Alpha’s Substitute Bride

PROLOGUE NYLA "N o, not there, you i***t!" I winced at the sound of her voice. The person yelling was my stepmother, Melona. "If my guests get here before everything is in place, you will all be in trouble!" Her yelling continued. "Yes, right there," I watched Melona walk into the dining room as she instructed one of the maids on where to place a flower vase, pointing at a corner in the room. I lowered my head, trying my best to blend in with some servants as I rushed out of the dining room, not wanting to be on the receiving end of her wrath. I shot a quick glance at Melona as I walked out the door. The wrinkles and sweat beads on her forehead indicated that she was stressed, and the cause of her stress was none other than her daughter, Serena, my stepsister. Today was a big day for my family, well, at least for both of them. The council was coming to pay them a visit and, according to rumors flying around, it was something huge that could raise my family's already high social status even higher. "Mom!" Serena cried out, and even though she was upstairs, the shrieking sound of her voice caused everyone in the house, including Melona, to wince. "Mom!" Serena's voice was louder this time. Melona muttered what I assumed to be a string of cuss words as she rushed upstairs, not before warning us not to mess anything up. I almost felt bad for my stepmother; Serena was a lot to deal with. As soon as Melona was out of sight, a few of the servants let out relieved sighs, taking a break from whatever tedious task Melona had assigned them. I genuinely could not blame them; we had all been working round the clock since about 1 pm yesterday when Melona got the letter informing her about the council visit. That was about 28 hours ago. We were all running on no sleep, except Melona and Serena, of course. They had taken their eight full hours of beauty sleep, and Serena even squeezed in a nap after having lunch earlier today. We heard some stomping from upstairs and thought Melona was on her way back, so everyone went back to their duties; some people arranging the ornamental flowers in the dining area, some dusting every surface to ensure it was squeaky clean, some moving the furniture in the house around to bring Melona's décor idea to life. The sound of clanking pots and other kitchen utensils could be heard. Luckily, it was a false alarm as the stomping continued but no one was seen coming down the stairs. Unfortunately for me, the one thing I was dreading this entire time happened: "Nyla!" both mother and daughter yelled my name. The only thing worse than living with these two was living with them when they were cranky. "Nyla!!" They repeated. 'My parents will be rolling in their graves if they see how Melona treats me,' I thought to myself with a sad chuckle as I ran up the stairs to attend to whatever dumb problem both women had created this time. Unfortunately for me, both my parents were dead; my mother died in a car accident when I was seven years old, and Melona, who was supposed to be my mother's best friend at the time, became an active figure in the picture, coming home to comfort us, making meals for my father and me, and other things along those lines. I was too busy grieving my mother to get suspicious about her actions, and a year later, when my father married Melona, it was too late to do anything. The only thing worse than losing my mother was losing my father six years later to a sudden illness, just a few days before my thirteenth birthday. That was the day my life truly fell apart, as Melona began to show me her true colors, barely feeding me, moving me from my room in the main house to the storage room. After my father passed away, Melona took over control of the entire pack. And as for me, my life had become similar to that of a servant. But of course, my very ambitious stepmother wasn't satisfied. Rumor had it that she was eagerly waiting for a glorious marriage alliance between her daughter and a powerful Alpha, which is why she was so anxious today. "That was a very lovely meal, Melona," I heard one of the council members say. And I say 'heard' because I wasn't physically present in the room with them. When Melona had sent a servant to call me from the pigpen earlier, it was so she could drag me into my room and lock me up before the council members arrived. She does that whenever someone comes over to the house for a visit, so I had anticipated it, which is why I bugged the dining area while we were getting ready for the guests. The pack council rarely paid anyone visits, so whatever they were at our house for had to be important. I could get information that may be helpful to me. I spaced out briefly, so I didn't hear what Melona said, but the chuckles of the people in the room brought me back to the moment. The chuckles went on for a while, causing me to roll my eyes. I had lived with Melona long enough to know she wasn't that funny. "Anyway, can we get straight to business? I believe you did not come all the way here just for a meal." From the tone of her voice, I could tell she was probably giving the guests one of her sickly-sweet smiles. The room was silent for a moment before I heard someone clear their throat. "You are probably aware of the allegiance deal currently in the process of being signed between our pack and the Blue Moon Pack," someone said, and I could tell it was a man. "This allegiance includes a marriage pact, which is why we're here." The man continued. Once again, the room fell silent save for a few whispers here and there. "We want your daughter, Serena, to marry Alpha Aaron to fulfill the marriage pact," the same man spoke. I slapped my hand over my mouth in shock. Alpha Aaron was ruthless. Serena wouldn't survive a day. There was a sudden loud shriek from the dining area, one I had heard time and again to know it was Serena's. 's**t was about to get messy,' I thought to myself. The sound of a door being slammed loudly reverberated through the speakers. I couldn't hold it against Serena; no one in their right mind would agree to be with Alpha Aaron. He was vile and ruthless, and according to the rumors, no one was an exception, absolutely no one. The meeting continued with one of the council members explaining the dynamics of the marriage pact, and wedding plans were also made. Soon enough, the meeting ended, and Melona bid her guests farewell, offering them one last apology for Serena's behavior. The room was once again silent, indicating that everyone had left, and I was about to disconnect my headpiece when someone spoke, "If I were you, I'd do everything within my power to make this wedding happen." "You have ANOTHER daughter... Nyla. Right?"