Chapter1
1022 Words
Chapter 1
The morning sun crept through my window, making me squint.
I groaned at the loud knock on my door, sitting up straight with a yawn.
“Get up, Ella. You just received a package.” My father walked in with a bowl of pudding in hand, a messy apron tied around his waist.
He is the Beta to our Alpha but still does his fatherly duty. Whispers in the pack say he was supposed to be Alpha after the last one died, but instead, someone else was chosen. Father seemed happy with his role as Beta, so I never questioned it.
I got down from the bed and went straight to the bathroom to wash my face, then brushed my teeth. Afterwards, I left for the dining room. The aroma of Father’s special pasta already filled the air. It was best eaten hot, and there was no way I’d miss that.
“The box is right there, on the shelf.” He pointed. “I’ll be attending a meeting with the other neighboring packs.”
I sighed, walking towards the shelf as I pulled down the package. “What’s the meeting about this time? Shouldn’t the Alpha be doing all this? You attend his meetings and do all the heavy work while he’s busy going from one party to another.”
“Ella, don’t say that. He’s our Alpha, and you must respect him.”
I rolled my eyes, taking a knife from the dining table to slice through the seal of the package. “It’s an envelope,” I muttered, staring at it. “It says here—Moonlight High.”
Father stood from his chair and quickly collected the envelope before I could open it.
“Come eat.” He smiled.
He pulled out a chair for me, and I slid into it, drawing my bowl closer. “Did they write my name on the package by mistake?” I mumbled, chewing pasta.
Father was quick to grab a handkerchief and wipe my mouth. Even at nineteen, he still treated me like I was five.
“Besides, what does Moonlight High want with you? Isn’t that a school for males?”
Father nodded, twirling his pasta onto his spoon before dipping it into his mouth.
The males in our pack were the only ones allowed to attend Moonlight High, a very prestigious school. There were also mixed schools like Howling Hills and Lycan Academy, but Moonlight High was the biggest and most famous. That’s where Alphas studied—including those from other packs.
I’d been enrolling in Howling Hills since I was female, but that would be next year when I turned nineteen. For males, it was different. They could enter at eighteen since they usually got their wolf earlier.
“I’ll be going to the pack house later with Lydia. She said the Alpha’s mother wants to see all the daughters of the ranked members. Something about finding a mate for the Alpha.” I shrugged.
“You shouldn’t attend that,” Father said sternly.
“Oh, come on. It’s not like I have my wolf yet. No way I’ll be chosen as his Luna.” I snickered. “Are you worried I’ll become Luna?”
Father’s tone dropped low. “I don’t want you having anything to do with the Alpha’s family.”
I paused, watching him.
He said nothing else, only carried the plates to the kitchen.
Why the sudden somber expression? It started the moment I pulled out that letter. I wonder what it says.
~~~~~
Father left for the meeting afterward, and I went to meet Lydia. Her father is the eldest in the pack house. After the Alpha, then the Beta—which is my father—comes Elder Kael, Lydia’s father.
“Do you think I’ll be chosen as the Alpha’s mate?” Lydia asked, checking her hair for the fifth time and applying more lip gloss. She puckered her lips for me to judge if it looked good.
I nodded lazily, resting my head against the car mirror as her driver took us to the pack house. I had no interest in this. The Alpha wasn’t someone I knew. I’d only seen him about five times at different events. He wore a mask in public. Nobody knew why. Some said he was ugly, others claimed he was hiding a scar. Yet Lydia was obsessed with him like a monkey glued to a banana.
“We’re here!” she squealed.
We got down and hurried inside.
“Let’s be quick,” Lydia said in a rush, as though she hadn’t spent thirty minutes trying to look good for the Alpha.
As we pushed forward, Lydia dragging me along, a maid collided into me, spilling wine on my dress.
“I’m so sorry, I’ll clean it right now.” The maid trembled, tearing a shred from her gown to wipe the stain.
I stopped her before she could. “Don’t worry, I’ll handle it.” I smiled.
“Alright, be quick, Ella,” Lydia said, walking ahead.
It was my first time alone inside the pack house. Father never let me visit. Always the same warning—not wanting me to have anything to do with the Alpha’s family.
“Where’s the restroom?” I muttered after circling the same hall for the fifth time.
The maid had offered to lead me, but I refused. She gave me directions, yet here I was, still lost.
I walked down the north wing and saw a wooden door at the far end of the hall. Probably it.
I opened it, only to find another door waiting in front of me.
Strange.
I pushed it open and found another door beyond it. I opened the third one—and was blinded by a sudden, bright light.
By the time my vision cleared, I stood before the most beautiful place I had ever seen. It looked like an entirely different world. A paradise.
I hadn’t taken a step when I felt something sharp against my neck.
“Don’t move.”
A voice came from behind me.
- Writer
