All Chapters of Beauty and the Alpha Beast: Chapter 91 - Chapter 98

*Xelina*I step into the ballroom, and for a moment, everything around me seems to freeze as heads turn in unison, fans halt mid-wave, and conversations drop to a hush, leaving me surrounded by hundreds of eyes filled with curiosity, admiration, and speculation. Yet not one of them knows the truth of who I am hidden beneath the delicate mask. What’s more, there are no snide words of “servant” or sneers of “mutt.” All they see is the shimmering gown and the radiant light that clings to me, but fear surges through me like a sudden storm, wild and consuming, crashing against my ribs with every panicked breath. Under the terror, below the cold sweat and the tremble in my limbs, something else begins to stir. It is subtle at first, a thrum deep in my bones, yet it grows louder, steadier, resonating through every inch of me with a strange, electric clarity. It feels like truth, and like I’m stepping into the shape of who I was always meant to be. As that terrifying, exhilarating certainty

*Xelina*The first light of dawn slips through the crack of the cellar door, painting soft gold streaks across the rough-hewn floor. I’m already awake, dressing, pulling on my worn boots, and running a brush through my hair. Before I head outside, I kneel beside my bed and open the wooden box tucked beneath it. Inside, I gently place the mask from last night, closing the lid. The animals need tending first, before the rest of the household stirs. It’s routine, a rhythm I’ve known for years, but feels different today. Today, there’s a fire in my veins, and a buzz beneath my skin that wasn’t there yesterday. Today I’m stronger, sharper, and I feel as though the earth itself is churning with something new.Last night changed everything. I don’t dare say it aloud, but I shifted for the first time. The rush of fur and bone reshaping, the fierce, wild heartbeat pounding in my chest. The power and the fear tangled together. Above all, I believe that last night, I found my mate.The though

*Xelina*The stone beneath me is damp and bitterly cold. I’ve lost track of how long I’ve been down here, but the thin shaft of sunlight that used to slice through the cracks in the door has faded to a dim haze. It must be evening now. The light is weaker, as though it’s slipping away from me just as fast as everything else.My stomach twists, part hunger, part dread. I haven't eaten since before the ball… no water, either. My throat is raw from crying, but I don't dare make another sound. Not after the last time, when Mireth hissed through the crack in the door that if I begged again, she’d bind my mouth shut with a wolf’s bane drenched rag. My hands are scratched and sore from clawing at the walls, searching for some hidden seam, some latch or weakness. There's nothing but stone and packed earth. I shiver, my arms curled around my knees, my chin tucked low. Then a sound breaks the quiet: hooves. The heavy clop of armored horses approaches the manor. I freeze, praying to the Moon

*Xelina*The castle pulses with life and secrets, each corridor and chamber a new discovery waiting to be claimed. For the first time, I’m not a shadow in the background, scrubbing floors or serving meals. Instead, I wander freely, curling up with dusty books in the grand library, stealing heated glances with Lazlo, and daring to imagine a life that’s free of chores and chains. Everything feels electric, every moment charged with possibility and the thrill of being seen as his mate.Mealtimes are no longer hurried or solitary. We sit together at long tables, sharing food and laughter. Lazlo’s smile is easy, genuine, and I find myself drawn to it, to the quiet kindness in his eyes that never wavers. It surprises me how quickly the castle begins to feel like home, not because of the stones or the tapestries, but because of him.There are moments when our hands brush, lingering a little longer than necessary, and I can’t catch my breath. His gaze meets mine then, a silent question that s