UNKNOWINGLY MARKED THE ALPHA

CHAPTER THREE

MEADOW’S POV.

By the time I returned from the forest, the moon was already high and shining. I quickly dropped the moonflowers with Dorothy before reporting to the pack house for work.

The kitchen was already hot when I stepped in.

Steam filled the air. Fire burned under every stove. Pots clanged. Oil hissed.

No one looked up when I entered.

They almost never did.

I moved straight to my station, tying the apron around my waist and reaching for the vegetables I was meant to prepare. My hands moved on their own—cut, rinse, stir.

Work, don’t think, don’t feel, just work. That was what I told myself.

“You really are lazy, aren't you?”

The voice came from behind me.

I stiffened.

Clarissa.

Of course.

I finished slicing the last piece before facing her.

She stood near the entrance, dressed perfectly as always, like she had stepped into the wrong place by mistake. The heat didn’t touch her. The smoke didn’t cling to her.

She didn’t belong here, but she walked in like she owned it.

Her eyes swept over the kitchen, then settled on me.

“You’re unusual quiet tonight,” she said lightly. "Anything bordering you, Meadow?"

“I’m working, Clarissa,” I replied.

Her lips curved slightly.

“Yes,” she said. “I can see that.”

The other omegas kept their heads down. No one spoke. No one moved. No one wanted to get in trouble.

Clarissa stepped closer, her heels clicking softly against the floor.

“Is that how you stir?” she asked, glancing at the pot beside me.

I didn’t answer.

She reached for another pan.

“Move.”

I stepped aside and she lifted the pan from the fire, tilting it slightly as if inspecting the contents.

Then her wrist shifted, just slightly.

The hot oil tipped and splashed straight onto my hand.

Pain exploded through me.

I hissed, jerking back as the burning sensation spread instantly across my skin.

The pan steadied and Clarissa looked at me.

“Oh,” she said calmly.

“I didn’t see you there.”

My hand trembled as I clenched it to my chest, biting my tongue to keep from letting out the words that were pushing to come out.

The skin was already reddening. Blistering.

“I’m sorry, does it hurt, Meadow?” she added, though her eyes said the opposite. "You really should be more careful around hot oils, dear sister."

I swallowed the pain.

“I’m fine.”

“Good,” she said simply.

Then she turned away like nothing had happened.

“Finish preparing dinner,” she added. “We don’t want to keep them waiting.”

By the time the food was ready, my hand still burned, but I carried the tray anyway.

Because I had no choice.

The dining hall was already filled.

Laughter.

Voices.

Lucian sat at the head of the table with Clarissa in his lap.

Her arms looped around his neck, her head tilted back slightly as he pressed his lips against her skin.

Her laughter was soft and breathless as she moaned loudly.

They acted like they were the only ones in the room. Like I wasn’t even there.

I forced my eyes away and focused on the table.

On the tray.

On anything but them.

“Careful, Omega," one of the warriors muttered as I approached.

I didn’t respond. I set the dishes down one by one, Ignoring them, Ignoring the bond screaming in my chest, Ignoring the way my wolf curled in pain.

Ignoring him.

Then the doors opened and the room shifted instantly.

Silence fell as Ron walked in.

Lucian’s father, the former Alpha.

I turned immediately and bowed.

“Sir.”

Nothing.

No response, no acknowledgment.

He walked past me like I didn’t exist.

Of course.

I straightened slowly, stepping back into place as he took his seat.

“Why wasn’t I informed earlier?” Ron demanded as soon as he sat down.

Lucian leaned back slightly, one arm still around Clarissa’s waist.

“We were informed only a few hours ago,” he replied calmly. “The message came directly from Moonveil's Alpha, Alpha Rafael.”

Ron’s jaw tightened.

“That is unacceptable,” he said. “The Alpha King does not visit without notice.”

My hands moved automatically as I continued serving.

I barely listened, but I heard enough.

“The king is coming?” Clarissa asked, her tone shifting slightly.

“Yes,” Ron said. “Tonight.”

There was a pause.

“Is he coming with the queen?” she asked.

“No,” Ron replied. “He is traveling with his brother, Alpha Killian of Crescent Dawn.”

The names meant nothing to me, and everything at the same time.

Royalty. Here. Tonight.

My stomach tightened uncomfortably.

I kept my head down, kept moving, but my thoughts were already racing.

I couldn’t be here. Not tonight.

Not when they arrived.

An omega was already nothing in front of royals.

An outcast?

I would be punished just for being seen.

I needed to leave.

Fast.

I picked up a glass jug and moved toward Ron.

“Your drink, sir,” I said. I stepped closer

And then something caught my foot from under the table, a sharp movement.

I stumbled forward. The jug tilted, and the drink spilled right onto him.

Everything froze.

Then the slap came.

Hard.

My head snapped to the side as pain exploded across my cheek.

“Are you blind?” Ron roared. “You can’t even see where you’re going?!”

My ears rang, my vision blurred.

“I'm sorry,” I said quickly, my voice barely steady.

Lucian stood slightly. “Father—”

“Sit down, Lucian!” Ron snapped.

Lucian exhaled, then spoke again, calmer this time. “You shouldn’t upset yourself, not when we’re expecting royal guests in merely minutes.”

That was it.

That was all he said.

I stood there, my cheek burning, my hand clenched at my side, while the other rubbed my aching cheek.

His father had just struck me, and he did nothing.

Not even a glance.

My eyes shifted and I caught the smirk on Clarissa's face. I didn't need to be told to know she was the one who tripped me.

Ron turned back to me, his face filled with disgust.

“Get out of my sight.”

I bowed and turned.

“Meadow.”

I froze at Lucian's voice.

His gaze settled on me, calm as ever.

“You heard what we discussed,” he said.

I said nothing.

“The king is arriving tonight,” he continued. “With his brother.”

He paused.

“Stay indoors for the rest of the night,” he added. “You will not be seen anywhere close to the main pack as long as they're here. Do I make myself clear?"

My fists tightened.

Anger burned behind my eyes, but I nodded.

“As you wish, Alpha.”

I turned before he could say anything else and walked away.

I was still cleaning when Della, another omega, rushed into the kitchen.

“They’re here!” she whispered urgently. "The royals just arrived, Meadow, you need to leave. Now."

My heart jumped.

Already?

I moved faster, wiping down the last surface, grabbing what I could.

“I have to go,” I said.

“Wait,” Della said quickly.

She ran off, then came back with a basket overflowing with laundry.

“Luna Clarissa said these need to be washed by tomorrow morning,” she said, pushing it into my hands.

Of course she did.

I took it.

“Thank you, Della.”

I didn’t wait.

I rushed out through the back door and the cold night air hit my face immediately.

I moved quickly, then stopped.

The apron. It was still on me.

My stomach dropped.

No.

I couldn’t take it home.

The last time didn’t end well.

Trouble, accusations, punishment...

I swore under my breath, dropped the basket, and rushed back inside.

No one saw me.

I untied the apron quickly, tossed it aside, and ran back out.

I quickly grabbed the basket and turned—then slammed into something solid.

The basket fell and clothes scattered everywhere. I stumbled back slightly, my breath catching.

“I’m so—”

The words died in my throat when my eyes landed on the boots in front of me.

Slowly, I looked up, and the world stopped.

The first thing I recorgnized were the eyes. One silver. One blue.

My heart skipped.

Then his hair—tied back carelessly.

His face—

It hit me all at once like a storm.

The forest...

The blood...

The mark...

Oh my goddess, it's him.

The stranger from th woods.

The man I had marked accidentally over six months ago when I tried to save him from poison.

He was standing right in front of me.

For a second, neither of us moved.

My heart slammed hard against my chest, so loud I was sure he could hear it.

Up close, he looked even more dangerous and intimidating than I remembered.

Like everything around him bent without him needing to try.

His gaze dropped briefly—to the ground, to the scattered clothes—then lifted back to me.

And then it stilled.

Something in his expression changed.

Recognition.

I felt it before he even spoke.

His eyes darkened slightly as they moved over my face, slower this time, like he was trying to place me… and then finally did.

My throat went dry.

He remembered.

Of course he did.

How could he not?

My stomach twisted as awareness hit me all over again.

I had marked him and then run. And now he was here.

The air between us felt different suddenly.

His scent reached me then, and something in me reacted instantly.

My wolf stirred.

Not in pain.

Not like with Lucian.

This was different.

Stronger.

And for a moment, it confused me.

I took a small step back without meaning to.

His eyes followed the movement.

“You,” he said.

Just one word, said in a low growl.

My breath caught.

Panic surged through me immediately.

I needed to get out of here before I got into more trouble.

I dropped to my knees quickly, reaching for the scattered laundry just to have something to do, something to hide behind.

“I’m sorry,” I said, my voice lower now. “I wasn’t looking.”

I didn’t look up again.

I couldn’t.

Because if I did, I had a feeling nothing about this night would go the way I needed it to.

Just as I stood up with the basket and was about to walk away, the sound of approaching footsteps made me freeze.

I looked up to see an unfamiliar man walking toward us. His eyes moved past me with no form of acknowledgment, and then he turned to the stranger and bowed.

"Alpha Killian. My King requests your presence inside."

A gasp escaped me before I could stop it, and the basket dropped a second time, the clothes scattering everywhere as my hands flew up to my mouth in shock.

My eyes widened in horror.

What... Alpha Kil......

My stomach dropped. My blood turned to ice.

I... I marked an Alpha?

Forget Alpha, I marked a royal.

The Alpha King’s brother.

Moon goddess, I'm dead.