Rachael's POV
"You better don't fall from my hands." I whispered to the plate, as it almost slipped while I tried to place it on the rack after washing.If that had happened, i would have been in so much trouble. Thankfully, it didn't. I dropped the plate carefully and went back to wash the rest of the dishes.Of all the chores which I disliked, doing the dishes was my favourite. It afforded me the time to think and reflect on so many things and except for the times when there were too many or there was an occasion which required that I did them very quickly, it was relatively not difficult at all.I loved the sight of the water when I moved my hands around it, after pouring in the dishwashing liquid causing it to foam. It felt so good that sometimes, I forgot that I needed to wash and not fool around. It has landed me in trouble a few times, but I struggled to learn from it.Anyway, I whistled aloud as I did the dishes with a smile on my face. I still felt a little pain from the injury that I had sustained earlier but it was nothing to worry about."Hey, Rachael." A maid said to me, having just walked into the kitchen. "Justin has asked to see you immediately. He's in his room right now and doesn't intend to be kept waiting."I was tired of hearing that last line. I didn't think they always needed to add that. For sure, no one loved to be kept waiting. No one had to say that to me."Maybe this is about the mate thing." I thought to myself, wondering why else he'd want to see me.Justin had always hated me. I think he is the one who hated me the most among his siblings. He would even struggled to send me on errands as my mere presence irritated him. If he was calling me, It just had to have something to do with being his mate and I didn't feel too good about it.I left the kitchen and proceeded to Justin's room but I was in no hurry. I walked in slow, calculated steps, almost as if I was tiptoeing so that I could think about the things that I'd say to him when the need arose.When I got to his room, I knocked on his door and took a deep breath as I waited for him to respond."Come in." He yelled, and I took one last deep breath before pushing the door open.As I got into the room, the first thing I did was look at the paintings on the wall with admiration. He had an artwork of himself hung on the wall, very close to his bed. I had only been in that room a few times, and it caught my attention each time.I took a look at him as he sat on his bed half-naked. He only had his boxers on and a towel hung around his neck and I couldn't help but stare at his broad chest and well-chiselled abs. He was a beautiful sight to behold with a handsome face to match.He snapped his fingers at me with his face frowned, bringing me back to reality. I felt a bit embarrassed that he caught me staring but yeah, I kept a straight face."I was informed by a maid that you want to see me." I said to him."I did. I asked her to bring you here for one reason. Choose me as your mate."I was shocked. That was so direct. I knew how prideful he could be, but I didn't think.. that it could get to this extent.It wasn't just his prideful arrogance that annoyed me. I couldn't help but notice the way he said the word, "Mate." I could tell that the word disgusted him, even though he tried so hard to keep his feelings in check."The choice of whoever my mate would be, is going to be made solely by me and I intend to make full use of that. No one would tell me who I'll choose. I will make this decision on my own after I have carefully made my consideration." I said to him defiantly, looking into his eyes to let him know.. that I wasn't afraid of him."I have a proposal for you, one that I believe you'll find enticing." He proposed."What is it?""If you choose me as your mate and I end up becoming the Alpha of the Crimson Pack, I'll make sure that you're very comfortable and protected in this Pack. No one would be able to lay a finger on you ever again."As I heard those words, all I could do was smirk. He must have thought that I would be dumb to accept such a proposal. I thought he'd have something more enticing but clearly, he had nothing worth considering.I snorted. "Aren't I supposed to be your mate for life?" I asked him. "Just by being the Alpha's mate, I'm guaranteed to have no one dare lay his or her hands on me."Suddenly, he broke into a fit of laughter. "You must be so naive to think that any of us would want you as a mate." He mocked. "Maybe as a personal slave or something, but not a mate. You're not worth that and you know it."I was highly angered by that statement. So much so that I even considered walking away from his room. "For someone who wants me to help him become the Alpha, you sure do know how to get on my bad side, don't you? Even though I'd never thought about making you the Alpha of this Pack, you just cancelled any chance of me even considering that in the future."His eyes turned red and in a flash, he quickly dashed toward me and grabbed me by the neck. He held me so hard that I wanted to fight back, but I couldn't.I hadn't fought or ever used my wolf powers. Since I was only thirteen, I had not gotten my wolf yet.. I got Eliana when I was sixteen.Alpha Blackwood had banned me never to use my powers if I ever got them. Although I did practice in hiding with Eliana, but there wasn't much I could do."Look here, girl. I wouldn't want to warn you twice." He threatened, still holding onto my neck and making it difficult for me to breathe. "If you don't agree to my terms, I'll kill you right here in this room and no one will care. If you die, no one would have to get you to be his mate before he can be made the Alpha. My father will come back to his senses and declare me to be his heir, just as it should be."Amidst the pain that I felt, I looked into his eyes and began to grin heartily. He was shocked. It was all over his face.Still gazing into his eyes, I said to him, "If you don't let me go right now, I'll choose Jake to be my mate."He let go of me immediately, just like I expected and sighed in frustration. "What do you want from me, Rachael?"I smiled, realising that I was in control. For the first time in a very long time, I felt in control of something and knowing that it was the son of the Alpha of the Pack.. made it even sweeter.It dawned on me that I had the power in my hands to return all the bad treatments that he had given to me all these years. I had dreamed for so long about the perfect way to make him pay and by the goddess, my chance was staring right in front of me.He kept staring at me, looking so confused as I maintained the smile on my face. What he didn't know was the source of the smile; wicked thoughts. Those were the only things I could think of.Pointing to the floor, I said to him, "What I want is for you to kneel, and beg me to consider choosing you. And just maybe... maybe , I will consider adding you to that list."Rachael's POV"You must be raving mad!" Justin growled at me, grabbing me by the neck once again.This time, his fingernails dug deep into my skin.. causing me to bleed. His anger knew no bounds and no matter how much pain was shown on my face as I struggled, he wouldn't let go.Instead, added more pressure.. delighting in my pain as he tried to prove his point. "I would never grovel at your feet." He said, bringing his face close to my ears. "And for this stupid request you have made, I will be sure to put you in your place very soon, slave!"I must have flattened his ego with my request, and that was the plan; my plan. I wanted to bring him down to Earth so he'd understand how it feels on my side of the world. Guess he wasn't ready to learn yet."Okay then." I managed to shrug. Staring at him lazily... I said, "You've made your point. Now, let go."He did the opposite of letting go.. he squeezed my neck a bit more, causing me to gasp for air. On seeing I wasn't going to back down
Rachael's POVI gasped, amazed at the clarity of the blue waterfall. It kept spurting gleefully over the rocks down into the river beneath with a beautiful splash and all I could do was stare in awe of the magnificent sight before me.It was one of the few things that reminded me that life wasn't all that bad, no matter how it seemed. It taught me to appreciate everything around me and see some sort of good in them unless there isn't.I loved to come here often and after being here several times, it became my favourite spot. Well, I'd say it was more than that for Jared and I. It was our secret spot, away from everyone else. A place where we could always go to have certain discussions that we could never have had anywhere else.As usual, Jared was here with me. We had decided to head over here for a little chat. He sat by my left-hand side and stared at the pool too. He loved the view just like I did, or maybe a bit less."Don't you just love this view?" I asked, turning to see what
Jackson's POV"That was intense." Caroline, my lover giggled.. after our exhilarating sex session."Of course, it was." I boasted to her with a cheeky smile on my face, causing her to slap my arm. I was so good at what I did and I knew it. There was no denying it.She placed her head on my chest and I slowly caressed her long, black hair, doing my best to catch my breath after what was a very intense session."I can't believe that you have the chance to become the next Alpha of the Crimson Pack." She exclaimed in delight, much to my surprise.I didn't know where that came from as we had never had such a discussion or anything that looked like that. It seemed strange to me that she'd even want to talk about that, especially with the stakes involved in the entire process.I held back from saying anything to her because I felt like she was going to be offended by it. I felt she'd be mad that I was even comfortable enough to talk to her about it. So I just ignored it, not wanting any trou
Rachael's POVBeing the mate of all four sons of the Alpha did have its perks, but sadly, it didn't include not having to wash my clothes or the clothes of my seniors.I sat in the laundry room with my bucket in front of me and a pile of clothes by the side which I had to wash as fast as I could so I could leave there.I only have three slave gowns, as my only property in my wardrobe.. so the pile belonged to the seniors.Several maids were there too. Most were almost already done with their clothes whilst a few were still about to begin, just like me.I picked up a dress and tossed it into the bucket and then I began to scrub as hard as I could. It was a technique that helped me wash the clothes faster without getting discouraged; taking them one after the other instead of putting a lot into the bucket at once. The more the dresses looked into my eyes, the more I got discouraged.I got done with the first and began to wash the second finally getting the hang of it. It wasn't annoying
Rachael's POV I kept my gaze on Jessica, making sure to not show any sign of timidity. I needed her to see that I meant every word that came from my mouth and that I was someone to be feared. She seemed to get the message as I saw her previously defiant look diminish to something a bit more submissive. Her countenance dropped; proof that she had resigned to the fact that I was in charge now. "Fine." She let's out in total resignation, as she stood to her feet. "I'm sorry, Rachael. Are you happy now?" I smiled, glad that I had gotten what I wanted, but I was in no way satisfied and I had to make her see that. "It's not enough, Jess. I need something more than this before I could let you go." I muttered, drawing closer to her. "What could that be?" She asked slowly, surprised that I wanted more, but it was what I did next that would surprised her even more. "A simple apology could never be enough to cover up for all the bullying and humiliation that you have been dishing
Author's Pov;"I'm sick and tired of this silly game." Annie Blackwood whispered to herself as she stood by her window, looking out to the open just to appreciate the beautiful weather.She had contemplated going over to her husband to talk about the game that he had their kids play, to obtain the position of the Alpha as it sounded ridiculous. But each time she wanted to go, she felt a restriction.On this day, she didn't. She put on her black slippers and walked away from her room, heading straight to her husband's room so she'd talk to him.That was the room that she too was supposed to stay in. Indeed, she used to stay there except for a few nights when she just wanted to be alone, just like the previous night.On getting to the room, she noticed that someone else was there and she put her ears behind the door so she'd know if she could recognise who it was through the voice.She did. It was no one else but her dear second son, Jake, having a conversation with his father concernin
Rachael's POV"Ah!" I yelled, jumping out of the bench that I had laid on.. to get some rest. I stared at my wet clothe and back to my assailant, who still had the evidence of committing the crime. An empty bucket could be seen on her hand.Mrs Orchid, the Pack's head of servants.. if Alpha Blackwood is ranked my number one enemy, then Mrs Orchid is sitting at the second position. I could never understand why she had always loathed, but I guess she just did. I guess it shouldn't be a shock, seeing that her very own Alpha captured me and made me a slave, but not just that.. humiliating me at every chance he gets. "You stupid fool!!" She thundered striking me hard on my cheek. I held onto my right cheek in pain, resisting the urge to return the favor. "You must think being mated to the sons of the Alpha, gives you the right to be lazy?"She continued.. "Racheal, You're only a tool for their pleasure, the object of the game they have chosen to play. Don't think it makes you any mor
Rachael's POV"Which one of them would you prefer?" Orchid asked holding out two dresses in front of me. "Would you love the blue or the yellow?"I alternated my gaze between the two dresses and wondered which of them was going to look better on me. I didn't want to make the wrong choice for any reason. I had to look my best."Let me see how the back of this blue one looks. Turn it around." I ordered her. I had already made up my mind to wear that one. I just wanted to order her around for the fun of it."That looks fine. Let me have it, Orchid."She seemed to take offence to the manner with which I called her name and I took offence to that. Too bad, it was only the way that I felt that mattered. She was a nobody now, just like I previously was."What is it?" I asked as I took the dress from her. "Do I smell annoyance?"She shook her head. "Good. I'd hate to slap some manners into your head, Orchid!"I put the dress on, as quickly as possible feeling very excited. I was so excited. I