MATED TO THE MASK ALPHA KING

Aria’s POV The marble floors never stayed clean for long in the Vaelith estate. No matter how many times I scrubbed until my fingers burned raw, footprints always returned, dainty, perfumed ones from the ladies, muddy ones from the guards, careless ones from guests who never noticed the girl bent over their reflection. And tonight was no different. My hands ached as I dipped the brush back into the bucket, watching gray water ripple under the dim light. The scent of rose oil and candle wax clung to everything, elegant, expensive, suffocating. I had been scrubbing the same corridor for hours, but I dared not stop. The last time I did, Lady Selene herself had caught me resting. “Lazy omega,” she had called me. “Be grateful I even allow you in my house.” Her house. I bit down on my tongue until I tasted blood. The Vaelith estate had been my home once too— long ago, before my mother died on my birthday and my father disappeared without a trace. They said he’d abandoned me. I still refused to believe it. But in the years that followed, I learned silence kept me alive. Silence, and obedience. So I scrubbed. The moonlight spilling through the arched windows made the marble glow pale and cold. Somewhere far above me, the great hall buzzed with laughter and music. The Vaelith family was celebrating something again. Probably Selene’s latest victory or vanity. I wrung the rag between my hands and kept my head bowed, even when the click of heels echoed down the hall. “Still awake, little mouse?” Selene’s voice drifted toward me, sweet as poison. “How dutiful.” I rose quickly, lowering my eyes. “Good evening, Lady Selene.” She stood at the top of the staircase, wrapped in a silk robe that shimmered like moonlight, her golden hair coiled high and pinned with sapphires. Even in her nightclothes, she looked like a goddess carved from pride. Behind her, her maid trailed with a silver tray, carrying half a glass of wine. Selene descended the stairs lazily, each step echoing with power she hadn’t earned but inherited. “I suppose I should thank you,” she mused, running a finger along the polished railing. “If not for your hands, this house would look like a kennel. Though,” she paused, her lips curving, “perhaps that’s fitting for your kind.” I swallowed. “I’m only doing my duty, my lady.” Her laughter tinkled like glass breaking. “Of course you are. Omegas are good at that. Quiet little shadows who know their place.” I nodded once, biting down the words that burned my throat. Selene drifted past me, her scent filling the air, and stopped by the tall mirror in the hall. She gazed at her reflection, tilting her head, studying her perfect features as if she could never get enough of herself. “I heard something interesting today,” she said casually. “The Alpha King has finally chosen a bride.” I stilled. “The Alpha King?” I repeated softly. She smiled at her reflection, touching her cheek. “Mm. The infamous Ronan Blackthorn himself. Ruler of all the packs under the Silver Moon. He sent word this morning, a royal envoy arrived with a marriage decree.” She turned, eyes glittering. “And guess who was chosen?” I forced a small smile, though my stomach twisted. “Congratulations, my lady.” “Ah,” she purred. “You do listen.” She stepped closer, the hem of her robe whispering against the floor. “Imagine it, Aria. Me, Luna of the Blackthorn Pack. Queen of wolves.” Her smile widened. “All of them will bow.” I nodded, unsure what to say. I had heard stories of Ronan Blackthorn, the ruthless Alpha King who united the scattered packs under one rule. Some called him a hero, others a monster. But every whisper ended the same way: No one defies him and lives. Selene turned back toward the mirror, her reflection shining under the chandelier’s light. “I’ll have everything I’ve ever wanted,” she murmured. “Power. Wealth. The kingdom at my feet.” Her maid approached, offering her the tray, but Selene waved it away and took the glass herself. She sipped delicately, then sighed as if the world already belonged to her. “Tell me, Aria,” she said without turning. “Have you ever seen the Alpha King?” I shook my head. “No, my lady.” “Few have,” she said, lowering the glass. “They say he hides behind a silver mask, never showing his face in public. Some claim it’s because of scars from battle…” Her lips curved. “Others say it’s because he was cursed.” “Cursed?” I asked before I could stop myself. Selene’s gaze snapped to mine, sharp and amused. “So the little mouse can speak.” She stepped closer, eyes glinting like cut glass. “Yes. Cursed by the Moon Goddess herself, or so they whisper. Half his face burned by divine fire, for some sin no one dares name.” I froze, the brush slipping from my hand and clattering against the bucket. The sound echoed between us. “Pick it up,” she said softly, dangerously. I obeyed immediately, heart pounding as I knelt. “Good girl,” Selene crooned, turning away again. “Remember that story, Aria. Because tomorrow, you’ll help me prepare for my journey to the Blackthorn palace.” Her voice held a mocking sweetness. “An Alpha King deserves perfection.” She left the hall with a satisfied smile, her laughter echoing faintly as the doors closed behind her. When she was gone, I sank back on my heels, staring at the shimmering reflection of the moon through the window. My hands trembled. A masked king cursed by the goddess. A bride who cared only for power. And somewhere deep inside me, a voice whispered—a faint, uneasy chill I couldn’t shake. Why does the moon look so heavy tonight? The hall grew quiet again, save for the faint crackle of candles and the rhythmic drip of water from the bucket. I finished the last stretch of marble and straightened slowly, pressing a hand to my sore back. “Aria,” someone whispered behind me. I turned. It was Lira, one of the kitchen maids, her eyes wide with excitement. “You heard, didn’t you?” she hissed. “About the Alpha King?” I nodded. “Lady Selene told me herself.” Lira crept closer, lowering her voice. “They say he killed his last fiancée. Tore her throat out in a rage.” I froze. “That can’t be true.” She shrugged nervously. “Maybe not. But, they say he was cursed after that. The Moon Goddess marked him. Burned half his face for killing the woman meant to be his mate.” I shivered. “He killed his mate?.”