Mated to the Demon Alpha

Alisa The great hall is suffocating. The scent of perfume, aged liquor, and horny wolves hang thick in the air, clinging to my skin like napalm. Sixteen of us stand in line. I am dead last. The runt. The least desirable. The stylists Mistress Katrina always hires for the event did their best to ‘doll me up,’ but after working on me for an hour, one of them declared me a lost cause. We’ve been waiting outside these doors for hours, standing around in tight dresses and high heels. My feet are killing me. We are not allowed to sit - our dresses might wrinkle. We are not allowed to drink anything but water on the night of the auction, but Mistress Katrina won’t even let us have that, because one spilled drop of water could ruin our delicate gowns. Finally, the moment arrives. The end is in sight. One by one, Mistress Katrina calls the girls inside. And one by one, they step forward. The Alphas are given ample time to look them over, assess them, size them up, and then they get on their the platform where they are on display during the introductions. Gloria walks in first. She is breathtaking - raven-haired, soft-eyed, every movement designed to captivate. The room hums with interest. Then Tanya. The favourite. Mistress Katrina had been showing her off for years, like a pretty bird in a cage. She’d introduce Tanya every year, with the promise that she would be on sale very soon. Every year, the Alphas come back, most of them with the hope that it would be the year they could finally buy Tanya. She strides into the hall with the confidence of a queen, her practiced smile sending ripples of approval through the gathered Alphas. She does not look afraid. She looks eager. The applause that follows is deafening. I swallow hard. For the last four years, Tanya has been telling everyone who’d listen that she would never be a sacrifice. She would be the best Alpha in the kingdom’s concubine. Perhaps even a mate. She is delusional, but she's so beautiful that she might just be right. I have no such grandiose ideals. I know my fate. And then I finally hear my name. "Alisa." I step forward, my back straight, my chin high, my face neutral. I made up my mind last night - no one will ever know how afraid I am. If I’m going to die, I’ll do so with every last bit of dignity I have left. As I step onto the platform, I immediately feel the shift in the room. The scattered applause is polite. Nothing more. Mistress Katrina stands beside me, her voice smooth as silk. “Alisa has been with us for many years. A hard worker. Loyal. She will be an asset to any Alpha’s harem.” Not a concubine. Not a breeder. Not a prize. And I've known for a long ttime that I am not worthy of the blood god’s altar. At best, I'll be a servant. Maybe a harem keeper. But nothing more. It’s better than the alternative. I step onto the rotating platform, showing my insignificant features to a crowd that does not care. Most of the wolves don’t even bother to look at me, already turning back to their drinks and conversation, ignoring me. That is not good. Being sold, even as a servant, is better than not being sold at all. No one knows where any of us will end up, but the fate of the unsold girls, especially, are shaky at best. The most beautiful girls are often chosen for sacrifice - untouched, unspoiled, and worthy of the blood god. That is what the god demands, and that is what the Alphas bring. If the blood god is pleased with the Alpha’s offering, he’ll shower them with fortunes. If not, he’ll curse the pack into non-existence. But some of the men do come here for concubines. Others for breeders. None of us truly know what will happen to us when we leave the academy. But it’s the unwanted girls who are most at risk. We don’t know what happens to them. After the auction, Mistress Katrina loads them up in her van, and they disappear, never to be seen again. That fate is the most terrifying of all – not because we might die, death is certain, but because we don’t know how we will die. And judging by the lack of interest in me, I will end up in the van. Mistress Katrina’s heels click against the marble floor as she walks past the platforms, inspecting us one last time before we will be allowed to join the guests. She stops in front of Tanya, her smile smooth and approving. "Perfect. You'll go for a good price." Then she reaches me. Her lips curl into a sneer. "Alisa," she says, her voice dripping with disdain. "Plain as always. At least you’re standing properly. Small miracles." The words don’t hurt. They should, but I’ve heard worse. Mistress Katrina turns to the crowd, lifting her arms as if bestowing them with a great gift. "Esteemed guests," she calls, her voice rich with practiced warmth. "Welcome to the Rosewood Academy’s annual benefit. Tonight, you are presented with the finest offerings our institution has cultivated. The merchandise has been trained in obedience and grace, prepared to meet your every need." The bile rises in my throat. "Your generous contributions allow us to continue providing a safe, loving home for these poor, lost girls." She says it like it is charity, as if raising us just to sell us off like livestock is something noble. The Alphas murmur their approval as Mistress Katrina gestures for us to step forward. I awkwardly step down from my platform, wobbling on my heels. “The auction will begin in an hour,” Katrina announces and disappears into the crowd. Only now are we allowed to take a glass of champagne to quench our thirst, but food is forbidden. One spilled crumb or a drop of sauce, and Mistress Katrina will take us to the back to punish us for our carelessness. Tanya wastes no time. She flips her golden curls over her shoulder, tossing her most radiant smile toward a striking Alpha dressed in black and silver. "He’s looking at me," she murmurs, not noticing that I’m standing right next to her. I follow her gaze. He is handsome. Tall, sharp-featured, his piercing brown eyes alight with interest. His Luna stands beside him, elegant and poised. Tanya doesn’t care. She tilts her chin, parts her lips just slightly. He smiles and winks. Tanya giggles behind her hand. It’s all so fake. The calculated innocence, the way she plays the room, the way she thinks she will leave here tonight wrapped in silks, escorted by an Alpha who will treat her like a queen. It’s almost laughable. The Alphas do not come to find mates. They come for slaves and concubines. They come for breeders. They come for sacrifices. Tanya knows this. We all know this. But it doesn’t stop her from believing she will be the exception. I take a sip of champagne, my stomach twisting. No one approaches me. I stand in a sea of people, completely unseen. Alone. Abruptly, the atmosphere in the room shifts. The hum of conversation dies. Every wolf in the room freezes, their heads snapping toward the entrance. Something cold rolls through the hall, the weight of it pressing against my skin, curling around my throat like a hand. It is power. A thick, smothering force that crackles in the air like an oncoming storm. I have seen powerful Alphas before. I have served at these functions for years, felt their presence, endured their scrutiny. But this is different. It is darker. Heavier. A shiver runs down my spine, and I start to tremble. But so does everyone else. A soft whisper of awe ripples through the crowd, and I hear a name, but I must be mistaken. He never leaves his pack house. Across the room, Tanya’s confident smile falters - just for a second - before she fixes it back into place, smoothing her dress, flipping her hair. She straightens her shoulders and walks in my direction. “That’s him,” she whispers. “The one worthy of me. I hear he’s unmated.” She tries to push me out of the way, nearly knocking the champagne glass out of my hand. I can't breathe. I can't think. Because I am standing directly in the path of the most dangerous Alpha I have ever seen.