Lost

                    The harsh rays of the morning sun heating my face woke me from the first deep sleep I’d had in years, instead of enjoying it I cursed myself. Panicked at the realization that I slept in, my sheet is throw off of me as I jump out of bed and start dressing as quickly as possible. An old tank top and a worn pair of leggings were half of my wardrobe, but it did the job. Running to the kitchen I tried to keeping my footsteps as quiet as possible, hoping no one would know I had just woken up. But I knew my luck was, well, nonexistent. Entering the kitchen, Charlotte, the Alpha's mate ran right into me. She does not deserve the title of Luna of the Bearclaw pack, but that's the common theme in that family.  Preparing myself for what's to come, my shoulders straighten and eyes go to the floor.                     "Watch where you're going you lazy b***h! You haven't even started breakfast and everyone will be awake soon. What are we all supposed to eat, huh? You're useless!" Biting back a snarky response, (Goddess knows I need any more trouble) I just stay silent until she's gotten bored with yelling at me.                      "Sorry, ma'am I'll start cooking right now." Trying to quickly sweep passed her and get out of the line of fire, she blocks me again. I guess she's not done.                     "You can't do anything right. We have been so generous to you, taking in an orphaned worthless omega. I don't even know why we keep you here, you're incompetent!"                     "Then let me leave, you can do the cooking and cleaning." s**t, did I say that out loud?                     "You ungrateful little b***h! You can leave when you come of age, but until then you belong to the pack, to the Alpha!" Just two more weeks, I can handle this for two weeks. Right? …This is going to suck.                     "May I start preparing breakfast now, ma'am?" I couldn't keep the sarcasm out of my voice even if I tried. Sarcasm is my coping mechanism, though it never helps to keep me out of trouble. Rolling her eyes, she storms out of the room calling me the same s**t she's called me ever since they brought me here. I don't think any of them even know my name is Bailey, they just call me whatever curse comes to their mind when they think of me or just point and yell to get my attention. I honestly don't understand how people can treat others this way. I know they do, but I don't understand how they think it's okay. I don't remember much of my parents but I remember they taught me to always be kind. Little good that does me now.                      After standing over the hot stove to make sure nothing burns, running back and forth to finish the eggs, bacon, muffins, toast, and cinnamon rolls in the hot kitchen for an hour, I head for the long table in the dining room and set the plates while everything cools down so I don't get a beating for burning the roof of the mouth of some omega that most don't even know the name of. The Alpha damn sure doesn't. When I start walking the food out to the table four pack members are sitting at the table and sure enough Charlotte walks by in all of her b***h glory.                     "You're bringing out the food now! The pack is already starting to show up, the food is supposed to be here BEFORE the pack!" Unable to keep my eyes from rolling to the back of my head, I quickly turn back to the kitchen so I don't get more s**t for being 'disrespectful'. On my way back to the dining room I hear his voice. Great.                     "What's wrong, Charlotte?" Alpha Dorian asks, almost like he actually cares.                     “That worthless piece of trash is just bringing out breakfast now! Pack members are already starting to sit at the table, look a fifth one is sitting down now!” If her voice gets any louder or any more screechy my ears are going to bleed.                     “Calm down, Charlotte. After we eat breakfast you can have your fun with her before she starts her chores.” The way he talks about her beating me like he’s giving her a present is sickening. My birthday can’t come fast enough. Turning to face me, a grin spreads across his face in the most menacing way possible.                     “And you. You will not have a meal until tonight after we finish dinner.” Before I can even acknowledge him he turns and walks away with his darling mate right beside him.                     After I finish putting all the breakfast dishes and drinks on the dining room table, more pack members start to show up. It takes another thirty minutes for everyone to be here, they just like using any little thing they can to beat me. Their two daughters, too. Their son is the least psychotic, but he's still got a lot of them in him. f*****g father pleasing coward, he just goes with whatever his father wants, no ideas or thoughts of his own. This whole family is insane.                     Going upstairs, I grab all of my cleaning supplies from the closet and start my chores while everyone is eating. Vacuuming carpets in every room, folding clean clothes and tossing the dirty laundry from the floors and closets into a basket, dusting every single surface, and making everyone’s bed perfectly. Setting the laundry basket down to start mopping and drying the hardwood floors and stairs, then dragging all the cleaning supplies back to the closet. Before I can bring the basket of laundry downstairs, Charlotte comes waltzing up to me, smiling like a deranged murderer. Honestly wouldn’t be surprised if she did kill me, she’s been close before.                     “You’ve started your chores already?” Her voice is saccharine sweet, making my stomach turn. I know what comes after the nice act, she used to fool me when I was younger making me think she was really being nice. Then she’d turn in the blink of an eye.                     “Yes, ma’am.” I’m so tired of her games.                     “Didn’t you hear your Alpha before breakfast?” Now I’m actually confused, what’s she getting at?                     “That I couldn’t eat until after your dinner tonight?” Laughing like a hyena, she slowly shakes her head, still smiling.                     “After breakfast I could teach you a lesson,” her face morphs into what I can only describe as the devils nightmare, “BEFORE you start your chores!” Fuck.                     The only thing I can do now is wait for the first hit and endure until the end. Smacking me across the face, momentarily disorienting me, she starts hitting my head repeatedly. Giving me a second to hope that’s all, she then kicks my rib snickering the whole time. Once I’m on the ground she stomps every part of my body she can reach. Covering my face with my arms, I feel a sharp pain, then again and again. Another on my back, and on my leg, then my side repeatedly until I can’t tell where I’ve actually been hit. When she’s out of breath she finally gives up. After a moment I lift my head to see if she’s still there, big mistake. She gives one last kick, right to my cheek before she waltzes back down the hallway like nothing happened. Apparently the sharp pains I felt was her belt whipping as much exposed skin as possible. When she covered my skin with cuts from being whipped, she moved on to parts of my body that were covered. Getting up when she rounded the corner and leaning against the wall, I wait for my head to stop spinning, then limp downstairs, laundry basket in hand, to the bathroom by my closet of a room to see the damage.                     Placing the laundry basket on the floor, I look in the mirror. I can tell it’s not the worst I’ve gotten but it’s up there. Blood is pouring out of all the cuts from being whipped, around the ripped skin is red and swollen, my leggings are torn where my legs are cut. A lot of the blood on my legs is being absorbed by my black leggings. The bruising that I can see is turning from bright red to black and purple, my cheek is still mostly red and my lip has stopped bleeding for now. Cleaning all the blood off in a shower and soaking the contusions in the hot water would be great, unfortunately I don’t have a shower… or a bath. I can only bathe in the middle of the night when I’m able to sneak away into the night with the moon as my only source of light into the woods to a stream I’d found half a mile away from the pack grounds. For now I’ll just bandage what I can with an old ripped up t-shirt so I don’t bleed on anything while finishing my chores.                     After dinner I'm given a leftover roll of bread and some broth. I'm so hungry at this point I don't even care what it is, eating slowly and savoring each bite I try to make it last as long as possible. My eyes are burning and strained from keeping them open this long, my exhaustion is catching up to me. So is the beating from earlier. Knowing I can’t sleep yet, I pace the worn floor in front of my cot trying to wake myself up at least a little. Tonight I need to go to the stream and wash myself, so when I change my bandages, the cuts are at least somewhat clean.                     Waiting until midnight to make sure everyone’s sleeping I tiptoe out of my room, keeping my feet light and quiet, limping makes it difficult but I try my best. The door screeches as if purposely trying to alert my presence. Waiting with baited breath to see if anyone comes to check, when the silence remains unbroken by footsteps I slowly ease my way through the small gap so I don’t have to open the door any further. Trying to shut it as quietly as possible, I pull the door back quickly stopping just before it reaches the door frame to close it silently.                     Releasing the breath I’d been holding, I turn towards the woods in the direction of the stream. Still limping, I support myself by holding onto the trees as I pass them. Each step fills my injuries with fire, each breath is like a sharp knife to my sides. It takes longer than usual to reach the stream because I move so slowly.                     When it’s finally in my line of sight, I can’t help but smile. Stripping out of my clothes and sliding off my shoes, I carefully walk over a few rocks to the deepest part of the stream. The icy cold water envelops my body causing goosebumps to raise on my skin, but after a moment it feels so good against my wounds. For now the fiery pain dies and is replaced with icy comfort. Sitting on a rock just beneath the water’s surface, slowly and gently, I peel the bandages from my skin, causing the cuts to bleed again. Awkwardly worming my way off the rock, covering up to my neck in the crisp, cold water I let the stream wash the blood away.                     After tending to the cuts, I sank under the surface for as long as I could. The feeling of being weightless in the darkness of night is so peaceful. The chill of the water on my face eased the pain from my busted lip and bruised cheek. Coming up for air, I combed my fingers through my wet hair before putting it back into a messy bun. Leaning against a big rock I rest my eyes and relax in the water.                     When looking to the moon I realize I’d been here too long and I had to return so I could get at least two hours of sleep before tomorrow. Drying my wounds with an old thin sheet I wrap them up again with strips I’d ripped from the sheet before covering myself with what’s left of the sheet so I won’t soak my clothes. On my way back to the pack grounds I imagine what it will be like to leave when I turn nineteen. No matter what happens, it has to be better than being here.                     Keeping to the shadows as I tiptoe back toward the door, the last thing I need right now is to alert the night guards to my presence. Alpha Dorian’s house is close to the front gate so if they look in this direction they could see movement in the moonlight, and I really don’t need to get beat again. Slipping through the door and quietly closing it behind me, I walk as quietly as I can back to my closet. Room, closet, same thing. Just before I get there, as relief fills my chest thinking I’d gotten back to my room without anyone knowing, the Alpha’s son, Holden, casually walks up to me with a sick, twisted grin.                     “You wouldn’t leave the house without permission, would you?” it’s disturbing how innocent he can sound while smiling like a deranged monster. He is the offspring of two of the most evil shifters alive after all so it’s not surprising, just disturbing.                     “Of course not.” Playing dumb never works, but it’s better than telling the truth. He already knows and is just playing with me like a cat with a mouse.                     “Then where were you?” he asks, like he’s genuinely curious but I know better. At this point I don’t even answer him, sweeping passed him I go for my door. Just as it opens, his hand holds it shut.                     “So you’re going to ignore the son of your Alpha?” Now he’s getting annoyed, it should worry me but honestly it’s funny. He acts just like his father in front of him but when his father isn’t around he’s not the worst of the family. He’s still an asshole, but he hasn’t beat me unless his mother or father is around so that’s something I guess. But I hate when anyone refers to that piece of garbage my Alpha.                     “He’s not my Alpha. I’m not a part of this pack, I’m a slave. My Alpha is dead. When I turn nineteen I’m leaving. I don’t care about you or your asshole family, I just want to be free. You want to know where I was so bad? I did leave the house, I limped half a mile into the woods to a f*****g stream so I could bathe and clean out my wounds. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’d like to get at least an hour or two of sleep before I have to get up and do everything for your pack.” Shaking my head, I open my door to go lay down while he just stands there looking stunned. I guess he wasn’t expecting me to tell the truth. -------                     After a week my cuts have started to scab over, but every time I change the bandages the scabs rip open, as far as I can tell none are infected but the pain every time one of them is stretched or bent with my skin goes from slight throbbing to a blazing fire. They're definitely going to scar. Unable to stop my chores to let the pain ease, I have to endure and ignore it. The bruising has faded from purple and black to purple and blue. Breathing still feels like being stabbed in the side but only with a tiny knife now. At least my limp went away, it still hurts to walk sometimes but I ignore it so my chores don’t take longer than needed.                      Today is going to be very long, Holden is having a birthday party. Each year they get bigger and bigger because he’s one year closer to becoming Alpha. Luckily I’ll be gone before he inherits that title. I’d love to see how they get everything together for that big of a party without a slave, I can’t imagine Charlotte doing any of it. The only reason I’m grateful Holden’s birthday is one week before mine is because I won’t be here for him becoming Alpha, if he was born one year before me that would be happening today.                     Four hours before the sun came up I had to get everything ready outside. The table, chairs, decorations and the makeshift stage where they’ll be praising their garbage fire of a family, especially their son. Before I started cooking, I had to double check everything was in place outside.                     The amount of food I’ve been told to prepare for this ‘special’ day is absolutely ridiculous, there’s a lot of pack members but even they couldn’t eat all of it. Two hundred batches of French toast, One hundred batches of cinnamon buns, Twenty cakes, and eighteen pies for the dessert table. Three hundred sandwiches, seventy bags of chips divided evenly in forty bowls, enough salad and pasta to feed three hundred people divided into one hundred bowls each, one hundred batches of French fries and three hundred hot dogs, hamburgers, and cheesesteaks. There’s one hundred seventy eight members of this pack, and of course I’m not allowed to eat any leftovers.                     In the middle of preparing food for the party I had to make breakfast for everyone before anyone woke up, make the dining room table and set all the plates and utensils out. Right before the first person came into the dining room I finished placing everyone’s cups on the table after finishing the food. After setting all the food dishes on the middle of the table so everyone could get what they wanted, I went back to the kitchen to finish preparing the party food. When all of it was done, I put the hot food in chafing dishes to keep everything warm and the salad in the fridge until the party.                     Now I had to finish my normal chores before the party started.                     At noon I took the food filled chafing dishes to the tables outside, placing bowls of salad in between the food and bringing the chips and drinks to the table just as the music stopped and everyone went from dancing to sitting at the table.                     Finally I’m able to go sit down in my room while everyone enjoys the party outside, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.                       Until I hear Charlotte yelling curses coming right for my door.