Kaia

In one night, my life had changed in an instant. My mate, Matteo, alpha Beckett's son had died a night to our mating ceremony. Alpha Beckett had strongly believed I was the cause and ordered my death by hanging.

My bestfriend, Adalyn had overheard this and told me. Knowing I couldn't change alpha Beckett's mind no matter what-I did the one thing I thought could save me at the time; I ran. Maybe I should have stayed. Then, I wouldn't be here.

"Ouch" I winced, retracting my ankle from Cali's hands. Alpha Cali had carried me up to my room. When he saw that my ankle was swollen, he got some ointment and helped apply it.

"Sorry" He apologized. "I'll try to apply it a bit gentler. Unfortunately, I don't have healing powers like Pliar so this is the best option we have"

"I appreciate you doing this for me. It must be burdensome"

Cali takes my swollen ankle into his hands as he continues reapplying the ointment. "Nothing about you is burdensome. You're part of the pack"

For the first time that night, I felt more than an outsider or a means to the throne. I felt like a person.

"Try not to move around so much so that the ointment can kick in" he adds. "Some maids would be assigned to you. If you need anything, let them know"

"Thank you"

As soon as Cali was out the door, my mind went to Matteo once more as I couldn't stop the tears that rolled down my cheeks. I must have cried myself to sleep because when I'd woken up, it was morning.

"Are you up now, Kaia?" Serena, my wolf asked. "Your eyes are all puffy from crying"

A knock on the door was heard. Who could it be this early morning? Cali? "Come in"

The door was thrown open as three omega maids walk in. Two out of the three were carrying a rack into the room as the third approached me.

She bows. "Greetings, my lady. I'm Alicia, your personal maid. I was told to prepare you for breakfast in the next thirty minutes"

My gaze follows the rack the other two maids had just brought in. "May I ask what those are, Alicia?"

"Those are your clothes. Alpha Xendith had bought them last night. Do you need help freshening up?"

Was she asking to bathe me?

"Don't take this the wrong way but I heard your ankle was hurt that's why I'd asked" She adds.

"Oh, my ankle is..." My voice trails off as I twist my ankle around to discover that it was all healed up. "surprisingly healed up. I can freshen up by myself. Thank you"

"Then, I'll wait out front for you"

With that said, Alicia and the two maids took their exit. Yesterday, I was in a trance about my situation that I hadn't noticed how huge my room was.

It was way different from the omega house I lived in while in the Buckmoon pack. It slowly started to dawn on me that in this pack, I wasn't just an omega but their future Luna. A life I never envisioned would be possible for me.

After freshening up, I moved to the rack to pick out a dress. Each dressed was a flail gown of different colors. The texture of each gown screamed royalty that the thought of putting it on made me anxious.

It made me scared that I was receiving so much from the brothers already when there wasn't an assurance that I could be the "mate" that would help them claim the throne.

To be honest, if I couldn't be the "mate" they wanted, they could always get another. But what would become of me? Alpha Beckett was still out there and moreover, I had nowhere else to go.

A knock against the door interrupts my thought as Alicia walks in. "It's time, my lady"

"Oh?" I had completely forgotten Alicia said she would be waiting out for me. Randomly picking a red gown from the rack, I threw it on. "I'm ready"

"Then shall we?" Alicia leads the way as we walked down the third floor.

"Isn't the dining room downstairs?" I asked.

"No, it isn't" She responds. "The pack house is divided into three floors. We're currently on the third floor. This floor is strictly for alphas and their mate. Betas and omegas are only allowed to come to this floor when called for"

"The second floor is for betas while the ground floor is for omegas" Alicia continued. "The alphas are the only one with access to all floors but that doesn't mean they should dine downstairs where omegas dine"

I understood Alicia's point. They floor were making each floor show each ranking. It was intimidating but I admired the fact that the omegas of this pack got to live within the packhouse.

Back in Buckmoon pack, omegas had to use their own money to build houses for themselves and it had to be fa away from the packhouse since alpha Beckett always claimed to hate the scent of omegas.

We come to a stop Infront of a golden door. Alicia bows. "I'll be getting off this floor now. I hope you enjoy your meal"

"Thank you for escorting me, Alicia"

"I was just doing my job, my lady"

Once Alicia was gone, I took in a deep breath as I pushed the golden door open. The four alpha brothers were seated round a table filled with varieties of dishes. Making my way towards the table, I take a seat.

The silence around the table was uncomfortable. Deciding to break the silence, I turned to face Xendith. "Thank you for the dress rack"

"I'm glad you wear them well" he responds. "I thought they wouldn't fit"

"You thought that because you don't know the first thing about women, Xendith" one of brothers says.

"I'm Aklan" He introduces, pointing over to the last quad whose name I didn't know yet "and that guy frowning over there is Pliar. You might never get to know his name so let me do the honors"

"You look very beautiful in that red dress, Kaia" Aklan adds. "But I bet you'd look even gorgeous without it"

"Keep your sexist comment to yourself, Aklan" Pliar says. "We're at the dining table"

Winking at me, a smirks splay across Aklan's lips. "Let's continue this discussion after breakfast, Kaia"

Please, let's not.

"Kaia, how is your ankle by the way?" Cali asks.

"It's all healed up. The ointment you applied last night works like magic"

"I'm glad to hear that"

Pliar bangs his fist against the table. "We're here to eat so can you keep your little talks until later?"

He points at me. "And you. I'm sure you are way in over your head as you have Xendith, Cali and Aklan trying to please you but not me. You have less than 40 hours to make yourself a believable mate to mother so start working on it"

Springing up to his feet, Pliar strongly declares. "And if you fail, consider your stay here over"

Xendith

After breakfast, I walked into Pliar's room-of course, to cause trouble. Pliar was laid across his bed going through a book our father left us when he died. It contained rules and our duties as the next alphas of the pack.

I was pretty certain Pliar already knew the content of the rule book like the back of his hands but a day hardly went by without him reading it.

"Are you going to stand there all day, Xendith?" he asked without looking up from the book.

"You act like you hate her and the sheer sight of her disgust you yet you sneak into her room and heal her ankle. Who do you think you're trying to deceive, Pliar?"

Then, he looks up at me. Bingo. "Weren't you asleep?"

Of course, I wasn't. I'd spent all night wondering what sort of person Kaia was. "You first"

Pliar shut the book in his hand. That was new.

"The ointment Cali used was going to take forever before her ankle heals. We can't have mother thinking we maltreat our mate, can we?"

I nod in agreement. "I oddly see your point"

"Now, your turn; What were you doing out late by that time? Especially by Kaia's door"

I shrugged. "I just wanted to check up on her"

"Bullshit, Xendith. You suspect her of something, don't you?" Pliar narrowed his eyes. "Where did you even find a girl like her? From the state she was in yesterday, I could tell that she's trouble"

A smile splayed across my face. It was unlike Pliar to be the smart one. That was Cali's forte.

"Is that why you don't want to get close to her?"

"I see no reason to"

I clicked my tongue, shaking my head in disappointment. "And here I was thinking that you knew the rule book like the back of your hand"

Pliar furrowed his brow, confused. "Am I missing something here?"

"Of course, you are. The key point that one must qualify after becoming an alpha; having an heir" I replied.

"Even Cali, the bookworm is making slow, calculated, unnecessary moves like applying an ointment to her wounded ankle. Aklan is bound to have his way just as he always does and you..." My voice trails off with evident disappointment. "You'll be the only one lagging behind"

Pliar tightened his fist in anger. The exact reaction I was expecting out of him. "What about yourself?"

I scoffed. "Me?" Raising up my index finger, I add. "I have Kaia wrapped around this finger right here. I found her, saved her. Her life is literally mine so she has no choice but to do whatever I desire. So, a little advice, Pliar; drop the whole 'I hate and want to kill you' act. Just a word of advice. You can go back to reading your rule book. Ciao"

Strolling out of Pliar's room, I find Beta Rowan by the bottom of the third-floor staircase. "Do you have something for me, Rowan?"

"I believe so, Alpha Xendith"

I groaned inwardly. "If you're not sure of what you have for me then get out of my face"

"I'm not certain what this news might mean to you but I think it's something you should know"

I rolled my eyes. What a confused Beta. "Let's go to the garden then"

When we'd gotten to the garden, I plunged down onto the empty arm chair. "Hit me with what you have"

"I went to the marketplace around Buckmoon pack and as expected people were gossiping about the incident surrounding lady Kaia" Rowan begins. "Lady Kaia is an omega from Duncheon household of buckmoon pack. Lord Matteo, Alpha Beckett's son had taken a strong liking to Kaia and decided to take her as his mate. Lady Kaia's parents instantly agreed to it as a means to better their life and raise their status but Alpha Matteo wouldn't have his lineage take in a slave for a mate. The night before their mating ceremony, Lord Matteo was found dead"

"Rowan" I interrupt. "Get to the good part; I don't have all day"

"My apologies, Alpha" He apologized. "Alpha Beckett ordered lady Kaia death by hanging but she fled and that's where I believe you found her"

"Where are Kaia's parents now?"

"No one knows. Some says they fled the pack after lord Matteo's death as they knew they would be targeted as well to be killed. Others say, they are already dead"

Wait. Why the fuck was I asking about Kaia's parents? My priorities were my pack and no one else. Stupid Rowan and his story going nowhere.

I groaned. "Where exactly is this going, Rowan? My patience is running thin"

"People believe that lady Kaia couldn't have killed lord Matteo a night to their mating ceremony. Not only did they love each other but it's every omega dream to be mated to an alpha to raise their rank. Plus, lord Matteo could easily overpower lady Kaia if she had tried given their differences in size and strength. However, a trusted source says she was already planning to kill Matteo from the very start immediately after their mating ceremony"

Now this was some tea. "What trusted source?"

Rowan hands me a piece of paper. "Her name is Adalyn and this is her contact information"

Taking the piece of paper from Rowan's hands, I looked down at the paper then back at Rowan. "How exactly is this source trusted?"

"She's lady Kaia's bestfriend"

I stilled. Kaia's bestfriend. Why would Kaia's bestfriend lie against her? Or else she wasn't lying and there was actually something more to Kaia than meets the eye.

I let out a hearty laugh. "Interesting. You've actually outdone yourself by getting this information, Rowan. I'll see to it that you get a raise"

"Thank you, alp-"

I'd speed out of the garden, bursting into Kaia's room. She yelps but I don't mind it.

"Great. thank goodness, you're still dressed and not naked" Extending my hands out to her, I say. "I just realized that I knew nothing about you. So, what do you say about a date, Miss Duncheon?"

Kaia

Xendith hadn't given me a chance to respond. He'd picked me up and speeded off to a restaurant.

The people in the restaurant gave an off vibe. I could tell they weren't werewolves. But that wasn't the problem right now. Xendith had called me by my last name, Duncheon. How did he know that? Had he been digging into my past? Does that mean...he knows?

"You seem to be overthinking a lot in that little head of yours, Kaia" he says, arms crossed over his chest. "Let's make this date of ours a bit more fun, shall we?"

"How?"

"We both get to ask each other three questions each. What do you say?"

I was wise enough to know that I didn't have a choice in the matter. "That's fine with me?"

"Good" He shoves the menu across the table towards me. "Feel free to order whatever"

Picking up the menu, I frowned at I read the list. Nothing here seemed edible for a werewolf.

"What sort of place is this?"

Xendith laughed. "Is that your first question?"

I shut the menu. "You and your brothers. What exactly are you? Are you S-class werewolf alphas?"

S-class werewolf alphas were likened to be as strong and powerful as Enigmas.

Since Enigmas were always assumed to be non-existent, S- class werewolf alphas were rare as well. But given the speed Xendith possessed, I assumed he and his brothers weren't just the average alphas.

"We're hybrids" Xendith clarifies. "S-class werewolf alphas with a mix of vampire"

I stilled. No wonder I found this place weird from this start. "So, this place is-"

"A vampire restaurant, correct. My turn to ask"

Why would Xendith bring me here? Everyone stared at me like a prey to be killed. I was uncomfortable.

"Relax" Xendith urges. "No one can lay a finger on you. That's exactly why I brought you here"

He clears his throat. "My turn; Did you kill Beckett's son? Honestly, I didn't mean to dig up your past but I wanted to be sure I wasn't bringing trouble into the pack. So, did you?"

My hands trembled. I hated recalling Matteo's death. "I didn't''

"Weird. Adalyn says otherwise" Xendith clicked his tongue. "Should I have called her instead of coming to you?"

My whole body froze upon hearing Adalyn's name. "You... what did you do to Adalyn?"

Xendith throws his hands up in the air. "Nothing. She's the one spreading gossip that you planned to kill Beckett's son from the very start"

I tightened my fist, boiling in rage. "Adalyn would never do that"

"Whatever. Answer the question; Did you kill Matteo or not?"

"I didn't"

Xendith sighed. "I should have brought Cali along to read your mind but I know he wouldn't do it. I guess I'll just have to take your words for it. Your turn"

Cali. The one who'd applied ointment on my ankle the other day. So, he reads mind? These alpha brothers were scary.

"Adalyn. What did you do to her?" I inquired.

"You really seem to have trust issues, don't you? I told you, I did nothing. I haven't even met up wither yet but I plan to"

"Can..." My voice trails off. "Can I come along with you? I really want to know how she's doing?"

"You can meet her after I've gotten what I want" He paused. "You seem to worry about this Adalyn even when she spreads gossips about you to others. Why is that?"

"Is that your last question?"

"You can say so"

"Adalyn was the one who'd informed me about alpha Beckett plans to kill me. If not for her, I would have been long dead. She would never spread such a gossip about me. At least not without a reason"

Xendith nods. "I see your point. Any last question you have for me?"

"You and your brothers. What are your vampire powers?"

"You already know I have speed. Pliar has an incredible healing power. Cali can read minds and Aklan, the last of the quad, has a sharp vison. He can see far and wide. Even as deep as into a person's soul. Our mother is the most powerful vampire of all time. She has a combination of these four powers and more that's why we're hoping mother would be able to buy the story of you as our mate"

"If that's the case, wouldn't your mother have seen this coming already? I mean, she would have seen you saving me from Alpha Beckett and bringing me into your pack from miles away"

"She should have but that's the fun part" Xendith says. "If Aklan never saw it, there's no way mother would have. So, if you have something, you're hiding up your sleeve; hide it well, Kaia. If I find out later-and it affects the pack in any way-you'd wish I never saved you that night"

It was a threat. One that was loud and crystal clear. I nod. "I wouldn't dare trespass you"

"I'm glad we're on the same page. Shall we head back home since you aren't hungry?"

I nod. "Can we walk? Your speeding off makes me motion sick"

Xendith chuckled. "Sure. If you say so"

We walked back to the pack mansion. There, we see Aklan spacing to and fro by the front yard. When our eyes held contact, he approached us with a sense of urgency as though something was wrong.

"Where are you two coming from?" Aklan asked. "It's so frustrating that I couldn't tell where you'd been"

"Relax. We were just on a date" Xendith replies.

"At least say something next time you're taking her out. Kaia isn't just yours, you know"

"Okay, kid"

"Who are you calling kid?" The two brothers bantered off.

It was then I realized that Xendith was right. Even with Aklan's sharp vision, he couldn't tell where Xendith and I had been.

Should I be thankful? No. I needed to find a way to fix this or else the quad brothers were going to be suspicious of me and eventually be aware of the power that I possess.

I couldn't let that happen. Never.