y, every

as yesterday's entertainment, replaced by newer rumors and fresher scandals

was no longer the

the devi

people watched her, and she enjoyed it. The power she wielded had made

week, Stella s

Stella was tired of giving her something to feed on. So she worked, kept her head down, and took each day as it came. Sh

that wa

na Ceremony arrived w

d through the corridors, and voices dropped whenever someone important passed. The building l

ed Stella's suspicions

house

la p

bath

p cloth, a few stolen minutes in the darkness before the morning bell. The bathhouse belonged to the pack. E

rtant guests

obedience, of being everywhere and nowhere at once. An Omega had to be visible enough to serve but forg

melled of fresh laundry and felt softer than the clothes they usually wore. Even the new u

hem, the pack was

o dress and report back,

er gown and studied herself in the cracked mirror.

's coming," S

Alphas pretending t

ort escap

wn fits better th

e you actually

you d

pression one of dramatic devastation. "W

sideways look. "Yo

om Lina's face. A blush

Her eyes drifted

Before the Head Omega comes

ontain her laughter,

. Servants hurried past with trays, linens, and armfuls of flowers. Smoke curled through the corridors from the kitchens, ca

mega directed everyone with relentless pre

the main entrance, baskets of flowers in their hands. Their heads w

beneath th

es swun

ther. Each bore an unfamiliar crest, and every ar

cent before she could m

ph

ta

eard whispered in conversations that

n hard and his stride stiff. He looked like a man

he knew how easily he could silence a room with a glance and how del

er seen fear be

were arriving today?" he b

ha. The message

len

rd fell

the gue

ing. She scanned the line of s

You.

opped at Stel

ov

beyed

urtyard, she felt someone's gaze settle on

tu

arriving guests, his g

r dismissive. His gaze held an unusual

g. Whatever Caden's look meant, she had no i

e. Stella had never been allowed this deep into the building. The corridors widened as they went, the ceilin

e Stella knew, as though they belonged

he Head Omega divided th

ent into the

were directed

Golden drapes caught the afternoon light and bathed the room in a warm glow. Pale marble shone beneath

began arranging the flowers,

re from the Royal P

sill, working quickly. She

dropped. "Did you s

saw

een him like

her h

eyes

ha seemed desperate to give it to t

he flowers and reach

ered from som

olent. Silence followed,

the flower sti

htened. "Wh

ould answer, th

e doorway, her jaw clenche

done?" sh

y answered

e of the guest

ad Omega swept past them, forcing them to scramble after her. Their footst

ces. They weren't loud, yet each carried the authority of someone accustome

they reached the

the first fligh

was sligh

e had misunderstood. His hands rested at his sides, held u

oof, Stella had never once se

on

ith his head lowered, as though on

a's hand and gri

her

wered, careful to keep their breathing even. From there, they c

s continu

e air c