/-Zara-/

Kill the beast and you shall be rewarded handsomely.

The words echoed in my mind long after he returned me to my room for the maids to prepare me.

The dagger he handed me, a silver coated blade that poisoned and killed wolves in seconds, felt heavy in my hands.

He was still talking to the maids so I had the chance to hide it in my bed drawers. I was supposed to use it tonight but I knew deep down that I couldn't hurt a fly, talk more of killing a person.

“Where did you go, my lady? We didn't see you leave,” One of the servants said. I wasn't too distracted to answer her immediately. I was still traumatised by the task I was given by a complete stranger.

“You are dripping wet, my lady. What happened?”

“That man, who is he?” I asked her instead.

“Oh, that is Alpha Maleek. Twin brother to Alpha Draven,” she answered and I was beyond shocked.

He was the Alpha's twin? Yet he was planning to kill his own brother?

“How close are they?” I asked further. “Did they have issues of any kind?”

The servants looked at me strangely.

“No, the Alphas do not have any issues at all. If anything, Alpha Maleek loves Alpha Draven very much. They could pretty much give their lives for each other.”

Could they now? Or maybe that was what Maleek wanted everyone to see, because why else would he ask me to kill his own brother?

“Is there a problem, my lady?” She asked and I shook my head. It was pointless telling them. I wasn't sure they would believe me anyways.

I also didn't want anyone to think that I was already causing trouble on my first day. That would be terrible.

About an hour later, I was all dressed and ready to see the Alpha. I didn't know what to expect yet but I was terrified. I mean the man was being addressed as a beast.

I didn't bother to carry that stupid dagger with me. I didn't plan on killing anyone.

I was taken to another building and at first, I thought it would be another tower but thankfully, it was a normal building.

The guards outside the door didn't speak. They just nodded at the maid who escorted me and stepped aside, letting us through. I could hear my own heartbeat in my ears as we walked down a dimly lit corridor. The air was thick with something I couldn’t quite place, power maybe? Darkness? I wasn’t sure.

“This is where we leave you,” the maid whispered, bowing low. “Alpha Draven is inside.”

She said it like it was a death sentence.

I swallowed hard, nodding stiffly. My palms were slick with sweat, and I wiped them against the fabric of the silky dress they’d forced me into. My feet carried me forward before my brain could stop me, and I raised my hand to knock, only for the door to swing open before I touched it.

A tall man stood by the window. He was the same height as Maleek with the same tousled brown hair, only difference was that is was longer.

Unlike Maleek, he didn’t wear royal regalia. Instead, he was dressed in black. Simple, fitted clothing that hugged his strong build in a way that was both terrifying and, admittedly, breathtaking.

He looked nothing like what I expected of the monster everyone was so afraid of.

He turned and his eyes locked on to mine. They weren't pure grey like his brother's. But gold.

Glowing, otherworldly gold.

My entire being froze as shivers ran through my spine. What was I supposed to do now?

“You must be the new one,” he said, his voice a deep rumble, rougher than Maleek’s, like it had been dragged through gravel and smoke.

I forced myself to nod.

“I’m Zara,” I said, barely above a whisper.

“Zara?” He raised one of those thick bushy brows. “Not Sarai?”

I blinked. “Yeah, absolutely. Zara is my middle name so I answer it mostly,” I lied.

“Zara,” he tested the name again. “Have you been with a man before?”

My jaw dropped. That was so forward. I never expected that would be the first question he would ask me.

My cheeks heated up. This was going to be a very embarrassing answer.

“N… No.”

He gave me a once over, but his expression remained blank. I couldn't tell his personality from our interaction. He seemed pretty normal and laid-back to me. I didn't see how he was capable of killing all those women.

Or was it because it wasn't full moon yet?

“Leave,” he said and I blinked.

“Huh?” I gasped. “Did I do something wrong?”

“No,” he answered.

“Why then?” I mumbled.

“If you are offering yourself to be killed, you should at least experience the art of love making,” he answered and my jaw dropped.

Offering myself to be killed? I don't remember agreeing to that.

“Leave now. Find yourself a man you like and spend the remaining few days with him,” he said and I couldn't even begin to express my shock.

I was beyond confused.

“I thought we were getting married?” I blurted.

“Married?” He raised a brow. “You were brought here as a blood sacrifice to feed my wolf, are you not aware of that?”

I staggered back.

Blood sacrifice?