Sienna's POV
The wine glass slipped from my fingers.
It shattered against the stone floor and Evangeline's hand moved before I could even step back. Her palm connected with my cheek so fast I didn't see it coming. Just felt the sting afterward, hot and immediate.
"Clumsy girl," she whispered, her voice quiet like that made it worse. "Do you know how much that cost?"
I stared at the floor. My aunt's shoes. Polished leather that probably cost more than I'd ever own in my life. My cheek burned and I could taste blood on my tongue.
"I'm sorry," I said. Not because I meant it. Because she expected it.
Evangeline turned away from me like I was already forgotten. She walked back into the dining room where her guests were laughing. Rich people. Important people. I could hear their voices from the kitchen. One of them called for more wine and I grabbed a fresh bottle with shaking hands.
This was my life. Twenty-two years old and still serving people who'd never once looked me in the eye unless they were angry.
I'd grown up in this house. My mother had died when I was small and Evangeline took me in. That's what she told people anyway. The truth was uglier. My mother was Evangeline's sister but when Mom died, something in Evangeline twisted. Instead of raising me like family, she raised me like I owed her something just for existing.
My cousins had tutors and dancing lessons and marriage proposals from decent families. I had a room in the attic and work that never ended.
I poured the wine carefully this time. My hands were steadier now. I'd had practice not breaking things. Not making mistakes. Not existing in any way that might disturb the people who actually mattered.
When I came back into the dining room, Evangeline was laughing at something one of the guests said. She had this laugh she used for company. Warm and rich like honey. Nothing like the voice she used when we were alone.
I set the wine down and turned to leave but one of the men caught my wrist.
"What's your name, girl?" he asked. His eyes were too bright. Too interested in a way that made my stomach clench.
"Her name is Sienna." Evangeline's answer came too quick. Too protective in a way that wasn't about protecting me. "She's my niece but she's not... available."
I felt her eyes on me and pulled my wrist back. The man laughed and let me go.
I was crossing back to the kitchen when I heard it. The thing that changed everything.
"We need a bride." The man's voice carried through the open doorway. "For Alpha Kade Ravenswood. The Council has decided he needs a political marriage. It's been too long since the northern territories had stable leadership."
My steps slowed. Alpha Kade Ravenswood. Everyone knew that name. He was the strongest Alpha in the north. The kind of man that made other men nervous just by existing.
"A bride from your bloodline would be perfect," another guest was saying. "Show unity. Show that the Blackwood family supports Council authority."
I heard Evangeline move. I heard the smile in her voice when she spoke.
"I have someone," she said. "My niece. Young. Compliant. Perfect for a ceremonial marriage."
My heart stopped.
I pressed myself against the wall in the hallway, barely breathing. She couldn't mean me. She was talking about someone else. Someone from her side of the family. Someone worthy of an Alpha.
"She's an Omega," Evangeline continued, and something cold slid down my spine. "Docile. She won't cause any trouble. She'll give you heirs and ask for nothing more."
The cold feeling spread through my whole body now. She was talking about me. She was actually sitting there offering me like I was livestock.
"How quickly can you have her ready?" the man asked.
"Two weeks," Evangeline said. "Maybe less. She knows her place. She understands what's expected of her."
I couldn't hear what they said after that. The blood rushing in my ears was too loud. I stood in that hallway for what felt like hours, my back against the wall, trying to understand what I'd just heard.
Marriage to an Alpha.
Marriage meant leaving this house. Leaving my aunt and her cold voice and the endless work. Leaving the attic room. Leaving the life where I was invisible and worthless.
It meant escape.
My heart started racing for a completely different reason now. This was it. This was the thing I'd been waiting for without even knowing I was waiting for it.
I grabbed the wine bottle tighter and a wild smile pushed at my lips. An Alpha wanted me. Not because I was special or beautiful or worthy. Because Evangeline said I was Omega and compliant. Because I wouldn't cause trouble.
That was fine. I could be compliant. I could do whatever an Alpha wanted. It didn't matter why he wanted me. What mattered was that he was taking me away from here.
I moved through the rest of the dinner service like I was floating. My hands worked on muscle memory. Pour wine. Clear plates. Smile when spoken to. Disappear when not needed.
But my mind was already gone. Already traveling north to territories I'd never seen. Already imagining what it would feel like to have my own life. To not be treated like a ghost in my own family.
When the guests finally left, I sat in my attic room and stared at nothing for hours.
The word kept turning over in my mind. Omega. Omega. Omega.
My aunt had called me that my whole life like it was an insult. Like being an Omega meant I was less than everyone else. That I was supposed to submit and obey and never want anything for myself.
I'd learned to believe it. Learned to accept that this was all I'd ever be.
But what if an Alpha believed it too? What if Alpha Kade Ravenswood took one look at me and saw exactly what Evangeline promised? An Omega girl. Compliant. Grateful. Easy to control.
I could work with that. I could be exactly what he wanted. I could survive this marriage and build a life where I wasn't treated like I was worthless anymore.
I pressed my hand to my neck where a faint scent mark sat. Every Omega got one when they came of age. A mark that announced to the world what they were. It was supposed to smell like submission. Like surrender.
The mark should have told anyone with a nose that I was one of the lowest ranked wolves in existence.
The mark should have made that true.
But as I sat in the dark of my tiny room, my hand on that mark, something felt wrong. Something felt like it didn't fit right. Like a dress that didn't match my shape no matter how hard I tried to force it.
I pushed the feeling away. I didn't have time for that right now. I had two weeks maybe. Two weeks before I left this place forever.
I could figure out what felt wrong about myself later.
I could figure out everything once I was gone.
But as I lay down to sleep that night, a voice whispered in the back of my mind. A voice that sounded like it was warning me about something.
It said: You have no idea what you're about to walk into.
It said: Evangeline just didn't bury you, Sienna. She sold you to someone far more dangerous than herself.
It said: An Alpha doesn't want an Omega bride for companionship.
And as sleep pulled me under, I couldn't shake the feeling that the voice was right.
That I was running toward something, not away.
And that by the time I figured out what it was, it would already be too late to escape.