Hazel closed her eyes and took in a calming breath as she stood before the pack hall, preparing herself for the pressure she would face when she walked in.
A meeting between alphas from different packs, concerning the sudden arrival of rogues in the area, had just finished being held, and with the important guest gone, it was her job to clean up the place.
As Hazel walked in, she ran into some of the guests about to leave and promptly moved to the side, ducking her head. After all, she was only a mere omega, and anyone in this meeting was definitely someone of high status.
The visitors were two women and a couple of male shifters walking behind them. One of the females was red-haired in a stunning luxurious red gown, while the other was her maid, her dress lovely but not as stunning as the red-haired.
In front of their clothing, Hazel's dress was just overused rags.
The red-haired noticed Hazel in the corner and frowned, wrinkling her nose at Hazel's whole appearance.
She was Ava, the representative of the Silent River Pack, and their future Luna.
Her alpha hadn't attended the meeting, as he was more of a doer than a talker, calling the meeting unproductive, but Ava thought otherwise, asking to go in his place.
Powerful alphas from different packs would be attending the meeting, and it would have been disrespectful if their pack had declined an invitation, giving a bad impression, which would put their pack in a tough spot when they needed an alliance in the future.
Ava, as the future Luna, didn't think it was what was best for the pack, which was why she was here. But as she left, she was beginning to see that her alpha was right. The hosting alpha was an arrogant asshole who was less concerned about the rampaging rogues and more interested in putting everyone in submission, under the facade of an alliance.
There was also the irritating looks he kept giving her, which made her pissed.
Everyone knew she was mated, yet he saw no reason to hide his lust, which was a disrespect to her and her alpha.
"Wow, I can't believe it's actually true," her maid suddenly stopped, gazing at Hazel still standing frozen with her head bowed. Ava paused and glanced at Hazel as well.
"Do you know who she is?"
"Of course, she's changed so much, but her face is still there. She's the fallen princess."
"Princess?" Ava questioned with disbelief and glanced at the slave. Her body shrank in on itself, her clothes worn out with a lot of stitches, and her heartbeat rapid. Certainly didn't give off a princess vibe.
"A princess, huh? She looks like a broken doll."
"Was a princess...was," the maid corrected, and Ava frowned, annoyed by how casual the maid was with her.
"I'm sorry Miss Ava..." the maid hurriedly apologized before explaining further.
"She's not exactly a princess but it's a nickname. She's actually the only daughter of the alpha of the Ember Ridge pack. The pack that was wiped out by Alpha Levi. She was the only one who survived and was made into a slave."
Ava then leaned back, before shaking her head at Hazel's misfortune.
Tilting her head slightly to the side, she asked, "Your name... What is your name?" Hazel's body stiffened, and she replied with a shaky voice, "Hazel...Hazel Whitman."
"Hazel, a pretty name for one with such a tragic fate. I hope you get through this. Who knows, maybe this would lead to something better,"
Ava encouraged, before she turned away and left with her entourage, wanting nothing more to do with the Nightshade pack and their damned alpha.
As soon as they were out of sight, Hazel let out a heavy sigh, almost falling to her knees. They were all powerful, probably all dominant werewolves except the maid, and the vibes they oozed were choking for a weakling like herself.
Hazel wasn't moved by Ava's motivational speech; considering it a cliched platitude.
Ava had called her a broken doll, but she was far from being one; she was just good at acting.
Hazel thought it was better to appear docile and harmless so she wouldn't bring unnecessary attention to herself.
Omegas were the lowest of the low, treated like trash.
They were slaves, with no rights and couldn't refuse anyone high above the hierarchy.
Any dominant wolf could take advantage of them, even horny teens, so Hazel made sure to move with caution and totally avoid any form of confrontation with anyone, to avoid being the next late-night omega sob story. She was the daughter of the alpha of the Ember Ridge Pack, and she reminded herself of that regularly, so she wouldn't break and succumb to the pathetic role she was forced into.
*
Once Hazel was done with cleaning the huge hall, she headed to the quarters to get some rest. But right at the entrance stood two people: a middle-aged woman and a blonde lady her age.
"Shit!" Hazel cursed, and would have hid to avoid them if they hadn't spotted her. The middle woman was Madame Helen, the female in charge of assigning duties to the Omegas, and the blonde was her daughter, Hazel's tormentors.
"Where do you think you're going?" Helen asked with a harsh squint, glaring at her with narrow eyes.
"I'm done cleaning the hall, so I'm going to the quarters to get some rest, ma," Hazel explained, in a soothing and placating voice.
"You're done with your work?" Kayle snorted, "Are you being serious right now?"
Hazel frowned, wondering what she had done something wrong this time.
"Look at me," Helen ordered, and Hazel raised her head, but was met with a hot slap which sent her staggering.
Hazel held her burning cheek, her eyes threatening to let out tears, as she wondered what the hell she did to deserve that?
Helen walked towards her, forcefully grabbing Effie's ear and pulling.
"Tell me, who do you think you are to choose that when it's time to rest and when it isn't, huh? You're just a filthy omega; I'm the boss of you, and I make the decision!" Helen yelled yanking even harder, and Hazel yelped.
It felt like her ears were going to fall off if Helen didn't let go soon.
She could only endure the torment, unable to resist or show any frustration lest she provoked them.
Ever since she came to the pack as a slave, Helen and Sasha had made it apparent that they disliked her and found little to no reason to harass her.
They hated her face, hated her voice, hated her silence, hated how she walked, hated the look in her eyes, and so many other things that anyone would find completely ridiculous. But then there was no one to care; no one gave a shit about the omega or what happened to them.
Helena was the head of the group, and she could do anything she wanted.
"Just because you cleaned the halls doesn't mean your work is done for today." Helen said as she let go of Hazel's ears, which had turned red from all the pulling.
"Go to my quarters and make sure it's sparkling clean, and I don't want to see any trace of dirt, do you understand me?" Helena ordered.
"Understood ma," Hazel replied holding her throbbing ear.
"Make sure to clean my room too and do the laundry," Kayle added with a bemused smile.
"Yes, Miss Kayle." Hazel said passively. Despite the resentment she had for the pair, she knew it was in her best interest to keep mute, as she knew any slight show of defiance would only fuel Helena's aggression.
"Kayle, let's go." Helena said as she gestured to her daughter to follow. With their backs turned towards her, Hazel's expression shaped into a scowl.
One won't expect Helen to be more friendly as she was once an omega and could relate to the females in that status, but she didn't care was just a delusion old hag.
According to the chatter she heard, she became an omega after he was pregnant with Kayle. Perhaps due to her motherly nature, Helen wasn't as passive as expected, despite the seal.
The alpha back then was impressed and put in charge of the omega's.
Using this small status, she was able to raise Kayle into the bitch she was now.
Of course, they knew their status meant nothing on the large scale of things, but that was the reason they acted like a tyrant, bullying those weaker than them.
Hazel watched as they headed toward the direction of Alpha's residence. The dwelling place of the bastard who killed her entire family.
Her jaw clenched and she gritted her teeth, feeling nothing but animosity, which led to the blood seal on her neck activating.
She felt a sudden loss of strength and fell to her knees, placing her hands on her neck, as it burnt, so much that tears poured out of her eyes.
Any female, whether dominant or submissive, could become an omega, as long as the alpha puts a blood seal on the females.
It bound one to the alpha and disconnected one from their wolf, which in turn made one lose strength and the will to resist. Any thought of harming the alpha or having any overly negative thoughts about the alpha would awaken the seal.
The more you fought the seal, the weaker you become, and even worse you can't end your life, not without the alpha's permission. You're forced to live with the shame and suffering inflicted upon you, which was worse than hell.
That was the curse of the seal, and....