Mark of Mars

After a good bit of walking and climbing what felt like a million stairs, Dana and I finally made it to the west wing.

Even though I couldn’t stand being there because it made me so nervous, I had to admit the castle was breathtaking. I might not be able to talk, but I wasn’t blind.

Every single thing in the castle, from the dark cherry wood furniture to the hanging chandeliers, was crafted with such incredible attention to detail.

If it were up to me, I wouldn’t change a thing about it, except maybe the people who lived there. It was kind of sad that such a beautiful place was filled with so much hate and pain.

I snapped out of my daydream when I bumped into Dana’s broad back. I quickly signed an apology, which was met with an annoyed huff from Dana. She pushed me toward the large wooden door in front of us.

“This is the Master’s private dining room. You need to clean it until it shines, then move on to the next room. If you break anything, you’ll have to answer to the big bad wolf. Got it, short stack?”

Dana let out a wicked laugh, her stomach shaking as she held it. She ruffled my hair playfully when she saw the scared look on my face.

“You’ll be okay, kid. Just don’t mess up. Shouldn’t be too hard, considering you’re such a neat freak.”

I swallowed hard. Being a perfectionist where nothing was ever perfectly clean was a tough gig. ~This is going to be a long day.~

Dana then pushed me into the room and left, slamming the door behind her and making me jump. You’d think I’d be used to her doing that by now. But I was always so jumpy; living among werewolves, everything scared me.

Finally taking a good look at my surroundings, I was blown away by how huge it was! Dining room? This was more like a ballroom. You could fit fifty of my apartments in here and still have room for a parking lot.

Looking down at the intricately placed pieces of marble, I quickly stepped back when I realized they formed the shape of a large black wolf.

Its eyes, a deep forest green, were made from some kind of precious stone. They stared right into my eyes, giving me the creeps.

Shaking my head, I decided I’d probably sniffed too many cleaning products over the years. I ran over to the nearest maid’s closet to grab supplies and started mopping.

Cleaning wasn’t exactly my favorite thing to do, but sometimes, it helped me forget about what was happening in my life.

Mopping, in particular, reminded me of a movie I’d seen a clip of while babysitting a pup belonging to a guest in the east wing.

A woman in a flowing blue dress danced with a man in a garden, singing something about love, I don’t quite remember. She looked so happy; sometimes, I’d pretend mopping was a sort of dance, and the mop was my prince.

The way I moved my body as I mopped looked like a dance. Melissa was usually my partner when we had free time, which wasn’t often.

She would teach me some steps her father had taught her when she was a kid. He used to be a dance teacher for the upper-class werewolves.

When he died, she was put into my class, the lowest of the low—the South section. At least she had those warm memories, unlike me, who had never met my parents.

I often wondered what they were like. Were they mute too? What did they look like? But most of all, why did they leave me?

There was one thought that I was especially scared to think about; but it was always there, nagging at me from the back of my mind: Did they leave me because I was mute?

After a while of mopping, I realized I’d forgotten all about the space underneath the large, very noticeable dining table in the middle of the room.

Looking down at my cheap kid’s wristwatch, I realized I’d gotten way too carried away. I got down on my hands and knees and scrubbed the floors as quickly and efficiently as I could.

Finding a tough spot on the marble, I threw myself into trying to get rid of it. It almost looked like blood, but… No, I’m sure someone just spilled some ketchup. Yeah, ketchup.

I must not have noticed the door opening and closing, because suddenly, I heard two voices, one belonging to Dana and another to a man. They seemed to be having a heated conversation.

“I don’t care how you do it. Just find her! I know she’s here. I can smell her all over you!”

The man’s voice sounded familiar, almost comforting even, if you ignored the growls. If he was a werewolf, there was no way I knew him, and absolutely no reason for his voice to comfort me.

Looking down at my watch, I shook my head as strands of baby hair fell over my forehead. I had to get out of there, or I was going to miss the bus!

And I couldn’t afford to be out that late. I wouldn’t make it back in time for curfew. Even though my life kind of sucked, it was better than nothing.

Just as I was about to timidly poke my head out from under the table and maybe sign a shaky “surprise!”, I heard Dana’s raspy voice.

“Yes, Alpha. Um, with all due respect, sir, I just don’t know which one of my girls could possibly be the next luna. It doesn’t make any sense.”

What on earth was Dana talking about? I couldn’t believe my ears.

First, she said that one of the maids could be the next luna, and second, the alpha king himself was standing right outside that safe haven of a table!

TABLE… My eyes popped open again. I could barely breathe, still under the table. ~How am I supposed to get out now, with him here?~ Eavesdropping on Lycan royalty could get me killed.

Another loud growl echoed through the air, sending a shiver down my spine.

“Are you doubting my ability to sense my own mate?! Is that it, Danika Swartz?”

There was an uncomfortable silence before I heard Dana’s shaky gruff voice. “No, Alpha. Um, I mean, yes, Alpha! My friends call me Dana, though!”

The conversation made my skin crawl. If Dana was that nervous, then I was definitely going to pee myself on those freshly cleaned floors.

“Well, Danika. She was here this shift. Her scent is still strong.”

I heard him sniff the air, making me worry that he’d be able to smell me from under the table.

“Get me the list of today’s maids for the west wing, and you might just keep your job.”

My eyes widened in shock as I pieced together the puzzle. The future luna worked in the west wing. But I hadn’t seen any other maids there.

“Actually, Alpha, there’s only one. We had a shortage of maids today because of a bus issue. But I’m afraid she’s just a mute girl from the South section.”

My heart sank, and I felt a wave of nausea. I was so wrong. The tears of panic I’d been holding back started to flow.

I let out a small hiccup, instantly regretting it. The room fell silent, and my eyes flew open in terror.

I looked up to see the alpha king’s intense green eyes peering under the table. They glowed with a fierce light, as if a beam of green was piercing me.

Something inside me shifted, or maybe something new took root.

Terrified, I scrambled to the other side of the table, my knees bruising against the cold marble as I tried to move faster.

A large hand grabbed my ankle, and I gasped, trying to call for Dana. But as I expected, no help came, and my panic deepened.

“Ssshhhh… Calm down, little one. You’ll only hurt yourself.”

I was yanked out from under the table, and I thrashed against the chair legs. The combination of hitting my head on the hard floor and my panic attack made me black out.

The last thing I remember was being held against a warm chest and hearing his low growl. “MINE.”