Chapter Four

Once in my room, I began emptying out my closet. I hadn't owned many nice clothes during my time as a maid, but I did have a few pairs of jeans and some cherished t-shirts. Those were the ones I decided to pack. Along with my clothes, I gathered all my toiletries and a ruby heart-shaped necklace that had been with me since I arrived at this pack as a baby.

"Before we leave, can I say goodbye to Mrs. Haggadah?"

"Of course."

After I had packed everything and it was ready to go, one of Damon's guards arrived to collect my luggage and load it onto Damon's personal plane. Then, we made our way to the cafeteria.

As we entered the kitchen, I couldn't help but notice the envious glares directed at me. All the girls seemed resentful that I was Damon's mate. It was a satisfying feeling, considering they had always viewed me as nothing more than a lowly maid. Now, I was their queen, and they would have to show me respect. I met every jealous look with a sly smirk as I strolled through the cafeteria.

Upon reaching the kitchen, I signaled to the other girls with a subtle finger to my lips, silently instructing them not to announce my presence. I approached Mrs. Haggadah from behind and wrapped my arms around her waist.

"Oh, what's this?" Mrs. Haggadah exclaimed, clearly taken aback. For once, I had caught her off guard.

"It's me," I replied with a smile.

"Why are you still here? You were supposed to have left already."

"We're leaving right now. I just wanted to say goodbye."

"Oh, nonsense, shoo, go, get out of here, I'll be fine," Mrs. Haggadah insisted.

I knew she would be fine, but she had raised me. She was the only parent figure I had ever known, treating me as her own. I decided to show my appreciation and wrapped my arms around her, giving her a heartfelt hug. This gesture of affection seemed to surprise her, as she wasn't usually the affectionate type.

"I'm going to miss you. Goodbye," I said, planting a kiss on her cheek. As I began to pull away, she unexpectedly pulled me back into a warm, tight hug.

"Take care of yourself. I'll miss you too," Mrs. Haggadah said as she kissed my cheek. We reluctantly parted ways, and Damon took my hand, leading me out of the kitchen.

We were on our way out of the cafeteria when Mercedes deliberately bumped into me, spilling juice all over my outfit. She tried to play it off as an accident, but it was clear it was on purpose. I was furious that she would do this in front of the King of Wolves.

"Oops, oh my, I am so sorry…" Mercedes began to apologize, but I couldn't contain my anger. I grabbed a nearby juice from someone else's tray and poured it over her head. Mercedes was so furious that she lunged at me.

"You foolish person!" Mercedes spat in mid-lunge. However, Damon swiftly stepped in front of me, allowing his wolf's presence to radiate power and authority throughout the room.

"How dare you attack your queen? This is an act of treason. Have you forgotten how to approach your king and queen? If you need a refresher, I'll be more than willing to provide one before we depart," Damon asserted firmly.

"No, I- I- I'm sorry, I just, she's a maid. She's always been a Mai—."

"She is your queen!" Damon roared, his voice reverberating throughout the cafeteria. The room fell silent as everyone instinctively knelt with their heads bowed in respect. Damon's voice carried such power that it felt like the entire space was trembling. Mercedes cowered, looking smaller than I had ever seen her.

"She has always been your queen, but you, as mere individuals, could never perceive her power or sense it within her. Do not make the mistake of calling her a maid again, or I will display your head on a spike in the front yard for all to witness, should anyone else be as audacious and foolish as you," Damon declared, addressing not only Mercedes but the entire room.

"Yes, your majesty, I'm truly sorry. I won't make that mistake again." Damon gently took my hand and guided me away. I was finally departing from this pack and joining another one. I had met my mate, and my life was beginning to turn around for the better – or so I hoped.

"No need to hope, Millie. Our mate wouldn't let anything bad happen to you," reassured my wolf, Ellie.

"What if there's a girl like Mercedes in his pack?" I pondered.

"Doesn't matter. Our mate will probably deal with her if she tries anything anyway."

"Yeah, you're right. Plus, if I'm going to be the queen of wolves, I have to become stronger."

We continued toward the private plane, and the rest of Damon's pack headed for their cars to rendezvous with us back at the Blood Moon pack. Damon and I entered the private plane, found our seats, and settled in.

***

Five hours later, Damon woke me up. I gazed out of the plane window to see that we had arrived at the Blood Moon pack. This pack was significantly larger than the one I had grown up in. At the entrance, there was one enormous house, and surrounding it were smaller houses. In my old pack, we all lived in a single massive house.

This new pack appeared to be a bustling community of wolves, and suddenly, I felt nervous about meeting all of these people. They would soon discover that I was their queen, even though I appeared to be of lower rank. Self-consciousness washed over me more intensely than ever.

"What's wrong? Why is your face all red all of a sudden?" Damon asked, clearly concerned.

"Your pack is huge, which means you have a lot of people. Many will find out I'm their queen. I don't look the part, and honestly, I don't feel like a queen right now," I admitted, my face growing even redder by the second.

Damon smiled reassuringly and took my hand. "It's okay. It doesn't matter if you look the part or not. What's important is that you are their queen, and they will fall in line either immediately or be persuaded to do so."

His mention of persuading them brought a chuckle from me. "What's so funny?"

"I just pictured you using your persuasive methods, possibly involving some beating, on my behalf," I said with a light laugh.

"I'll start a war for you if needed. Nothing and no one will harm you again," Damon vowed.

"I believe you."

"Do you feel better now?"

"Yes, I do, thank you."

"You ready?"

"No, but let's go and get this over with," I replied, feeling a bit more confident.

"You got this girl," my wolf Ellie encouraged me. I smiled, blew out a deep breath, and tried to maintain a positive attitude. 'Everything is going to be fine; it won't be like your old pack,' I repeated to myself in my head. Damon started walking, pulling me along with him. We entered through the front entrance to the pack, a massive golden gated door that could only be opened from the inside. Guards stood above the gate, gazing into the surrounding forest of the Blood Moon community. One of the guards signaled to someone below to open the gate for us.

As we passed through the tall gate, the Blood Moon pack was vibrant and lively. People were walking, and children ran and played with excitement. Everyone appeared joyful, with big, bright smiles on their faces. However, as they noticed me walking hand in hand with their king, those smiles gradually faded, and all eyes turned to me. I felt self-conscious and nervous, disliking being the center of attention.

"Don't worry, they're used to seeing me alone, and now they see me holding a stranger's hand. No one in my pack knew why I left; they probably just assumed it was for business reasons. They're just in shock or confused, or both. Soon, I'll tell the whole pack why I left and who you are. For right now, though, you must be tired. I'll introduce you to my mom and then show you to your room for the night. I need to arrange my room for both of us. Plus, I'm sure you'd like to have some time by yourself on your first night here, rather than feeling the pressure of sleeping in the same bed with me right away."

"Okay," I replied, feeling my cheeks warm at the thought of sharing a bed with Damon.

Despite all the curious glances I was receiving, I kept walking with my gaze fixed straight ahead. Avoiding eye contact was my way of dealing with the attention; otherwise, I might have felt too self-conscious. My heart raced in my chest, the nervousness of having everyone's eyes on me always made me uneasy. Still, I continued to put one foot in front of the other, following Damon's every step.

The destination we were headed to felt like it was miles away. Despite being able to see our path clearly, it seemed to stretch further and further into the distance. I yearned to reach our endpoint and escape the persistent stares.

Some of the female wolves were giving me unpleasant looks, sizing me up with their arms crossed. Fortunately, Damon seemed oblivious to their scrutiny, as he was leading the way. I couldn't help but wonder if those she-wolves had a history with him; perhaps they had been involved with Damon before, and they preferred their king to remain single.