Chapter 01

" Fucking Keegan! How dare he insult me!"

The glass missed my head and hit the wall next to me. But the glass splintered the skin of my cheek, creating a thin scratch and a small stream of blood on my skin. I closed my eyes and tried not to make a sound so as not to attract the attention of my father, Alpha Antonio, who was raging in his study.

Father had just returned from a political meeting with Alpha Keegan of Blackmoon, who had come to visit Silvermoon's western edge with various groups of Wolves.

Silvermoon had wanted to form an alliance with Blackmoon, but it seemed to have ended badly, with Alpha Keegan humiliating my father.

Seeing that Father was so angry, I didn't dare to approach and cleaned up the remaining broken glass on the floor, then quietly went out with the cleaning equipment.

When Father noticed my presence, he glared and growled.

"Stupid girl, what are you doing in my office? "My father's hand shot up to slap my face.

I closed my eyes, feeling the pain on the left side of my face. An angry father had always been a figure I feared. He had a cruel and cold temper, quickly exploding when angry.

"What are you looking at damn girl, get out of my sight! Your disgusting and pathetic face makes me sick." Father turned around grimly.

I nodded weakly and left quickly before he hit me again.

"Wait a minute!"

I stopped at his command and turned around timidly, "Yes, father?" My voice sounded shaky.

Father's pouting lips looked my appearance up and down and growled. "Alpha Keegan and his flock are coming to visit for dinner in a little while. Don't come out of your room. I don't want Alpha Keegan of the Blackmoon Pack to know I have a firstborn daughter without a wolf. Don't let this disgrace get out of the Silvermoon Pack, do you understand?!"

I hung my head low and replied weakly, "I understand Father ...."

"Get out!"

I walked out of Father's study.

I am Rivera Mellark, a disgrace to the Mellark family and ostracized by the Silvermoon Pack. As Alpha Antonio's eldest daughter, I was a disgrace for being the only one without a wolf. Father hated me even more because my birth had caused my mother to die.

I wanted to know how strong Alpha Keegan was to make Alpha Antonio cringe and swallow his pride.

Although Alpha Antonio's encounter with Alpha Keegan ended badly, he still welcomed the man home as a guest.

Alpha Keegan was also a strange man. He made Dad angry but wanted to visit the Mellark family, so Alpha Antonio had to submit and accept him as a guest in the house. This action showed his arrogance and dominance.

I sighed as I felt my stomach rumbling.

I had been cooking since the afternoon but hadn't eaten anything. My stepmother, Meghan, forbade me to eat before the Mellarks had finished. So I always ate leftovers and never even joined in at the dinner table, as if I was not the daughter of this family but a maid.

I had to quickly sneak into the kitchen and grab a few pieces of meat before Alpha Kaagen arrived, and Meghan was still in the room getting dressed.

I moved quietly into the kitchen, looking around to make sure no one was there. The smell of cooking wafting from the kitchen made my stomach churn.

There was a whole roasted chicken that was still warm and looked delicious. A variety of sumptuous and delicious-looking meat dishes aroused my stomach on the kitchen table to be served to the honored guests. I had to restrain myself and only took a piece of chicken, then left before my stepmother came and scolded me.

Suddenly my shoulder hurt from hitting something hard, and my butt kissed the floor. The chicken in my hand slipped out and lay on the floor.

"Where are your eyes, rat!" A cold voice hurled insults.

My younger sister and half-sister called me a rat to insult me for living secretly in the attic and being an invisible person in this house for twenty years of my life.

I took a deep breath and looked up to see my stepbrother, Sean, who was two years younger than me, standing in front of me with a disdainful look. Behind him, Elijah West, a red-haired man with dark blue eyes, smiled scornfully. He was the same age as me and the most annoying person in the Pack.

"Sorry," I replied in a low voice, grabbing the piece of chicken that had slipped from my hand.

But suddenly, a long leg in high heels stepped on the chicken.

"Oops, sorry, not on purpose. "My stepsister, Kristin, a year younger than Sean, giggled after stepping on the chicken I had stolen.

I closed my eyes and stood up from the floor, but Kristin pushed me, causing me to fall back on the floor.

"You should take that food and eat it like a mouse, don't waste food! Or I'll rat you out to mom for stealing food!" Kristin laughed wickedly, stomping on the back of my hand with her beautiful red high heels. Sean and Elijah laughed loudly and contemptuously.

I let them continue laughing at me and endured the pain in the back of my hand.

"Dirty rat, why are you still on the floor? Go clean the guest room for Elijah, he's coming to stay here." Sean spat at me and kicked my hip as if kicking a dog on the side of the road.

Panic enveloped my heart. It was a nightmare for me every time Elijah came to stay. He would always bother me and secretly try to break into my room to harass me.

Last summer's nightmare left me shuddering and trembling as Elijah quietly entered my room. If you hadn't passed by and heard my screams, I might have been crushed at Elijah's hands.

Father didn't want to save me out of concern but to save the dignity of the Mellark family and the eldest daughter, who was to become Alpha Dominic's bride.

Elijah was expelled, but I was punished severely.

I hate this house. I want to leave here.

"Soon the Blackmoon swarm is coming and you're still cowering on the floor like a rat. Go, don't make Silvermoon's dignity fall by seeing a disgrace and a rat like you in front of Alpha Keegan!" Elijah snorted impatiently, full of contempt for me.

"Right..." Kristin pulled her foot, which was stepping on the back of my hand, and fixed her hair anxiously. "Don't let Alpha Keegan find out I have a sister without these wolves and rats; I could lose my dignity as the Alpha daughter of the Silvermoon Pack," she looked at me disdainfully.

"Get lost!" Sean cursed as he kicked me a second time.

I held my breath from the pain of my hip and stood up shakily, grabbing a piece of chicken meat that was already dirty and unfit from Kristin's trampling. I bowed my head, not wanting to see their and Elijah's humiliation, and then walked quickly away from that place.

Suddenly, my head hit a hard yet warm surface.

"Sorry, I'm sorry..." I was startled and backed away, but I tripped over my feet and fell embarrassingly on the floor. Pieces of chicken meat flew out of my hand and hit the man in front of me in the face.

The man's face was very handsome. He had dark hair and exotic tan skin. His body was large and muscular. He was wearing a dark gray shirt and long black pants.

I covered my mouth with the palm of my hand, a feeling of horror and fear filling my chest at the sight of Father's dark face filled with anger. There were several men with him with an intimidating and oppressive aura.

"An interesting welcome Alpha Antonio ...." The deep, raspy voice of the man I bumped into chuckled, cleaning the chicken crumbs off his face. His dark blue eyes looked like a deep ocean and stared at me intently as if they could pierce through me.

I held my breath. Something deep inside me was churning with something unfamiliar. Familiar voices that I hadn't heard before were whispering. What was this feeling?

I felt uneasy with the man's presence and averted my eyes, dispelling the uncomfortable feeling that shook my soul and then attracted the suspicion of my father and others. "Are you alright, Miss?" the man's voice returned.

I didn't dare to take his outstretched hand in front of me because of my father's eyes as if he was going to devour me and skin me alive.

"Alphan Keegan, there's no need to bother with this maid." Father said with pursed lips and glared at me.

It turned out that the man was the famous Alpha Keegan.

"Didn't I tell you to clean the warehouse, why are you still here! Go do your job." Father snapped impatiently.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Mellark. I'll leave immediately." I bowed my head as I stood up, trying not to look at everyone in the place. Although Alpha Antonio was my biological father, he never considered me and treated me like a maid in front of the guests.

"This maid is too pretty for a maid," Alpha Keegan commented, extending his hand before me and blocking me from leaving.

I lowered my head even more anxiously, feeling the piercing stares from my father, Kristin, and my stepmother, who never liked my face. I was too beautiful to overshadow Kristin.

Wrestling with anxious thoughts, I heard Alpha Keegan's voice.

"I've heard your eldest daughter doesn't have a wolf, where is she? I want to see what your eldest daughter who doesn't have a wolf looks like."