Chapter 1

"Harder."

That single word made me want to run. But I couldn't. So I pressed my fingers deeper into the wolf's shoulders, even though my arms already felt like they were going to fall off.

"Yes, sir," I whispered.

He just grunted. Didn't even look at me. To him, I was nothing. Just another human servant who didn't matter.

The smell in the Moonrise Spa was always the same. Herbs, fancy soaps, and that heavy wolf scent that stuck to everything. I'd been working here for three years, and I swear the smell lived in my hair now.

My hands hurt as I kept massaging, but I didn't stop. This wolf could literally kill me if I annoyed him. That's just how our world worked. Wolves ruled everything, and humans... Well, we just tried to survive.

I let my mind wander while I worked. What was life like before wolves took over? Did humans actually get to be free back then? Now we just lived under their claws, hoping not to get crushed.

But every coin I made went into my secret tin box under my bed. Forty-seven silver pieces so far. I was saving for something impossible, the Academy entrance exam. 

If I could somehow get enough money, take the test, and actually pass the Winters test with a perfect score... maybe I could escape this life.

It was crazy. Average humans like me never made it into the Academy. But it was my crazy dream, and some days it was all I had.

"That's enough," the wolf growled. He got up without saying thanks, threw some coins on the table, and left. 

The door slammed so hard it made all my bottles on the counter shake.

Three silver coins. Not bad for an hour of torture.

I stuffed them in my apron and headed to the back room. But I'd only made it halfway down the hallway when someone crashed into me.

I stumbled backward, nearly falling. Strong hands caught my arms, steadying me. The touch sent electricity up my skin.

"Careful," a deep voice said.

I looked up. And forgot how to breathe.

The man in front of me was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. He was tall with dark hair that fell perfectly across his forehead, and a jawline that could cut through steel. 

But it was his eyes that made my heart stop. I didn’t think it was possible for someone to have eyes that unique. 

Two different colors. Deep brown in the left. Icy blue in the right.

They stared down at me with an intensity that made my knees weak.

"I'm sorry," I stammered, taking a step back. "I wasn't looking where I was going."

He didn't let go of my arms right away. Just kept staring at me like he was trying to figure something out. 

"What's your name?" he asked.

My brain stopped working. "L-Louisa. Louisa Fernandez."

Something flickered in those strange eyes. Interest? Curiosity? I couldn't tell.

"Louisa," he repeated, like he was testing how it sounded.

Then he released me and stepped back. Without another word, he walked past me down the hallway.

I stood there frozen, my heart hammering in my chest. What just happened?

"Lou!" Elena appeared beside me, grabbing my arm. "Did you just bump into... do you know who that was?"

"No?" My voice came out squeaky.

Elena's eyes were huge. "That was Alpha King, Asher Westgate! The Alpha King, Lou. He's never come to our spa before. Ever."

Asher Westgate.

Everyone knew who he was. The Alpha King of the capital of Acadia. He was the kind of wolf who could destroy your entire life with one word.

"Oh God," I whispered. "Did I just... Is he going to..."

"You're fine. If he was going to punish you, he would’ve beheaded you on the spot." Elena squeezed my hand. "Come on, let's get to the back before he changes his mind."

But I couldn't stop thinking about those eyes and how good he smelled.

******

Isaac was waiting across the street, leaning against the wall. The second he saw Elena, his whole face lit up like she was the sun or something. He was actually pretty cute for a wolf with  messy blonde hair, and innocent blue eyes that were hidden behind large glasses.

 If Elena had to catch a wolf's attention, at least she picked a good one.

"Hey ladies," he said, walking over to us. "How was work?"

"The usual," Elena said. "Rich wolves with attitude problems."

"Not you though," I added quickly, not wanting to be rude.

Isaac laughed. "Don't worry about it. I know what most wolves are like. You two deal with more crap in one day than I do all week."

See? This was why Isaac was different. He actually listened to us and cared about what we went through. If more wolves were like him, maybe the world wouldn't suck so much.

We walked through the market, dodging between stalls selling vegetables and clothes and random stuff. Isaac bought Elena some candied nuts from one vendor, and I pretended not to see how red her face got when he handed them to her.

"So Elena told me you're still planning to take the Academy exam," Isaac said to me.

I almost tripped. "If I can afford it."

"The entrance f*e's pretty crazy, and the exams are brutal." he agreed. "But I heard something interesting. They're looking for humans with special abilities this year. Something about making the Academy more diverse."

I tried not to sound too hopeful. "What kind of abilities?"

"Healing magic mostly. Stuff that's rare in humans but pops up sometimes." He shrugged. "Might be worth checking out."

Elena bumped my shoulder. "See? I told you something good would happen."

But I knew better than to get excited. The Academy was made by wolves, for wolves. Humans were just... tolerated. And only if we were way better than everyone else, someone like me wouldn’t stand a chance. 

Still, as we kept walking through the busy streets, Isaac's words stuck in my head. Maybe there was another way. 

I felt like someone was watching me, and when I turned, there was an unfamiliar wolf I hadn’t seen before, staring at me with unsettling yellow eyes.

I shivered, and walked closer to my friends.

Who on earth was that?