Seraphina's POV:
Eighteen Years Later
The morning sun streamed through the kitchen window, bathing the room in soft, warm light. It made the wooden counters glow like they were auditioning for some fancy home magazine. Too bad the rest of this place looked like it was decorated by wolves with terrible taste.
The smell of eggs and bacon filled the air as I stood by the stove, stirring a pot with a wooden spoon, humming quietly to myself. My fingers moved without thinking—I'd done this so many times I could probably cook breakfast in my sleep.
And knowing my luck, they'd probably make me do that too if they found out I could manage it.
I brushed a loose strand of hair from my face. The rest of my brown hair was tied in a messy braid, held together with an old blue ribbon I'd found in the forest. My skirt was old and too long, and my blouse kept slipping off one shoulder.
I looked like a servant… because that's what I was. At least in their eyes.
Just then, the door swung open.
"Oh, look," someone said behind me, her tone sharp and mocking. "The Red Moon Princess is already up."
I stiffened. I didn't need to turn around to know who it was. My built-in Lira detector was going off like crazy.
Two women stepped into the room, both dressed in silk robes with perfectly styled hair. One was Lira, the Alpha's daughter, who smirked like she owned the world. Which, to be fair, she kind of did around here. She was the perfect combination of beautiful and cruel. The other girl, Marina, followed closely behind like a shadow, laughing at whatever Lira said, even when it wasn't funny.
Especially when it wasn't funny.
"Is breakfast ready, princess?" Lira asked sweetly, her voice dripping with sarcasm as she leaned against the doorframe. "Or do royal hands need more time to flip an egg?"
I didn't answer. I kept my head down and quietly slid the eggs onto a plate.
Marina snorted behind her. "Maybe she thinks tonight's going to be special. It's her eighteenth birthday, after all." She laughed. "Poor thing must be dreaming about finding her mate."
Actually, I'm dreaming about never seeing your face again, but thanks for asking.
"A mate?" Lira scoffed. "Cursed creatures like her don't get mates. Even if she has one, he'll probably reject her." She stepped closer, leaning into my ear to whisper, "Never forget, Seraphina. You are just a slave that my family took in. You were born to be our slave, and you'll die as one."
Pulling back, she gave me a poisonous smile. "You'll be at the ball tonight, but I suggest you behave. Don't do anything that could embarrass my father in front of the other Alphas. Because if you do..." Her eyes glinted. "It won't just be a night in the dungeons. Got it?"
"Yes," I whispered, nodding.
Suddenly, she grabbed my arm and twisted it back. I gasped, pain shooting up to my shoulder as my eyes stung with tears. Ow, ow, ow! Okay, that actually hurt. "And one more thing," she hissed. "Stay away from Alpha Kane. If I ever catch you looking at him again with that cursed little face of yours, I'll claw it so deep you won't need a mirror to see how ugly you are. Understand?"
"Y-yes…" I choked out, nodding quickly.
She shoved my arm one last time and stepped back, the smile returning to her lips like nothing had happened. "Good," she grinned, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "Let's go, Marina. The pack will be back from their morning run soon."
Marina snatched a piece of bread from the table on her way out, giggling like it was all just a game.
And there goes the royal pain and her sidekick, Bread Thief.
Maybe it was a game for them. Maybe mocking me, hurting me, and treating me like nothing made them feel powerful. But tonight, I was going to put an end to it all. I clenched my fists tightly. My chest felt heavy, but my heart burned with determination.
I had a plan. I had one chance. And I was going to take it.
Was I scared of running away? Hell yes, I was! But I was more scared of staying...
Taking a deep breath, I turned back to the stove. I still had to finish breakfast. If I didn't, there would be punishment. There always was. Once the chores were done, I finally slipped away to the attic—my room.
The stairs creaked as I climbed them, and the door groaned when I pushed it open. The room was small, with low ceilings and a single window. Light barely reached the corners, but the room was spotlessly clean. My bed, if you could call it that, was nothing more than a thin mattress on an old wooden frame.
I sat down slowly. The frame creaked beneath me. It should have made me sad, but I smiled. "Tonight…" I whispered, looking around the room I'd known for so long. "This is the last time I'll be here."
I bent down and pulled out a small bag from under the bed. Inside were the only things I owned: a few plain dresses, some pieces of bread I'd hidden from the kitchen, and a tiny pouch of coins I'd saved over the years. It wasn't much, but it was enough to survive after leaving the pack.
The plan was simple. I would wait until the ball tonight. Everyone would be distracted. The guards would be busy. No one would notice me slipping out the back.
Since I was a child, I'd lived in the Moonveil Pack. Alpha Daniel was the leader—a powerful Alpha who ruled with discipline and control, but spoiled his two children, Jake and Lira, terribly. They were practically raised like royalty, while I was raised like nothing.
For years, I believed I was just an orphan, someone Alpha Daniel had taken in out of kindness. But when I was five, I found out the truth. I wasn't just an orphan. I was the daughter of the man everyone hated. The man who used to be king—the one they called a monster. The one they killed.
And when he died, they didn't let their hatred die with him. They passed it to me. Like a really twisted inheritance. 'Congratulations, you've inherited your father's enemies and a lifetime supply of dirty looks!'
I was the last offspring of that hated king. They called me the Red Moon Princess, not with pride, but with fear and disgust. They said I was born on a red moon night, that I was a cursed creature. But I didn't even know what the curse was. All I knew was the way they looked at me. The way they whispered behind my back. The way they made sure I always felt like I didn't belong.
I was the curse they couldn't get rid of.
And for eighteen years, I lived like a shadow. Cleaning, cooking, and staying quiet. Pretending I couldn't feel the stares or the pain.
But not anymore.
I was going to run.
Tonight, I would finally be free.