I started planning. I continue my chores as normal, acting as if nothing has happened.
Slowly, I begin gathering supplies-clothes that have been thrown away or forgotten by other
pack members, leftover scraps from the kitchen, and water bottles whenever no one is looking.
Every moment with Martha feels bittersweet, like the final notes of a song I don't want to end.
"AURORA!"
The sharp, gravelly voice slices through my thoughts like a blade, making me jump.
My heart pounds as I snap out of my daze, locking eyes with the Pack Alpha.
"Y-yes, Alpha Slade," I stammer, quickly lowering my gaze and bowing my head.
Alpha Darius Slade-Jay's father.
Even in his age, he is a formidable man, standing at 6'1" with a lean, sinewy build.
His piercing gray eyes hold no warmth, and his salt-and-pepper hair does little to soften his intimidating presence.
I can feel his sneer without looking up.
"I need you to clean my office.
There are important guests arriving soon, and I need to make a good impression."
The disgust in his tone is evident. I know I'm the last person he'd ask if he had any other choice.
"Y-yes, Alpha," I whisper, my heartbeat rattling in my chest.
"Not later. Now," he snaps.
"Since you have the time to daydream, you have time to clean... omega."
The word drips with contempt.
I swallow the lump in my throat and nod. "Yes, Alpha."
Grabbing the cleaning supplies, I make my way to his office, my hands trembling slightly.
I knock and hear a curt, "Enter."
Pushing open the heavy mahogany doors, I step inside and immediately set to work, dusting shelves, clearing away trash, and wiping down surfaces.
The room smells of old books, leather, and faint cigar smoke.
"I need to take this," Alpha Slade mutters behind me, barely sparing me a glance.
"Don't touch anything on my desk."
"Yes, Alpha," I murmur, keeping my head lowered as I hear his heavy footsteps retreat from the room.
I exhale softly and continue cleaning, but something catches my eye.
Near his desk, a map lies crumpled on the floor.
My pulse quickens. I glance around, listening for any signs of his return.
When I hear nothing, I crouch down and swiftly shove the map into my trash bag, my fingers tingling with nerves.
'This could be my ticket out of here,' I think, forcing myself to keep my movements calm and natural.
I finish the last of my cleaning just as Alpha Slade returns.
"I'm finished, Alpha," I say, standing near the door, gaze lowered.
He grunts, barely looking around. "It looks decent, I guess. You're dismissed."
Bowing once more, I pick up the trash bags and leave.
Once I reach the dumpster, I quickly check my surroundings before pulling the map from the bag and tucking it into the waistband of my pants.
My hands shake slightly as I smooth out the creased paper in my room later that night.
My breath catches in my throat as I realize what I'm looking at.
'It's the layout of the territories and patrol routes.'
My mind races with possibilities.
This map could be the key to my escape.
I quickly commit as much of it to memory as possible before stashing it with my other supplies.
"Okay, I have food, water, some clothes, and a map. Is there anything else?" I murmur to myself.
Border patrol will be my biggest obstacle. Despite his cruelty, Alpha Slade is an excellent leader, and he takes security seriously.
I can't afford to make a single mistake.
Groaning, I flop back onto my cot, exhaustion pressing down on me.
'Mom, Moon Goddess... anyone who can hear me. Please watch over me and give me the strength to leave this place and finally find peace.
If that's not possible in this world, then I ask that you grant peace to my soul instead.'
Two uneventful weeks pass, and doubt begins to creep in.
Will I ever get the chance?
I continue acting normal, but inside, I'm growing restless.
Every time I move through the pack house, I feel eyes lingering on me longer than before.
Am I imagining it? Is my paranoia making me reckless?
As I rise from scrubbing the baseboards, my back aches from the hours of bending and kneeling.
I stretch, wincing as my tight muscles cry in relief. That's when I hear it.
Heavy, thundering footsteps.
A sudden chill runs down my spine. The door bursts open, slamming against the wall with a deafening crack.
Alpha Slade strides in first, his presence suffocating, his expression carved from stone.
Jay follows, his face unreadable, but his dangerously calm demeanor sends warning bells through my mind.
A woman, her face thick with makeup and lips curled into a smug smirk, trails behind them.
Two guards flank the group, their rigid stance making one thing clear-resistance is futile.
Their combined expressions-fury, cold calculation, and outright gloating-send ice through my veins.
There's no mistaking it.
.
.
.
I'm screwed.
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Moonlit Betrayal
Hombres LoboIn the cold, unforgiving wilderness of Blackburn, Alaska, Aurora Skyfall has spent her life cast aside, blamed for the death of her mother and treated as an outcast in her own pack. Struggling to survive as a servant under the brutal rule of her fam...
