Three days

Miss Antonia requests that you bring a glass of juice to her room, a female servant announced to Amara, causing her frown to deepen.

It hadn’t even been twenty-four hours since Antonia had arrived, yet she was already asking for Amara’s service. Amara knew Antonia didn’t need the juice—if she did, she would have asked one of the other maids to bring it instead of requesting her specifically.

When she reached Antonia’s door, Amara knocked softly, and a faint voice from inside beckoned her in. She pushed the door open and stepped inside, closing it carefully behind her. The room was filled with a light haze of smoke, and Antonia stood by the window, a cigarette in her hand.

It wasn’t the first time Amara had seen her like this, but she was certain no one in the royal family knew about Antonia’s secret habit.

“Do you want to try?” Antonia offered in a friendly manner, her gaze still fixed outside the window.

“No, thank you,” Amara politely declined the offer and set the juice tray on the table.

“Do you need anything else?” Amara asked, trying to hide the irritation in her voice. She wanted nothing more than to disappear from this room. She had never liked Antonia since she had offered her a large sum of money to do something Amara found ridiculous. She had bluntly refused it.

Antonia took a long drag of her cigarette before turning to face Amara. “You’re eighteen now, Amara. I made my first thousands when I was seventeen, and by nineteen, I had more money than I could spend,” she mused, stepping closer to Amara. “My offer still stands. You could be rich, buy yourself some nice things, and leave this life as a maid behind.”

Amara scoffed softly, shaking her head. “I’m sorry, Antonia, but I won’t sell my body—especially not to men old enough to be my father,” she replied, rejecting Antonia’s proposition for what felt like the hundredth time.

Antonia frowned at Amara, wondering what she could say or do to make this girl accept her offer. A year ago, when she asked Amara to join her business of being submissive to rich older men, she thought Amara would accept. The money was mouthwatering, and no woman of low status like hers would reject it. Yet she was shocked when Amara had turned it down.

Without a second thought, Antonia would have left Amara alone by now, if it weren’t for the fact that a wealthy Dom had seen them together while shopping. The man had become obsessed with the idea of having Amara, and he promised Antonia a great deal in return. Now, Antonia was determined to secure the reward.

Antonia moved closer to Amara, their faces inches apart. The smoke from her cigarette made Amara’s nose wrinkle in discomfort, forcing her to step back.

“I have to leave,” Amara said, trying to reach the door. But Antonia’s words stopped her.

“You have three days to accept my offer—or else…” Antonia trailed off.

Amara turned back, her brow furrowed. “Or else what? You can’t force me to do this. I’m not interested,” she said angrily.

Antonia picked up the glass of juice that Amara had brought. She took a sip before looking in Amara’s direction. “It’s simple. Either you do what I ask, or I’ll make you leave this mansion—not just the mansion, but this pack.” Her tone was sharp.

Amara’s wolf growled inside her, sensing the danger.

“Are you threatening me?” Amara asked.

Antonia’s eyes glinted with amusement, a smirk playing on her lips as she leaned against the edge of the table, the smoke from her cigarette curling lazily around her face. “Call it what you want, darling,” Antonia replied with a shrug, her tone casual. “I prefer to think of it as persuasion.

“You see, Amara, you’ve made it clear you’re not interested in my offer. That’s fine, but I have a reputation to uphold, and I’ve already promised this man that he would have you. So either you agree to my terms, or you’ll find yourself without a roof over your head.”

Amara’s hands clenched into fists at her sides, her nails digging into her palms to stop herself from trembling. Her heart pounded in her chest as she tried to maintain her composure.

“You can’t do this, Antonia,” she insisted, her voice wavering.

Antonia cut her off with a laugh. “The Alpha is too busy with his own affairs to bother with the likes of you. And even if he weren’t, do you really think he cares what happens to a maid? You’re expendable, Amara, replaceable. But this deal…” she paused, flicking ash from her cigarette, “this deal is not.”

Amara’s chest heaved with anger, but she kept her face impassive. She had always known Antonia was manipulative, but this was a new level of cruelty.

Amara could feel her wolf pushing to the surface, urging her to fight back, to show Antonia she wouldn’t be bullied—but she forced herself to remain calm.

“I’ll never do it,” Amara said quietly but firmly. “Not for you. Not for anyone. If you want me gone, then do it. I’d rather leave this pack than become a part of your sick games.”

For a moment, a flicker of frustration crossed Antonia’s face, but she quickly masked it with a cold smile. “So brave, so righteous,” she mocked, taking another drag from her cigarette. “We’ll see how long that lasts. Three days, Amara. Make your decision wisely. I’d hate to see such potential wasted.”

Without another word, Amara turned and marched toward the door, her back straight. Despite her heart pounding, she could feel Antonia’s gaze boring into her, but she refused to look back. As she stepped out of the room and shut the door behind her, she let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.

“You should tell the Alpha, or the Luna, or even the twins. You can’t keep this to yourself,” her wolf advised.

Amara hesitated. Telling the Alpha wasn’t an option. Antonia was his favorite niece, his goddaughter—practically like a daughter to him. He wouldn’t believe that his beloved niece was involved in such things. And the Luna adored her just as much. Darius might believe her, but without evidence, it seemed unlikely.

“So what will you do? Let her manipulate you?” her wolf asked.

Amara shook her head. “No, I’ll think of something,” she said before returning to the laundry room to continue her chores.

After ironing the twins’ clothes, she had to take them up to their rooms, and this made her swallow in panic. She had Damon’s shirts in her hands, which meant she would have to go to his room.

“Oh no,” she whispered in panic. Amara wished she could avoid going to his room and not see him for the remaining days before he left for the Alpha Academy. But that was impossible. She was the twins’ personal maid, and it would be impossible to avoid seeing him.

“I will go to Darius first,” she told her wolf.

Before going up the stairs to Darius’s room, reaching the door of his room, she knocked, but got no response. She knocked again, but still there was no response from him.

“Maybe, he isn’t in,” she whispered to her wolf, because she knew Darius would have responded if he were inside.

Turning the doorknob, she pushed the door open, stepped in, and closed it behind her. A sigh of relief left her lips when she realised the room was empty.

But just as she was about to make her way to the closet, the bathroom door suddenly opened, prompting her to look up.

Her eyes widened, and the neatly ironed clothes in her hands fell to the ground as she saw a completely naked Darius ,who had just had his bath, coming out of the bathroom.

“Goodness!” she exclaimed, her eyes widening in shock.