CHAPTER 8: A Luna Before Sunset

***RENA***

“And here is your room ma’am…” Simone announced as we arrived in a room so spacious and nicely furnished, it really looked as though I hadn’t been in the same castle earlier, what was this beauty right in front of me?

I didn’t gasp, after all, I’d seen better, not just in a while. 

I stared around as though not pleased and I could see how anxious the maids were, this was the life I was born into, living like one who could decide the future of anyone, making them antsy and their skin crawl just to put them in check of not spying for someone or trying to know too much about you, because let one in only in a moment and they’d try to push more to deliver to those who placed them here, I knew how the world of the powerful worked.  

“Is this the place Jeremy asked I stay?” I stared around as though I wasn’t impressed, the maids all looked down while I could see a glint of a smile on Simone’s face. 

“Yes ma’am,” she answered and I nodded. 

“Well, I’ll manage…” I walked further into the room, with slow calculated steps that I was sure sent shivers down the spines of everyone inside the room. 

There’s a chair in front of a large vanity, I went to it and sat in it, it’s time to get ready. 

“Let’s get to work everyone, we don’t want her to be late, the alpha kings have made me her right-hand maid, and please no flops, I don’t want any heat from the alphas,” Simone announced, and everyone who seemed to have been frozen in time scurried around to get things done. 

“Milady?” Simone bent to my ear level and I almost burst out laughing, but I controlled it. “You need to bathe, your bath has been drawn, would you love to be assisted with it or do you have it under control?” She asked, and I turned to face her face-to-face. 

Unsure what to say, how to feel, but I knew another way to make these people know I was the real deal was to let them see the whole of me, the skin, the beauty, and the power and richness that exudes out of my skin. 

“No…” I simply said, realizing I’d probably have a little bump by now, she smiled and left my side. 

“Well then, the lady would love to bathe alone,” she announced to the rest and I could swear I heard someone sigh so loud. 

I had given them the aura I wanted them to feel successful, and I rejoiced in my heart.

“Here Milady…” Simone called, I turned the chair around and she was pointing to another door. I took it to the bathroom and rose to my feet, then walked right into it.

I climbed into the hot steamy tub filled with roses, the smell so sweet it made me want to stay inside forever. 

But I knew I had to be out to get other things done, I was too plain to be announced this way, so I quickly took a bath that lasted about thirty minutes and climbed out of the tub, wore a robe, and went back to the room. 

The room had been divided into different sections just in the little time I was in the room, but I knew the first thing to do, it’ll be my nails, a wolf has to be pretty right?

I walked towards the nail station, I had to be prettied up. 

***

“You look the best,” Simone muttered to me, I stared at the reflection in the mirror, it brought back memories, memories of the wedding, memories of me definitely praying to the moon goddess that if I was never captured, I’d just devote my life to her and never marry a man again, but here I was, getting engaged. 

I sighed. 

“We should leave now, we don’t want to keep five alphas waiting,” she smiled, but I froze in my seat. 

“Five alphas?” She nods. 

“The alpha Andrew I told you about?” My body stiffened and I knew she felt it, cause she met my gaze in the mirror. 

“Is there a problem? Your body always tenses up when you hear Alpha Andrew?” I didn’t budge or bother to say a word. 

“You can trust me, Rena, I hope becoming engaged to one of the alphas doesn’t take away the relationship that it seemed we’ve been building, we women need to stick together,” she said with a reassuring smile. 

But I sat there thinking about the last time I’d stick with a woman as a friend and how that ended up. 

“It’s nothing, I’m fine.” I simply said and rose to my feet before she could say another word, and with the maids staring around even though they pretended not to stare, u knew Simone couldn’t do much questioning. 

“Please lead the way, I’m ready,” I announced, and as though practiced or something, everyone got in place, I was completely covered up, from the front and the back. 

Guess it really was going to be a reveal. 

We walked through the castle, but all I did was follow in the direction I was led. It wasn’t really easy moving in such a tight group, but soon enough, we arrived in a grand hall, well, not in, cause we weren’t practically in yet, but I could clearly see how big the hall was from the back entrance where we stood, it had lesser people than I’d thought it would, but all that didn’t matter, I just wanted to get this all over with. 

“And tonight, I announced my bride, Serena!” 

“It’s your turn now,” Simone who had maintained her place beside me all through whispered and the crowd dispersed, leaving way for everyone and anyone to see me now. 

I started with taking a step and was about to take the second one when I heard a voice so familiar call my name, “SERENA? YOU’VE GOT TO BE FUCKING ME!” 

I froze, slowly, I turned, and there she was, the one who traumatized the word friendship for me.