Chapter One

Davina’s POV

I woke up to a burning sensation in my hand, I groggily turned my hand around,

trying not to wince as the small movement intensified the pain, it was the tattoo
on my wrist. It had suddenly showed up in my hand when I was eight years old, I
live with my parents and two older siblings, Brian and Elizabeth, they were twins,
my parents were the alpha and Luna of my pack, my older brother was the future
alpha while my older sister had the luxury of being an alpha’s daughter and she
enjoyed it to the fullest. I tried to tell my parents about tattoo but they never
listened, they were so busy fawning about Brian and Elizabeth who had just had
their first shift so I was just completely forgotten. After they were done praising
my siblings who had not ‘disappointed them’, they lovingly told me how they looked
forward to my first shift and what I had tried to tell them was long forgotten.
They threw a party to celebrate the first shift of the pack’s future alpha while I
looked sullen with jealousy but I had no clue that the moment was the best of the
worst to come.

The tattoo had just been there like it was nothing, it felt like a brand but it
was so much more, my parents never cared enough to ask about it. When it was time
for my first shift, everyone looked forward to it but my parents, not so much.
Despite how young I was, I could see it in their eyes that they were not as
enthusiastic as when it was my older siblings first shift. At the end of the day,
to my greatest horror, nothing happened, nothing changed, no cracking or shifting
of bones, no fur, no paw or tail, absolutely nothing. For the first time, I was
really scared, I was afraid to see the disgust on the face of my parents and pack
members. My siblings laughed at me and I was secretly scorned by everyone, my
parents assured me that I might be a late bloomer which was rare but not uncommon
so I kept my hopes up. When I turned fifteen, the time a normal late bloomer should
have shifted, I still didn’t show any signs of being a shifter, I was tagged
wolfless

It was the worse day of my life.

But the worst was still yet to come.

I cried all day, I was ashamed, I didn’t know what had gone wrong, I did not
understand why I wasn’t like my siblings and all I had to show was a stupid wolf
tattoo. From that day onwards, I became Davina, a seventeen years old girl without
a wolf. I didn’t have the luxury of using my family’s last name all because of that
one issue. I was wolfless, I wasn’t like any other werewolf because I didn’t have a
wolf despite being born from two purebred wolves. My parents loving nature towards
me suddenly changed, I was moved from my room to a small, dusty attic. That wasn’t
the end of it, the pride of being the alpha’s youngest daughter was snatched from
me when my parents made an announcement that they only had two children and that I
was never their child, they said that they had found me in front of the pack
boundaries and they raised me to be a maid for them.

I was horrified, it all became clear to me, the reason why I didn’t take any of
the features of my parents, everyone in the family had hazel brown eyes but mine
was blue, their hair was blond but mine was black and I even had perfect skin
without needing skincare products: something Elizabeth needed the most. I was said
to be human which could explain why I didn’t have a wolf, to me, it wasn’t a
logical reason because I had a wolf tattoo in my hand but it looked dull like a
drawing so I kept this thought to myself. Thanks to my parents announcement, I was
being treated as a slave. I was given all sort of names, my siblings and friends
scorned me and looked for various means to push me around or get me punished.
 The punishment weren’t severe at all, I would mostly be starved for a day but
with time, it increased. I became the pack’s punching bag, they would hit me to let
out their frustrations and grievances or for no reason. Day by day, the bruises on
my flawless skin increased, new wounds were created and old wounds were never given
a chance to heal. This was the worst moments of my life, I felt alone, abandoned, I
prayed earnestly, I prayed for a miracle that would change my situation but it
never came.

I don’t understand why the tattoo would be causing me so much pain after years of
being dormant on my skin. I summed up the reason for the tattoo, it wasn’t a brand
but a curse. If it hadn’t showed up in my earlier years, maybe my life would have
been different.

After a few seconds, the pain stopped and the mark receded to being the plain,
boring tattoo on my skin. My peaceful slumber was officially over as the alarm
rang, I immediately turned it off before anyone could wake up, my family could be
the worst if forcefully awakened from their sleep. I quietly rushed to the kitchen
to make breakfast, each time I dropped a cutlery or slammed the cupboard door a
little too loud, I would stop to listen if anyone was stirring from their beds but
fortunately, no one got up. I set the table and returned to my room before they
woke up, I tried to limit my presence around them to prevent more beatings from
them.

“Wake up you bitch!!, Where the hell is my breakfast!” I heard my brother yelling
followed by a loud crash of glasses probably shattered into a million pieces.
Behind the closed door of my room, I knew what was coming after this. Another round
of beating. I was scared, worried, scarred for life, I was broken, shattered, in
pain but I couldn’t call out for help cause I was useless, a waste of space, time
and air. These words has been forever drilled into my head and mind and carved in
my heart by the ones I called family.

“Shut up Brian, use your nose.” I heard Elizabeth scold him with a soft tone of
voice, something she had never used when she addressed me.

Whenever we had visitors from other packs, she was the sweetest angel but behind
closed doors, she was a devil. She had a specific way of inflicting pain on me, she
would push office pins through my fingers with a sardonic smile on her face. Brian
enjoyed cutting my skin with sharp objects while my mother enjoyed using a whip on
me. For some strange reason, I don’t hate them and I still treated them like family
because they raised me and took care of me for the first fifteen years, I strongly
hoped that someday they would be enlightened by the moon goddess and start to treat
me better.

“Davina!” I was about to fall asleep when I heard my mother yell my name.

I rushed down the attic to the dining area as fast as I could. “Yes mother” I
replied and bowed my head to the ground, she had warned me never to look at her
face when she was addressing me .

“Where were you?” Elizabeth inquired.

“I was uh-”

“Forget it. Today, you’ll be doing the laundry, the tapestries must be washed-”

“But I washed that yesterday.” I unconsciously interrupted and I felt a slap on

my cheek, my legs gave out under me and I fell on the ground.

“Don’t you dare speak when the Luna is addressing you” Brian sternly warned me, I
could see the look of approval on my mother’s face and it hurt me the more. He
grabbed me up and left me to steady myself before he wiped his hand on a nap as if
he had touched something disgusting.

Me.

I often wondered why I had not tried to run away but I realized that I didn’t
have the courage to, I feared what might happen if I got caught and I might be
mistaken for a rogue if I wandered into another pack’s territories and I have heard
that no one had mercy on rogues unless you wind up being a mate to one of the pack
members.

“You must wash the tapestries, draperies, the ribbons, rugs, bedsheets, duvet and
quilts. Tomorrow is the Mate choosing and I’m sure that my children will find their
mates so I want the house clean without a speck of dust. Am I clear?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“You can leave.” She dismissed me with the wave of her hand, I didn’t miss the
sneer that Elizabeth sends in my direction. She mouthed ‘Weak’ at me.

Welcome to my Cinderella lifestyle.

I didn’t need anyone to tell me that I won’t be allowed to attend the Mate
Choosing. It was a wolves gathering that is organized in a neutral territory every
year, every unmated werewolf in the country had a chance to attend it from the
moment they turn seventeen and the age limit is twenty four years old. From what I
had heard, the gathering had helped a lot of mates meet each other and the chances
of meeting your fated half was about fifty percent. There are two reasons you might
not meet your mate the moment you turn seventeen, first, either your mate was not
old enough or had died and the second is, your mate lived in a different country.

Brian and Elizabeth who are two years older than me had attended two Mate
Choosing but they haven’t met their second half, Elizabeth was starting to think
that their mates were probably twins who lived in a different country, it was rare
for twins to be mated to twins but not impossible. The chances of me having a mate
was negative zero, my mother told me that it would never happen and I don’t dare to
dream, while Elizabeth constantly reminded me that I was worthless and no one will
ever want me.

They were right.

I truly am worthless.

I couldn’t even stand up for myself, why would a wolf want to choose a weak girl
to mate with.

It was a few hours past noon when I finished with all of my chores. As I heard
the front door slam shut, I let out a huge sigh of relief, my mother and siblings
were going shopping once again because they strongly believed that they were going
to meet their mates the next day and Elizabeth wanted to look stunning. My father
lived in the pack house and hardly returned so I was safe, for now. I had a few
hours all to myself. I immediately rushed to the bathroom, brushed my teeth and
decided to have the pleasure of warm bath which I hardly have access to.

I winced as the water cascade down my bruised skin causing more pain than relief.
After the pained pleasure of ten minutes, I got out of the bathroom, got dressed in
a faded jeans and tee shirt, a jacket ripped in some places to hide the blue and
purplish bruises in my arms and light makeup to hide the dark circles in my eyes
and the skin that was turning yellow because of lack of proper medical treatment. I
used my fingers to comb through my black hair and tied it into a messy bun on top
of my head, letting a few strands fall on my face.

When I looked into the mirror, I hated what I saw, my blue eyes that used to
sparkle was dull and lifeless, I tried to smile but it came out forced. I held back
the tears that threatened to pour.

I was broken.

Chapter 2

That afternoon, I had nothing else to do so I thought of catching a few hours of

sleep. No matter how I tried, I just couldn’t fall asleep, I got some scraps of
paper to put my thoughts into words but nothing came forth, my mind was blank, it
was like a bottomless pit full of thoughts but those thoughts could not be
converted into words.

The Mate Choosing came to my mind again but I shook the thoughts away and tried
to distract myself by scribbling away but it was still there. I wanted to attend
the Mate Choosing, I wanted to know what’s like. Elizabeth had always said a lot of
things about it whenever she returned and it fascinated me the more, I wanted a
different life for myself and it wasn’t going to come if I stay here being a maid.

What if I had a mate?

What if my mother was wrong all along?

What if I had someone waiting for me? Someone who is going to accept me just the
way I am, with all of my flaws.

What if that person won’t care about how broken or worthless I am and he would
accept me all the same.

A lot of what ifs came to my mind, there is a chance that I had a mate out there
who was just waiting for me. I heard that some wolves would rather grow old alone
than choose someone else to mate with. What if I had someone like that? If I did,
then it would be wrong for me not to attend or meet him, even if it’s just once.

There is a hierarchy chart in every pack, there is the Alpha who is the leader of
a park, his mate, the Luna is the mother figure in the pack. The Beta is the second
in command, Gamma as the third in command, the head of the pack warriors is the
Delta. There are also pack doctors and pack members, the last are the Omegas, they
are the pack runts, the most ill treated in the pack but not all packs treated
omegas like dirt, so I have heard.

I wasn’t wishing for an high ranked wolf as a mate because every high ranking
wolf wanted a strong female by his side and I don’t fit in that description. All I
wanted was a normal wolf who would love me for who I am, take care of me and if
possible, take me away from my pack. I don’t want to live the rest of my life here.

I made up my mind.

I was going to attend the Mate Choosing, even if it means sneaking out of the
pack while everyone is distracted and if I don’t find my mate, I would run to the
human world, I wasn’t going to return after tomorrow.

I went through the meagre amount of belongings I had, there wasn’t really any
clothes I wanted to keep. Luckily, I had started saving up long before my world
came crashing down, I had quiet a huge sum of money that would last me for a month
if I was careful with how I spent. I frowned as I recalled that everyone had to be
dressed in a formal outfit or they won’t be allowed to the spot where the gathering
took place.. there was just one problem.

I needed a gown.

I contemplated on going to my sister’s room and taking one of her numerous gowns
but there was a chance she would notice and my whole plan could be ruined. Another
idea was to go to the city where the humans lived and purchase everything I needed
but it would reduce my savings by half. I didn’t have a choice, it was either that
or risked getting my fingers pierced by needles as punishment.

I chose the latter.

I tried to avoid the pack members but wasn’t so lucky and got stepped on and
pushed around a few times, I remained calm and quiet, I couldn’t give them the
benefit of seeing me beg or cry out for mercy. When I reached the pack boundaries,
a guard stopped me.

“Where do you think you are going?” He looked stern and it seemed like he
wouldn’t hesitate to mindlink the alpha that I was trying to escape.

Luckily, I had made plans for this moment. “I have to get some groceries from the
human stores”

“Does the Luna know about this?”

I shook my head and took out some croissants that I had hidden in my my jacket.
As expected , his eyes lightened up when he saw them. “The Luna went shopping with
her children”

“If you give me that, then you can leave” He was trying to sound tough but his
mouth was already watering.

I knew I had him hooked but I still had to put up a show, I pretended to be
hesitant. “But it’s-.”

“You can either give it to me and be on your way or I can tell the alpha that you
tried to escape” He threatened.

I tried to look scared at his threat before I handed the croissants to him, he
looked very happy that his threat had worked but he had no idea that this was
something I really wanted. “You can leave, if you are caught, you never saw me.
Understood?”

“Yes.” I sneered in my mind, he was trying to give a way out for himself if I got
caught. But on the bright side, I had a few hours to get what I needed and return
before my mother got back.

When I arrived in the city where the stores were, I didn’t hesitant before
entering one because I couldn’t risk running into my mum and my siblings or any of
my pack members. The result will be disastrous.

The storekeeper smiled at me as I entered. “Welcome, is there anything you want

or would you like to browse around for a bit”

I shook my head and looked at the ground, old habits never die easily. I forced
myself to look at her face, I wasn’t really comfortable around her even though she
seemed very nice. “I need a gown”

The shopkeeper scanned me from head to toe. “Perfect! I was hoping you didn’t
have something in mind. I have something that would be just perfect for you.” I
tried to smile as she led me to the changing room, a part of me was happy that
there was nobody else in the store apart from both of us. The woman returned with a
red gown with gold embroidery designs on it and pushed me into a cubicle.

Taking a deep breath, I stripped off my shirt and jeans and wore the gown. The
silky material felt strange and wonderful to my skin, clinging to my curves and
falling gracefully below my knees. When I looked into the mirror, I gasped at the
stranger that was looking right back at me .

“Have you changed into it?” The storekeeper called from outside the cubicle.

“Yes.” I forced herself to respond, I was still shocked.

The woman opened the door, she smiled in triumph at what she saw. “I knew that
dress was meant for you the moment I saw you.”

I blushed a little, I haven’t received any compliments in a very long time, the
gown was definitely worth keeping. The woman rushed away and returned after a while
with a gold stiletto heels, a jewelry box and red cloak. She insisted that I get it
because they matched the outfit, in the end, she was very convincing and I paid for
it before leaving.

When I returned to the pack, I entered through the backdoor and hurried to the
attic to keep my stuffs away. After making sure it was well hidden, I went to the
kitchen to bake some light snacks for lunch. About an hour later, Elizabeth comes
in with her best friend Patricia and they were laughing over some random jokes.
Patricia used to be my best friend but after my life changed, she immediately
switched sides and latched onto Elizabeth’s side.

“Bitch, is lunch ready?” Elizabeth called from the living room. I didn’t respond,
I only carried a plate of snacks and a glass of juice to her.

“Where is mine? Are you suddenly blind that you couldn’t notice the number of
people here?” Patricia inquired rudely. I could be scared of the pack members and
give them a chance to walk over me but not Patricia, she is a snake that won’t
hesitate to backstab you.

I rolled my eyes at her. “A breeding fog celebrated it’s birthday, guess who
came? A bitch.”

Her face changed to a series of color, she couldn’t retort with an appropriate
comeback so she could only turn to Elizabeth who was checking out her nails.
“Betty, she is being rude. How do you tolerant her? Or have you stopped her
punishment?”

“Stop being a crybaby and let’s talk about the alphas that would be attending the
Mate Choosing since it’s going to your first time attending” It was obvious that
Elizabeth would rather tolerant me than her because she knew what kind of person
Patricia was.

I glared at her before returning to the kitchen, I wanted to eavesdrop on their

conversation and find out as much as possible about the Mate Choosing.

Patricia looked embarrassed and could only swallow her grievances since Elizabeth
wasn’t going to support her. “I heard that the demon is going to attend, I only
hope that he doesn’t end up getting mated to any of us.”

The demon?

Who is that? I was confused.

“I pity the she wolf that ends up as his mate, she would be so scared that he
might murder her in her sleep someday. I heard that he is only twenty one but he
is the most famous alpha” Elizabeth chipped in.

“Yes. When he was fifteen, he singlehandedly fought a pack of rogues and won, all
the other alphas fears him because it is said that he killed his father to get the
alpha position.”

“He is the most ruthless alpha and he also gets uncontrollable bloodlust. Who
knows whether he might end up killing his mate someday.”

“Even rogues are so scared of him, his pack members must hate him so much but
unfortunately they won’t have a chance to switch packs or he might kill them.”

The conversation went on and on, at some point I got so tired of listening and
returned to my room. What I had heard about him was enough to make me fascinated,
how can a person make so many fear him so much. Others were scared of him but I
looked forward to meeting him, I couldn’t draw a conclusion about him without first
meeting him.

Everything went normally, aside from a few insults, no one raised their hands on
me. I was happy mainly because of the Mate Choosing and the fact that I had left
the pack to get an outfit but no one noticed my absence or the result would be
disastrous. That night when I was about to fall asleep, a searing pain shot from
the tattoo on my wrist, I bit into my pillow to prevent myself from crying out. The
pain spread from my wrist to the rest of my body, then I heard something crack, the
pain intensified. The cracking sound continued inside me as my body distorted into
various weird angles, it was a hundred times more painful than the pain I was
subjected to daily. Black and white stars dotted my vision so I closed my eyes but
the pain jerked me awake. I wanted it to stop but it only intensified and I dare
not scream out or my family would hit me till I was half dead. After a while of
intense agony, it stopped, I weakly opened my eyes and caught a glimpse of silver
fur covering my hand before darkness swallowed me.

Chapter three

When I woke up the next morning, I recalled what had happened to me the previous
night so I checked out myself from a mirror, my eyes didn’t look dull anymore
instead, the color seemed to have changed and a hint of silver seemed to be mixed
within, my skin was soft, smooth and flawless, the shocking aspect was that all
injuries, whether old or new had healed. Then it dawned to me.

Was that my shift!

Why would my shift cause my body to undergo such a huge change?

I couldn’t recall what I had seen but I was absolutely sure that I had undergone
my first shift, which meant I was a werewolf.

I had a wolf!

I tried to call out to her in my head but there was no response. I didn’t let
that discourage me and ruin my mood. Since I had woken up earlier than expected and
it gave me enough time to prepare breakfast for a lot of people. Brian and
Elizabeth had their friends coming over so I had to prepare enough food for
everyone. Breakfast consisted of chicken and onion dumpling with cilantro sauce,
potato pancake and lemon cream, pancakes with marple syrup and chocolate pudding
for dessert.

When my mother and siblings woke up, they didn’t give a damn about me, all of
them were fussing about the Mate Choosing most especially Elizabeth who wanted to
begin her skincare routine in time. As their friends showed up, it was so much
worse having people around with all of them talking about the same thing. I quietly
returned to my room to wait for the time to go by, I doubted that anyone noticed my
absence which was a very good thing because I didn’t want a bruise on my perfect
skin.

That evening, the house was soon filled with people, chatter and laughter. As I
approached the living room, everyone seemed to be waiting for someone, at some
point while I was in my room, my father had showed up and he was discussing with
his Beta. As usual, no one noticed my presence, all I wanted was for them to leave
so I could get myself ready.

Brian and Elizabeth showed up hand in hand amidst cheers from their peers, Brian
was dressed in a black tuxedo looking like a perfect gentleman while Elizabeth who
was tall and slender was elegantly draped a one shoulder ruffle overlay white
sheath gown, her brown hair curled softly around her oval face and her long lashed
hazel brown eyes were clear and cool. They were the perfect children anyone except
me would wish for.

“We are going to be late, let’s get going!” I locked eyes with Patricia, she
sends a sad smile to my way but I ignored it.

“Davina!” My father called out in an authoritative tone. “Make sure that the
house is well decorated for our return. I don’t want my children’s mate to meet
this place in a mess”

“Yes alpha” I bowed down deeply.

Soon the house was empty, there was a smirk on my face, I knew that I wasn’t
returning after my departure so I might as well give them a goodbye present. The
chances of me meeting my mate was slim but there was still a chance.

I took a warm bath and I enjoyed it but I didn’t spend so much time because I had
to get to the Choosing grounds, I immediately got to work on my make up, something
I had spent years to secretly learn and perfect and thankfully some of Elizabeth’s
friends had forgotten their make-up kits so it was a gain for me. I also put on
gown, followed by the jewelries and heels.

When I was done, I checked a full length mirror and was surprised at what I saw,
I was different, a girl but I looked very matured in a dangerously sexy way, my
skin was soft as the silk red gown: it was a silk gown with subtle scoop neckline
that revealed teasing hints of my breast, open strappy back and high side slit,
it’s classic line accentuated my softly rounded figure as it clung to my curves. My
hair was arranged on top of my head in an elegant and sophisticated style with a
pin to hold it in place, my lips were the painted red, my eyes were the colors of
sapphire, sparkling and shining, beautiful with the dark eyeshadow and eyeliner.

No one from the pack would recognize me if they saw me at this very moment.

For the first time in a very long time, I felt beautiful. I traced my hand over
the golden embroidery designs on the gown and I genuinely smiled. I wore the fur
cloak which was held in place by a brooch pin, before elegantly leaving my house
for the last time but I didn’t forget to pen down a note for my family.

I was free.

I followed a path through the back of the house, I had to leave my pack’s
territory before my absence was discovered. I arrived at a road, cars were driving
past me all towards a direction. The Choosing grounds. My feet were starting to
hurt from walking so much on heels but I kept moving.

Suddenly a black Rolls Royce slowed down and was moving in the same pace as me, I
ignored it and kept moving. One of the tinted windows was rolled down, a man pushed
his head out

“Princess, where have you been? You got us so worried” The car stopped in front
of me and two men got out. One was red haired and the other had green eyes.

“What do you want? Who are you?” I was confused why this men called me princess.

“Your highness, you thought you could fool us by changing your scent and outfit?”
The red haired man chuckled.

“But-” I didn’t have a chance to speak.

“I almost got fooled by your makeover” The green eyed man laughed.

“You look like you’re ready for your mate, I thought you were not so
enthusiastic. Come in, we should leave.”

I was confused but I let them lead me to the car as I tried to explain. “I think
you have the wrong person, I’m not your princess.”

They burst into laughter. “You are Princess Davina Alisha Andronov, the only
child of the royal family” The car started and the direction was the Choosing
grounds. “Playtime’s over.”

What!

This men thought I was the princess. I felt so confused. How come I looked like
the princess? The makeup!