Chapter 1: The Eve of the Curse

Maya

The front door slammed against the wall so hard I felt the whole house shake. I jerked awake, my heart hammering as heavy footsteps stumbled through our tiny living room. The smell hit me first, stale beer and something else. Something that made my stomach turn with something I can't really phantom..

"Maya!" Dad's voice slurred through the thin walls. "Get out here, girl!"

I pulled my threadbare blanket up to my chin, hoping he'd just pass out on the couch like usual. But then I heard another voice. Deeper. Rougher.

"She better be worth the money, Rick."

My blood turned to ice.

"Maya!" Dad bellowed again. "Don't make me come get you!"

I slipped out of bed, my bare feet silent on the cold wooden floor. Through the crack in my bedroom door, I could see them. Dad swayed on his feet, clutching a beer bottle. Beside him stood Marcus Wells, one of the pack's enforcers. His eyes were dark and hungry as they scanned our shabby living room.

"There she is," Dad grinned when he spotted me. "Come here, sweetheart. Say hello to our guest."

I stayed in the doorway. "It's late, Dad. I have school tomorrow."

"School can wait." His voice dropped to that dangerous tone I knew too well. "Marcus here has been very patient about the money I owe him. Very understanding. But patience has limits."

Marcus stepped forward, his gaze crawling over me like oil. "She's prettier than I expected. Bit skinny, but that can be fixed."

"What's going on?" I whispered, though part of me already knew. I had always known this day would come.

Dad took a long swig from his bottle. "Your mother left us with quite a debt when she died, Maya. Someone has to pay for it."

"That was ten years ago.."

"Interest adds up." Marcus cut me off, moving closer. "Your father and I have worked out an arrangement. You're going to help settle what he owes."

"No." The word came out smaller than I wanted, but it was still a no.

Dad's expression darkened. "Excuse me?"

"I said no." I gripped the doorframe, my knuckles white. "I won't do it."

The beer bottle shattered against the wall beside my head. Glass sprayed across my cheek, and I felt a warm trickle of blood.

"You'll do whatever I tell you to do!" Dad roared, advancing on me. "You think you have a choice? You think you're better than this family?"

I stumbled backward into my room, but he followed, his fist raised.

"You want to know what your precious mother did? She stole from the pack fund before she ran off and died. Left me holding the bag. So yeah, you're going to pay for her sins. One way or another."

Marcus appeared in the doorway behind him. "Rick, maybe we should.."

"Shut up." Dad's eyes never left mine. "Maya, you've got exactly ten seconds to come out here and be a good hostess. Or I'll break your legs and Marcus can have his fun anyway."

The room spun. My chest felt tight, like I couldn't breathe. This couldn't be happening. Not tonight. Not the day before my nineteenth birthday. Not when I was so close to getting my wolf and finally being strong enough to leave.

"One," Dad started counting.

I closed my eyes, thinking of Mom. Of the stories she used to tell me about brave wolves who never gave up.

"Two."

My hands shook as I reached for the door handle.

"Three."

"Wait." My voice cracked. "Just... give me a minute. Please."

Dad smiled. It was the worst thing I'd ever seen. "That's my girl. One minute, Maya. Then you come out and show Marcus what good Orion Pack hospitality looks like."

The door slammed shut. I heard them settling in the living room, Marcus's low chuckle mixing with Dad's drunken rambling. My legs gave out and I collapsed onto my narrow bed, biting my pillow to muffle the sobs.

Tomorrow, I told myself, rocking back and forth. Tomorrow I get my wolf. Tomorrow I run so far from here that they'll never find me.

But first, I had to survive tonight.

+++++++++

The next morning came too soon and not soon enough. I splashed cold water on my face, trying to wash away the memory of Marcus's hands and Dad's threats. The cut on my cheek had scabbed over, but it still stung.

School. I could handle school. I'd been handling it for years.

The hallway buzzed with the usual morning chaos, lockers slamming, friends laughing, couples holding hands. I kept my head down, clutching my books to my chest like armor.

"Well, well. Look what crawled out of the gutter."

I didn't have to look up to know it was Allison Pierce. Pack princess. Stephen's girlfriend. My personal nightmare.

"Nice cut, Maya. Did Daddy have another bad night at the bar?"

Her friends giggled. I tried to walk around them, but Chelsea stepped in my path.

"Where are you going? We're just being friendly."

"Move," I said quietly.

"Or what?" Allison smirked. "You'll call the pack council? Oh wait, they don't care about trash like you."

She shoved my books from my arms. Papers scattered across the hallway floor as students stepped around them, around me. No one helped. No one ever helped.

I knelt to gather my things, but Brittany's foot came down on my history essay.

"Oops," she laughed.

"Leave her alone."

The voice was deep, commanding. Alpha voice. I looked up to see Stephen Blackwood standing at the end of the hallway, his three brothers flanked behind him like a wall of muscle and authority. The quintuplets, the future of our pack.

Allison's face lit up. "Stephen! We were just.."

"I know what you were doing." His dark eyes fixed on me, still kneeling on the floor. "The question is why."

"She was being rude," Allison pouted. "Walking away while I was talking to her."

"Is that so?" Stephen stepped closer, and I felt the weight of his alpha presence pressing down on me. Even though we were the same age, his wolf was already strong. Already dominant.

I gathered the last of my papers and stood, keeping my eyes down. "It won't happen again."

"Look at me when I'm talking to you."

I had no choice. Alpha command threaded through his voice, impossible to resist. I lifted my eyes to meet his, and something flickered across his face. Surprise? Recognition? 

Then Allison leaned into him, her hand on his chest. "Come on, baby. Let's go. This is beneath you."

Stephen's expression hardened. "You're right." He looked back at me with a cold dismissal. "Clean up this mess, charity case. Some of us have important things to do."

The brothers walked away, Stephen's arm around Allison's waist. But I could have sworn Nathan glanced back at me before they disappeared around the corner.

I finished picking up my papers with shaking hands, Allison's laughter echoing down the hall.

Just get through today, I told myself. Tomorrow changes everything.

But first, I had to survive the rest of this nightmare.