CLAIMED BY THE MAD ALPHA BROTHERS.

ANOKAI'S POV.

The first person I killed in my entire life was my mate, the alpha's son- I had found him cheating, moaning underneath my own sister when I killed him.

The second person was my sister. I didn't let her say anything, didn't let her screams finish when I did the same to her.

The third person was my past self, the one who killed two people. I had to send her away to live in this underground prison cell where the air was stale, and the sun was forbidden to enter.

My name is Anokai Rivers, the second daughter of the beta of Rivermoon Pack and the branded murderer for the death of the alpha's son. For three years, I have lived in this prison, atoning for my mistake and thinking about whether I'll do anything different.

I can't remember anything about the murder. It had all happened in a blur. It was my first shift as a wolf, and I had just turned 18 when I found my sister, the gorgeous one whom everyone always picked and loved, underneath my mate, Ethan, talking shit about me as they had beautiful, damning sex.

I didn't even let them finish before I sent them to the moon goddess.

But if I were to change something, I'd ask Ethan why.

Why did he decide to throw everything we had away?

Why did he pick her over me?

Why did he pick the day I was supposed to give him myself, a day that he was supposed to mark me and make me his Luna, and give it to the sister that has always haunted my entire existence?

I wasn't all that perfect. For starters, I could not read. The words on the books always seemed too small or never stayed in one place. It was my one big flaw and the one that my parents hated the most. But Ethan loved it. He would read me books, paint the picture so well in my head that it didn't make me feel like I could not read.

He would buy me the prettiest jewelry and ask me to flaunt it in front of everyone. When he traveled for Pack matters, he would return with the most gorgeous dresses, asking me to wear them for him and complimenting me. He was the perfect mate to have and the heartthrob of every woman in the pack.

I was happy. We knew we were each other's mates at 16, and for the two years we were together, it was bliss.

My father never liked me. My family never wanted me. I was the bad seed, the one who stained their image like every other second daughter. Aurelia was the perfect one. The blessed child, the best of both of them.

But Ethan never made me feel like that. He flaunted me, flaunted us, flaunted our bond.

I was his mate, and everyone knew it.

So why?

Why did he betray me?

Why was he on top of Aurelia? Why did he tell her he never loved me and was just toying with me? That I had never mattered to him and would never matter to him?

I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes, making it so hard for me to breathe. For three years, all I wanted was answers, but there was no one to give them.

No Ethan.

No Aurelia.

No parents because they disowned me the minute they heard about the killings.

My thoughts were brought to a halt as the door to the cell opened and two pack guards entered. They didn't even let me say anything before one of them threw something on my head, blurring my vision, and then hauled me up.

For three years, I have not seen anyone, let alone been taken out of my cell. Fear gripped me. I went feral-kicking, thrashing against anything.

"What is happening! Tell me! What is going on!"

I heard a hiss from one of the guards before a hand grabbed my neck, choking me.

"If you move again, I'll kill you." He growled.

My mind was spinning, different thoughts echoing in my head. Was I going to be killed? Is this the last day for me?

I didn't know where they were leading me to, just that we were moving. I could hear doors opening, greetings being muttered, but nothing else.

For years, I had waited for the day that I'd be taken out of the cell or the day someone would come and see me. But never in my life had I expected this, for a hood to cover my face and to be led to nowhere.

Cold washed over my skin.

This was it.

This was my death.

I gulped down as I resolved in my heart. If this is my end, then so be it.

At least I'll stop feeling guilty and stop thinking about why Ethan had picked Aurelia, or why he said those words to her.

Suddenly, we stopped, and I heard a knock, "Your highness, we're here."

My heart stopped altogether. The word 'your highness' running through my head again and again.

This could only mean one thing.

The alpha.

I wasn't able to finish the rest of my thoughts as the door opened and the guard led me inside the room. One of them removed the hood from my head, the sunlight streaming in as I closed my eyes.

I opened it again, making sure I was seeing clearly as I blinked. My heart did a leap in my chest, my entire face blank as I stared into the face of the person I thought I had murdered. The person who has haunted me for three years.

It was Ethan.

Ethan, my mate. Ethan, the first person I ever killed in my entire life.

Ethan, the reason I was locked in the cell, left to rot away for the rest of my entire life, seated on the alpha's chair, his eyes boring deep into mine.

Ethan, who excited me, made me feel on top of the world, only to snatch everything back from me.

But it wasn't just Ethan.

I looked at his side, at the woman perched on his table in a red dress and her hair packed in a bun.

It was my sister, Aurelia, looking down at me with a smug expression. There was a long slash on her right cheek, one I was sure was my kill that put it on her face.

"Hello, sister."

My heart was beating fast in my chest as I stepped away, flicking my eyes to both of them.

No, no, no, no, none of this can be real.

I killed them.

I killed both of them.

That's why I've been in the cell for three years, begging the moon goddess for forgiveness for my actions.

My eyes suddenly widened as I looked at both of them, the truth dawning on me.

Unless--

Ethan rose from his chair and stalked towards me. I moved back until my back hit the wall of the office, and he stopped in front of me, eyes looking down,

"Hello Anokai." He tipped my jaw forward with a finger, "We have so much to talk about."

ANOKAI'S POV.

"Leave us." He said, his eyes still on me.

The guards exited the room, leaving me, him, and Aurelia inside.

"Don't touch that filth, Ethan-

"Leave, Aurelia." He cut her off.

"Bu..but..

He removed his hand, walking away from me and towards Aurelia before putting his mouth on hers, kissing her passionately right in front of me.

"I have to do this alone, babe. Don't worry. She can't do anything to me. She's not that stupid to try anything, okay?"

That seemed to appease Aurelia as she placed a kiss on his cheek, her eyes meeting mine and shooting daggers right at me, "We'll meet again, sister. And I'll repay you for this." She spat, touching the line on her face.

She closed the door as she exited, leaving Ethan to turn to me and the air in the room to go stale.

I looked at him as if wanting my eyes to pierce through him.

He is alive.

Ethan, the man I thought I had killed, labored over, spent three years in prison for, was alive, together with my sister.

My heartbeat increased as he walked towards me again and stopped, his eyes roaming my face like he was searching for something.

He smiled, "I've missed you, my feisty Anokai. I've missed you so much."

He leaned close, touching my forehead with his and nudging it.

Rage swelled within me. I pulled away immediately, disgust and pain etching my features, "How dare you touch me?"

"Relax, Anokai. I brought..

"You brought...!" I cut him off, a scoff escaping my lips. "You brought? Three years in that cell and you've been alive? You left me there! You left me to rot, to suffer, to be tortured every single day, and you've been living!"

He rolled his eyes like I was a child saying nonsense, "You tried to kill me. Get over..

"You cheated on me!" I yelled out, my voice filling the room.

For three years, I had tried not to think about his betrayal because I had killed him in the process. But now...

The weight of everything crushed down on my chest, constricting my lungs, my veins.

"You cheated on me with my sister. You insulted me, called me a fool. We were mates, destined by the goddess. We had a bond, and you knew the horror I faced at home, and you still decided to cheat. You picked her over me like everyone."

Tears laced my eyes, threatening to fall out anytime soon.

"Why?"

"Was I not worth anything that you decided to show me more of how worthless I was?"

My lips parted in shock as he replied, a tear sliding down my cheeks,

"Yes."

I stared at him in disbelief as he scoffed, a low rumble of laughter escaping his lips, "Look at yourself, Anokai. You can't read. Your family doesn't want you. You're worse than an omega on the street. And what? What?"

"You were expecting to be my Luna?"

This time he laughed more than before, the sound of it sinking my heart below and below my stomach,

"I was never going to mate with you. You're nothing. The only reason I've released you from your chambers is to atone for the careless mistake of trying to kill me."

He grabbed my jaw, forcing me to look at him with tear-stained eyes, "Refuse me or say anything stupid, and I'll kill your sister and entire family. I don't care for them. Just like I don't for you."

"Deny me, and I'll put you back in that cell. This time with no food, no water. I'll ask them to torture you every minute of the day, drive you insane and wild, and let you rot till your last day."

My heart clutched within my chest. I wanted to laugh. To scoff. To do something, anything to let the pain out.

Family? My family? The same one that had disowned me the moment they heard what I did without even listening? The same one that didn't care for me for three years, even after knowing they were alive?

I didn't have a family.

I didn't have anyone.

I was a fool, just like I was three years ago. A plague. A curse.

No wonder my father hated me.

He continued, "Do you remember the Shadowcrest brothers?"

He didn't even let me speak, "of course you should remember them. I used to read everything to you since you can't read."

"The council wants a King, Anokai. And I want to be King." He started, his eyes boring into mine lazily.

"But the Shadowcrest brothers are in my way, and I want you to destroy them for me. For years, no one has been able to figure out their secret, what makes their heart pump, what makes their pack flourish above every other one." He paused, "but not anymore. Because you'll find out for me."

My eyes widened as I shook my head, "No. You won't do that to me. No.."

The Shadowcrest brothers were nothing out of a novel. Or even out of the real world, either.

They were evil, merciless, cruel, wicked. Any word one can find that means devil.

They killed as they wanted. Ate as they wanted.

They were devils in our clothing. Monsters in the werewolf world.

No one, not a single soul who has ever broken into their pack, has come out alive.

It was a death sentence, merciless and quick.

For years, every alpha has wanted their power, to get a taste of whatever they had and make it theirs, but all of them have always been killed.

To hear about them gave me chills, not to mention being near them, to be sent to them.

"They don't accept anybody into their pack. How do you expect me to do that?" I asked, tears dropping from my eyes.

"Don't worry, my beloved."

He walked away from me to his table, picking up a paper, "In the three years that you've been in the cell, the brothers have opened their pack up only to women. It seems their women are no longer enough to sate their hunger. But none of these women have made it back alive."

My heart sank further, "You're sending me to die."

"You're already dead, Anokai." He turned back, the words leaving his mouth casually.

"You leave in two weeks. And I want you to survive, or else your life here will be done. Maybe if you survive, I'll make you my Luna. Isn't that what you've always wanted?"

I eyed him with disgust. How had I ever liked him? How does Aurelia like him?

"I'll rather die than belong to you."

He was in front of me in no minute, his hand gripping my jaw forcefully, "I don't care how you do it. Use your body, your soul, anything. That's all you have. Make sure you learn them. Make sure they like you. Let them fall in love with you. When you're dumb, people like you. Be dumb. Be stupid. I want them destroyed."

He dropped his hand and brought out a handkerchief, cleaning his hand with it as if he had just touched dirt. When his eyes snapped to mine again, it wasn't the eyes I was used to.

It was pitch red, an alpha's eyes, "do not test me, Anokai. If you don't succeed, I'll reveal you to them, and I'll make sure they hunt you like sport. You remember how they hunt, right?"

I remembered. Because when he used to tell me, his eyes would gleam with excitement. Back then, I had thought it was nothing.

But now I could see it clearly. Because he was like them,

Mad and evil. With no care in the world.

"Take her out!" He yelled as the door opened.

But I will succeed. I have to.

Not because of my family. I had no family.

Not because I cared who would become the alpha king.

Or because of any stupid secret.

I refuse to be his pawn, his plaything, something at his beck and call.

And I also refuse to let him live.

My life won't be a novel like the other girls who would let the man go after treating them horribly.

I'll succeed, and I'll come back to kill him. I'll make sure to tear his bones from his body this time.

Even if it means the brothers killing me first.

Even if it means facing whatever horrors with them.

I'll face them, and I'll come back to kill you, Ethan Silvermoon.

I promise myself that.

EMIRIEL'S POV.

Monsters.

Gods.

Devils.

Those are the names we've been given and called over time. Since we were six, we've been branded as 'the mad brothers', alphas of the shadowcrest pack, the unattainable, the undetectable.

It should be something to be proud of, to revel in, to boast and shout about.

But instead, it's a shame.

A plague.

A curse.

A disaster. Because every good thing comes with a price, and hunger is our price to pay for whatever good we have left in us.

My eyes flicked to where Rowan was seated, a woman maid was pleasuring him, his hand on her ass as she bounced up and down on his cock, her moans mixed with pain. I looked over at Malakai, Melissa, his personal favorite, bent back as he pushed in and out of her, spanking her as she pleaded for him to go faster.

It has always been a shock how Melissa could handle him, and that's why he liked her.

I looked at Nikolai, our above-and-beyond. His hunger was insatiable, unmatched. We were all cursed, but his hunger knew no bottom.

Three women were on him, two on their knees, taking turns kissing each other, fondling each other, and sucking his dick.

The last one was on his face, feeding him all sorts of small fruits while burying herself right in his mouth.

This was our shame, our harem, our dirty little secret.

Never to be told.

Never to be seen.

It was our hunger, unreached, unmatched, insatiable.

I watched all of this with a bored expression, my eyes drooping, almost closing. I was the only one who had grown past all of this. Our hunger knew no limit, from food to sport, to sex, we had to do it 100 times more than the average werewolf.

It was our curse and our life.

A knock came on the door, halting every movement in the room. Malakai slid out of Melissa, spanking her one more time as she walked naked to the door before opening it. Our beta, Basil, worked in, nodding at me before pushing a woman inside the room.

"Another spy?" I asked, groaning as I did.

When will they get the memo and stop sending them?

"Yes, my alpha. She was fou...

He stopped as I stood up, stalking towards the whimpering woman on the floor, her hands clasped together.

"Pl...plea...please I beg you...I don't want to die...please.."

I grabbed her jaw, my wolf coming so close to the surface of my skin. He wanted something. Anything. Even if it was this woman in front of me.

"Who sent you?"

"Pl...plea.." tears rolled down her cheeks, her lips quivering as she stared into my eyes.

"Who sent you?" I asked again, my voice low and calm.

I clenched my jaw, stopping the growl that was about to slip out.

"Ridgesaw pa..ridges...alpha Cole.."

I released her from my grip, standing up as I stared at her, contemplating whether to kill her or not. How many of her have I killed?

Thirty?

Fifty?

Hundred?

I'd lost count at this point.

And I know exactly the moment her blood touched down, I won't be able to stop myself.

To stop my hunger.

I'd said Nikolai was the worst of us all, but I lied. I am the worst. Sex, food, sport, hunting, all those still satiated my brother.

But I needed something new. Something worth fighting for. Something that didn't kneel and beg. Something to challenge me.

"What should I do with her, Alpha?"

"Please, I beg you...spare me and I'll leave. I beg you...he...

In a flash, I was in front of her, my teeth sinking into her neck as her blood spilled on the floor. Her cries came to an end, life draining out of her body.

I pulled back, wiping my jaw with my sleeve as I stared at her lazily. She was small. They were all small. And yet they still kept sending them in hopes that they'd figure out something about us. And they'll use that to destroy us, take our power.

But instead, we kept killing them or enjoying them. Some became too attached to leave, like Melissa, all in hopes that we might fall in love with her or keep her forever. Others tried to run, but most of them only ended up dead, unable to leave this place.

The minute you entered our world, it became yours too. We never forced them, so they never blamed us.

"Clean this up, and send a message to Cole. Tell him we'll be attacking in a week. Ask him to prepare." I said as I returned to where I was sitting, watching my brothers continue their actions.

"Yes, alpha. The priestess is outside. She said she has news."

At that, everyone stopped what they were doing, my brother's eyes snapping to Basil.

Nikolai was the first to talk, "Everyone out!"

The beta carried the dead woman off the ground, the other ladies slipping their clothes on as they exited the room. At their exit, the priestess, a middle-aged woman, walked into the room, scrunching her nose up at the smell of everything.

"Do you have news this time?" Rowan spoke first.

"Yes, your highnesses. I have come bearing news."

"Good or bad?" Malakai asked.

The priestess gulped down, her smile faltering on her face before she replied, "Bad. Very bad."

I could already feel Rowan rolling his eyes, Malakai leaning back into a bored position, and Nikolai crossing his legs-their actions whenever they didn't want to hear anything.

"Go on Miasan." I said.

"I have finally found her, your highnesses. Your mate. She has been found."

We all fell silent at her words. For years, we had thought ourselves mateless, another curse to add to our hunger.

Miasan continued, "But there's a problem, my lords."

Nikolai scoffed, "What problem can there be, Miasan? This is good news. She's our mate."

She shook her head, her white eyes full of pity. It was a wonder how she always seemed to know where to look without eyeballs, "She'll be your doom or your making. She'll have the power to liberate you from your hunger. Or she can push you further into it. It'll be challenging, riveting, you'll reach a state you've never reached before."

I felt all my brothers sit up, their ears now attentive and intrigued. I met Nikolai's eyes, a small smile dancing on his lips.

They've also been bored, grown tired of the senseless killing and sex.

"If she's your making, your highness. It'll be something to celebrate. But if she's your doom.."

She shuddered, the rest of her words dying in her throat.

"What would happen if she's our doom?" Malakai asked.

She shook her head, a distraught look on her face, "I don't know either, my majesties. I was only shown. It'll be everyone's undoing if not taken care of."

Something rippled in my chest. Sweet. Charming. A challenge. Just like I've always wanted.

"And when is she to arrive?" Rowan asked.

"Soon. Soon." The priestess said as she bowed and exited the room.

I closed my eyes, savoring her words all over again. I could feel the blood of the woman I just killed trickling down my throat, tangling with my excitement.

For years, it has been a senseless hunger, killing, maiming, claiming with nothing to look forward to.

Now there was something to look forward to. My wolf growled inside of me, whining and snarling. Red flashed in my eyes as I shut it, calming myself down.

When I opened them, I met my brothers, and I could tell we were all thinking the same: "I want every woman prepared. We're going to have lots of fun."