Chapter 1

Theda POV

I watched as their loathful eyes watched me, and the pairs of monstrous eyes lighting from every corner, staring at me sleazily, while watching me drown in shame made my heart throb harder. 

 They were all monsters. Monsters who came from everywhere to buy the almighty Alpha Julian's stepdaughter

That was who I was.

 The bidding did not yet start. Omegas were considered worthless in our city, and it was a threat to me since I was an Omega. I couldn't believe that this day was going to come. A day when all hope was going to be lost, leaving me in the hands of beasts to devour me and dump my rotten carcass for ferocious wolves to feed on. 

 Several Alphas joined the action. Many had come from various places, and my eyes rolled to every corner of the hall. I was totally weak and out of energy, my hands strapped to my back, and my feet corded with chains, pooling down, and adhering to my torn flesh.  

I believed that this was my fate. My wicked and boring destiny. Right from childhood, I knew I was subjected to a cursed fate ahead, and there was no way to change that.

 I am Theda, the Omega stepdaughter of a wicked father. He killed my real father, harmed my mother, and made sure to make my life miserable. This time, he wanted to make me suffer with the most sadistic eyes glinting as the neon lights glowed in the hall. 

"Goddess help me," I begged, speaking softly under my breath, and my words came out as nothing but a sobbing whisper. For three days I had gone without food, and with all my energy drained out of me, my bones were weak. I could feel a strong wave of electrical paralysis running through me, and striking my bones, with the intense heat of fear whirling and coursing through me.

 For my wicked stepfather, today was a memorable one. A day when I was to be sold. A day when the prophecy would come to pass when the ill-fated Omega was to face her end. At least, I was nothing but a burden.

 A cursed she-wolf whose life was no good.

 I tried to cower away from their obscene gazes, most of them reminded me that I was going to be the slave or prey of one of these monsters who were watching me, having full sight of me, while I stood weak and defenseless.

 My eyes rolled to the winding staircase, as more Alphas joined. The news of my bidding had spread like wildfire, burnt through every wood, thick or thin, and it finally came to me to haunt me. My sight was irregular, going hazy and blurry at times, while I tried to stay awake. Some of the Alphas walked up to me, touching me and having a sensual feeling of what they were to pay for.

  My body was nothing to them, just a piece of living matter they could infest with their sadistic intents. I prayed that this day would not come, that there was nothing like that. Even if my stepfather was the one who haunted our family, killed my father, haunted my mother, and made my life miserable, he was still the one to be on the innocent side.

 I could feel an aura of deadly danger infesting on my bare skin, giving me the chills, as strong angst ran through me. My feelings were a mix of bloody and cold, and my head was pounding furiously, thudding hard that I could hear it in me, while my heart throbbed hard against my rib cages, almost lurching forward. 

 The Alpha Princes' attendance was what made matters worse. They were honored and acknowledged, and for some reason, I didn't know why the princes would come to buy me. I was of course nothing but useless, but it didn't make any sense that these people wanted me so badly. Whatever they wanted, they could do with me.

 I managed to raise my head, and my gaze connected with that of the princes. Alpha Prince Isaiah was a tough one, the eldest of them, and his defiance and cruelty whispered throughout all the kingdoms. His brothers, Damian and Caddel followed, all watching me closely, their despicable glare landing on me. 

 They were the three princes of the Alpha King, the ruthless King of our werewolf city, and of course, his sons took after them.

 They, all of them - beasts, were friends of my stepfather, and they all waited to devour me.

 The one who could pay the highest for an Omega whose life was nothing. 

"Let the bidding begin!" Alpha Larry, a close friend of my wicked stepfather, said. I felt the bile rise in my throat, while the awareness of danger receded in me. 

 My heart skipped a beat each time and I didn't even know if I was going to land in a better or worse household. Somehow, I felt there was not a single person here. They were all monsters and they wanted to do evil things with me.

 I knew it for a fact. The news had spread that I was a cursed daughter, and of course, no one would want ill luck to be in his house, yet, many people were fighting to win me over.

 Win me for their sinister and destructive pleasures. My wolf, Tanya, was sick and had no energy, and I could feel the weakness grow in me more. She wanted to lurch forward, come to dominance, and preside over me, but I had to stop her. If she made a mistake, she would be killed too.

 I never wanted this for the both of us. Somehow, I didn't know how my life reached this point, unraveling before me a horrible destiny, much that I wasn't aware of how it came about.

 I listened to the sickening sounds and high-pitched murmurs that came from every corner and roamed around. I was the watch for them, and most Alphas already logged into the intense moment by polling their prices.

 How I was worth a few thousand, I dreaded the most, their nefarious thoughts evident in their harsh words derogating me, and making my stomach churn. 

 As the payment stepped up with each call, my heart beat faster, quite troubled, and my whole system reacted to the reminder that I would become the slave and pawn of a new Alpha. An awareness that made my brain go haywire.

"The final price? Is Alpha Ryan Galloway getting this Omega?"

 I hadn't heard the name, and it made it worse. For most of my life, I tried to go unnoticed, suffering under the pressure of my stepfather who would have killed me at any given second, and I wasn't so much acquainted with the werewolf world, only bonded in the Omega quarters.

"Fifty thousand!" An Alpha growled from the crowd. It resulted in murmurs, and it seemed like this was my end.

 I was going to be sold to him. 

 I was proclaimed his, a man who I knew as Alpha Andrew. He walked up to me, smiling atrociously, smirking in a vile manner, while his eyes ran the length of me.

 I let out a hiccuping whimper, and my eyes twitched constantly, with my heart ripping instantaneously from the feel of his cold hands. 

"Sweet, I see. The Omega is worth it. I would love to use her," he growled, with his devilish eyes glinting under the chandelier that clouded us.

 My breathing became heavy, sometimes receding to my lungs when fear lingered in me. I noticed the eagerness and hungry lust in the eyes of the other Alphas.

 All of them were indifferent. Monsters.

"I'll pay double for her!" Alpha Prince Caddel arose and said, to the shock of the crowd. While it didn't necessarily mean that I was in safer hands as I was going to march into a royal household if I was bought by him, it was a greater risk knowing who this Alpha was.

 Bloody. Vile.

Alpha Prince Caddel was the second Prince of our kingdom, known for possessing slaves and using them as he wanted. My blood ran cold as I processed his data in my mind, an obvious feeling of happiness dancing on his face.

 He walked up to me, and his aura surrounded me. A juicy and pungent mix of rosemary and citrus, choky and evocative, traveled into my nostrils, almost choking me.

"Nice to see I would have another Omega in my collection. You're going to be special, and of course, you'll specially serve me," he said, smiling at me.

"How can anyone refuse the prince?" Alpha Andrew said, retreating back to his seat. The glare in his eyes told me that he finally owned me, and one was going to go against him. 

 He owned me now. 

 I let out a breath, trying to ease myself of the aching pain, and I caught the gaze of the imprints of the chords and chains binding me. 

"So, Alpha Prince Caddel Valdez, second Alpha of the Valdez monarchical household, is declared the official owner of the Omega she-wolf, daughter of Alpha Julian Ambrose," Alpha Larry proclaimed.

 They all applauded, and the Alpha Prince's gaze caught mine. I tried to cower away, but his aura pulled me back, wanting to string vengeance against him. I knew he had proclaimed deals with my stepfather in the past, and I knew this was his best day yet.

 I was going to die. 

"So little she-wolf, what do you have to say now that you're mine?" He growled, approaching me, and I could feel his hot breath slap against my face. He breached the gap between us, his dangerous amber eyes glaring at me, and I could feel his scent swaddle around me, consuming my being, and sending my mind to the deathly hallows. 

I didn't know how to beg, or what to say, and I just stared at him, and my sight went dim. 

"It's great that we all came here, but it wouldn't be any fun if we all go without anything. A view of what we came here for at least would be very nice," he said, rolling his eyes at every corner.

 What did he want to do now?

 His gaze shifted to me, and I felt fear strike me. His eyes were large with authority, and he moved closer to me.

"Strip. Let's see what you've got. We all want to see you bare, and of course, see what we came here for," he ordered, whispering into my ears, his voice driving straight into my ears. I fought the tears brimming in my eyes not to spill, and his voice resounding purringly.

 I didn't want to do it, but I didn't have a choice. He didn't need to say it twice. His voice had a strong commanding tone in it, and I knew that he wasn't here for jokes. His eyes ran the length of me, looking lustily, and his hands ran through me.

 His grip landed on my shoulder, before it went down, rubbing against my bare skin, and I tried to retreat. 

 There was no way for that.

 The tears finally forced their way out, spilling to the ground, and I buried my face. Certain hypes came from his brothers, who were as destructive as he was.

"Quick, Theda, do it," he ordered again, with a ravenous look purging out of his eyes. 

My hands ran down my body, making him take his hands off me. My torn clothes were ragged to perfection, almost leaving me as though bare to them.

  The entire room was filled with jests and laughter, and most of the Alphas, old and young, wanted to see the shameful stripping of a weak Omega.

 My hands fumbled with the hem of my rugged top, a kind of piece of rag that I was wearing. Running my hands through, I felt a sudden pair of strong hands grabbing me. 

 One of the guards marched forward, reaching out to my top, his hands firmly placed on me. My eyes shut, and my stomach dropped, while a wave of intense anxiety ran through me…

"Five hundred grand!" A voice pierced through the card.

 It took a while before the sudden thick vibration echoing through the place had a meaning to me. 

 He bought me.

My new owner.