Chapter Seven - Raina

Blood. Smoke. Screams.

That’s what surrounded me. Everywhere I turned.

All I could see. All I could hear.

“Run Raina. Use your powers and run. You are the future of our kind and you must make it out of this alive.”

The soft voice that whispered in my mind haunted my every dream.

Through my tears I could see my beautiful mother with her silver blonde hair and bright blue eyes that were the same shade as mine. Her eyes shone no fear even with a silver blade at her throat ready to slice at any second.

My father was in front of her on his knees, begging and pleading with his beta to order the scarred rogue from murdering his mate. His pleas fell on deaf ears.

With a nod from Arrick, the rogue wore a sick smirk as he dragged the blade across her throat, leaving my mother to bleed out in front of my father and I.

I’ll never forget the scream that left my fathers throat. It was pure agony at the loss of his mate. His Queen.

My father was already weak from the wolfsbane Arrick had slipped him during their evening cocktails. His wolf was suppressed, rendering him completely at the mercy of his once trusted beta and team of rogues.

My arms were being held behind my back by a different rogue. All I could smell was the rotten stench coming off him and the smoke that filled the air.

“Your Kingdom will be mine, Rion. With your death, I will be King.” He sneered down at my fathers broken form. “And when I take this kingdom, I will take your daughter.”

“NO!”

With the little strength he had left, my father stood on his two feet and aimed to kill the man he once trusted with his life. Except it wasn’t enough.

All I heard were my screams as Arrick plunged a silver dagger through the heart of the man I looked up to most in life. The man who was my hero.

As my screams grew louder, my body began to vibrate, electricity thrumming through every fiber of my being. I heard the rogue behind me swear and let go of my arms as he got electrocuted. I could feel my entire body buzzing like I had just touched a live wire.

I’d always known I could control the weather but this was on a whole other level.

The energy in my body kept growing to the point I thought I was going to explode. Just as I was about to unleash hell in the form of lightning bolts, I sat up gasping in bed.

That particular nightmare chose to visit me at least once a week.

No matter how many times that memory came to haunt me, it always seemed to leave me a sweaty and breathless mess. At least this time I didn’t wake up screaming.

I slid out of bed and made my way to the dusty mirror in my room and gasped out loud. My skin was paler than usual, ice blue eyes blown wide and bloodshot. My long raven black hair was sticking to my face and neck with sweat. Reaching up to calm my unruly hair I noticed my hands were shaking.

The clock on my dresser read five in the morning. I was grateful I managed to at least sleep the whole night, not like anyone would be able to tell considering my appearance.

I made my way to the communal bathroom and hopped in the shower. The cool water felt good against my clammy skin, relieving some of my nightmare aftershock.

I quickly washed my hair and body before wrapping myself in a towel and making my way over to the sinks. The mirror in front of me showed how tired I looked. While my body felt better, it did nothing to help my pale skin, dark circles, and bloodshot eyes. Thank Goddess I was on cleaning duty today so I didn’t have to worry about running into anyone.

I made my way back to my tiny bedroom and got dressed, thinking I’ll help the cooks out with breakfast before everyone wakes up and I can begin my cleaning. After dressing in a pair of black leggings and a long-sleeved black shirt, I made my way out of the basement and up the stairs to the main floor.

I entered the kitchen and could already smell the biscuits and pastries Whitney was currently baking. The scent of homemade cinnamon rolls and chocolate croissants caused my stomach to rumble, reminding me I hadn’t eaten since yesterday afternoon.

It must have been loud because Whitney walked over to me with a small smile and handed me an apple danish.

“Here dear, this should hold you over until breakfast is finished.”

I gave her a grateful smile and in a very unladylike way, stuffed my face with the danish. Goddess the woman could bake.

After finishing my breakfast, I set to pulling out dishes for the food to be served on. I laid everything out on the large island for the cooks to transfer the food to once it was done cooking and got to work making the juices. All three of the girls insisted on freshly squeezed orange and mango juice every morning.

Once the juices were squeezed and put into their individual carafes, I started the coffee maker. Alpha David and Beta Silas required lots of coffee in the morning.

I wondered if Xander would prefer coffee or juice?

My heart squeezed remembering my night with him. I hated to admit it but the thought of him leaving here crushed me. I knew as soon as he walked out those front doors it was going to feel like the other half of my soul had left.

My thoughts of Xander were quickly squashed when I heard my name being called.

“Ray, can you come here for a second?”

I turned around at the sound of Gretchen's voice. She rarely spoke to me so I could only imagine what this was about.

I followed her out the kitchen doors and into the quiet hallway. I tipped my head at her and asked, “What can I do for you Miss Gretchen?”

“What were you doing out with Alpha Xander last night?”

I tilted my head in confusion. How did she know?

“Don’t even try to play dumb. The guards told me you two came in from outside together late last night,” she sneered, crossing her arms to come off as intimidating.

The poor girl had no clue who she was messing with. Not a single person on this planet intimidated me.

“I ran into the Alpha while I was taking a walk outside for some fresh air and he asked me to show him back to his bedroom. That is all.”

Gretchen was a pretty girl with her strawberry blonde hair and green eyes but the way she carried herself and acted threw her good looks out the window. She’d been pampered her whole life and this conversation just showed how spoiled she really was.

Her bright green eyes darkened and if looks could kill, I’d be dead on the floor. “That better be all that happened. If I find out you lied to me, there will be hell to pay. Alpha Xander is mine.” She looked down her slim nose at me and scoffed. “What would a strong, handsome Alpha like Alpha Xander want with a lowly wolf less omega like you?”

I could feel Weathers' hackles raise. Uh oh.

“Who the fuck does this little brat think she is? I’ll show her fucking wolf less when I rip that hair she loves so much from her head.”

Once Weather got going it was near impossible to get her to calm down and this brat of a she wolf just tried to lay claim to her mate. Gretchen should be thanking the Goddess I was in control right now and not my bloodthirsty wolf.

Giving her a tight lipped smile I said, “I understand Miss Gretchen.”

What I really wanted to tell her was to back the fuck off my mate before I zapped her with lightning but unfortunately that wasn’t an option.

I couldn’t count the number of times someone in this pack tried to tear me down by bringing up me being wolfless. Dumb fuckers had no idea they were disrespecting their Queen. It’s okay. One day they’d realize and I’d be too busy sitting on my throne to give a fuck.

With a flip of her hair, Gretchen turned and strutted into the dining room.

I couldn’t contain my eye roll as I went back into the kitchen. I planned on helping finish plating breakfast before heading to the second floor to start cleaning the guest rooms. I could really use the peace and quiet right now.

Of course nothing could ever go as planned.

“Hey Ray, can you take out the juice and coffee before you leave?”

As much as I wished I could deny Whitney, I wouldn’t. She was a sweet person and always treated me well. As soon as I brought out the carafes I could go clean and be left alone with my thoughts.

I’d been trying so hard to keep my thoughts from drifting to Xander. The part of me that wanted to just go and hide was afraid to see him again, knowing he was leaving today. I kept telling myself it was for the best. As soon as he left, I could go back to focusing on my training to get stronger and my plan to take back my kingdom. I needed to stick to my goals and there was no bigger distraction than him.

As soon as I opened the door to enter the dining room, I ran right into a wall. A wall that just so happened to have arms that reached out to steady me before I fell right on my ass. The familiar feel of tingles let me know exactly who those arms belonged to.

Turns out I didn’t run into an actual wall. Nope, just my mountain man of a mate.

“Well good morning to you too,” he said, eyes twinkling with laughter.

I readjusted the carafes in my arms and bowed my head. “Good morning Alpha Xander.”

He looked beyond delicious in his black slacks that hugged his muscular thighs and white button down shirt he had rolled up to his elbows to show off the art running down each of his arms. Art I wanted to run my fingers over and memorize each line and detail of.

Goddess it was too early for those kinds of thoughts.

The smile on his face quickly turned into a frown.

“Are you okay?” When I cocked my head questioningly, he continued. “Your eyes are all bloodshot. Did something happen?”

I’d completely forgotten about my haggard appearance with this morning's excitement. Now I was wishing I would have put a little bit more effort in by using some concealer to hide the dark circles. Unfortunately there was nothing I could do about my eyes.

“Yes Alpha Xander everything's alright. Just a bad night of sleep is all.” Behind Xander’s shoulder I could see Gretchen giving me a death glare. Great.

He looked like he didn’t buy my excuse but chose to let it go, which I was thankful for. This wasn’t a conversation I wanted to have in front of all the top ranked wolves.

“If you’d like to take your seat, breakfast will be served shortly.”

He gave me a small nod and with one last look, turned and made his way to the dining table. I quickly deposited the carafes of juice and coffee and made my way back to the kitchen. After checking with Whitney that she didn’t need me to do anything else, I gathered the cleaning supplies and made my way to the second floor.

I lost myself in cleaning. This was one job I didn’t mind doing. While I enjoyed cooking, the hustle and bustle of the kitchen could be too much for me sometimes. I constantly had a lot on my mind and being left alone in solitude was the only way to get my thoughts in order.

Today, cleaning was serving as a very welcomed distraction. I refused to let myself dwell on the thought that the last time I’d see Xander was him asking if I was okay and me brushing him off. Goddess, what kind of mate was I?

The kind that hides my true identity and lets him walk away.

In my eighteen years of life, I never wanted to be someone else. Not until this moment did I ever wish I was a normal girl who met her mate and lived happily ever after. A girl who could become his Luna.

Except I wasn’t meant to be Luna.

I was meant to be Queen.

My title wasn’t something I could give up, even if I wanted to.

I had successfully cleaned three rooms before I found myself outside the room Xander had slept in last night. Opening the door, I was overwhelmed with the smell of him. All I wanted was to roll around in his bed and bathe in his scent.

Don’t judge me.

Weather was practically salivating in my head, not that I blamed her. The man looked and smelled absolutely divine.

I was just about to strip the sheets off when Beta Silas entered the room. I turned and lowered my head in respect.

“The Alpha is asking for you.”

Uh oh what did I do now?