Slowly, she lifted her gaze, Beta Simon stood before her, a sharp calculation dancing in his eyes.
"You little waste," he spat. "So what if that's what Emily plans? At least she's trying to pay off my debt."
Sarina's breath hitched.
"The Alpha has been closed off ever since his wife died," he continued, pacing. "No woman has caught his attention. But if Emily succeeds..." His lips curled. "He'll have no choice but to marry her."
Her stomach dropped.
"And when that happens," he added, his voice lowering, "we will gain access to everything. Don't you dare try to ruin this." he warned sternly with a finger pointed at her face.
A soft giggle broke through the tension. Sarina turned her head slowly to see Emily leaning lazily against the wall, arms folded, amusement dancing in her eyes.
"Do you actually still have a crush on the Alpha?" Emily mocked. "That's pathetic."
Sarina swallowed hard, a faint red color rising onto her cheeks at the mention of her crush on the alpha. For years she'd only dared to look at him from afar but never went close, she knew she could never dream of having him, but she just couldn't bear to stand aside and watch Emily scheme against him for her own selfish reasons.
"You're just a half-breed," Emily continued, stepping closer. "Born from some random human woman. You're nothing in this pack." Her lips curled. "The Alpha doesn't even know you exist."
Each word struck her deeper than the slap her father had just dealt her, But Sarina stayed silent, she always did, because what else could she do?
She had been left on this doorstep by her own mother like unwanted baggage. Raised not as a daughter but as a servant, a mistake her father tolerated. As for love...she doubts he ever felt it for her at all.
"But Dad..." she tried to reason with him again, her voice barely above a whisper. He couldn't possibly think he could just deceive the alpha and actually succeed. He could be killed if the alpha caught on to their plans.
"Enough!" Beta Simon snapped, cutting her off sharply. "If you have any sense of gratitude, you'll keep your mouth shut."
Sarina's chest tightened, though she had never felt love from her father, she would never be able to bear it if he was harmed in any way. Alpha Leonard Kane wasn't one to mess with, he was a very dangerous man.
"You always try to be a good daughter, don't you?" her father added, his voice deceptively calm. "Now it's time to prove it."
A chill crept down her spine at his words, she could see the flash of greed in his eyes, she instantly knew that whatever he wanted to make her do was something she would not like.
"What... do you want me to do?" she asked, her voice small despite her effort to sound steady.
Emily's smile widened. "Oh, it's simple." She stepped forward, her heels clicking softly against the marble floor.
"Alpha Jones from the Moonstone pack just arrived," she said casually. "And as we all know..." Her gaze flicked over Sarina with cruel intent. "He loves beautiful girls."
Sarina's blood ran cold at the mention of that man. He was a disgusting predator who shamelessly lusted over younger girls. Her father surely wasn't planning to make her go to him right?
"And Dad recently found out that he has a particular taste..." Emily continued,
"Virgins," she finished softly.
"No..." Sarina shook her head, backing away. "No, Dad-please-"
"This is a deal worth millions," Beta Simon cut in smoothly. "Not to mention we would get Moonstone Pack's support."
Sarina's eyes filled with panic, they weren't asking her to go to him, they had already decided to give her to him.
"You should be honored," Emily added mockingly. "Finally, you'd have some use for this family. Good thing you're still a virgin, he will happily do whatever we want after he has tasted you."
Sarina couldn't even think about being anywhere near that disgusting man not to mention being given to him.
"No! I won't-"
The door suddenly burst open before she could finish voicing her protest, a guard stepped in immediately.
"Grab her." her father commanded.
Strong hands seized Sarina before she could react, she struggled wildly. "Let me go! Dad, please-!"
Her father didn't even look at her as he gave the order, "Do it."
Emily stepped closer, something gleaming in her hand.
Sarina's breath hitched. "What is that-"
Emily suddenly plunged a needle into her thigh.
"Ah...!" A sharp cry tore from her lips as pain flared.
A strange heat suddenly consumed her immediately.
"This," Emily whispered into her ear, her voice dripping with satisfaction, "will make sure you're... cooperative."
Sarina's body trembled, her breathing turning heavy, tears slowly blurring her deep green eyes.
"You'll be begging him by the end of the night," Emily added softly. "Like the desperate little whore you are."
"Take her to room 104," Beta Simon ordered.
The guard nodded. "Yes."
---
The world blurred, she was lifted by strong arms, carried like a sack of rice, She barely registered being dragged down the corridor.
The Blue Moon gala was a distant sound in her ears as the guard took her into a room, the sound of the door slamming behind her as the guard tossed her onto the bed.
Heat consumed her, her skin burned and her breath came in shallow gasps as something foreign twisted inside her-something that wasn't hers.
Minutes passed or maybe seconds, she couldn't tell.
Then the sound of approaching footsteps suddenly floated into her ears outside the door.
Her heart slammed violently against her chest.
"No..." she whispered, trying to move, to crawl, to escape, but her limbs refused to cooperate. She couldn't just stay here till that man came to violate her.
The handle turned and the door opened then heavy footsteps entered coming closer and closer.
This was it.
Tears blurred her vision as she forced her head up.
"I... I won't-"
A strangled groan suddenly cut her off. Sarina froze.
The man who stumbled into the room wasn't what she expected.
He was taller than the way she remembered alpha Jones, broader. Power radiated from him like a storm barely contained.
This was no soft, bloated predator, this was someone else entirely, someone dangerous, someone... terrifying.
He staggered forward, gripping the wall. Sarina's breath caught.
Her voice came out as a whisper.
"Alpha... Kane?"
Alpha Kane lifted his head, his eyes locked onto hers.
They were a dark silver color, sharp, predatory.
"Who are you?" he growled, his voice low and lethal.
Sarina flinched.
"I-I'm..." She hesitated, her instincts screaming at her not to reveal herself. "You're not supposed to be here."
His eyes narrowed.
"You're supposed to be with Emily," she added weakly, confusion slipping through her fear.
For a second, something flickered across his face, then he staggered, he reached for the bed and missed.
His weight crashed into her, knocking the breath from her lungs as they both fell back onto the mattress.
Sarina gasped.
His body pressed against hers-hotter than hers, somehow, stronger.
Overwhelming.
Her heart raced wildly.
"Alpha..." she whispered, her hands betraying her, as she gripped his shirt instead of pushing him away. Something strange was happening to her body, she was feeling hot...too hot. Her throat felt dry and a tight need was knotting in her lower belly.
A low growl rumbled from his chest.
"Something's wrong," he muttered, his breath hot against her neck it made small hair rise on her skin.
Sarina swallowed hard, her heart thundering. She had never been this close to the alpha before, his scent permeated her senses, masculine and hot, like burnt oak and smoke all doused in whiskey.
'Th-they drugged him too...?' she thought, realization dawning on her.
His grip on her tightened, his breathing heavy and his eyes flashed dangerously.
Their gazes locked and all of a sudden it felt like the air around them shifted. "You..." His lips moved and he stared at her intently with deep grey eyes. "You are so beautiful."
Sarina gasped when his rough fingers pushed a strand of her hair aside. That single touch made a sharp, charged tingle that felt like electrical currents shoot through her whole body. Unable to control it, she leaned into his touch.
This was wrong, she realized, so wrong, but she couldn't bring herself to stop it, couldn't bring herself to push him away or stop the way his eyes drank her in like she was the most delicious thing he'd ever seen. He traced a drawled touch down her neck, pushing the blonde strands on her hair aside, his fingers dancing over the opening of her shirt right over her cleavage.
Sarina's pulse spiked as the heat in her body flared even hotter under his touch.
"You feel hot..." he murmured, his lips slowly moving closer until his mouth closed over her neck. She gasped as he sucked her skin into his mouth, his hot tongue lapping until a moan slipped past her lips. Sarina could feel control slowly slipping away.
"I can't..." she whispered helplessly.
He growled, lower this time, more dangerous, thick with uncontrollable desire and heat.
His control was slipping too, his hands found hers, locking their fingers together tightly.
Outside, the music swelled.
Inside, fate took a sharp, irreversible turn.