The Mate Switch

CHAPTER 4.

“I’m not stalking you!” Giselle shouted for the third time.

This man—dashing, godlike, but all so infuriating—had the guts to insinuate she’d been hiding to spy on him. To watch him get undressed and fantasize about it later.

The nerve of him. “For the last time, I was cleaning out your closet when I heard those two come in. I didn’t want to interrupt, so I just stayed put.”

He was looking at her, amused, clearly enjoying making her squirm. “And why were you even here in the first place?”

“I already told you.” She gritted her teeth. “Luna Iris ordered me to tidy up the room.”

He furrowed his brows. “Is that your special assignment or something?”

It was Giselle’s turn to look at him all funny. “Special assignment?” she laughed mockingly. “Like I’m some warrior or on the council of elders. No. I’m just a servant.”

Enrique’s expression morphed—confusion, then something else she couldn’t quite place. Pity? No. It was far from pity.

“You’re a servant?” he asked softly.

“As if you didn’t already know,” she snapped, folding her arms. “So, this is the part where you reject me because I’m beneath you. You’re the Alpha’s guest, you probably own lands and riches I can’t even imagine, and I’m the girl who scrubs your floors. Congratulations, you win. Now we can go our separate ways and never speak again.”

Instead of agreeing, Enrique leaned casually against the wall, his arms crossed, a smirk curving his lips. “You talk a lot for someone trying to get rid of me.”

Her jaw dropped. “Excuse me?”

“You’re assuming I’d reject you,” he said, his voice annoyingly calm, “but you’re the one throwing insults at yourself. I haven’t said a word about what I think.”

She scoffed. “You don’t have to. I’ve seen the way you people look at me. I know where I stand.”

His smirk only deepened. “You really think I’m like everyone else around here? If I do decide to reject you, it wouldn’t be because of your status. It would be because you’re rude.”

Giselle blinked, utterly thrown. “Rude?”

“Yes. You hid in my closet, accused me of accusing you, and now you’re insulting yourself in front of me. It’s a bit much.”

A startled laugh escaped her before she could stop it. This man… this arrogant, infuriating man… was impossible to read. “You’re unbelievable.”

“So I’ve been told.” He leaned closer, his presence overwhelming, teasing, making her heart race. “And you’re… strange.”

Her amusement faltered. She quickly took a step back, clinging to the reminder of why she was here. She wasn’t here to flirt. She wasn’t here to let some ridiculously handsome stranger get under her skin. She was here for Gloria. To find whoever hurt her sister and make them pay.

She cleared her throat and turned toward the door. “Well, thanks for the conversation. I have other rooms to clean.”

“Hold on.” His voice was softer now, curious. “You still haven’t told me your name.”

She froze at the door. That name. Her name. The one she couldn’t let lose. For some reason, she wanted him to know it. To know the real her. But alas, it could never be. At least not before she finished what she came here for.

Also, was he so arrogant that he didn’t even know the name of the only omega in the pack? Slowly, she opened the door, keeping her back to him.

“Gloria,” she said, the lie sliding off her tongue surprisingly easy.

And before he could respond, she slipped out and shut the door behind her, leaving him with a name that wasn’t hers… but was everything she was fighting for.

The things you do for family.

Giselle held that thought as she strolled through the corridor, imagining what her life would be like if she and Enrique had met under better circumstances.

Even though she wasn’t expecting anything different, she texted uncle Louis again, hoping for some sort of miracle, but the diagnosis was the same. Gloria was still fighting for her life, while she was here playing house with a man she barely knew.

It was time to do something about Celeste and her boy toy. She had to do it discreetly, unable to be traced to her. While she was in the closet listening to them bicker, she had an idea.

It was clear Celeste was getting rather annoyed of Elias’s inefficiency, and he was tired of her bossing him around and calling the shots. She could use that to her advantage. Turn the happy couple against one another and let them tear each other apart.

It was a revenge she’d happily sit on the sidelines to watch. No matter how many toilets she’d have to scrub, it’d be worth it.

But first, she had to finish up her chores for the day.

The next one took her out to the courtyard, where a group of younger pack members lounged around like they had nothing better to do. Training was clearly over, if it had even begun. Now they were circling like vultures.

Giselle swept the cobblestones, minding her own business, but keeping her ears sharp for any gossip she could catch about the Alpha’s son and his little girlfriend.

“Kellan, look who’s here,” one of the guys whispered.

And soon, they were all walking towards her, stopping by her side.

“Hey, rodent,” Kellan, who was obviously the leader, called out. “You missed a spot.”

Giselle didn’t look up. She wasn’t intimidated, she could easily take them. But she was supposed to be Gloria, so she remained calm, ignoring them instead.

“Maybe she’s deaf,” a female said, her tone condescending. “Or maybe she thinks she’s too good to listen to us.”

Laughter rippled through the group.

The boy that had alerted Kellan kicked over the bucket, sending soapy water splashing across Giselle’s legs. She bit her tongue from lashing out, her grip tightening on the broom handle.

“Pathetic,” the girl sneered, stepping forward. “What’s the point of having servants if they can’t even clean properly?”

In the process of knocking the broom off, the bristles smacked Giselle in the face before clattering to the stones.

“Pick it up,” Kellan ordered.

She crouched to grab it, but the other boy stomped his boot down on the handle, snapping it clean in two.

“Oops,” he said with a grin.

They closed in, a circle of grins and snarls, their predatory energy filling the courtyard.

“Stand up,” the girl barked.

Cursing in her mind, Giselle obeyed, slowly rising to her feet. Again, she wanted to rip her claws out and show these imbeciles who was boss. They were no match for her. They had no idea what it felt like to take on a worthy adversary.

She could snap them all in two.

The first slap came without warning, the prissy girl’s nails cutting her cheek as her head hung sideways. Another followed from another angle, harder, with much more force. She could tell it was one of the males who had hit her.

“Not so tough now, huh?” Kellan jeered.

A fist slammed into her stomach, knocking the wind out of her. She doubled over, wheezing, only to have her hair yanked back so she was forced to look up at them.

“Look at her. Crying already. What would you like me to do to her, Mira?” the boy mocked with a wide grin.

“Oh, Tobias,” Mira—the girl who’d been taunting her—cooed, moving to stand by his side. “Make her regret ever being born.”

Almost immediately, someone kicked her legs out from under her, and she hit the ground hard, her palms scraping against the cobblestones. Without waiting for her to catch her breath, they swarmed around, pinning her in place, hitting enough to break bones and cause internal bleeding.

The worst part was the laughter. It was deafening.

“Trash like you should be grateful we even let you serve in this pack,” Mira spat.

A heavy boot pressed against her back, grinding her into the dirt. Another foot kicked her side, sending a jolt of pain through her ribs.

“Please…” The word slipped out before she could stop it.

That only made them laugh harder.

“Pathetic,” Mira hissed, grabbing a handful of her hair and jerking her head up. “You’re nothing. You’ll always be nothing.”

Spit hit her cheek. Giselle’s fingers curled into fists, nails digging so deep into her palms that blood welled. The rage inside her burned hotter than the pain, hotter than the humiliation. She could kill them right now. She wanted to. But she forced herself to stay still. To memorize their faces, their scents, their laughter.

Because this wasn’t just about them.

Finally, Tobias shoved her so hard she landed face-first on the stones. Kellan kicked her ribs for good measure. Then, laughing and congratulating each other, they walked away, leaving her curled in the dirt like discarded trash.

She lay there trembling, tears streaming down her face. But she wasn’t crying because of the pain.

No.

She was crying because now she understood. This was Gloria’s life. This cruelty. This torment. Day after day. Until they’d finally decided to kill her. Her jaw clenched, rage roaring in her ears. It wouldn’t be enough to take revenge on Celeste and Elias. This entire twisted pack deserved to burn.

Every wolf who mocked her sister. Every wolf who struck her. Every wolf who stood by and did nothing. She would destroy them. One. By. One. And when she was finished, Darkhowl wouldn’t even recognize itself.

With the promise etched into her brain, her eyes betrayed her. She slipped into the darkness.