Chapter Five

“Wake up, already. It's time to work!” 

Heavy pounding on my door woke me up from sleep. I jumped up from the mattress and looked around in confusion. 

The memory from the previous day crashed into me in an instant. I was in another pack, here as a servant. 

I stood up and walked outside. Miranda was standing, eyes darkened. 

“Get to the main compound. You start by cleaning the floors” she spat coldly. “Now, follow me.” 

I obeyed.

I walked behind her until we got to the compound. The cleaning tools were already on the ground; Clean water in a stainless bowl, and a piece of cloth laid at the edge. 

I crouched down without a single complaint, dipped the cloth into the water, and cleaned. 

By the time I lifted my gaze, Miranda was long gone. Instead, maids had surrounded me, doing their jobs. 

But I could see their eyes on me, and I could hear their whispers from where I was. 

“I heard she's an alpha daughter,” someone said. 

Another laughed. “And she's scrubbing floors in another Alpha's territory” 

“If I was her father, I'd send her off like that too.” 

I swallowed hard at their words and stayed calm. “Just one year” I told myself. Just one year, and I will be done here. 

By early afternoon, I was already exhausted, my whole body aching. 

I headed outside to empty the bowl of water when suddenly, two guards rushed in, someone laying lifeless between them with his arms draped around their shoulders. 

My eyes widened. I had only seen him last night, but those facial features were unforgettable. 

It was Sebastian. 

My eyes caught the severe slash on his side. Blood coated his shirt, and the open wound on his side was turning green, quickly getting infected. 

The guards vanished into the house with Sebastian. A few seconds later, a maid rushed in with a herb mixture I recognized immediately. 

I blinked. 

That mixture could only work for him if he wasn't badly injured and currently, he was beyond that treatment. 

Before I could get the chance to stop the maid, she rushed into the house in panic. 

For a second, I stood still. I wondered if I should intervene or not. 

I didn't wait to process my thoughts. I stepped in without thinking. Inside, he was laid on the bed, barely unconscious.

One of the guards held the mixture, about to apply it. “Stop!” My voice rang out in a clear, commanding tone. 

The room froze. Eyes turned to me, including Sebastian's. The guards frowned and one of them stepped towards me. 

“Who said you could run your mouth in front of the Alpha?” He growled. 

I ignored his words. “If you treat him like that, he won't survive” I insisted, gaze fixed on the guard with the herbs. 

He laughed. “What do you know about herbs and treatments?” 

“That doesn't matter. Let me treat him, unless you want him dead” 

Shock flashed across the guards’ faces. They exchanged glances, faces filled with confusion and uncertainty. 

“Stop speaking nonsense!” The guard snapped. “The Physician would soon be here, we can't let you touch the Alpha” 

I replied immediately, telling him Sebastian might not be alive by the time the physician arrives. The guard was lost in thought for a moment before he stepped aside, eyes darkened. 

“If anything happens to the Alpha, you'll take responsibility for it” He said.  

I checked Sebastian's temperature; extremely hot. His wound; festering fast. 

I ordered for some list of tools and herbs to be brought and the guards brought them instantly. 

I cut his wound open, clearing the green pus away and letting fresh blood spill off it. I pressed it down with my hand, bringing him back from his unconscious state. 

After a few more minutes, I stood, covering his body with the blanket. The moment I faced the guards, someone rushed in through the door. 

The Physician. 

He stopped in front of me and for a second, his gaze darted between the Alpha and I. 

His eyes widened. “How dare a servant touch the Alpha!” 

He shoved me aside and moved to Sebastian, but he only stood there frozen, staring at his face, and body. He turned to me the next second. 

My breath caught. Has something gone wrong?

“He's completely fine. Not in one single danger anymore.” He stated in disbelief. “How did you do it?” 

“I'm a trained healer,” I admitted shyly. 

My family always laughed when I spoke. They doubted me even when the person I apprenticed under vouched for my skills. They simply chose to believe I was useless. 

“You did extremely well. Thanks to you, the Alpha has escaped severe danger” he said. 

I smiled. 

My gaze snapped when Sebastian woke up, groaning slightly as he sat up on the bed. 

“Everyone, out” he commanded. 

No one argued. They all turned and I did the same. 

“Everett?” He called. “You stay” 

I turned back to look at him and our eyes locked. For a second, no one spoke. The room charged with tension and eventually, Sebastian's voice rose. 

“Your healing skills are commendable” He commended. “Why would your father send you here to settle his debt?” 

I swallowed. I stared at him, and could see the deep curiosity beneath his gaze. 

“I got rejected at the mating ceremony because of my weight. I was a fat useless embarrassment to him, he wanted me out of his hair” 

Sebastian laughed.

My heart ached. What had I expected? For him to sympathize with me?

But his next words came as a shock to me. 

“Did you just say a fat useless?” His gaze darkened instantly. “I see a woman with skills—a woman with values. Your father's eyes are blind. Everyone who's ever called you that are blind” 

I stared at him in shock, not wanting to believe he had really said that. 

“They don't want me. I left and that's all that mattered” I claimed. 

Sebastian sat comfortably on the bed. “Let me make you a proposal.” He said, my gaze lifted. 

“Be my Luna.” He said. “I need a Luna, you need your freedom.” 

“I give you freedom, erase your debt, and protect you in exchange for accepting to become my Luna” 

I processed his words and blinked. He looked dead serious. No way I'm accepting this, not after what happened at the mating ceremony. 

“No!” I said sharply. “I don't want to be broken again” 

He let out a soft smile for the first time since I've known him. “You don't need to love me. Just pretend it's real in public.” 

“What do you say?” He stared into my eyes. “Do you want to spend the next year serving as a servant in my estate, or do you want to walk around here for the next year as my Luna?” 

I had thought coming here was the worst decision that could ever be made for me. But here was the man who was supposed to be my worst fate, giving me a choice I've never had in years. 

I wanted to respond. But the doors suddenly opened and Miranda stormed in, face laced with anger. 

Her face was completely blurred with rage. The next second, she stopped in front of me, and landed a slap on my face.