04|The Annual Summit

 A week had passed since that incident and the anticipated day had finally arrived. The event started and the party was in full swing.

That day Agnes saw the Alpha at the front door of the house and dragged him in wanting to rip off his clothes. Dorothy was just grateful he found that day funny enough to laugh about it or she dreads what would have happened to them.

Alphas, betas, gammas, and other high-ranking wolves began to associate and mingle with themselves, their presences laced with power making the air suffocating to the omegas serving them.  

Dorothy, well she was currently standing as her aunt spat out both words and spit at her. She wiped her face with the sleeve of her shirt with a deadpan expression

“You are not allowed to step a foot out of this house, you hear me?” her aunt yelled as she held Isabella towards the door. Isabella smirked, twirling a strand of hair around her finger, the end of her dress trailing behind her.

Seemed like her aunt spent a fortune on that dress.

The lock to the door sounded as she stood in the house and Dorothy's expression suddenly brightened.

Time to have fun.

Running to her room, she peeked through her glass window. Rows of gorgeous people filled the pack and everywhere was lively.

Seeing that everyone is preoccupied and busy. She smiled, adrenaline coursing through her veins as she pulled the baseball cap over her face. Opening the window, she moved towards the place with fewer people before effortlessly jumping down, her feet making no sound as they touched the ground.

 The forest was dense and eerily quiet. The scent of the surroundings, a rich earthy aroma filled her nose as she ran. The sound of the fallen leaves by the wind and the chirping sounds of birds was all she could hear.

Taking a deep breath, she stopped under a big tree. The towering tree covered the moon as its leaves rustled gently in the breeze. This was her safe place, a hidden location that no one in the pack but her mother knew about, this was the little space where her deepest secret was exposed under the eyes of the moon goddess alone.

She removed the cap, letting her hair flow, a striking red that seemed to glow in the dark forest. Her clothes were next, they fell to the ground and soon she stood there naked with nothing.

Her bones began to crack, shaping and mending themselves to take another form. A low growl erupted from her throat and she bolted through the forest, her paws pounding against the earth. The wet ground was beneath her, the night cool air filled her lungs with each breath she took, and her heart thudded as she dodged trees, hearing the snapping of twigs beneath her paws.

Dorothy has a hidden secret kept from her pack, a secret she hid when she turned fourteen. 

Standing at the edge of the lake, she glanced at her reflection, and a pure white wolf with eyes of silver as cold as frost stared right back.

A white wolf, the strongest and most sought-after female breed of wolves. The ones directly blessed by the moon goddess.

“Ah, it's good to be out” a voice in her head purred.

Pure white female wolves, a breed usually sought after by alphas, their scent was very attractive to them. They are sold and snatched, seen as objects for breeding since they give birth to stronger offspring. 

Despite being a rare and strong kind among wolves, they are used as nothing more than sex slaves and are immediately marked by alphas as trophies.

At the age of fourteen, when Dorothy found out she was a white wolf, she immediately decided to hide that secret for the sake of protecting herself for she knew that she would be sold off in a heartbeat by her family if they found out.

“Oh my Moon goddess, it is so good to be back” Her wolf, Alya lamented once again in her mind. “This week was just so suffocating, I can't do this anymore”

Alya sniffed which earned a chuckle from Dorothy.

“Tell me again” Dorothy knew that it had been tough, especially for Alya. She could not sneak out every night like she used to for fear of getting caught with how busy the week was. She could feel the restlessness from the impatient wolf every time she went to bed and it didn't make it better from all the provocations she got in school.

“I swear to Moon Goddess, I was this close to ripping that bratty wanna-be Barbie’s head off, who wants that sorry excuse of a player she calls a mate” Alya sneered as they communicated telepathically.

“Now that would be bad” Dorothy muttered, leaning to get a drink from the lake. The color of her fur glistening under the full moon. 

Alya didn't reply. They had different views on life. Her wolf believed that they could survive if they ran away but she knew the outside world wouldn't be any better than this. She would just be a hunted wolf but at least now she had the safety of her pack if she hides the truth well. 

“Do you think we would find our mate?” the bored wolf asked as they walked through the forest. 

The word mate wasn't in Dorothy's dictionary. Her wolf always had a feeling that their fated mate would come and save them like those in the fairytale but Dorothy did not believe it was possible. No one would accept her since she wasn't worthy of love.

 “I doubt that-”

She wasn't able to complete her sentence, the snapping of branches from her right got her attention. Her head whipped to the side as she growled, her fangs out and her claws extending in a defensive position. The sight was clear and no one was there but she could catch a sniff of something or someone. 

“Maybe it was an animal” the voice in her stated but they both knew no animal could disappear that fast.

****

Yesterday's party was successful. Jessica found her mate, the beta of the black fangs pack, a well-renounced pack that is close to the Shadowmoon pack, and James, her brother, and the future Alpha found his Luna, the Alpha’s daughter of another pack, the frostbite pack. 

“Fuckers” Dorothy muttered under her breath as she looked at the destroyed locker. Torn pieces of books lay on the floor before her, the red words painted on the wall just above the locker had spelled the words.

A whore mother will always give birth to a whore.

“What a loser,” she heard Jessica snicker and the rest of the people in the hallway burst out laughing. 

“Deep breath, deep breath” she could hear Alya growl, begging to be let out and tear every one of them into shreds, and oh goddess she was about to do just that.

Dorothy reached for her torn notes, gathering the shredded pieces on the floor as she tried to calm the growing anger inside her.

“Look, even her whore mother died because she didn't want her”

Alright, that did it.

Dorothy got up and stormed over to Jessica and her friends, fury blazed in her eyes and she could feel Alya taking over. She was tasty for blood and some debt had to be paid.

Everyone’s eyes widened as they felt the tension in the air. Just as Dorothy’s hand was about to reach the neck of her target, she came to a halt and turned around as the sound of clapping filled the air.

“Stunning, just beautiful…” A low male voice could be heard and everything instantly quieted down. Standing in front of her is Alpha Killian. His blue eyes stared directly at Dorothy and no one else.

I'm dead. She thought.

Dorothy’s eyebrow shot up and she backed away, if only she had a bit more self-control.

She tried to sneak away but the next words stopped her in her tracks.

“You are that white female wolf from last night, ain't you” his head tilted to the side and a sickening smirk appeared on his lips.

***

Dorothy tapped her feet on the floor, she felt her body go numb and her legs would have given out if it wasn't for the fact that she was currently sitting on the chair. A chair right outside her father’s study

She was in trouble.

 She had been found out by that blond Alpha and worse he was the Alpha of the black fang pack, the pack where Jessica’s mate belonged. There was only one outcome to this she could think of. 

“Come in” a cold voice sounded behind the door

Dorothy gulped and pushed the door open, her hands sweaty as she walked into the study. There were two people inside,  Alpha Ryan and Beta Liam, his second in command seemed to be in a heated discussion as they ignored her. 

“So the Nightclaw pack are the ones hosting the annual summit tomorrow?” Alpha Ryan asked as he sat behind his massive oak desk, his expression as stern and unyielding as ever.

Dorothy stood by the door, trying to hide her presence.

“Yes Alpha” The beta replied

“The King’s pack?” his eyes shot up in surprise. “But that is impossible, the king hasn’t appeared or opened up his pack to outsiders in so many years after that incident’’

Her eyes perked as she listened in, her curiosity taking over than she would like to admit.

Everyone knew the story surrounding the Nightclaw’s pack. They are the most powerful and feared pack in the world. Led by Alpha Ace, a man many would call ruthless. He is a Lycan with unmatched strength, said to be the direct descendant of the moon goddess. He is feared by werewolves, and they call him the ‘King Of Alphas’.

But then one day Luna died in his arms and rumors have it that after that fateful day, he ran mad. He killed anyone he was involved in her death one way or the other, and then afterward he began with wolves that trespassed in his borders. He showed no one mercy and his hands were stained with the countless lives he took, after the killings he suddenly went into seclusion and never appeared again.

Dorothy felt a pang of sorrow strike her chest as she recalled the story. 

“You there” A voice called out jolting her from her trance. She bowed her head, not wanting to meet her father's gaze, she was afraid the hatred would be seen in hers.

“Look up” Alpha Ryan commanded.

She did exactly that. Her eyes met a pair of indifferent ones, his eyes ranked up her body, accessing her.

“You look like Elara, your mother”.

How dare he say her name. She thought as her hand clenched into a fist.

“What is your name?” Alpha Ryan asked.

“Dorothy”

He nodded and took a deep breath. “You are to follow us to the annual summit tomorrow then afterward, you will follow Alpha Killian to his pack” he stated and his tone left no room for argument.

Great, she had been sold to the blondie.

***

Dorothy stirred in her sleep, her breath heavy and uneven. Her heart pounded and her brows furrowed, her body drenched in sweat as she murmured under her breath.

"Seek him out" A voice, otherworldly yet hauntingly beautiful said. "You are the gift I have chosen for him so save him from his demons”.

The voice echoed in the black void, leaving an eerie presence in its wake.

Her eyes snapped open and she sat up, clutching her chest in pain. Her trembling form looked around in search of the voice, it was just a dream but it felt like the words had been spoken to her ear.

“Are you okay?” Alya asked and Dorothy relaxed, nodding her head.

“Just the bad dreams” she replied but Alya didn't say anything. 

It wasn't a dream, she heard it too.