Chapter 1 Betrayal

Ophelie

"Pick me! Pick me! I'll surely pleasure you well tonight!" One of the ladies yelled.

"I'll give you your money's worth. The others can't match up to my skills. Pick me instead!" Another yelled, pushing down her body so her breasts were in full display.

And so went on the shouts and yells in the nightclub. It was a sight I was accustomed to, so I paid them no heed. All I really wanted to do was find one of the vacant rooms, and swallow the pills I'd just bought for my headache.

"You," a calm voice called out just then. For some reason, I felt the person was talking to me. I kept on walking, determined to rest before Madam Collete arrived and caught me loitering around instead of serving the customers. She'd turn her face into an ugly scowl, and warn me to behave, else she'd cut down my salary.

"You, Redhead." The same voice called again. There was only one redhead around. Me. I turned slowly to meet the gaze of a young man standing a few steps away from me. He had a haughty expression on his face, barely sparing a second glance at the ladies that were desperately tugging on his arms.

"Me?" I pointed at myself with a frown.

He nodded, a confident smile on his face, his actions seeming to point out that he was doing me a favor. I scoffed.

"I'm not available." I said, and turned to leave.

"How dare you walk away?!" A man-probably his subordinate-thundered, throwing a brief silence around the ladies' ring, and the strip hall. I ignored them, and continued walking. I doubled my pace.

"Stop!" The young man ordered. He soon blocked my path.

"What do you mean by this? I already said I'm not available." I retorted, crossing my arms.

His eyes roamed over my body, then he nodded. "That can be changed. You're the one I've chosen." He grinned.

Nausea enveloped me. "And what am I supposed to do?"

The man from before opened his mouth to speak, but the young man raised his hand, effectively stopping him.

"Name your price." The young man said. I looked at him closely, getting irritated, but still inwardly admitting that he was good looking. His jade-colored eyes held mine, and I subconsciously clenched my fists. His aura surfaced-a green mist shrouding his body-and I narrowed my eyes.

"A werewolf?" I whispered.

His grin broadened, the arrogant look coming back to his eyes.

I shook my head. "My apologies, but–" I began saying, when the shrill voice of Madam Collete interrupted me. Her footsteps were hurried as she came over and pulled me away.

"A word with you, Ophelie," she said aloud, flashing the young man an apologetic look.

Out of earshot, she pushed me roughly, and I stumbled a few steps back into the dark corner.

"Do you know who he is?" She whispered, her voice angry.

I was taken aback. That wasn't the first time I was turning down a customer. In fact, she was the one who enforced the 'girls freedom of rejection' law in the nightclub, so I was surprised to see her acting so scared.

"A werewolf." I replied. I'd seen the young man around. He frequented the club as many times as he could, and was the ladies' favorite. Some of the girls had even offered to pleasure him for free. Those were some of the rumors I'd heard, and I hadn't really bothered enquiring about his identity. He could be a mortal or not, for all I cared.

"He's an Alpha, lass. And from my investigations, he seems to come from a powerful pack." Madam Collete said, a hint of fear in her voice.

"That can't be. I didn't sense any hint of an Alpha aura from him. He looks young too." I shook my head, and moved forward, trying to take a peek in his direction. Broken out of their momentary trance, the ladies were back to shouting and yelling for his attention. I turned my nose up in utter disgust.

"You have to do as he says." Madam Collete said firmly, her tone leaving no room for refusal.

"But–" I tried to argue.

"If you refuse, you'd have to find another place to work. I can't risk drawing the rage of any of the powerful packs." She interrupted me, her voice lowered, but still betraying her annoyance.

I took a deep breath, and headed back in his direction, without saying another word to her.

"Changed your mind?" The young man grinned once more. The urge to smack off that arrogant look from his face filled me, but I held myself back. If Madam Collete's sources were to be trusted and he was truly an Alpha, then hitting him could very well spell my death.

I didn't respond to his question. I stood still, waiting for him to make a move. He gestured at his subordinate and whispered something into his ear. Then he led the way to the VIP corner. I followed closely behind. His room was spacious and soundproof just like all the other rooms in the VIP corner. Once, one of the customers had complained that he felt someone was eavesdropping on him while he was inside. I wasn't sure if that was what prompted Madam Collete to make all the rooms soundproof or not.

The young man bolted the door. "To ensure you wouldn't change your mind once more," he said, when my eyebrows shot up in question.

"My name is Loic." He said.

"I don't care. Let's get started. Do you want a strip dance, or?" I waved my hand in response to his attempt at introduction. My bad impression of him wasn't going to change. I went over to the strip pole in the corner, waiting for his response.

"A strip dance? You're too naive, aren't you?" As he spoke, his aura surged, and the hair on my skin stood on end. A chill crept up my spine, and my eyes narrowed. I backed away. He approached me.

"You're quite a beauty, I must admit. Unfortunately, you've been caught up in the game." He said, not halting even one moment in his steps.

I had a bad premonition. "What do you mean?" I asked.

"What do I mean? I need your bloodline." He grinned. This time, he looked like a descendant of hell, as he whipped out a strange dagger. My heart skipped a beat as I saw the ancient inscriptions on it. I knew what it was, and I knew what'd happen if I came in contact with it.

"M-my bloodline?" My voice barely qualified as a whisper.

"I must applaud your disguising skills. I wouldn't have noticed, but for the star mark on your neck." His smile was cold. He brandished the dagger.

My hand subconsciously rubbed on the side of my neck. "I don't know what you're talking about." My back hit the wall just then, and I let my gaze turn panicky. My eyes darted to the door, my mind whirring into action as I sought a means of escape.

"You don't?" He chuckled. "To tell you the truth, I'm not a fan of bloodshed. But like I told you earlier, I need your bloodline. It's the final step to fully unlocking my powers as the Alpha of my pack." He explained, his eerie voice a sharp contrast to his words.

"The nightclub won't let you get away with this." I gritted my teeth.

"They will. Once they know who you are." His eyes narrowed, and the smile disappeared from his face. "Let's get this done and over with." He declared, raising the dagger. As it descended close to me, my body stilled. The dagger harnessed stronger power than I'd ever felt, forcing my body to tremble at its might.

"Once I take away your essence, I'd finally become the strongest Alpha in the werewolf race. Isn't that right, Demon?" He asked, and I shuddered.

I'd thought he'd been bluffing, trying to test the waters.

Hearing him call me by my identity confirmed that he wasn't joking when he'd said he knew who I was, and had seen through my disguise.

Plea lay on the tip of my tongue, but I refused to say a word. I'd never beg. It was my pride.

"Since you know who I am, no need to pretend anymore, I guess." I scoffed, waving my hand and creating a sharp black gale around myself. The air whistled, and a slight tremor went through the ground, creating a little barrier between me and the pompous werewolf. He watched me silently, and I could've sworn I saw amusement in his eyes.

"Whatever suits you. Queen Ophelie, surely you don't think I am stupid enough to face you without preparation, do you?" He asked, tucking the dagger back into the belt beneath his shirt. I chuckled as he began approaching me.

"You're a werewolf. Unfit to even look into my eyes. Since you dared challenge me, only one of us would step out of that door alive today. And it won't be you." I stretched my hand forward, and gray smoke rose up slowly. It was my most lethal weapon. The poison of death.

If he knew what it was, he didn't show it, instead he continued walking towards me with even more determination than before.

"Oh, Queen Ophelie. How the mighty has fallen. Do you think you're powerful enough to take me down?" He smirked. "Maybe a few years ago, that'd have been possible. But now? Tsk, what a pity." He looked at me, a hint of disgust in his eyes.

"When has a werewolf defeated a demon before?" I sneered.

"How long are you going to pretend for? I know about your injury. I know what you're doing here, in the human realm." He revealed.

My eyes went wide, and I swallowed. I suddenly had a bad premonition. "It doesn't matter. Knowing about my injury doesn't mean you'll defeat me." I boasted.

"Even if I create a circle of chaos?" He asked, smile teasing the sides of his lips.

My heart stood still. "H-how did you know about the circle of chaos?" I asked, trying to connect to my powers. It whirled faster and faster within my chest.

"Should I give you a little hint? Maybe your subordinates aren't so loyal to you after all. And maybe you're going to meet your end today." He shrugged.

"Dream on, Werewolf." I spat, sending a full ball of the gray smoke on my fingers towards him. It flew in his direction with great speed, and just a few inches away from him, it froze in place and dissipated like it was never there.

"I was also told how to defeat you." He bragged. He played with the dagger in his hand.

"Who did?" Anger boiled in my chest. As a demon, I was super familiar with betrayal. But my subordinates were different. They were sworn to me by essence and life. None of them was capable of betraying-

The dagger struck my chest just then, and I gasped. Caught completely off guard by his action, I stumbled a step back.

"Die!" Loic growled, as his arm pushed forward.

I didn't feel pain. Demons never did. Instead, I felt my essence seeping away. My knees caved, and I fell to the ground. He towered above me, a mix of hate and pity on his face.

"I had no choice." I heard him whisper as my eyes shut close. He left the room.

A bright light shrouded me just then, and a cold breeze caressed my weak body.

"Do you want to come over to the other side, or do you wish for a chance to avenge yourself?" A voice asked, the tone breathy and faint. I opened my mouth to speak, but words wouldn't form.

With my final essence gone, my eyes finally closed.

Forever.