“Who are you?” Alpha Ezequiel growls.
I bit my lips, anxiety is creeping in and disorganizing my body system. I take two steps backward and swallow down my saliva, the sour taste swirls round my throat and I wish that the ground will just open up and drag me in.“I am… Cora,” I answer him with the least courage I can muster.“Cora who?”“Cora nobody,” Lily replies. It is obvious that she is irritated by my unannounced interruption, the time is ticking and our shifting juncture is close.“I’m sorry for barging in like that, Alpha. It’s my birthday too and I only wanted to join the party too,” I apologize.“You should not have come when you know that you're late, being clumsy is not an option for an omega like you. Meanwhile, Liliana works hard to see that the rightful activities are being delivered to the pack. With the special abilities of an Alpha, Liliana will make waves and be a great leader one day. I hereby declare…”Another interruption comes from me, my bones start cracking and my body expands - the time for shifting into our wolves have arrived. Fortunately, others start cracking bones too - this will save me from being scolded the second time. My nails elongate, turning into claws and my fangs grow out.Gasps are heard from among the crowd, all eyes are on me and I’m beginning to wonder why. Looking ahead of me, I realize that the other celebrants at the podium have transformed into ordinary wolves - including Lily, a fishy conspiracy must be going on here.But why are all eyes and shocked expressions on me? As I tilt my head to the windows, the reflection I see explains everything - I am a black Wolf. Muffled sounds are coming from every corner of the hall, the people are talking - questioning the display at hand.With my enhanced hearing ability, I can grab what most of their whispering is about.“It can't be that the Alpha had an affair with another woman.”“Something fishy is going on in the pack house.”“The Alpha’s authenticity must be questioned.”This last one came from an elder of the pack, if the elders are considering questioning the Alpha’s authenticity, that means that there could be more explanation for what is going on.The black species of wolves have been significantly reserved for the Alphas and their offspring, every Alpha family dominates in their offspring's genes. So, the first offspring of both genders tend to inherit a handful of the Alpha differential. In other words, the first male and female of the Alpha family offspring are always endowed with special features which include the Alpha aura and werewolf form. Since Lily is the first female offspring of the Alpha, she should have transformed into an Alpha wolf but she did not, and instead - I did.Could it be that…?I shake off the thought and focus on the Alpha who has cleared his throat to gain the people’s attention.“Listen here everyone, there must be some kind of misunderstanding here. I know that it is surprising to see an omega shapeshifting into an Alpha Wolf, I assure you that we will look into the matter as soon as possible. Right now, Lily will still lead the pack run.”That is an unfair decision to make. The Alpha chose to simply ignore me and acknowledge his daughter who did not even turn into an Alpha Wolf, this blow is too huge for me to accept. I run off without a second thought, going in the direction of the well. I break shift and turn back to normal, then I sit at the edge and burst into sobs.“Why is everyone and everything unfair to me?”“Cora, are you okay?” Isla asks.I shake my head in response.“I’m sorry for how things unfolded this night, everyone thinks that you wanted to show off and steal Lily's spotlight.”That is so unfair for all of them to think!First of all, I had no idea that I was going to turn into an Alpha wolf. I have no idea about who my parents were, I have no idea if they were Alphas or common omegas.“I won't blame them, an omega with no background story suddenly turns into an Alpha Wolf on the night of her eighteenth birthday. I shouldn’t have come in the first place,” I sigh.“Don’t blame yourself, that is how fate wants it to be manifested. Let’s go in, the night is getting cold.”I nod and join Isla to retire for the night. I sit on the cold floor with my head in between my knees, thinking massively about what the next steps will be. Should I run away from this place? Surely, whatever happened tonight is kind of the beginning of affliction. What I'm not sure of is if it's for me or the Alpha family. I fall asleep on the floor, having disturbing dreams about what might happen tomorrow. At that point, it felt as though someone sneaked in and all. However, I jerk awake when cold water tinges on my face.It is morning already but the fuming anger on Lily’s face is what shudders me more.“Li… Lily, what are you doing here?” I stammer.Moreover, surprise visits like this never go down well especially with someone like Lily. She smirks at me mischievously and drags me out to the kitchen where the omegas are doing their morning chores.“Listen up everyone, today I’m going to be teaching one of your own a very big lesson and the scapegoat is our dearest Cora who tried to steal my spotlight last night,” Lily announces to them.I shake my head miserably, “Lily, you don't have to do this. You know that I didn't do anything wrong, right?”“Wrong! You turned into an Alpha wolf, Cora. Something you know that I should have turned to. You are nothing but a liar and a cheat, you just wait for the opportunity to ruin someone else’s life. The same way that you've ruined mine will be the same way that I'll ruin yours.”She drags me by my hair and throws me to the floor, the other omegas make way as I fall flat. Lily grabs a bowl of flour and dumps it on my face, laughter erupts from the others.“You think you have the Alpha aura in you, stand up and fight me then. Use your aura to suppress me and make me submit to you!” Lily screams.I call on that energy that surged through me before to prove to everyone that I'm not a cheat or trying to take Lily’s spotlight - whatever that means. However, nothing happens and instead, I feel empty inside. Lily’s crazy face snickers when she sees no change happening.“You all can see that, right? Cora was just lying about her so-called Alpha aura, you are a nobody. Without a name and background, you don’t belong anywhere in this pack.” Lily says.I burst into tears while Lily orders the omegas to throw flour and egg at me. Each dump on my body stabs deep into my soul and hurts me. They only stop when a group of pack warriors storms in with hard faces.“Where is the omega that turned into an Alpha Wolf last night ?” they ask sternly, the omegas point nervously at me, “Come with us.”“What is going on here?” Lily asks them.“The Alpha and Luna have requested to bring her in.”I follow them behind, with egg and flour on my body and a bad stink that comes from it while Lily follows us at a distance. When I enter the room, everyone holds their nose up. I look down at my feet with embarrassment, what fate could be possibly worst than this?“Uh - Cora, sit down, please. You’re looking messy this morning,” Alpha Ezequiel speaks out.I gulp. The uneasy look in their eyes says it all, they must be greatly disgusted with my looks.“Yeah, the morning chores have been keeping me busy,” I lie. There is no point in telling them the truth about Lily’s assault, they might assume that she is right and I'm only trying to be In her spotlight.“Is that so?” Luna Aria lets out in sarcasm.I simply nod.The Alpha clears his throat and begins to talk, presumably the reason why I was called in here.“Cora, do you have any idea about where you are from?” he asks me.“No, Alpha. I was told a series of narratives about how I was found and my foster parents never told me about my real parents until they died.”“So all your life, you never knew who your parents were?” Luna Aria asks.“Not at all. But, why all these questions?”“Do you have any explanation on how you turned into an Alpha wolf last night?” Alpha Ezequiel asks.“I don't know how it happened, I am as surprised as everyone else that witnessed it last night. I swear I wasn’t trying to gain attention or take Lily’s spotlight, I never had that intention,” I respond hurriedly.Maybe they are misunderstanding the situation, I never wanted to gain their attention. And if I had known that I would be turning into an Alpha wolf last night, I wouldn’t have attended the party too. I don’t want to drag myself in the mud alongside the Alpha family and I never wanted to get involved with them.“Cora, after what happened last night, we had to go on an analysis to know the root of what happened last night and it was discovered that you are our biological daughter.”“What?”“You are our biological daughter…”“What?”I stare back at them with my mouth wide open. My ears keep popping up and suggesting that I must have heard wrong but their faces say otherwise. “Yes, “ Luna Aria voices out. She stands up and walks towards me, “You are our daughter, Cora. It turns out that you were switched at birth with Liliana. We are still scrutinizing to know who is behind this, that’s why we decided to tell you the truth.”The door flies open and Lily barges in. The anger on her face is much worse than the one I saw earlier.“Lily!” Luna Aria exclaims.“Dad! Mom! Tell me that this is not true,” she barks like a mad dog.“Were you eavesdropping on our conversation?” Alpha Ezequiel asks instead.“It doesn’t matter, Dad…” Lily tries to say but is cut off by Luna Aria.“Liliana, you know that it is wrong to eavesdrop on people when they’re in a conversation!”“But mom…”“Apologize, immediately!” the Alpha says grimly.Lily gulps in fear and keeps her head down, “I’m sorry
“You’re not the woman I’m supposed to marry.”The grim look on his face explains how irritated he must be to have gotten married to me. My heart leaped at first when he grabbed my arm like that, I thought he wanted to hurt me.“Answer me, young woman.” he snaps.“It’s Cora, Mr. Alpha and no, I’m not the one. But, you signed up for the Alpha’s daughter and here I am,” I reply with heavy sarcasm.He lets go of my arm, “Is the redhead woman the other one?”“Lily, and yes, she was supposed to be your wife,” I answer. I’m not even in the mood to speak to him.He nods and turns to the tall man who is driving us. “The other woman is talkative and this one looks more quiet and feisty, she’ll do.”The tall man nods but says nothing more. An awkward silence follows next and I choose picking my nails as my new occupation. We drive for hours and stop at a motel to take our rest, a question suddenly pops into my head as he is about to come down.“Mr. Alpha, you walked out when the elder said that
ZaneThe brown Doe follows me behind with an inquisitive stare, she continues to turn her head around possibly taking in her new surroundings. Her boldness is what baffles me the most, she is not afraid of me one bit - only flustered. “Stop staring or people will begin to think that you came from the woods,” I convey to her quietly.She huffed, “Let them think what they like. This pack house is the most beautiful I have ever seen in my life!”“And how many have you seen?”“Just one, but the citadel pack is not as enormous as your pack.” I ignore her as we pass the series of omega servants standing at both of our sides, they bow their heads in fear and look down to the ground. Cora looks at them in awe, I wonder if her pack is not so organized like this.Taking the stairs, I check my wristwatch. I’m supposed to be having a conference meeting at my company in a few hours. Cora bumps into me as I stop to check my phone notifications.“Sorry, Mr. Alpha…” she mumbles.“I told you to stop
After my short nap, I prepared myself for the conference meeting. It is already evening and the sun is setting, I enter the dining room to have a meal. Cora is already seated there while the servants are serving bountiful food on the table, her mouth is watery and those doe eyes are opened widely.As I take my serving, she taps me lightly on my hand. Her eyes blink nervously - and shyly - when my eyes meet hers.“It seems like I have a little problem here,” she tells me.I remain silent, giving her a simple nod to go on.“I have no idea how to use the cutlery.”“You’re saying that as a joke, right?” I ask.She nods in response, biting her lips in a manner that arouses me oddly. It is quite shocking to learn that from Cora, I know that she is not the Alpha’s daughter. Probably an omega that was used to supersede their daughter, but knowing that she has never used the cutlery all her life is a huge blow.First of all, I dismiss the servants and guards in the room. I don't want them to h
My eyes flutter open as the rays of sunlight radiate on my face. I stretch my body and run a cold shower, my mind recaps that I had a fallout issue with Cora last night. I made up my mind to apologize to her for making her feel bad.I slightly open her door when I get to her room, Cora is sleeping peacefully on the bare floor. I carry up to the bed and she wakes up, her eyes slowly opening. She scowls when she sees my face.“What do you want?” She snaps.“Why are you sleeping on the floor?” I ask her instead, my apologies being swallowed up by pride.“I am used to it. Back at the pack, I slept on the cold floor in my narrow attic. Is that really why you came to my room this morning?” I ruffle my hair, now looking for a cover-up. Cora cocks her eyebrows at me, her eyes glimmering with a huge expectation for me to apologize. “I’ll be taking my leave then,” I reply instead.“Is that all?” She drawls.“Don’t sleep on the floor again so you don’t get a cold.”She scoffs behind me as I wa
CORAI pace around my room, still thinking about what I saw earlier. My mind is probably messed up by now, cussing Zane for being the cause. He never told her that he was dating someone, let alone that she was living under the same roof as them.I bite the bottom of my lips, this is very tempting. I have imagined that my life with Zane will be molded to perfection so that when the Alpha family of the Citadel pack comes to see me, they will be shocked.But Zane has given them every reason to scorn me over and over again. With his girlfriend looking at me dangerously, I am assured that a battle line has been drawn between us and we are left to fight for one man.Do I want to fight for Zane?I don’t like him because of his coldness and arrogance, but there is no one I can relate to except him. But when I am close to him, I feel immeasurably overwhelmed and when I felt that spark as our hands touched, I knew instantly that I was tied to him. Zane is the only person I have who gives me at
“Who are you?” I ask the woman standing behind me.She clears her throat before answering, “I am… Eleanor, one of the servants ordered to assist you.”“Oh…” is all I say.“So, are you in need of any special services… with the Alpha?”“I’m not sure if I should be needing one. Why would I need a special service with him?”Eleanor sits me on my bed and holds my hand, “Because you are his wife, the marriage should be consummated and then you prepare to give birth to pups!”Eleanor sounds more like a mother advising her child, the enthusiasm in her eyes gets me more confused.“Giving birth to pups?” She nods her head.I abruptly stand on my feet with a determined face, “I can do it on my own.”Eleanor sits me down again, her face looks amused by what I said.“How do you think you can have pups on your own?” She asks.I think for a while, I don’t have a suitable answer for this but I don’t want to look stupid or clueless.“I’ll simply sit and relax in my room, read a lot of books, and eat
My mind is in a haze, the thoughts that are running through my head are multiple and I hold my head up to control them. The spark that I felt with Zane is like a mystery that needs to be unraveled. If we were mates, Zane would have told me about it right?But he didn’t and should mean nothing. I relax myself, tonight is the coronation and I have to brace myself for what will happen. The Alpha family will be present and probably watching to see my downfall, I can’t give them that hope.The dining room is empty when I arrive there to eat breakfast. I do that hurriedly, I need to rest and probably feed my thoughts with more theories.“Cora, can I have a word with you?” Erika asks on my way back to my room.“Yes?”“Do you think that doing this will work out for you?”I recognize her question as a warning to remind me of failure, I will not let her break my walls down. I fold my arms and smile at her, she does not know my weakness yet so that gives me the upper hand.“Does it matter what a