Meeting the Alpha

**Astrid**

I woke up with a gasp. My heart is pounding from the weird dream I had. The dream didn't make any sense, the only thing I remembered was seeing a blue eyed wolf. Slowly, last night's events came rushing back into my mind and I began to adjust to my surroundings. I stared around me in confusion. Sunlight sneaked in from the open window, making me squint my eyes. I recognised the old dressing mirror immediately. I was in my room in the slave quarters. How did I get back here? I began to panic. Was I caught? Am I still dreaming? I immediately pinched myself, and the stinging pain that came after, told me otherwise. I got down from the old mattress I owned and stared at the mirror and my eyes widened in shock.

I still had on the clothes I stole and put on. And it's torn appearance and the dirt stains evident on it, told me that last night wasn't a dream at all. It very much happened. I checked my thigh, but there was no sign of an injury. Strange, I thought. The fabric was torn at that area and there were blood stains all over it, but no injury. The skin there was smooth, like I hadn't been wounded at all. My head spinned in confusion. How did I even get back here?

Suddenly, my room door opened, Ophelia walked in, she looked terrified and scared.

“Madame Celine wants to see you” she said stiffly, turning to leave.

“Ophelia, wait” I reached out to stop her. She held the door knob, but didn't move.

“What is it?” She snapped.

I got slightly confused. Why was she being rude?

“ Do you know what happened last night, or how I got here?” I asked gently.

“Some guards carried you in from the forest.” She said.

“What?” Guards? Why?

Ophelia turned to me, eyes still holding that fear.

“I warned you, Astrid. I warned you not to try and escape. Now you're in big trouble.” She said. “Please, stay away from me. I don't want to be friends with you anymore.” she left immediately.

I stared at the door blankly. Why would guards carry me in? Does that mean I was caught? dread settled to the pit of my stomach.

I quickly cleaned up and dressed in my regular working clothes. Ophelia said Madame Celine wanted to see me. Madame Celine never tolerated lateness. It's better I try to avoid trouble, seeing I'm in enough trouble already.

On the way to the kitchen, I was met with stares and whispers from the other slaves, some even stared accusingly. I couldn't blame them. Word has probably gotten round the palace that a slave tried to escape.

Madame Celine came up to me, face masked in indifference.

“You've really outdone it now, child. You should know better than try to escape.” She said, shaking her head. She handed me a cleaning bucket, with cleaning materials in it. “From now on, you are clean the Alpha's room, his orders. He probably won't let you survive another day, anyways.” She said, smiling mischievously. Even the Alpha is aware that I tried to escape. My hairs stood in end as a new form of fear began to arouse in my gut. She raised her voice for the others to hear

“This will serve as a lesson for the rest of you pathetic humans. Anyone else who tries to escape will be personally dealt with by the Alpha.”

So this is it. This is how I'm going to die.

I silently followed the guard as he walked through the flight of stairs to the second floor, reserved only for the Alpha. I am now in a fresh set of maid clothes and my hair neatly packed in a rough bun, with the cleaning supplies in my hands. Slaves passed by, few of which I remembered, and began to gossip. Of course, they must have heard of my escape attempt and it is probably the talk of the palace. Feeling ashamed, I kept my head lower and walked faster. We walked down a large hall with many doors on the sides, till we got to a beautiful thick brown door at the end of the hallway. The soldier opened the door and I walked in, feeling nauseous from anxiety.

The Alpha's chamber is indeed befitting for an Alpha. There was a huge king size mattress, a huge vanity and dressing table, and a built-in closet. There were two doors on opposite sides of the room, one of which I guessed was the toilet, and the other, I didn't know. I'd probably check later.

“The Alpha is in a meeting.”

The guard said, before closing the door.

I breathed a sigh of relief. The last thing I wanted was to clean while he was watching.

I arranged the dressers, dusted the chairs and cleaned the floor, making sure to put everything in their designated place. After I was done cleaning, I walked to the window of the chamber and looked out. The view from here was amazing. Vast numbers of green trees spread out far beyond view and contrasted with the warm tone of the sun. I closed my eyes and imagined myself running through a green field, under the bright sun, laughing as the wind swooshed past me and sent my long brown hair flying backwards. How it felt to be free.

“Are you done enjoying the view?”

A voice said behind me. Startled, I turned.