Alpha Conrad sat across from Danielle, his appearance stoic and unmoving, his very commanding aura intimidating her. He was the pinnacle of sophistication whose family bloodline ruled the kingdom of Irongard the longest; this was because they survived on ancient traditions that valued purity in a mate to ensure the absolute legitimacy of the bloodline.

Danielle sat stiffly, her hands folded in her lap. She was tense, her eyes darting toward the folder in his hands while she tried to maintain a calm demeanor.

"This should do," Conrad said, his voice deep and devoid of emotion. He closed the folder with a definitive snap.

"Right," Danielle responded. She leaned in just an inch, trying to snoop into the documents, but she caught the cold glint in his eyes and restrained herself. She forced a polite, shallow smile.

"I apologize for the little inconvenience," Conrad said, though he didn't look sorry at all. "It is just protocol. In a family like mine, certain standards must be verified before any formal arrangements are made."

Danielle nodded quickly, her voice a bit too eager. "I completely understand. I mean, you are royalty. It is only natural that your family would want to be certain of who is entering the bloodline."

She picked her words slowly.

Conrad looked at her sternly, his imposing gaze made her skin crawl.

She cleared her throat.

"So," Danielle began, "since your pack doctors have confirmed that I am a virgin, just as your family demands, when can we proceed with the engagement and the royal wedding?"

Conrad leaned back in his chair, his expression unreadable. "Not yet."

Danielle’s smile faltered. "Why?."

"I will have to spend a night with you first," Conrad stated. It wasn't a request. It was a condition.

Danielle blinked, her voice rising in a pitch of controlled panic. "A night with you?"

"Yes."

"Your Highness," she said softly. "I am keeping myself for my mate. I have maintained my purity for years. What if we spend the night together and then you change your mind about marrying me? I would have lost everything."

Conrad didn't blink. He reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a checkbook. He scribbled a figure with a fountain pen and tore the slip of paper off, sliding it across the table toward her.

"Fifty million dollars," he said.

Danielle looked down at the check.

Her breath hitched.

It was more money than she had seen in her entire life. Her shock was visible, her mouth hanging open just a fraction.

"If you agree," Conrad continued, "my lawyers will have a formal contract ready by the close of business today. The money will be yours."

Danielle stared at the check, then back at the man who looked at her like she was a business transaction. "I... I will have to think about it."

Conrad stood up, adjusting the cuffs of his bespoke suit. He didn't wait for her to finish. "You have until five o'clock."

And then he proceeded to walk away.

* *

Danielle stormed into the living room. Her mother, Katerina, was sitting on a velvet sofa, sipping a glass of white wine. She looked up with an expectant gaze.

"Well?" Katerina asked. "How did your day go with Alpha Conrad? Is the date set?"

Danielle threw her designer purse onto the rug and paced the floor. "He is impossible, Mom. He is so arrogant"

Katerina waved a hand dismissively. "He is the Alpha of the most powerful pack in the country. He is allowed to be arrogant. Thousands of girls from packs across the country would kill to be in your shoes, so be thankful you even earned his grace’s attention. Did Dr. Benson deliver the results as promised?"

Danielle stopped pacing and looked at her mother. "Yes. On paper, I am a pure and fit to carry his heir. The medical records he sent to Conrad’s family were flawless."

Katerina let out a satisfied chuckle. "Dr. Benson had better have done his job. I was going to teach him a lesson he would never forget if he messed this up for us. We paid him enough to buy his silence for a lifetime." She lifted her glass. "We should cheers to that, Danielle. You are halfway to becoming the most powerful Luna in the world."

"But there is a problem," Danielle mentioned, her voice tight with worry.

Katerina froze, her glass halfway to her lips. "What problem?"

"Alpha Conrad wants to sleep with me before the engagement," Danielle said, dropping into an armchair. "He said he needs a night with me before he commits to the wedding."

Katerina set her glass down on the glass coffee table. "That is a complication. He is more traditional and more suspicious than I thought."

"What am I supposed to do?" Danielle hissed. "We just faked a purity test. If I go to his bed, he will know that I am not what the papers say I am."

Katerina narrowed her eyes, her mind working through the problem with cold mental calculation. "It can be arranged, Danielle. We just need a substitute."

Danielle frowned. "A substitute? How?"

Katerina thinks for a bit, and says, “Ahah!”

"Your cousin, Nadia," Katerina started, a cruel smile spreading across her face. "She is almost your spitting lookalike, same body size, skin tone and shape. In the dark, under the right conditions, he wouldn't know the difference."

Danielle’s face twisted in disgust. "May the moon goddess forbid! Nadia is nothing like me. I am classy, high value. Nadia is a wretched scum of the earth. She could never be like me or even pretend to be me. Conrad would even notice her scent of poverty from a mile away."

Katerina stood up and walked over to her daughter, placing a firm hand on her shoulder. "Desperate times call for desperate measures, Danielle. Right now, only your cousin can bail us out. We need a girl who is actually a virgin to take that first night for you."

"And what makes you think Nadia is a 'good girl'?" Danielle asked mockingly. "What makes you think she is a virgin? For all we know, she could be tangling with half the Omegas in the pack."

"Nadia is a first-class graduate of business administration," Katerina said, her voice tinged with a bitterness she couldn't hide. "She spent all her time studying and working while I had to pay for your degree just so you could pass. A girl with that much academic focus doesn't have time to entertain advances from potential mates."

Danielle’s eyes flashed with jealousy. "Don't rub it in my face, Mom. So she’s smart. Big deal. She’s still a pauper. What makes you think she will even accept? My father took everything from them. He stripped her father’s company away and made her mother a cleaner. They hate us."

Katerina laughed, a cold, hollow sound. "I have my ways, Danielle. Trust me, lowlives like Nadia and her mother will jump at this offer if we present it with a good reason to make her accept. People like that don't have the luxury of holding onto a grudge when a life-changing sum of money is involved."

"Mom is there no other way? Maybe some random girl from another pack, but not her?" Danielle argued.

"Non. You must trust me, Danielle," Katerina replied.

"But what if she stabs us in the back and tells Conrad?"

"She won't," Katerina said firmly. "What is a Non disclosure for? We may not even need that. She is an Omega, Danielle. She has no power to fight us."

Danielle looked at her reflection in the mirror.

She thought about the fifty million dollars.

She thought about the crown and the title of Luna. "It’s risky, Mom. If he finds out later, he will kill us. According to what I heard about him, he is very hot tempered and stoic, I would not want to upset him with a lie.”

"He won't find out," Katerina promised. "Once the wedding is over and the marriage is sealed, It would not matter. We just need to get through that one night."

Danielle bit her lip. "Fine. But I don't want to be the one to talk to her. I can't stand the sight of her."

"You won't have to," Katerina said, heading toward the door to find her phone. "I will handle the dirty work."

Danielle sat back in the chair, her mind racing.

She hated Nadia.

She hated that her cousin was the smart one.

But if Nadia’s purity was the key to her beautiful future, she would swallow her pride. She would let the scum of the earth save her, just this once.

The rain began as a light drizzle by the time it was past 7pm.

Nadia was whistling a soft tune as she set the table, a genuine smile lighting up her face as she arranged the table for dinner.

When the door creaked open and Estelle walked in, looking exhausted and damp, Nadia rushed to greet her.

"Mom! You should not have come in the rain! Jeez!” Nadia queried.

“I couldn’t wait to get home” Estelle cooed.

“Well you are back just in time," Nadia said, helping her mother out of her wet shawl.

Estelle sighed, rubbing her aching lower back. "It was a long shift at work, Nadia. Your uncle had some elite pack elders at the main house, and the linens I washed were endless."

"I’m so sorry Mom. Well, I have some good news to cheer you up," Nadia said, pulling a small envelope from her pocket. "The freelance research gig I applied for? They paid my remunerations today. It is more than I expected. This means I can afford your entire next month of medication without having to ask Nelson for a single penny."

Estelle froze, her eyes widening. "No, Nadia. No, no. You keep that money. You have been wearing the same two pairs of shoes to work for a while now. Use it for yourself. Go to the market, get some good clothes, and enjoy a day of shopping. You deserve to feel like a young woman like girls your age in the pack"

Nadia shook her head firmly, pushing the envelope into her mother’s hand. "I have more than enough clothes, Mom. I don't need a new dress to be happy. Your health is paramount. Without those pills, your heart struggles. Your wellbeing is the only thing that matters to me."

"You are too stubborn for your own good," Estelle whispered, her voice lulled with emotion.

"I learned from the best," Nadia teased. She guided her mother to a chair and made her sit down. "Actually, I was thinking about something else today. I was thinking of assuming a cleaning role at Aunt Katerina’s house. If I take over some of the shifts there, you could rest more. You could finally take a week off."

Estelle’s face paled. "Absolutely not. I will not have you working in that house."

"Why not? It pays better than the warehouse," Nadia argued.

"Because I know you, Nadia. You have your father’s pride. You won't be there five minutes before you and Danielle start fighting. I won't have my daughter being humiliated by her own cousin."

Nadia knelt beside her mother’s chair. "I understand Danielle can be a lot. I know she is condescending and cruel, but I am not going there to be her friend, Mom. I am going there for a job. I will do my best to avoid her. I can keep my head down if it means we stay afloat."

"Danielle is still very condescending," Estelle insisted, her voice trembling. "She treats us like dirt beneath her heels. It is best you do not work there. I would rather work twenty hours a day than see her look down on you."

"Mom, I know the real reason you are keeping me away from that house is because of Uncle Edward, and for the fact that you do not want me reminiscing about the life we use to have, but all that is in the past, I believe where we are now is temporary, I am all for striving for a better future for both us, I want us to be able to live on our own terms" Nadia said softly. "If you can accept to work there to keep us alive, why can't I? Why am I any different?"

"Because you are my heart," Estelle began, but she was cut off by a sudden, violent thud.

The door groaned under the force of a loud bang.

“Are you expecting someone?” Estelle asked.

Both women jumped, their hearts racing.

"Open up! Pack security!" A gruff voice shouted from outside.

Estelle stood up, her face blank.

She walked to the door and pulled it open.

Two Gamma’s in dark uniforms stood there, their faces cold.

"Estelle Williams?" the lead gamma asked.

"Yes?" Estelle whispered. "What is this about?"

"I’m Vince.” He said, showing his ID. “We have reasons to believe a stolen item belonging to Lady Katerina is in this building," the gamma said, holding up a signed search warrant. "Step aside."

"Stolen?" Estelle gasped, clutching her chest. "That is impossible. I have never stolen a thing in my life. I have worked for that family for twenty years!"

"Search the place," the officer commanded, ignoring her.

Nadia stepped forward, her eyes flashing with anger. "You can't just barge in here! My mother is no thief. Show some respect!"

The gamma didn't even look at her. He shoved Nadia aside with a rough hand, sending her stumbling back against the kitchen table. "Stay back, girl, or you’ll be joining her in a cell."

Nadia watched in horror as they tore through their meager belongings. They overturned the mattress, dumped out the drawers, and swept the contents of the shelves onto the floor. It only took five minutes.

"Found it," the second gamma said, holding up a velvet box. He flipped it open to reveal a diamond heirloom that caught the dim light of the kitchen.

Estelle stared at the ring, her breath hitching. "I... I have never seen that before. I didn't take that. I swear on the Moon Goddess, I didn't take it!"

"Save it for the judge," the lead gamma said, grabbing Estelle’s arm and twisting it behind her back.

"It was a set-up!" Nadia screamed, trying to reach her mother. "Someone put that there! You can't take her!"

The officer pushed Nadia back again. Estelle looked over her shoulder, tears streaming down her face as they dragged her toward the door. "Nadia! Call Nelson! Tell him what happened! Call Nelson!"

"Mom! No!"

Nadia ran to the door, but the gamma’s slammed it shut. She threw it open and ran out into the pouring rain, watching as they shoved her mother into the back of a black SUV. The tires kicked up mud as they sped away, leaving Nadia standing alone in the downpour.

**

An hour later, Nadia stood in the grand entrance of Katerina’s.

It’s been ages since she came to this side of the pack house.

She tried to avoid the gaze and greeting of a pack member wanting to enquire why she was under the rain; she did not care about the piercing stares of servants moping around.

She was able to find her to the entrance because she used to live here when she was little, life beautiful until her father was brandished a traitor and killed.

Uncle Edward offered them a space in the BQ, while his family enjoyed her fathers wealth.

Her clothes were soaked through, and she was shivering violently, her hair plastered to her face.

Danielle stood at the top of the stairs, looking down at her with a look of pure disgust, while Katerina sat on a armchair, calmly filing her nails.

"Look what the rain dragged in," Danielle scoffed. "A wet rat in our living room."

Nadia ignored her and fell to her knees before Katerina. "Aunt Katerina, please. Please, I am begging you. My mother didn't do it. She has a heart condition. She needs her medication every day. Being without her meds in a cold cell... her health will deteriorate. She could die."

Katerina didn't look up from her nails. "The item your mother stole cost over twenty million dollars, Nadia. It is a family heirloom. You should be thankful this has not gotten to the ears of my husband, Edward. If he knew his own sister-in-law was a common thief, I would have no control over his ruthlessness. He would have her executed by morning."

"My mother is not a thief!" Nadia sobbed, her voice cracking. "She has worked for you for twenty years without taking so much as a piece of bread! Why would she start now?"

"News flash, honey," Danielle said, walking down the stairs and circling Nadia like a vulture. "Your mom stole it because she’s a desperate Omega. That’s why she is behind bars."

Danielle was really pushing it.

Nadia looked up at Danielle, her eyes red and burning. "You know she didn't do it, Danielle. You know her."

Nadia turned back to Katerina, throwing herself at her aunt’s feet and clutching the hem of her expensive dress. "Please, Auntie. I am begging you for her life. She won't survive three days in there. Have mercy."

Katerina finally looked down at her. "Nothing will change my mind, Nadia. I least expected Estelle to break my trust like this. I have already instructed the lawyers. I will be pressing charges without bail. Three years behind bars should be enough to deter her from being a petty thief."

"Three years?" Nadia screamed, the sound echoing through the house. "She won't last three months! Please, I will do anything. Anything!"

Danielle stopped pacing and tilted her head. "Anything?"

Katerina paused, her eyes narrowing as she looked at her niece. "Repeat that, Nadia. What did you say?"

"I am willing to do anything," Nadia wept, her hands pressed together in a desperate prayer. "I will cook, I will clean. I will work for free for the next three years. Just release her. Please, withdraw the charges. Give her back to me."

"Anything at all?" Katerina asked, her voice dropping low.

"Anything," Nadia whispered, her forehead touching the floor. "Anything at all. Just save my mother."

“We have a little service we would like you to provide for a couple of hours. And you will carry out those instructions with No questions asked. Agreed?”

“Agreed”.

It was still very early in the morning, the first rays of the morning sun would begin to bleed through the curtains soon.

Nadia stirred as she felt his warm presence behind her.

Alpha Conrad was awake, though he remained silent.

He leaned in, his lips pressing a lingering, tender kiss on her bare shoulder.

Nadia kept her eyes shut, her heart beating frantically.

She stayed perfectly still, her back to him, praying her scent wouldn't betray her.

In his hazy, post-coital state, Conrad didn't notice the subtle difference in her aura.

He gently lifted the duvet to adjust his position, and his eyes fell on the moon crescent birthmark on her back and then on the red stains on the white sheets.

A surge of possessiveness and unexpected tenderness washed over him.

He pulled her closer, burying his face in the crook of her neck before his breathing slowed, and he drifted back into a deep, satisfied sleep.

Danielle peered out, seeing that Conrad was out; she crawled toward Nadia’s side of the bed on her hands and knees.

"Move! Now!" Danielle mouthed, her face twisted in a silent snarl.

Nadia didn't need to be told twice.

She slid out from under the covers, her body aching with a soreness that made her wince.

She grabbed her clothes from the floor and scurried into the bathroom.

In a matter of minutes, she was dressed.

She exited the bathroom just as Danielle climbed into the warm spot she had vacated, tucking herself against Conrad’s chest.

Nadia took one last look and fled the room.

As she hurried down the hotel staircase, her phone vibrated in her pocket. It was Katerina.

"Is it done?" her aunt’s voice came through.

"It’s done," Nadia whispered into the receiver, her voice cracking. "I am leaving the hotel now. Tell the lawyers to withdraw the charges against my mother immediately."

"They are already on it. Go home, Nadia. And remember: this never happened."

Nadia hung up, her head down as she rushed through the lobby. She was so consumed by her own thoughts that she didn't see the man walking toward her. She slammed into a hard chest.

"Watch where you are going!" the male voice snapped.

Nadia looked up, her eyes wide. "I... I'm so sorry, I—"

"Nadia? Is that you?"

Nadia’s eyes adjusted. "Valentine?"

Her voice instantly shifted into a happy squeal. It was Valentine, her best friend from college. Before she could process the shock, he pulled her into a massive, familiar hug.

"Oh my god, look at you!" Valentine laughed, pulling back to inspect her. "What on earth are you doing at a five-star hotel at seven in the morning?"

Nadia’s mind raced for a lie. "I... I went partying with a friend. We were so knocked out that her boyfriend decided we should just crash here instead of driving back to our neighborhood."

Valentine raised a perfectly groomed eyebrow. "You? Attending parties? Since when do you do anything other than study and work three jobs?"

Nadia looked down, her face heating up. "My friends had to drag me out, Val. It was a one-time thing. But I have a freelance gig I need to catch, which is why I’m leaving so early." She looked at him, trying to change the subject. "I am still upset with you, you know. You moved overseas and ghosted me completely!"

Valentine sighed, his expression softening. "I know, I know. Life overseas was a lot to handle, Nadia. I had to figure out a lot of things. But I am back now, and I am not going anywhere." He squeezed her hands. "I hope you are open to dinner dates and hangouts like we used to do. It’s the only way I can make it up to you."

"Why not?" Nadia said, forced to smile despite the turmoil inside her. "I’ve missed our rants."

They quickly exchanged contacts, and Valentine gave her one last squeeze. "I’ll call you later today. Don't you dare ghost me back!"

"I won't! I have to run!"

Nadia practically sprinted to the bus station. She managed to get home, scrub the heavy makeup off her face, and change into her regular clothes just as a taxi pulled up outside.

The door opened, and Estelle stepped out, looking pale and frail.

"Mom!" Nadia screamed, running out to meet her. She threw her arms around her mother, sobbing into her neck.

"I'm okay, baby. I'm okay," Estelle whispered, stroking Nadia’s hair. She pulled back, her eyes searching her daughter’s face. "First things first, Nadia. Call Nelson. I need to thank him properly for getting me out of that nightmare."

Nadia wiped her eyes and looked away. "Nelson did not get you out, Mom. I didn't even call him."

Estelle froze. "He didn't help? Then who did? Nadia, how did you get the charges dropped? What did you do?"

"It doesn't matter," Nadia said, her voice dropping to a flat, hollow tone. "You are back home now. That is all that counts. I just hope you take this as a cue to never work for Uncle Edward or his family ever again. Going forward, I would work hard to take care of you; you do not have to work for them anymore."

"Nadia—"

"I’m tired, Mom. I’m going to my room."

Nadia walked into her small bedroom and shut the door. She stripped off her clothes, letting them fall in a heap on the floor. She stepped into the tiny shower, turning the water on as hot as she could stand it.

She tried to block out the memories, but they flooded back: the smell of his perfume, the weight of his body on hers, and the way he had whispered that she was beautiful at every given point in time. A deep, gnawing guilt tugged at her conscience.

But that was just it; life was unfair, and she had to trade her last asset for her mother's freedom, but this was going to be the last time she begged for mercy.

It was going to be the last time she traded her body or her self-worth for favors or anything in particular.

Deep down, she knew her mom did not steal from Aunt Katerina; last night put everything in perspective. Again, she had been used in the most manipulative way as a means to an end she did not know about.

She did not care.

She resolved that she was going to put this disaster behind her and work hard enough to make her uncle and his wife pay for everything they had done to her and her mother.

The first step: she needed to get a fucking job and put her degree to use.

***

The morning sun clawed through the gaps in the blackout curtains, but Alpha Conrad felt like it was clawing through his skull instead.

He woke with a groan, his hand flying to his temple to stem the tide of a splitting headache.

The first thing he noticed when he took a deep breath, was that something was off, his nostrils flared in rejection.

It was the scent.

The scent was wrong.

It was a harsh scent that stung the back of his throat.

He was tempted to ask if she had changed her perfume in the middle of the night, but he stopped himself, his mind foggy and sluggish. He tried to blink the world into focus, and as he moved his hand away from his face, he noted the dried blood stains on his fingers.

His gaze drifted to the sheets.

He squinted, turning his head to see Danielle lying next to him.

She was already watching him, her lips curved into an elegant smile. "Good morning, Your Highness," she whispered, her voice honeyed and light.

"Good morning," Conrad responded, his voice a low and gravelly rasp.

"I hope you slept well?" Danielle asked, reaching out to brush a stray lock of hair from his forehead.

Conrad winced at the movement, the pressure in his head spiking. "I did. But I cannot explain the splitting headache I am currently dealing with. It feels like a dull blade behind my eyes."

Danielle’s expression shifted into one of exaggerated sympathy. "Oh, you poor thing. If we were home, I would have made you my mother’s special herbal tea. It works like magic for tension. It is a family secret."

Conrad chuckled, adjusting himself to sit up against the headboard. "Sadly, we are not in your house, Danielle. My staff can prepare something once we leave." He paused, his nose twitching again as he looked at her. "Did you change your perfume from what you wore last night?"

Danielle stiffened for a fraction of a second, her hand faltering. She forced a small, airy laugh. "No, of course not. Why would you ask that?"

"It just seems... stronger," Conrad muttered, rubbing his brow.