Chapter 1

• "You're not even supposed to be here, Ava."
• The sneer in Aiden’s voice cut through the stillness of the packhouse, a place where I was never meant to belong. His eyes, the color of a storm-ridden sky, locked onto mine, his gaze like a thousand needles. The sound of his footsteps, heavy against the cold stone floor, echoed in the room as he took another step closer.
• "Just leave me alone, Aiden," I muttered, my hands trembling as I wiped the counter with more force than necessary.
• It was a futile gesture, anyway. There was no getting out of this. Not with the Kings brothers in the house.
• "You really think you're one of us, don't you?" His words were sharp, venomous. The other two, Blake and Cole, stood behind him, silent but just as menacing. They were always in on it together, always finding ways to torment me, to remind me of my place.
• I swallowed hard. "I'm here because I have nowhere else to go," I spat back, my voice low but steady. I had learned long ago not to show weakness. Not with them.
• Blake smirked, leaning against the doorframe, his arms crossed as he observed the scene like it was a show meant for his entertainment. "She’s a servant, Aiden. That’s all she’ll ever be."
• I tried not to flinch at the harsh truth in his words. They were right.
• The packhouse, with its grand hallways and polished floors, had never felt like home to me. I was just a child who had been left behind, orphaned in a world that barely acknowledged my existence. Taken in, yes, but only as a servant, a reminder of a past none of them wanted to remember. The Kings brothers—Aiden, Blake, and Cole—were no different. They treated me like I was invisible, yet never failed to make sure I knew I was beneath them.
• "You think you’ll amount to something just because you wear the Kings name?" Aiden continued, his voice dripping with disdain.
• I gritted my teeth, refusing to back down. “I don’t need your approval.”
• He laughed, the sound bitter and cruel. "What will you do when you're nothing? When you're just a problem child, a burden to this pack? No one will care, Ava."
• A sick knot twisted in my stomach, but I refused to let him see it. I had survived worse than their words—much worse.
• But that didn’t stop the hurt from creeping in. Aiden’s words echoed in my mind as I scrubbed the counter harder, trying to focus on something—anything—other than the emptiness they always left behind.
• "You’re never going to change, are you?" Cole finally spoke, his voice softer than Aiden’s, but no less cutting. He always had a way of making everything feel like a gentle breeze before slamming it into a wall. "You’re just a poor little orphan girl who thinks she’s something special. The sooner you accept your place, the easier it’ll be for you."
• His words hit too close to home. I couldn’t stay in this house forever. I had to leave. But where would I go?
• Before I could answer, Blake pushed off the wall and sauntered forward, leaning over the counter. "Don’t bother trying to run away. You’ll never outrun your bloodline. You’ll always be one of us, no matter how much you wish otherwise."
• I felt the weight of their words settle on me like a heavy cloak. I wasn’t free. Not now, not ever.
• But something else stirred inside me, something I hadn’t felt in a long time. Hope. A flicker that refused to die.
• "What if I don’t want to be like you?" I asked, my voice daring for the first time to carry a challenge.
• Blake paused, the cocky grin slipping from his face. "What?"
• "You heard me." I straightened, looking each of them in the eyes. "What if I want more? What if I’m not just the problem child you think I am?"
• The room went still. For a moment, I thought they might laugh, but they didn’t. Instead, there was a moment—just a fleeting second—where their faces softened, where I saw something in their eyes that wasn’t hatred or mockery. Was it… concern?
• No. I had to be imagining it. They had never cared.
• Aiden’s voice broke the silence. “You’re a fool if you think you’re ever going to change the way this pack works, Ava. You’ll always be a servant.”
• I didn’t back down. “I’m not your servant. I’ll never be your servant.”
• "Then what are you?" Blake asked, his voice tinged with genuine curiosity, something I wasn’t used to hearing from him.
• I hesitated. There were so many things I could say. But I wasn’t ready to share them, not yet. Instead, I held his gaze, letting the silence stretch between us.
• For a second, I thought I might have won. Then, without warning, Aiden moved forward, his hand gripping my arm in a painful hold.
• “You think you’re special, don’t you?” His voice was dangerously low. "You think you’re going to change everything with your little rebellion?"
• I gasped, my pulse racing. I was scared. I could feel the power behind his words. But I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of seeing me crumble.
• “Let go of me, Aiden,” I whispered, my voice steady despite the fear choking me.
• A moment of tension hung in the air, then suddenly, I felt the grip on my arm loosen. Aiden stepped back, and I stumbled, trying to regain my balance.
• "You're lucky," he muttered, the smirk back on his lips, "that you’re useful to the pack. Otherwise, I’d have no reason to keep you around."
• I didn’t answer him. I didn’t have to. He already knew the truth.
• I turned away, my heart pounding in my chest. They were right, weren’t they? I was just a problem, a burden they didn’t know what to do with. But I couldn’t help it. I had been dealt this hand, and I would play it—no matter how difficult, no matter how much it hurt.
• But as I walked away, something in the air changed. A shift. A crack in the armor of the Kings brothers.
• Aiden, Blake, and Cole… they weren’t just tormenting me. There was something deeper, something hidden beneath their cruelty.
• And I wasn’t going to stop until I figured it out.
• As I turned the corner, my heart caught in my throat when I saw something glinting in the shadows. A letter.
• I picked it up, my hands trembling as I read the words that could change everything.
• “Meet me tonight. I have the answers you’ve been searching for. – A.”
• Aiden.