Chapter 3

The ceremony hadn't even begun yet, and my body already felt like it had been dragged through dust.

"Doris, hurry up with ironing my dress!"

Veronica's sharp, impatient voice echoed through the house.

It hadn't even been five minutes since she'd dumped the dress on my hands, yet she'd come to check on it at least five times. Not because the dress wasn't ready, but because frustrating me was the point.

She was the only one who had found a mate.

Julius Armstrong would claim her today, obviously.

When I finished ironing, I carried the dress to her room and laid it carefully on her bed.

I didn't wait for approval, I quickly turned and left her room immediately.

"Doris."

Henry's voice stopped me.

"You're not dressed yet?"

I looked down at myself, then back at him. I tugged lightly at the torn gown I was wearing, silently telling him this was it.

This was what I had.

His brows pulled together in confusion.

"Wait... Doris," he said slowly. "Is this what you're wearing to the ceremony?"

He pointed at my gown.

"Even a beggar wouldn't dress like this," he muttered, anger slipping into his voice.

Before I could react, he grabbed my hand and pulled me along.

He didn't stop until we reached his room.

He released my hand and walked to his bed. "I got this for you."

I followed his gaze.

A dress lay neatly spread out on the mattress.

Long beautiful pink gown.

My breath caught.

Tears burned my eyes before I could stop them, and the next thing I knew, I was hugging him tightly.

When I finally pulled away, questions rushed into my head.

I grabbed my notebook and quickly wrote them down.

How did you get the money for this?

You didn't steal it from the twins, right?

I held the notebook up to him.

"No," he said quickly, shaking his head as a small laugh escaped him. "I didn't steal it, mom gave me the money."

Relief washed over me, and before I could stop myself, I smiled.

I picked up the dress carefully. It was soft beneath my fingers, lighter than anything I'd ever owned.

I held it against my body and turned slowly, the fabric brushing my legs as I spun.

Henry smiled at the sight. "Why don't you go put it on?" he said gently. "The ceremony will start in a few minutes."

He nudged me playfully toward the door, and I hurried to my room.

I slipped into the dress carefully, afraid of tearing it. When I finally looked up, my gaze met the mirror or rather, the broken piece of one nailed to the wall.

The girl staring back at me didn't look like someone used to hiding in corners.

For the first time, I looked beautiful.

Excited, I rushed out of my room to show Henry.

I didn't make it far.

My stepmother stood at the corridor.

Her eyes swept over me slowly, from head to toe, that familiar look of disgust settling on her face.

"Where did you steal the money to buy this dress?" she asked coldly, stepping closer.

Before I could react, her fingers grabbed the fabric.

The twins stepped out of their room just then.

"So now you're stealing from us?" Vanessa sneered, her face fully done, eyes sharp with jealousy.

"How can you wear a dress prettier than ours?" Veronica added. "It's not like you even have a mate, you mute girl."

My stepmother tightened her grip on the dress. "Go back inside," she ordered. "Change into that rag you were wearing before and give this gown to Veronica."

My hands shook.

"No." Henry's voice cut through the corridors.

He came running toward us, his eyes dark with anger.

"I bought the dress for her," he said firmly. "She's wearing it to the ceremony. Is there a problem with that?"

My stepmother turned on him, her lips curling. "So I gave you money to buy clothes for yourself, and instead you wasted it on this sl*t?"

Before anyone could stop her, she yanked the fabric hard.

The sound of tearing filled the house.

The dress ripped against my body.

I gasped, clutching the torn fabric to my chest as tears spilled down my face, hot and unstoppable.

Henry reacted instantly, he pulled off his jacket and wrapped it around me, shielding me from their eyes.

"Come," he said softly, guiding me back toward my room.

He stood between me and them until I was safely inside, then closed the door.

I slid down to the floor, shaking.

The dress lay ruined at my feet.

A few minutes later, the door swung open.

"Doris."

My stepmother's voice was sharp, impatient.

"Get up and come out. Now."

She didn't wait for a response, the door slammed as she walked away.

I pushed myself off the floor, my body still trembling, I slipped back into the old torn gown and stepped out of the room.

For a moment, I just stood there.

The twins were already dressed, glowing in expensive fabrics and jewelry. Their laughter filled the house... I was barefoot, my feet pressed against the cold floor, watching them like someone who didn't belong in the same space.

A sharp clap echoed.

"Doris," my stepmother snapped. "Stop staring like a fool and start walking."

I obeyed.

I carried cartons of drinks from the house to the ceremony grounds.

My arms shook under the weight, but no one noticed or maybe they did and simply didn't care.

The twins laughed loudly with their friends, snapping their fingers at me as if I were a pet.

"Doris, bring more wine."

"Doris, wipe this."

"Doris, you spilled that."

Each command peeled away another layer of my dignity.

Around us, other girls sat proudly beside their families, their faces bright with excitement. Today, they will be claimed officially.

High-profile ladies occupied the front rows, whispering amongst themselves.

There were rumors the Alpha would choose his Luna today.

Most believed it would be Clara Anthony.

She sat at the center, her posture perfect, chin lifted, confidence written into every movement.

She had been close to the Alpha since childhood, to everyone else, the match made sense.

I stood at the edge of it all, holding a tray, invisible.

Then an elder in the pack stepped forward.

His staff struck the ground once.

"The mating ceremony," he announced, voice carrying across the crowd, "has begun."

"Doris, hurry up with those drinks."

My stepmother's sharp voice cut through the music and laughter.

I lowered my head and obeyed, I always did. After all, I had learned early how to disappear.

The tray felt heavier with every step, my hands trembling beneath its weight. Sweat soaked into my clothes, I didn't smell like perfume or excitement like the other girls...I smelled like dirt.

By the time the ceremony truly began, my entire body ached.

As I moved through the crowd, one of the twins brushed past me deliberately. Her shoulder hit the tray, and a cup slipped free, shattering against the ground.

She gasped loudly, eyes wide in fake shock.

"Oh no," she said, turning quickly to her mother. "Look at the mess Doris made."

Her voice carried.

"I don't understand why Doris can't do a single thing right," she added, shaking her head.

Every conversation stopped.

All eyes turned to me.

My heart slammed painfully against my chest as I dropped to my knees, gathering the broken pieces with shaking fingers.

The glass bit into my skin, but I didn't stop.

No one cared.

Except two people.

A shadow fell beside me.

Then another.

Before I could react, someone gently pulled my hand away from the shards.

Blade Lucious.

He took over without a word, picking up the broken glass carefully. Henry knelt beside him, helping just as quietly.

I shook my head, panic flooding me, I didn't want them dragged into this neither do I want more troubles.

They both looked up at me.

And smiled.

"It's okay," Blade said softly.

He gathered the last pieces and walked back to his seat as if nothing had happened.

Henry stayed a moment longer. He disposed of the glass, then pressed a clean cloth into my hands.

I nodded.

His mother noticed.

"Henry," she snapped. "What do you think you're doing? Go sit with the other boys. That's where you belong."

He hesitated, then obeyed.

Her gaze shifted to me coldly.

"And you," she said quietly, her voice low enough to cut deeper. "After today, you won't be coming back to my house."

My breath caught.

"I don't need you anymore," she continued. "I don't need trash like you under my roof."

I stood there, frozen.

"There's a rejected omega who needs a mate," she went on casually, as if discussing groceries. "You'll be going to him."

Her lips curved slightly.

"Veronica will be mated to the Gamma. Vanessa will be mated either to the Alpha or the Beta. I won't have your bad luck around my family anymore."

I nodded.

That was all I knew how to do.

I wasn't invited to sit anywhere, so when no one was looking, I slipped away to a corner. I leaned against the wall at the edge and watched from there.

An outsider.

Then the music faded.

A figure stepped forward.

Alpha Ryder.

The crowd erupted in cheers as he raised his hand.

"Today," he announced, his voice carrying across the grounds, "I will be choosing my Luna, according to the laws of our pack."

The cheers grew louder.

Alpha Ryder Stone had ruled Moon Park for three years.

I'd heard how he took the throne after his parents were poisoned and killed, a tragedy that shook the entire pack.

Many had doubted him then because he was young.

They had been wrong.

In three years, Ryder had proven himself.

The pack was secure under his rule, its borders reinforced, its enemies silent.

Whispers said rivals feared Ryder more than even his father.

Alpha Ryder's gaze searched the crowd and settled on me. I looked away quickly, but not before I caught the faint smile on his lips.