An Alpha without a Pack

Chapter 13

The sound of rustling stirred me from my sleep, along with light whispers and small clattering. I lifted my head off the pillow to see four girls moving about my room with bags, boxes, and flowers. I recognized two of the girls, them being the twins, who were messing with a very fancy red dress. The dress was almost the exact style as the one I wore yesterday but it was much more elegant. There were shiny beads that sparkled in the light threaded in intracity swirls along the hem of the skirt. The sleeves were long and formed a bell shape at the end with gold trim. The back had a low "v" shape that would expose almost my entire back.

My stomach rolled at the so-called wedding dress as the servants laid out various hair pieces, makeup, shoes, and jewelry. It seemed like Drake had no plan to spare expense. Probably another way for him to show off just how much power and money he has. I pushed myself out of bed and the servants stopped what they were doing. Their eyes watched my every move as I walked towards the bathroom. I made sure to stair at each of them for an awkward amount of time, enough to make them all feel uncomfortable under my glare.

When I emerged from the bathroom, the twins were waiting for me with their hands clasped behind their backs. All the servants were happy to get me ready for my not so happy day. The more they raved about how lucky I was to be marrying the handsome brother, the further I sank into the chair as they were fixing my hair and doing my makeup.

Before long, I was ready. All my nails were painted with a shimmering gold color, my hair curled and swept up into an intricate bun with glittery gold pieces holding it in place, a heavy gold necklace with a deep ruby and matching earrings, and enough makeup to make me look like a goddess. The dress fit my form perfectly with the bell sleeves swallowing my hands, even with them pressed against my sides. When the servants presented me with simple but pretty golden flats, I made a mental note to thank Eric for allowing me to wear them.

As I was staring at myself in the body length mirror, the twins left the two other servants to the packing and approached me holding a bottle of perfume. "Master asked us to make sure that you smelled nicely for the wedding."

"It's a tradition," the other quickly added.

I quickly grew sad as I realized that if I did not get out of here before it is too late, then I will be forced to deal with the twins for the remainder of my life. "You Ruby wolves have way too many stupid traditions," I said turning to face them. "It's like Drake is making them up as this goes on, to see how much he can get under my skin."

The twins gave each other a look that screamed with annoyance before lifting the bottle of perfume and sprayed it three times directly in my face. The strong smell of flowers invaded my senses making it hard to breathe. I began to choke as I noticed a recognizable smell in the perfume. I snatched the bottle out of the twins' hands when I realized the familiar scent was wolfsbane. On the front of the bottle was a picture of the purple flower that represented the evil plant. I let out a vicious growl as I began to feel weaker and looked at the girls. Behind them, I could see that the other two servants had stopped packing to watch what all the commotion was about.

"You evil bitches sprayed wolfsbane on me," I managed to say between ragged breaths.

"Master just wanted to make sure that everything went to plan," one of them stated flatly.

"So, he took the necessary precautions," said the other just as flatly.

I looked at the two girls, finding it hard to breathe. "Fine," I spat, "But do me a favor and give your master a message for me." Before they could do or say anything, I ripped off the top of the bottle and splashed the contents on the twins.

The two girls let out a shriek as the poisoned liquid soaked into their stupid maids' outfit and skin. I then turned and threw the empty bottle at the body length mirror, shattering both it and the bottle. Then I shoved past to wailing twins and walked towards the couch. As I walked past the other two servants, they bowed their heads before continuing to pack. Once everything was packed, I was left alone until it was time for the wedding.

*****

"In all my years I have never seen the twins so upset."

Eric stood in my room looking at the shattered glass on the floor. He wore a sleek black suit with a red button-up and a gold tie. The man came to my room not long after the servants had left but according to him, the whole house had heard what happened and Drake was not happy about it. Not that I cared one bit.

"The bitches had it coming," I spat. "Nothing is more annoying than listening to them talk. Especially about their master wanted."

"Still," he sighed slipping his hands into his pockets smoothly, "Alpha will be sure to give you a piece of his mind once all of this is over."

"While that is happening, I'll be sure to shove some petals of wolfsbane down his throat and see how he likes it."

Eric gave me a small smile over his shoulder. "I'll be sure to let him know but let's wait before you do anything drastic like that. We have a wedding to get to."

I let out a small growl as Eric grabbed a boutique of white and gold flowers off the desk and handed them to me. Wishing I was able to throw them through the barred windows, I took the flowers and stood slowly. There was no telling how much wolfsbane was in that stupid perfume, but I was slowly losing my strength. Eric had to help me get steady on my feet. Quietly we walked through the hall towards the rose garden. Along the walls were random roses that were put there for the occasion, filling the house with a suffocating flowery smell. Eric kept a hand on the small of my back, always watching to catch me if I began to stumble. There was no telling how long it would take for me to get back to full strength. As soon as I was able to shift, though, someone was going to pay.

Eric lead me to the two large double doors that lead to the rose garden. He then offered me his elbow and I looped my arm through his. I guess Eric was going to be the one to give me away. I would rather him than anyone else in this evil pack.

The doors swung open and my breath left me as the tune to "Here Comes the Bride" began to play. People who were sitting in white chairs in long rows all stood at the same time and turned to face Eric and me. We began to walk slowly down the aisle with hundreds of red eyes following me. I felt like I was a piece of meat that was being used to tease a bunch of wild dogs. The feeling of unease began to creep up on me, but I shoved it down. Instead of feeling fear, I lifted my chin and stared dead ahead to the three who stood at the end of the aisle. There was no way I was going to allow myself to look weak in front of everyone.

Drake, Jake, and the older man with a long, white beard all smiled at me as Eric and I arrived at the altar. I released Eric, who bowed at his Alpha and walked to an empty spot on the front pew and turned to face the man who I assumed to be the pastor. From the corner of my eye, I could see Jake turn to look at me with a white smile.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate two young wolves that have a burning love for each other..." I tuned out the pastor as he began to explain how hard It can be to find your one true love, your mate, and inwardly cringed. I wonder how much the guy knew what Drake was up to. Maybe the pastor did not know that he was helping a maniac force someone so he can change the world. Then again, I would not put it past this pack to be as power hungry as their Alpha. At some point in his love speech, the pastor had asked Jake and me to face each other and stare at our "soul mate." I must admit that Jake looked exceptionally handsome with his hair slicked back and his tux freshly pressed. He looked like he put a lot of thought into preparing for this wedding.

As I was staring at Jack with a blank face and he at me with a brilliant smile, the movement just to the left caught my eye in the tree line that was on the other side of the rose garden.

Look to the right.