Viola could hear the moans and groans coming from inside the room even before she entered.
Her insides churned. She knocked, and Evan's annoyed voice quickly came from inside.
"Who the fuck is there?"
Leni's sweet voice came next. "It must be her, I can tell from the scentless presence. She must have brought our tea. Come in."
Viola's fingers tightened around the tray as she stepped inside the room, which still held the strong smell of sex that made her nauseous and sick.
Four years ago, she had naively thought this room would eventually be hers.
Four years ago, she was the girlfriend of the Alpha heir, the daughter of the well-respected Beta, and the top candidate to be the next Luna of the Moonwillow Pack.
However, everything changed when she turned nineteen and failed to shift. Her pheromones suddenly became strong enough to make the men lose control. Everyone avoided her like the plague.
Viola was betrayed by her sworn mate. She was publicly rejected while he claimed another as his new mate and Luna. Not only that, he had condemned her to a life of a Hollow, a fate worse than Omegas.
An Omega might have some simple luxuries and life outside of work, but Hollows weren't allowed their own rooms, much less to speak unless spoken to.
On the other hand, he declared he found his mate in Leni, a soft-spoken girl whom Viola had always thought would become an Omega.
Viola had always thought that Evan hated Leni, but she would never forget what Evan had told her that day before he cruelly doomed her to a lifetime in hell.
"I've had plenty of time to spend with Leni while you were busy doing my assignments for the Alpha test. Thanks, by the way. Now I finally have the power to protect my mate."
"Enjoy your days as a Hollow, Viola."
He called her a selfish, arrogant bitch. Yet, everything she did merely mirrored Evan's own actions, all because she didn't want to lose his favor. Regardless, she still ended up here in the Hollow's quarters.
For four years, Viola had been in this hellhole. The man she thought was the love of her life was the one who sent her in. Her parents had the power to prevent it all, but they refused to help.
Viola never found out why she never got a wolf. If it weren't for her pheromones, she would've been no different from a human. Every wolfless would be demoted to a Hollow, and that was what Viola became.
The only way to escape this hellish fate was if an Alpha or a Beta decided to mate with one or claimed one. Viola lost her chance.
"Good morning, Alpha and Luna," she greeted.
The titles of Alpha and Luna had been given to them a few days ago, and to think they now wanted her to serve them was beyond enduring. But Viola had no voice to reject it.
Every night she lay down to sleep in the cold Hollow quarters, Viola was haunted by Evan's betrayal. He would've never been titled Alpha without her help.
In the Moonwillow Pack, when two brothers inherited the Alpha's blood, both would have to go through tests and assignments that determined who would be the heir.
Being the Beta's daughter, Viola had promised Evan the role of Alpha even though he was the younger brother. She used her influence and did things quietly, giving him information that offered him an advantage over his brother.
In the end, when Viola was no longer of use, Evan tossed her away just to crown Leni his Luna.
Leni, the innocent Leni who acted like she would never steal another woman's man. Leni was a distant cousin of the Lindens, who had lost her parents in a brutal accident. She was taken in by the Beta.
She was quiet and often acted like a delicate, innocent flower who ought to be protected. She had everyone in the pack wrapped around her finger back then, except Evan. He had never shown signs that he liked her until the day he publicly humiliated Viola.
Since then, Viola had gone through countless beatings and had been injected with endless doses of wolfsbane. She had been starved, abused, and fed all sorts of pills to calm her pheromones, all until she finally accepted there was no way out.
If she refused to obey, she could be killed or thrown out. With her strong pheromones, being cast out was infinitely worse, as it meant she would be turned into a breeding mate for the packless.
This was perhaps the destiny the Moon Goddess had chosen for her.
"Bring the tea forward. I want to see your face when you serve it," Leni said, giving the useless Hollow permission to look at them. She wanted her to see how she had taken her place and watch the misery on her face.
Viola would have preferred not to lift her head, but it was the Luna's order. She served the tea and looked up, but her fingers trembled around the cup.
Evan's head was buried between Leni's breasts while Leni looked at Viola over his bent head, smiling as she reached out.
Viola walked forward and handed the tea over, but because she was too devastated and heartbroken by the sight of the man she loved devouring another woman's body, a little tea spilled over the rim of the cup and touched Leni's finger. Leni cried out in pain, drawing Evan's attention immediately.
"What happened, my pet?" Evan asked worriedly as he looked at his mate. Tears had suddenly filled Leni's brown eyes as she looked at Viola in accusation.
"She burned me with the tea…"
Evan's gold eyes snapped to Viola, and for a moment she felt the urge to step back and run. His Alpha energy flared as his eyes glared daggers at her, as if he would cut her into pieces. The resentment in his gold eyes sent shivers down her spine.
"Bitch, do you have a death wish? How dare you hurt my Luna?!" he gritted through clenched teeth, anger coloring his face red.
Viola couldn't believe he thought a little tea could hurt a Luna. However, Viola resisted voicing her thoughts. The sooner this was done with, the sooner she could leave.
"It's fine, my Alpha. She didn't do it intentionally," Leni said, her voice quivering as though the tea had sliced her fingers off. But despite her words, her tears only made Evan angrier.
"Kneel and apologize to her."
Viola would have apologized if it were anyone else and if she didn't hate Leni with everything inside her. But instead of apologizing, she said, "It's just tea. She will survive."
She regretted those words the moment they left her mouth, but it was too late to take them back.
Evan angrily grabbed a decorative iron idol from his nightstand and hurled it at her. It struck the right side of her face with brutal force, and Viola saw a flash of red, then black, before the pain consumed her to the back of her head. Blood immediately began to ooze from her eye.
"On your knees, Hollow!"