กระถางบำเพ็ญเพียรของโม่เหนียง (และรวมเรื่องสั้น)

PROLOGUE;

They always told me the world was my oyster. Turns out I was just the pearl….polished pretty for someone else's collection.

My name is Lilith. And no, this isn't one of those stories where I'm the rejected mate crying in the rain. I don't do rain, it ruins the suede on my Birkin. I was the Alpha's darling, the Luna's pride. My biggest problems used to be deciding between the Porsche or the Range Rover for my nineteenth birthday.

Then:

I slammed my hand on my father's mahogany desk, my diamonds catching the light. "Daddy, you forgot to book the villa in Santorini! I'm literally going to die of embarrassment."

He didn't even look up from his ledger. Just slid a black titanium card across the desk with that tired, practiced smile he always had. "Take the jet, Lilith. Buy the island if it makes you stop shouting. Just... be ready for the Gala next month. It's important."

Now:

I thought "important" meant a debutante ball. I didn't know it meant an auction block.

I didn't know the people who tucked me in at night were actually my wardens, keeping me soft and sweet for some prophecy written in blood. I wasn't their daughter. I was a debt. A "Spawn of Lilith" meant to be served up on a silver platter to the most dangerous men in three territories.

The Traid. The Wolves of the Veil.

They don't want my heart. They definitely don't want my love. They want to break the princess until there's nothing left but the monster they say is hiding inside me.

And the worst part? My perfect boyfriend Jax was the one who handed them the keys to my bedroom.

Lilith's POV

I'm trembling, standing on a platform, the air around me thick and suffocating, making it almost impossible to breathe.

I'm in a private suite at The Obsidian, an expensive hotel reserved for only the top dogs in the society.

The air is a suffocating mix of expensive lilies and perfumes, but behind it all is this sharp, impossible-to-ignore stench of ozone.

I tilt my head down, my eyes scanning my dress, a glittering satin silk that literally costs more than a surgeon's entire year's salary, embedded with real gold at the hem; but I still feel sick.

My dad says this is supposed to be my debutante, but it doesn't feel like it; rather, I feel like a carcass at a butcher's shop, waiting for a merchant to pick me up and slice me in half.

“Lilith, chin up," my mother's voice rings out in a low whisper.

Her voice isn't as sharp and coordinated as usual; instead, it sounds like glass about to shatter at any moment.

She doesn't look me in the eyes, even when she keeps obsessively brushing against my skirt, trying to smoothen a microscopic wrinkle, her hands trembling so violently I can literally hear the rustle of the fabric.

“Don't…don't let them see your fear," she mutters, eyes shifting towards the heavy, mahogany double doors. “All your life, you've been prepared for this day."

A deep frown forms on my forehead as I turn towards her, my heart pounding vigorously against my ribs so hard I can literally hear it. "Preparing for what day, Mummy? To stand here like some kind of auction, waiting to hear myself bought by men who haven't even arrived yet, huh?” I snap, a loud, brittle laugh escaping my lips. "This… this is a fucking joke, Mom. Jax is literally waiting for me at my after-party. I'm leaving…right now."

My father doesn't even spare me a glance, nor does he blink. He keeps tapping his legs, a habit done whenever he's tense or scared, which occurs rarely.

His eyes keep glancing at his heavy Patek Philippe watch every second, like he's expecting something…or someone.

The silence in the room is deafening, the kind that makes you question your sanity.

Just then, the doors suddenly click open once.

A broad, unfiltered smile forms on my lips, my heart skipping a beat as the word rolls off my lips before I can stop it.

“Jax!”

Jaxon strides in, looking in every way possible as the golden Alpha boy who I fell in love with two years ago. I stretch out my arms, waiting for him to rush towards me and whisk me away in his blue sports car, laughing it off that this is all a sick prank.

But unfortunately, he doesn't. And just like my father, he doesn't even look me in the eye.

He just walks past the platform, towards my father. Then finally, he glances at me once….not as my golden Alpha boyfriend, but like a salesman sizing up his deal.

“Lil, you look really incredible tonight," he says in a calm tone, but it's void of that familiar warmth and emotions, like he isn't the boy who promised me forever.

“They'll fucking love you," he adds.

My eyes widen, my fists tightening into a clench, a cold shiver crawling down my spine.

“Th…they? Who are they? Jax, what the hell is this about? "Take me home now!” I yell, slowly stepping backward until I reach the edge, almost about to fall. "Please…" My voice comes out as a desperate, thin tone.

He shakes his head as he strides towards the massive double doors again and opens them. “I'm sorry, I can't." Finally, he glances at me fully this time, his eyes cold and distant. “My debt is paid at last, Lilith. And you're the interest."

Just then, the air in the room shifts, dropping twenty degrees as three men stride in.

My gaze lingers on them, recognising them instantly: The Triad.

They don't look like the monsters the elders of the pack warned us against; rather, they look like gods who grew bored of their heaven and decided to descend on earth and burn hell to the ground instead.

The man in the middle, Malakai, doesn't glance or acknowledge my parents. He strides straight towards the platform, circling me like some sort of predator scenting blood.

His scent is thick: sandalwood and something else I can't fathom. It is so thick that it clogs my lungs.

But to my sheer horror, my fear is mixed with an undeniable heat that stirs deep in my lower belly.

Vane, the second, leans against the door, his arms crossed over his chest, giving him that calm, predatory aura. His eyes are fixed on my throat, tracking my pulse point like he's thinking of ways to make me bleed.

Then finally, there's Roman. A slow, dark smirk that makes my heart skip a beat and my skin crawl tugs at his lips.

He walks towards me, so close I can feel the heat radiating off him. “Hey, Vane,” he calls out. “I think I'm going to really enjoy our little princess break and learn how to beg."

Our? As in, me? The way those words roll off his tongue makes my heart skip a beat, and a feeling of dread was over me.

Finally, Malakai stops in front of me. Before I can process his next move, he suddenly grabs my jaws with his gloved hand, forcing me to look up at him, our eyes meeting as he stares into mine with that look I still can't fathom.

“So this is the…spawn?" He says, his voice a low and cold, vibrating hum that I can feel all the way up to my core. "Hmm…a bit fragile, right?”

“She's a pampered little miss," Vane finally speaks up, his cold voice a low rumble. “But we'll have to destroy those habits first. I hate my property spoilt."

I grit my teeth, stomping my feet hard against the platform. I've had enough of this bullshit.

The fear in my chest is briefly replaced by a rush of rage. I'm Lilith! And I'm not anyone's property!

“Let me go!” I yell, hot tears rolling down my cheeks as I yank my face from his grip, swinging my hand as I aim for his perfect, arrogant face. “I'll tell my father to have you killed!”

He doesn't even move. He catches my wrist in mid-air with a grip like a steel trap. The room goes quiet.

From the corner of my eye, I see my father take a scared step back. He isn't going to save me. None of them are.

Malakai leans in, his lips near mine. For a second, his eyes seem to glow with a wild, hunter-like light. 

"Sweetheart..." he whispers, his breath touching my lips. "Your father just gave me the leash. And I’m not as patient as he is." He doesn't say more, just nods to Vane.

Vane steps forward, holding something that shines in the dim light. It’s not a leather collar. It’s a heavy, delicate choker made of black diamonds and cold iron. 

As Malakai puts it around my neck, the weight of it almost makes me fall. The iron is cold against my skin.

I raise my hand, slowly brushing a finger against it. It’s a mark, a sign. I’m not a person anymore. I’m a prize.

Malakai leans down, whispering into my ear so only I can hear. "Run if you want, Lilith. I like the hunt more than the kill." He turns and walks out without looking back, disappearing into the shadows.

I stand on the platform, the black diamonds heavy on my throat, watching Jaxson. He isn't looking at me. He’s checking his phone, probably checking his bank balance.