The Alpha's Voice

CLAUDIA.

"Attention, calling all maids to the throne room."

I freeze as the announcement blares through the speakers. I'm in the maid's quarters, looking for something in my drawers, and I have to admit that this is an interruption.

My friend Maia, another maid, watches me with boredom as the announcement continues to echo in the room. "Give it up, Claudia. Stop trying to prove that you were friends with the Alpha King when you were kids. You're a maid and what would Alpha Achilles want to do with you?"

I don't answer her. I just flip over my bottom drawer until all my socks fall out. But along with the socks comes a small folded parchment, containing the words, "To Claudia, from Achilles."

"Aha!" I shove the paper right into her hands. "Feast on that."

Maia rolls her eyes, but she just reads it aloud. "Dear Claudia, I hope this note finds you well. I refused to open the door for you because I believe I made things clear. We are no longer friends." She chucks the paper at me. "How old is this note?"

My face heats up. "Maybe eighteen years?"

"So he sent that to you when he was twelve and you were... six?"

"Yes," I mutter, pocketing the note. "It's important to me, okay?"

She laughs at me. "Why? Because you're hoping you could be close again? He's the Alpha King now, Claudia. And our duty is to keep this place and the people running. Get over yourself and let's go before we get thrown out."

Everything she said was right. It's a stupid thing to hold onto, but I can't let it go.

Even when Maia drags me to the throne room, I find myself bursting with hope. All the maids are now gathered for some sort of meeting, and instead of worrying about what it's for, I'm craning my neck, trying to look at the golden thrones on the dais.

But the only person I find standing there is Beta Carlos, a tanned, dark-haired unit of a man who handles everything minor for Alpha Achilles.

He surveys the room with indifference, as a person of his standing usually does, clearing his throat before speaking. "I gathered you all here because we need one maid to come with us to the Moonlight Grove Pack for the annual winter solstice meeting tonight. Since we are short-staffed, we decided to see if anyone volunteers first."

I wait for hands to shoot into the air, but there are only whispers rippling among the crowd. The maids are all avoiding Beta Carlos's eyes as though they would evaporate if they made eye contact with him.

I understand why. Rogue attacks have been notorious lately. Our pack, Sangria Amori, is the biggest and the strongest, which is the reason why we haven't experienced any breaches yet. But the smaller packs have, and it's enough for some of our maids to quit to be with their families.

The only ones who are stuck here are the single maids or the ones who are desperate for money. Then you have people like me, loyal servants for generations.

Beta Carlos's frustration is clear now. He opens his mouth to say something but he stops when the curtains behind him suddenly open.

And out comes the Alpha King himself, Achilles.

The world stops. My heart picks up its pace, beating so fast that I thought I was going to have a heart attack. I stare at him as he stands next to Beta Carlos, towering over him by half a foot. Everyone inside the room sinks into a bow, but I don't. I can't. The only thing I can do is stare at him.

It's like he has his own gravitational pull on me. I'm unable to look away from the shiny waves of his black hair and the coolness of his blue eyes. Despite the raging snow outside, his skin has a touch of gold, complimenting the bloodred coat he's wearing. His presence is almost divine. Even the chandelier lights from above seem to be drawn to him.

As though it can't get any better, he meets my eyes.

And just like that, I raise my hand. "I volunteer to come to the solstice meeting."

"What are you thinking?" Maia hisses at me, trying to tug at my uniform to get me to lower my hand.

But Beta Carlos already saw me. Alpha Achilles did too.

However, his face darkens with disapproval.

I clear my throat and speak louder. "I volunteer! I will serve-"

"Claudia, is it?" Beta Carlos interjects. "Have you forgotten that our Alpha King... can't hear you?"

The silence that follows is almost loud. Loud enough to make my ears pop. Only then do I realize my mistake.

Alpha Achilles is deaf and mute. For some reason, this has also affected his ability to mind-link. These are details that I shouldn't be forgetting, but then again, he and I have a history, and he didn't use to be that way.

We played together a lot as kids. He would take me to the forests behind the palace so we could pretend to spar. We were inseparable, until one night. All I can remember was waking up in the infirmary dripping wet and cold. Achilles wasn't with me, but I was told he was in his room.

I didn't know what happened, and I still don't. But the first day I tried to visit him in his room was when I received his note.

Fast forward six years. He was eighteen, I was twelve. He got crowned as the next Alpha King. He could no longer hear or speak.

Some say it was a curse from the Moon Goddess. Some say it was a developing disease in his body that reached its peak. It's been twelve years since that reveal. He's thirty now, and I'm twenty-four. No one knows the truth yet.

I want to tell him that I'm sorry through sign language, but I don't know how. He just turns to Beta Carlos and shakes his head ever so subtly.

He doesn't want me to come.

Beta Carlos swallows. "Claudia... would you come up here, please? The rest are dismissed."

As I make my way to the dais, the maids start to file out of the throne room. Maia catches my eyes for a second and shakes her head, but I continue to walk until I'm standing in front of them.

"No one else wants to come," I point out in a shaky voice. "I... I want to go. I want to help."

Beta Carlos looks at Alpha Achilles pointedly. I don't know what kind of communication is happening between them, but it seems that Beta Carlos is urging him to give it a chance, probably because they have no other choice. Alpha Achilles doesn't seem to want to, but in the end, he relents and stands close to me.

So close that I can catch his scent. So close that I can see the flecks of green in his eyes.

So close that he can kiss me if he wants to.

My breath hitches in my throat. Longing fills my heart. How many times have I wished this to happen? I want to say so much to him. I feel like so much time has been stolen from us. Our friendship was so amazing....

"I will do well," I whisper. "I won't let you down."

Alpha Achilles stares at me for a couple more seconds, then he just turns around and walks away.

Beta Carlos sighs and starts to follow him, turning to me at the last second as though I'm an afterthought. "Follow me."

I run after him through the tunnel behind the throne room, but his long legs are carrying him so far and I have to jog to keep up. Finally, we arrive at the back lawn of the palace. The cold hits me like a punch in the gut, but Beta Carlos tosses me a fur coat. I wriggle into it as a carriage pulls up in front of us, with a sleek red and gold body, pulled by two palomino horses.

"Get in," he says blandly, and I climb into the carriage with him behind me.

Alpha Achilles is already inside, staring through the window, completely ignoring my presence.

I try to communicate with him, but Beta Carlos gets in and pushes me into the corner as the carriage starts to move.

The seats are cushioned and the walls are upholstered with red velvet, but I still get hurt as the carriage basically leaps and crashes on the cold snowy ground. The horses are running at full speed, which I understand, because we are about two hours until dusk, and Moonlight Grove Pack is one hour away.

The coachman whips the horses, rallying them into a frenzied sprint faster than before. I gasp as I fly off my seat. I thought things would settle after a while, but something seemed to be off.

The horses are whinnying. The silent path is now riddled with a mix of thuds and heavy breaths. A strange smell permeates the air. A putrid stench, a mix of rot and blood and savagery.

The scent of Rogues.