Chapter 1: Leticia Rivers
821 Words
“Letty, never take off that necklace. Do you understand?”
The woman’s voice was sharp. I nodded frantically.
“Do you understand?!”
“Yes!” I cried, nodding so hard my neck ached. “I understand.”
“Good. Don’t forget it.” She tapped the small blue crystal resting against my chest. “This will save your life.”
I kept nodding even after she stopped asking. I couldn’t help it.
She smiled, soft and sweet—then dissolved into black smoke.
“Nooo!” I screamed, bolting upright in bed.
My hand flew to my throat. The necklace was still there, warm and solid. I clutched it like a lifeline, heart hammering.
Why was I dreaming about that day after so many years?
A chill crawled down my spine. “I have a bad feeling about this…”
I was drenched in sweat, sticky and gross, but there was no time to shower. Work waited for no one.
Especially not today.
“Leticia! You’re already late!” The head maid’s shrill voice sliced through the door.
“For f**k’s sake,” I muttered, yanking on my uniform and tying my hair into a messy ponytail. Brushing my teeth would have to wait.
I opened the door. She was right there, foot tapping impatiently.
“You’re late,” she snapped. “The Lycan King arrives this week. Move it.”
I bit back a sarcastic reply. Everyone had known about his visit for a month. The whole pack was losing their minds over it.
He was ancient, vicious-tempered, and apparently made your skin crawl. Hard pass on impressing him.
“Miranda,” I whispered when my friend passed by. “I smell like death.”
“You do,” she hissed back. “Shh, before the head maid hears you!”
Too late.
A throat cleared directly behind me. I froze.
I turned slowly, plastering on my most innocent smile. It didn’t work.
“Leticia Rivers,” the head maid said, her voice deceptively sweet. “You think this work is too much for you?”
Shit.
“No, ma’am. Easy peasy,” I lied.
Her smile widened, cold and terrifying. “Perfect. Then you can handle one more task.”
She stepped closer, eyes gleaming with malice.
“You’ll be the Lycan King’s personal maid.”
My stomach dropped.
“You know what that means, don’t you?” Her gaze raked over me. “You’ll be his… distraction.”
I clenched my fists until my nails drew blood. “Over my dead f*****g body.”
Gasps rippled through the other maids. Miranda looked horrified.
The head maid laughed softly. “Funny. You think you have a choice. You have no family, no rank, no one to protect you, Leticia.”
Before I could respond, a cloth clamped over my nose and mouth. Sweet, chemical fumes flooded my lungs.
“Sweet dreams,” she whispered. “I never liked you anyway.”
Darkness swallowed me.
——————————————————————
When I came to, my head felt like it had been split open. The floor was freezing. Chains rattled as I tried to move.
“Letty,” a familiar voice whispered urgently. “Letty!”
I groaned. “What…?”
“Eat. Quick.”
Miranda. I forced my eyes open. Bars surrounded me—I was in a damn cage.
“They drugged you and locked you up,” she said, voice thick with guilt. “Alpha’s orders. No food, no water until you ‘learn your place.’”
I scoffed weakly, grabbing the bread she’d risked everything to bring me. “He really thinks starvation will break me? He should know better by now.”
Miranda’s eyes filled with tears. “It’s not fair, Letty. None of this is fair. The Alphas and kings… they destroyed everything. The omegas are gone because of them. All of them.”
I swallowed hard. The curse. The disappearances. The rumors that Lycans were slowly falling apart—headaches, nosebleeds, sickness no wolf should have.
Miranda’s voice cracked. “And now the Lycan King isn’t coming alone. He’s bringing his son.”
I closed my eyes, leaning my aching head against the cold bars.
Great. Just f*****g great.
Hello everyone! First of all, I would like to apologize for noticing that some chapters were split into 2 or 3 parts. I wanted to let you all know that wasn't me. I already messaged my editor to find out what happened, and I noticed that when I schedule a chapter, it suddenly breaks into smaller ones. I've fixed the unpublished chapters, but I can't do anything about the published ones. I'm truly sorry for this change, and I will try to fix it as soon as possible from my end.
Love you all.
- Writer
