Chapter 3 Frightening but Charming

Seraphine's POV

"Don't ever let him see you."

Those words sent a chill down my spine. The head maid's voice? Sharp enough to shave your soul. She looked at me with those eyes that could cut glass, like she already saw my fear leaking out.

"If the Alpha finds you in his chamber," she leaned in real close, her breath all coffee and something sharper, "You won't walk out alive. Got it?"

I nodded, probably looking like I was about to hurl. "Yes, Head Maid."

She just sneered.

"The last girl who thought she could handle this…" Her lips twisted into something ugly. "…she ended up in pieces in the square. Dogs ate her bones. Don't say I didn't warn you."

My heart skipped a beat, and my palms got all sweaty and I almost dropped my broom. "So why me?"

The other maids started giggling, pretending to fold sheets or whatever, but really, they were watching me crash and burn. Nobody wanted this job.

The head maid straightened up, fixing her scar. "Why you? Because everyone else is too chicken to step foot in his room after last time. You were easy to shove up front. Disposable."

Laughter rippled behind me. The kind that feels like nails. My chest went tight. So that was it. It didn't matter how hard I tried to fit in. They had just been waiting to toss me into danger.

The head maid snapped her fingers at me. "Dawn. He's gone training by then. You get one hour. Don't push your luck, Omega."

I ducked my head, chewing back a shiver. "Yes, Head Maid."

The next morning, the sun had barely come up. There I was, standing in front of the Alpha's door. My heart was beating faster than usual, and I gripped my bucket so hard it hurt my fingers.

The door was a massive gold. It has wolves carving that seemed to be sneering at me.

Don't let him see you…

I pushed the door open with hands that wouldn't stop shaking.

The room? Couldn't even call it a room. It was more like a lair.

Black velvet curtains everywhere, swallowing up the light. Weapons lined the walls, blades catching whatever little sun managed to sneak in. There were furs on the floor, wolves, maybe bears, maybe… honestly, I didn't want to know.

And the bed.

A monstrous thing.

Dark oak, carved with moons and weird symbols, almost humming with something that prickled my skin. Black sheets, softer than sin, spilling everywhere. And the smell of cedar, smoke, and something wilder, something that made me dizzy.

I had to force my body to get moving.

Dust the shelves. Wipe the tables. Don't even look at the bed or you'll get swallowed whole.

I finished in record time, heart doing somersaults, and slipped out before the sun could rat me out.

Still breathing.

Still alive.

For a while, that was my only lifeline. Sneak in, scrub, sneak out, and pray I didn't run into the Alpha. I got so good at it, I could've cleaned the place blindfolded. Every time I left, my knees almost buckled from relief.

But fate isn't exactly known for playing fair.

It went sideways on a night when I was already running on fumes.

I was filling in for a maid who was sick. The head maid had told me to fill in for her. I had just finished with the library section when another maid bumped into the shelves and the books fell down. I had wanted to scream at her but she beat me to it.

"Why can't you seem to do things right?" she said.

I felt like I was dreaming. Was this lady talking to me like this instead of apologizing?

"Excuse me? Aren't you supposed to be apologizing?" I asked, raising my brow.

She scoffed, leaving me shocked.

How brazen.

"Was this the attitude you give your parents at home? It's no wonder they ended up selling you to the palace? How pathetic," she sneered.

"The last time I checked, you were also sold by your parents," I said, not wanting to admit how much it hurt recalling that ugly memory.

"At least I knew I was being sold. Unlike someone who thought she was getting married to the Alpha's, how crazy can you be?" she questioned.

As much as I didn't want to admit, I knew she was telling the truth. How stupid could I have been? To think I was going to get married to the Alpha?

"Well, my parents had a valid reason to do what they did," I defended.

"I guess your family must have been really greedy that they were willing to sell their daughter," she spat out.

I felt my blood boil.

"Don't talk about my family like that," I warned.

She stepped forward to meet my eye level.

"Or what?" She asked.

Without realizing it, I raised my hands and slapped her.

Just as my hand landed on her face, I was met with the whip of the head maid.

Apparently, she just happened to come in when I was slapping her. Good timing.

I whimpered.

"How dare you raise your hand on someone else, you lowly omega?" The head maid spat out.

"She started it," I defended.

The head maid didn't even wait to hear anything else. My back still ached from the beating. The head maid had me scrubbing floors till dawn, arms burning, and blisters everywhere. By the time I walked into the Alpha's room, I was barely awake.

My hands shook on the shelves. Dropped the rag. Twice. My head spun.

Just the bed left. One more thing.

I started smoothing the sheets, and man, the velvet was so soft. My knees just gave out. Next thing I knew, I was lying on that massive bed.

Sleep dragged me under before I even had a chance to panic.