Chapter 3

Eso POV

I hated her more than I hated anything else.

She just disgusted every single atom of my cell.

I dragged my feet across the ballroom. I walked slowly and carefully. The ballroom smelled of fresh luxury and power.

Unfamiliar faces filled the entire space, and their gazes felt like they were stabbing right through my chest. I hated it but still acted like everything was going fine with me.

One, two steps, I gave a pause to get a proper hearing of their words.

"Whose daughter is she?" a man's voice said from behind.

"Beta Keith." A chuckle followed the words.

"She's just as fat as a pig."

A loud chuckle followed.

I didn't wait a second. I walked faster away from them, moving my feet like I knew where I was going.

I walked out of the ballroom. Pain filled my chest.

Everyone made sure they got me in the worst way, always shaking me because of my weight.

Flashes from my younger age came crashing into my mind while I searched for where to rest my hurting feet.

When I was much younger, I had the perfect body, until Maria started giving me junk and other things to take in.

I knew she had always been jealous of me and of who I would become later.

But who should be jealous of a late bloomer, and of a girl who doesn't even know what she wants for herself?

I walked down a tiled aisle. Thoughts raced through my mind. I had lots of things to reason about.

Every day I woke up to just one wish, and that was my mom. No one could ever treat me better than her.

For over a year, I hadn't set my eyes on my father. One thing he made sure of was to send his letters and cute notes to me. I needed more than that. I needed more than letters. I needed love and true care, not the forced kind Maria proposed each time.

I let out a little groan. My heels were hurting more than anything. I couldn't feel less comfortable than I already was. I squatted down, pulling off both heels. I picked them up, holding them. A few more steps, and I sighted a chair not far from where I was.

I dragged my feet across to it. I immediately sat there, inhaling the fresh air.

This was peace. The peace I had wanted. No noise. No one. Just me and nature staring at ourselves.

I relaxed my body.

"Christ."

I heard a loud howl, and my gaze shifted around.

This was a wolf gathering; I shouldn't have expected better.

I lifted my gaze, and it was a full moon. Everyone would be recharging themselves except myself. I'm wolfless, definitely.

I slowly closed my eyes.

"Hey, what are you doing sitting here alone?" I jolted up almost immediately.

"Oh, calm down, young lady."

It was the guy from the ball.

"You scared me."

I smiled a little. He smiled too and walked closer to me.

"Can I sit with you?"

I looked at him, then back at the stone chair. "Yeah, sure."

I sat there while he sat beside me.

"Your feet are bleeding."

I looked down. He was right. The straps had cut into my toes.

"They don't fit anymore."

"Then why wear them?"

"They're the only pair that goes with the dress." I shrugged. "And the dress is the only one that fits."

I waited for the joke. It never came. He just nodded, like I had said something reasonable.

"Then they're worth it."

Something in me flickered, something that had barely happened to me. I finally looked at him.

"Why aren't you out there with the others? It's a full moon."

"Everyone out there wants something from me." He glanced at the sky. "And you?"

I had never said it out loud to a stranger. "I'm wolfless. Everyone else is howling at the moon, and I'm the only one who can't."

I waited for the disgust. Instead, he asked, "Does it hurt?"

My throat tightened. "Every full moon."

He was quiet for a moment. "That's the first honest thing anyone has said to me tonight."

I didn't know what to say to that, so I said nothing.

"So, seems like you know Leah," he said.

"Yes, we're siblings, more like stepsiblings."

"Wow, she never mentioned you. We have been friends for quite some time now, and I must say, she's a nice person."

I almost let out a laugh. Leah being a nice person would always be a myth to me. Leah and her mother, Maria, ate and dined with the devil.

"You don't agree," he said.

"I didn't say that."

"You didn't have to."

I didn't say any other words to him. I just sat there, trying to figure out myself and what life had planned for me.

"I think we should go back to the room. They should be commencing closing."

I smirked without saying a word.

I slowly bent, tarrying to fit into my shoes again. A sharper pain came from my toes, but I didn't dare let out any reaction. I wouldn't want to tell a stranger that the all-perfect Leah was a devil in disguise.

"Can I assist you with that?" he asked in a calm tone.

"No, I'm good."

I quickly buckled up the shoes and stood up.

He stood at almost the same time.

We both walked side by side. Tension built up between us, but I didn't dare say a word to him.

One thing reeled in my mind. What relationship did he have with my stepsister?

I couldn't ask.

"Don't follow there. Let's take this way instead," he said.

I turned, following him closely as we walked through a darker pathway.

Everywhere was pitch black. I couldn't even see my own shadow.

I held his hand.

"Don't be scared."

I let out a sound, but this time not a chuckle.

A few steps later, I could spot the light from the ballroom.

This time he held my hand tight, like newly married couples.

I took a deep breath.

We walked up to the entrance.

"Don't you think…"

He interrupted. "No."

The door to the ballroom swung wide open. We both walked in.

My head faced down, scared to meet the faces of the people who had gossiped about me.

"Eso."

I heard it from not far away.

I raised my head a bit. Leah was already walking up to me. I could see the fury burning crisp in her eyes, but she masked it with a smile.

"You already met my sister."

He nodded.

"First son of the Alpha. Alpha Kane."

My gaze shifted to the podium. A middle-aged man called.

"That's me. Give me a second."

My eyes went wide open.

The Alpha's son.

That's impossible.