Hello! Hellish Alpha

April pressed her back against the hallway wall, listening as voices rose from the kitchen. She shouldn’t be eavesdropping, but she couldn’t help it—not when she heard her aunt's voice trembling like that. “Please,” her aunt was saying, “he’s her mate! They’re bound together, fated!” “Exactly,” came the cold response. April’s heart clenched. She knew that voice. It was the queen of the Gordom pack—Ace’s mother. “That’s precisely the problem. Ace has a future far greater than some... minor girls can fulfill. He needs someone superior to stand by him” April’s blood ran cold. She tried to steady herself, her palms pressed hard against the wall. Why was Ace’s mother here? Ever since Ace and her met and identified themselves as mates, his Mom, Fiona has always been finding ways to break their friendship. But Ace was a kind and patient mate who always solves the problem she created. There was a pause. April leaned closer, her breathing shallow, as her aunt’s voice took on a pleading tone. “I can’t do this to her. She’s... she’s family.” “Think carefully about your own family, Rachel.” The queen’s voice was sharper now, edged with threat. “Do you want them to be safe? To live peacefully? Because I can assure you, crossing me would make that... very difficult. She is an obstacle to your family's progress....i mean your daughter's progress. So what shall be the answer?” April heard the sound of paper sliding across the table, then silence. “Take it,” the queen’s voice commanded. “All you have to do is make sure she stays away from Ace. That’s it.” Racheal let out a shaky breath. There was a long silence, and then she heard the rustle of papers as if her aunt had taken whatever it was the queen had offered. “No,” April whispered to herself. She wanted to step into the room, to confront her aunt and the queen, to demand that they stop whatever they were planning. But her feet were frozen to the floor. She couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe. She was bound to Ace—they were mates. And yet, here was her aunt... bargaining her away. “I understand,” her aunt finally whispered, her voice low and defeated. “But... I won’t tell her.” “Fine,” said the queen, and there was a strange satisfaction in her tone. “Then let’s seal the pact. I’ll give you the money, and she’ll be cursed. If she ever tries to approach Ace, her life will be in danger.” April’s mouth went dry. A curse? **** That night, April sat in her small room, staring at the door. It was well past midnight, but she hadn’t slept. She couldn’t—her mind was racing with what she’d heard. She didn’t want to believe it, didn’t want to think her aunt would actually go through with it. The door creaked open, and Racheal slipped inside, a shadow in the darkness. “April,” she murmured, guilt thick in her voice. “I... I need to talk to you.” April clenched her fists. “You already did enough talking tonight, didn’t you?” Her aunt flinched. “You... you heard that?” “Every word,” April hissed, her voice breaking. “How could you? You know Ace is my mate! You know what that means!” Her aunt sank down onto the bed beside her, her shoulders smudged. “I didn’t have a choice, April. She... she threatened us. If I didn’t accept the pact, she would have destroyed everything. Our home, my daughter, my job—she’d make sure we’d have nothing. ” " Why? Didn't you say to me you were the strong daughter of Great Terence! " She yelled, her voice laced with fear. " I am. Can't you do this for once? Just stay away from him! " She implied, moving close to her. " For once? If I don't meet him in one month to our mating, I will automatically reject him! " " Just take the money! I'm not being insensitive but afraid for your future if you don't listen to the queen orders" April pulled away, wrapping her arms around herself. “That's it, you sold me out. You took her money to keep me away from my own mate.” “It wasn’t just money.” Her aunt’s voice was hollow. “She... she made me agree to a curse.” “A curse?” April’s voice was a bare whisper. Her aunt nodded, unable to meet her eyes. “She said... if you ever come near Ace, if you try to be with him, the curse will activate. It’s like poison in your veins. It’ll... it’ll kill you, April.” April felt the weight of those words settle over her like a shroud. A poison, one that would stop her from ever being near Ace? Her mate? Her chest tightened, her heart pounding with a mix of anger and despair. “How could you do this to me?” she whispered, tears stinging her eyes. “How could you let her curse me like that?” “I thought I was protecting you!” her aunt cried, her voice cracking. “She would have ruined us. I thought... I thought you’d be better off.” “Better off alone?” April’s voice broke. “Without my mate? Without him?” She glared at her, her eyes bulging out, " You have to stay away from him or else you'll die! Don't you want to find your mother? It's left for you to choose- Your mom or Ace? " " Why do I have to choose? " Her face welled up with tears. Racheal covered her face with her hands, sobbing softly. April’s heart twisted, torn between anger and the helplessness in her aunt’s face. But the pain in her own chest was sharper, burning like the curse she now carried within her. “Leave,” April whispered, not trusting herself to say more. “Just... go.” Her aunt nodded, her shoulders shaking, and slipped out of the room, leaving April alone with the unbearable fact that her own family had betrayed her. That night, as April lay awake, she made a vow. She might be cursed, her life might be in danger, but she wouldn’t give up. She’d find a way around this. Because if she was fated to be with Ace, no curse, no bribe, and no queen could keep her from him forever. " I love you Ace! “