BOUGHT BY THE ALPHA: THE OMEGA'S HIDDEN CROWN

The rain pounded the sagging roof like relentless drumbeats, seeping through cracks to drip onto the dirt floor below. Alicia sat crosslegged on the thin mattress, her back against the cold wall, cradling her younger sister Mia as best she could. The little girl burned with fever, her small body trembling despite the threadbare blanket Alicia had wrapped around them both. At twelve years old, Mia was all bones and pale skin, her breathing shallow and labored. Alicia pressed her lips to her sister’s forehead, feeling the heat radiate like a furnace. They had no medicine left, no coins for the traveling healer who sometimes passed through the packless fringes. As a lowranking Omega with no detectable wolf scent and no ability to shift, Alicia was worth nothing to any pack. She and Mia survived on the edges of society, scavenging, begging, and enduring whatever cruelty the world threw at them. Their father, Pete, had not always been this broken. Alicia remembered fragments of a time when he had smiled, when their mother was still alive. But grief and whiskey had hollowed him out years ago, turning love into rage and protection into fists. Tonight was no different. He had stumbled home hours earlier, reeking of cheap liquor and gambling dens, muttering curses before collapsing in the corner. The sour stench still hung heavy in the single room shack. Alicia smoothed Mia’s damp hair away from her face. “Hold on, little one,” she whispered. “I’ll find willow bark at dawn. The stream isn’t far.” She told herself the lie because Mia needed hope, even if Alicia had none left for herself. The child stirred, eyes fluttering open. “Licia… water?” Alicia reached for the cracked cup on the floor, tipping the last few drops into Mia’s mouth. “That’s all for now. Sleep. I’m right here.” Mia’s fingers clutched weakly at Alicia’s sleeve before slipping back into uneasy rest. Alicia’s chest ached with the familiar weight of responsibility. She was nineteen, but felt decades older. Every bruise on Mia’s arms, every skipped meal, every tear, traced back to her failure to protect them better. Outside, thunder rolled across the dark sky. Lightning briefly illuminated the shack: warped walls patched with whatever scraps they could find, a cold hearth with no wood, their few possessions piled in one corner. This was home, if the word could be stretched to fit such misery. She closed her eyes, trying to steal a moment of rest. Sleep rarely came easy. Nightmares of stronger wolves dragging them away haunted her. Packs did not tolerate strays forever. One day, someone would decide two useless Omegas were better off gone. The door suddenly burst open with a violent crash, slamming against the wall. Wind and rain swept in, extinguishing the single candle. Pete lurched inside, soaked to the bone, eyes wild and bloodshot. Water streamed from his matted beard. In one hand he clutched an empty bottle; the other was clenched into a fist. Alicia instinctively pulled Mia closer, shielding her with her body. “You’ll wake her,” she said quietly, voice steady despite the hammering of her heart. Pete swayed, staring at her as if seeing her for the first time. “Wake her? Let the brat sleep. Won’t matter soon.” His words slurred together, thick and ugly. “What do you mean?” He laughed, a wet hacking sound that ended in a cough. “Played cards tonight. Big table. Important wolves.” He staggered forward, boots squelching. “Lost everything. More than everything. Owe blood now.” Alicia’s stomach twisted. Blood debts were not forgiven. “How much?” “More than this shack is worth. More than I’ll ever earn.” His gaze crawled over her, cold and calculating. “But the winner offered another way to settle.” A chill deeper than the rain seeped into her bones. “No.” “Yes.” Pete’s lip curled. “The northern Alpha himself was there. Joshua Black. Heard of him?” Everyone had heard of Joshua Black. Ruler of the vast BlackMoon Pack, conqueror of half the northern territories. They said he killed his own father to take the throne. They said his scars were not just on his face but carved into his soul. Mercy was a word no one associated with him. “You can’t,” Alicia said, rising slowly to her feet. Mia whimpered behind her. “I’m not property to be sold.” “You’re whatever I say you are.” Pete stepped closer, breath foul with liquor. “He wants payment in flesh. You’re young. Healthy enough. He’ll take you instead of my life.” Terror clawed up her throat, but she forced her voice calm. “And Mia? Who will care for her?” “Not my problem anymore.” He shrugged, turning toward the door. “Enforcers come at dawn. Go quiet, or they’ll drag you. Your choice, girl.” The door slammed behind him again, leaving Alicia in darkness and silence broken only by the storm and Mia’s ragged breathing. She sank to her knees, hands shaking. Sell her. Like livestock. To Joshua Black. Stories swirled in her mind: girls taken north never seen again, bodies found broken in snowdrifts, whispers of cruel games played in the BlackMoon halls. She had always known their lives hung by a thread, but this… this was the blade falling. Mia coughed weakly. Alicia crawled back to her side, pulling the child into her arms. Tears burned her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. Not yet. “I’m sorry,” she whispered into Mia’s hair. “I’m so sorry.” The night stretched endlessly. She memorized every detail of her sister’s face in the faint moonlight that slipped through cracks: the curve of her cheek, the way her lashes cast shadows, the trusting way she nestled close even in fevered sleep. Dawn arrived gray and merciless. Heavy boots approached outside, accompanied by the jangle of chains and low voices. The door flew open once more. Three towering enforcers filled the frame, clad in black leather emblazoned with the silver crescent of the BlackMoon Pack. Rain glistened on their armor. “The Omega girl,” the largest one barked. “Time to go.” Alicia kissed Mia’s burning forehead one last time. “I love you,” she breathed. “I’ll find a way back. I promise.” She stood, chin high, and walked toward them without waiting to be seized. Rough hands still grabbed her arms, binding them with coarse rope that bit into her wrists. She did not struggle. Strength would be wasted now. As they dragged her into the pouring rain, she caught one final glimpse through the open door: Mia’s small face pressed against the cracked window, eyes wide with confusion and fear. The carriage waited, ironbarred and windowless. They shoved her inside onto hard wood. The door clanged shut. Locks engaged with finality. Wheels churned through mud as the horses lurched forward, carrying her north. Away from the only person she had ever protected. Away from the fragile life she had fought to preserve. Alicia sat in darkness, rain drumming overhead, ropes cutting into her skin. Fear gnawed at her insides, but beneath it burned something fiercer: determination. Whatever horrors awaited in the BlackMoon territory, she would survive them. She would never beg. Not even for the monster who had just bought her.