened, and Alpha Williams stepped out. He looked tired from whatever pack business he had just attended to, but the moment his eyes landed on me, standing there by the gate with my bags, his face went completely rigid.

He walked over to us, his gaze locking onto the fresh blood staining the edge of my bandage.

"Where are you going, Salome?" he asked, his voice dangerously low.

I looked down at the gravel. I didn't want to say a single word to him about his wife sacking me. I knew how volatile their relationship was, and I felt like telling him the truth would just cause a massive problem between them. Not like they had ever had peace in their marriage anyway, but I still did not want to interfere in the affairs of the Alpha and Luna. I was just a maid, I didn't want to be the reason the palace burned down.

"I... I just need to leave, Alpha," I mumbled, gripping the handle of my suitcase tighter.

Before he could ask again, one of the maids stepped forward, unable to keep quiet. "Alpha, Luna Mariam beat her again and sacked her. She ordered her to leave the palace right now."

At the mention of that, something in Alpha Williams completely snapped. A dark, terrifying growl vibrated deep within his chest, a sound so raw it made the other maids instantly take a step back in fear.

Without a word, he reached out and grabbed me by the hand. His grip was firm, warm, and unyielding. Before I could even process what was happening, he pulled me by the hand, dragging me and my suitcase right back toward the main house.