The Alpha's Hidden Moon

Episode2

Who's that chick?

The question was a soft one.

It wasn't shouted across the hall, or said in anger.

But the second Alpha Kael Ashthorne asked that question, the mansion went silent.

I gasped.

His golden eyes were fixed on me.

"I should have averted my head.

I should have ducked my head like everyone else.

Instead I just froze, hanging halfway down the stairs, not knowing why the strongest Alpha in the kingdom was looking at me like he'd just found something he'd lost years ago.

My stepmom got better first.

Her smile was tight as she moved between us. "Alpha Kael," she said smoothly. "She's only a servant. Please don't let her lead you into trouble."

A servant.

The lie came so easily from her tongue.

I glanced at the floor.

It shouldn't have been painful.

I had heard worse.

Somehow, though, saying it in front of strangers made the words feel heavier.

Kael didn't move. "I wasn't speaking to you.

Her smile disappeared at his calm reply.

The room was as still as death.

He stepped forward again. His polished boots echoed on the marble floor.

I said, 'Who is she?'

Lady Marcy's fingers clung to the edge of her gown. "My...my husband will tell you."

Victor Voss came running across the hall as if fear had summoned him. His expensive suit was perfect, but the nervous sheen on his forehead betrayed him. "Alpha," he said, respectfully bowing. “Welcome to the Voss property.

Kael returned the greeting with a slight nod. "The girl."

Victor followed Kael's look.

For a moment a strange expression crossed his face.

Not frustration

No shame.

Fear. “She...” His voice faltered, but he recovered quickly. She is my dead brother's daughter.

My eyes grew wide.

Brother late ?

I lived in this house for twenty years and I never heard anyone mention a brother.

Kael looked at Victor's face and said nothing.

They sat in silence.

Victor shuffled uneasily under that unwavering gaze.

Then finally Kael spoke. "Call her down.

All my instincts were telling me to go back upstairs.

I couldn't move. Lady Marcy spun around sharply to face me. "Lyra."

Her smile was almost painful. "Come and meet our guest.

That was the nicest thing she ever said to me.

This scared me more than her anger ever had.

I went down the rest of the stairs, my hands clenched tight so they wouldn't shake.

I got to the bottom and stopped a few feet away.

I bowed my head politely. “Good day, Alpha.

He didn’t respond right away.

But he stared at me.

Really looked.

At my shabby dress no.

Not at my patched sleeves.

At me.

His eyes studied my face quietly, intensely, as if he were trying to remember something just beyond his reach.

The silence was strange and it made my heart pound.

Did I know him?

Nope.

I'd have remembered a man like him.

His presence filled the room with no effort.

He was impossible to miss, even standing still. "You've been living here?" he asked.

His voice fell.

Less severe.

"Yes." "For how long?"

"I... I don't know.

Victor laughed too fast.

"Since she was a little girl."

Kael stared at him. "Was I asking you?"

Victor's smile faded. "No, Alpha."

Kael turned back to me. "You go to packing meetings?

I shook my head. "No.

"Training?" "Nope.

“The Moon Festival?

Another shake of the head. 'Never been.

A fine line appeared between his brows. "Wolf inspections?"

"I have never had a one.

Whispers began to spread around us among the visiting guards.

One of them scowled. 'How can that be?

All children are tested.

Another whispered: "Unless...

His companion nudged him hard, cutting off the thought before it could become words.

Kael’s face was blank, but something in his eyes hardened. “You’ve never been outside this estate?” “I’ve been into the gardens.

"Have you left the estate?" I asked. "No.

The answer was a bitter taste.

20 years of age.

The world outside those gates might as well have been someone else’s.

But for reasons I couldn't explain, embarrassment began to creep into my chest.

I didn't want this stranger to know how small my life had been.

Kael looked at the high windows that overlooked the gardens. "You've been behind walls for twenty years.

It was not a question.

I managed a weak smile. "I guess I'm used to it."

His eyes flicked back to me. “Nobody should get used to that.”

The words were frozen somewhere inside me.

And nobody’d ever said anything like that before.

Not for me.

Not me.

Before I could speak a servant hurried into the hall.

"Join us for dinner."

Victor cleared his throat. Thank goodness for a distraction.

"Alpha, let's move our conversation to the dining room?"

Kael's eyes stayed on me for a heartbeat longer, then he nodded. "As you wish.

Finally the room breathed again.

The guests followed Victor into the dining room and I moved quietly out of the way.

Here I vanished.

The guests ate.

I tidied up.

That was the way it always was.

I started toward the kitchen, when a deep voice stopped me. "Lyra.

I glanced around.

Kael was a few steps away. "Come join us?"

This question stunned everyone.

Lady Marcy laughed nervously. "Oh, Alpha, she couldn't— "

"I asked Lyra," I said.

You are not.

Unspoken words hung in the air.

I looked at him, sure I'd misunderstood. "Dinner?" "Yes.

"I... I never ate with guests."

"Well, then, you're on your first today.

Before I could answer Lady Marcy moved closer to him. "Alpha, she's not properly educated. She won't know what to do." "I can handle it." "But—" "I said..."

His voice was still calm, but had enough weight to mute the whole room. "...I can handle it.

For a moment Lady Marcy looked as if she was going to argue again.

Instead she forced another smile. "Sures.

She looked at me, the warmth in her eyes went out.

"Go and change your dress."

It sounded like kindness.

It wasn’t.

It was a warning shot.

I nodded and ran upstairs.

I closed the attic door behind me and leaned against it, trying to get control of my breathing.

What was going on?

Why did Kael enquire about me?

Why did you ask me to dinner?

Nothing was working.

I opened the little wooden chest by my bedside.

Inside were only two dresses.

The one I was in.

And another, faded blue dress that was my mother's once--or at least, the woman I always thought was my mother.

I pulled it out gently.

It still smelt a little of lavender.

I pulled it on, my fingers grazing the crescent-shaped birthmark beneath my collarbone.

For a brief moment...

The mark was warm.

Not painful.

...just... Warm.

I scowled.

Before I could think of it, there was a loud crash from somewhere outside.

There were shouts.

Then a blast of horn, warning sharp.

Not one.

Three.

The sound stopped every drop of blood in my body.

The mansion echoed with footsteps.

Somebody shouted from below.

I hurried to the window.

Black smoke was curling up above the front gates.

Guards were rushing everywhere.

And then I saw them.

Figures in dark cloaks pouring through the broken entrance like shadows.

One of them lifted a sword and bellowed words that lingered over the courtyard. "Search every room!

Another responded with chilling urgency. "Find the Moon Child!"

My heart leaped.

I had no idea who they were searching for...

But I couldn't explain it, but a cold certainty settled deep in my gut.

They weren't looking for someone else

They were looking...

...for me.