Alpha’s Brood

Chapter3

I slowly opened my eyes to take in my surroundings. I was naked in a bed that wasn't mine, with absolutely no recollection of how I'd gotten there. I began to feel a touch of panic, then realized that I was covered in blood. The first thing that caught my eye was a glittery diamond earring on the nightstand, followed by the handsome stranger lying beside me.

I remembered fragments of the previous night, and my heart felt as if it had sunk into my body. I lost my virginity to this man, and the very thought made my stomach upside down. It was the identity of the stranger that made my blood run cold – Alpha Ryker, my father's sworn enemy.

Alpha Ryker's eyes scanned me, mirth and disdain mixed in his expression. "Well, well, well. Look what we have here," he said with a tinge of sarcasm. "The little princess lost her virginity to the big bad wolf. And it isn't even like I had to try hard. You practically threw yourself at me."

My eyes stung, threatening to spill over with tears, but I refused to give him the satisfaction. "Shut up," I hissed, hoping I sounded braver than I felt. Alpha Ryker laughed again; this time, his eyes glinted with cruelty. "Oh, this is just the beginning," he sneered at me. "I'm not nice to ladies, you might have heard. I have no sympathy. And now, I've seen you naked and shameless in front of me."

Then I ran out of the room, quickly dressed myself, and tried to flee from the reality. I couldn't outrun shame and humiliation no matter how fast I ran.

Weeks oozed by, and I had this feeling of dread that was climbing upward slowly. A wave of nausea washed over me, making me lightheaded and so unsure. Morning after morning, my stepmother Elora would shrilly pierce the air, calling me to her side to attend to her as her personal maid.

"Astrid,rise! You are not being paid to sleep the day away," Elora's voice lashed out, filled with venom. "You are a servant and nothing more; do not forget that."

I remained in shock, my trembling hand grasped onto the pregnancy test that revealed a positive result. It so mockingly taunted me with the consequences of my actions. I felt like staring into an abyss, my future crumbling around me.

No, no, no," I whispered, as if denial could somehow steer this from being the truth. Inside, however, I knew I had no hope. I was pregnant, and within my world, that was a death sentence. The daughter of an Alpha-pregnant and without a mate? Unheard of.

Then, I thought about the man-the Alpha-of this child. Should I reach out to him, or would that just make things worse? I felt like I was stuck in a kind of nightmare from which there was no awakening.

Elora's shrill voice cut into my thoughts like a whiplash of leather slapping inside my brain. "And where's that i***t girl, Astrid? And have you done the dishes I told you to mind?" My skin prickled with anxiety, stung by the words.

I fled my room without a second thought, leaving behind the pregnancy test on my bed, its pink plus sign looking almost taunting me, like a snarl of malice. A faint groan of the bedframe and rustling of the sheets were the only sounds I emitted, trying to make as quick of an escape as possible without turning heads.

The dishes in the kitchen seemed to tower over me now-an odious task that had to be discharged with all the force of Hercules. As I entered the kitchen, Elora's icy gaze froze me in place. Her voice cut through the air like the keen edge of a razor. "Why haven't you washed the dishes? Do you expect me or my precious Lyra to come and clean up after you, ordinary Astrid?"

Her words were laced with poison because with each syllable, it was like having a light, new slap. It felt like the kitchen was closing in on me; the walls felt like they were shutting me down, and her anger was choking me. Then, with another step closer, she shouted at the top of her lungs, eyes ablaze like fire, "Are you insane?!"

That scream rattled my skull and rang my ears. Those dishes on the counter, smeared with grease, seemed to mock me, reflecting my failure in their greasy mirrorlike surface. I winced as the tidal wave of Elora's ire crashed over me, my heart racing to each beat.

Elora's hand cracked against my cheek and sent a jolt of surprise through my head. My ear rang and I felt myself slammed against the wall. The sound of my heartbeat was loud; vision blurred. I saw a swirl of colours, then Elora's angry face.

Her words cut deeper than her slap, each phrase a precision-crafted dagger aimed at my self-worth. "You're useless," she hissed, her words dripping with venom. "There's nothing useful you can do."

The words seared into my brain like a branding iron, leaving a scar that pulsed with shame. She continued to castigate me, her words painting a picture, bright in detail, of my worthless self. Every word was a blow, every sentence a new surge of hurt that threatened to overwhelm me.

In the next instant, my father stormed into the kitchen, his face almost literally a thundercloud of rage. He aligned himself with Elora, and their united front pinned me against the wall, trapped and unable to move. Lyra hung in the background, her eyes aglitter with curiosity and malice.

My father's voice was low and growling, "Who is the father of the bastard in your belly?" The words punched at my diaphragm, and I was breathless. I knew then that Lyra had to have seen the pregnancy test I had left on the bed. She had to have shown it to our father, betraying my secret.

My mind was racing to formulate a response, but my voice remained stuck in my throat, like some screaming creature trapped there. I let the words out in a shaking voice, "The Alpha. he's the one responsible."

The victory was a light in Lyra's eyes as her lips curled in a sneer. "See now, who wants to be an Alpha is disgracing the family already," she sneered, her voice full of malice. Elora joined in, a thick coat of scorn lacing her voice: "Alpha? In her wildest dreams."

Their laughter cut deep, in an icing wave of shame, all anew. My father's face fell dark with anger and disappointment, palpable upon his person. I felt I would drown in their contempt, my secret shame exposed before all.

My father's words hit me like a sentence: "You've already chosen a mate for yourself, now you'll marry him, whether you like it or not." A wave of shame washed over me; my heart was so heavy with regret. What if the Alpha does not want to marry me? I thought, my mind consumed with dread.

The mere idea of his refusal, tying me down with a love not wanted, made my life seem gray, much grayer than it was. The teasing of Lyra and Elora remained in my mind, words that festered like an open wound that would not close. I had that helpless feeling of being entrapped and unable to get out of this nightmare.

And with the words of my father, it was sealed and I could only wonder if someday I would be happy or be doomed into this miserable life forever. The kitchen had lost its warmth and welcome; it was like a cold grey prison cell whose walls were closing in little by little with each passing second.

My father turned to me just then, his voice firm. "I will call that stupid Alpha Ryker who impregnated you, and I will report him to the Elder Council." It was then that the thought came through my head, I am not going to cause a great war between my father and his sworn enemy.