Red Willow Alpha

01

Ophelia tried to breathe through the suffocating panic that had taken control of her body. It had been years since she had succumbed to the panic that her father could instill inside her. Fee had learnt early on how unfair this world could be, so cruel and uncaring. It didn't look out for little girls who grew up cowering from their father's fists; it turned a blind eye to bruises and tears.

But she had grown up, with a surprisingly strong backbone—something her father had attempted to crush her entire life. She eyed the man of her nightmares over the counter of the small diner she worked at. Their matching forest green eyes clashed and power crackled through the room, even the oblivious humans could feel the change in the air.

Ophelia knew that the surest way to get yourself killed in the dog eat dog world of werewolves, was to challenge a superior. In the backward world she lived in, even eye contact could be misconstrued as a challenge. Although in this instance, it wouldn't have been misconstrued. Ophelia was sick of being treated as the wolf at the bottom of the pack because her father—the Beta of the Red Willow Pack—had conceived her through an affair.

The pack her parents belonged to considered her mother the weakest wolf in the pack, not even worthy of claiming her rightful mate and producing pups. Ophelia's parentage was a dark spot in the pack's history, the Beta and the Omega of the Red Willow Pack had been fated to be together. He had taken one look at her mother and mocked her, moving on to marry a high-ranking female instead.

But the fated bond could only be ignored for so long, and the pair had entered into a secret affair that had resulted in Ophelia's birth. Her mother had left the pack for the majority of the pregnancy, fearing the Beta would never allow his illegitimate child to live. By the time they both arrived back in Red Willow, her mother had learnt to shoulder the ridicule silently, loving Ophelia unconditionally throughout the entire trial.

Despite what everybody thought, Ophelia knew the truth. Her mother was the strongest wolf she had ever laid eyes on, never breaking under the pressure while her father had been too weak to stand up for what he had wanted.

"Ophelia O'Daniel, I am here on official Red Willow Pack business." Her father towered over her short frame, his height monstrous, as was often the case with werewolves. While many wolves stood between six to seven feet tall, Ophelia barely scraped through at five foot three, leaving her to be towered over by even children.

Rolling her eyes, she continued to wipe down the surface between them, "Well that's just absolutely riveting, Beta William, but as you well know I don't concern myself with pack business." Her words were toned with a mixture of disdain and sass, but her father barely batted an eyelash. The only tell that her disrespect bothered him was the distinct tick at the base of his jaw.

"It wasn't a request Ophelia, it's an Alpha order."

That shocked her out of contemplating new ways of aggravating her father. "Alpha Max never uses alpha commands to force me to pack gatherings. What does he want now?"

Handing her a formal pack invitation, "If you attended more meetings you would know what is happening, it only makes you look weaker and inferior. Alpha Max has stepped down and his son, the to-be Alpha Keenan will be taking his place." He turned to leave after pinning her with a withering glare, his eyes flaring with intense hatred. "Pass that on to your whore of a mother too, wouldn't you?"

Fee's control snapped, she tried to lunge over the counter, all the while screaming profanities at him. Her arms were quickly pinned to her sides and her face was pressed painfully to the counter. "Just as feral as expected, can't even keep a handle on your emotions. You're an embarrassment to the pack."

She stayed face down long after the bell sounded his departure. She could feel the eyes of the customers on her shaking body, too frightened by the supernatural aura to bother comforting her.