"Alpha Adriana...seems she has met with her fated Omega, act before it is too late. Then you can claim everything."
The warning came from a man standing in the doorway, his face visible in the low light-sharp features set in a cold, calculating expression, his gaze like a blade measuring its target.
Across the room, a woman lingered near the window, her face hidden in shadow, the dim glow tracing the curve of her shoulders.
She didn't move, but the air between them tightened-thick with unspoken schemes and scent of danger.
...
The low hum of the black sedan filled the space.
Angela leaned her head against the window, streetlights flickering past like distant stars.
She could still hear the way they'd spoken earlier:
"She is dangerous...a master in every sense of the world. Girls here would tear each other apart for that kind of luck."
At the time, Angela had only smirked, as if it meant nothing.
But now...the thought pressed closer, warmer. She let out a small, almost begrudging mumble.
"Truly...she is handsome."
Angela couldn't shake the image burned into her mind; the moment Adriana had pulled her close.
That strange, hypnotic force in her eyes. The way it made her body still, her breath catch, as if she were caught between danger and...something else.
And that other thing, that serpent like coil that seemed to rest on Adriana's shoulder.
It should have sent shivers of alarm through her veins.
Instead, it drew her gaze in.
She found herself admiring it, as though the danger was a kind she wanted to touch.
Then; there were the words she'd overheard. Tessa and Jennifer, speaking in low tones saying she was somewhere In-between a Betas and Omegas-low class Omegas- a rank she barely understood. And in the same breath, they called Adriana an Alpha queen-to-be.
Two different worlds colliding in her ears.
And why...why had Adriana been protective of her?
Why pay twenty times over the asking price just so she wouldn't end up with those men?
Why bristle with that strange fury when Tessa said they were bought to "entertain" the clients?
Angela stared out the window.
The questions coiled tighter in her chest along with the memory of Adriana's skin, warm against hers, still lingering like a touch that refused to fate.
...
The Bugatti rolled to a gentle stop before the grand gates of the Adriana estate. Phillip was out first, opening the rear door for her with his usual quiet precision.
Maria stepped out, the night air cooler here, the faint scent of cypress from the garden brushing past her. Excitement flickered in her chest not the giddy kind, but the relief of stepping back into territory.
Inside, the marble-floored hallway gleamed under soft golden lights. She moved toward the staircase, her mind already drifting to the solitude of her bedroom.
"Adriana."
She froze mid-step at the sound of the man's voice.
Maria-in this life, Adriana-turned, recognizing him instantly. Adriana's father-her father now in this life- stood there.
Tall, broad shouldered, with the effortless bearing of a man used to being listened to. His hair was streaked faintly at the temples, the lines on his face deep but dignified.
The kind of presence that filled a room without effort.
"Father," she greeted softly.
A faint warmth touched his eyes. "Finally, I'm back , princess. Home at last after that long business trip. I've really missed you."
He started toward her, arms opening for an embrace. But as he drew near, his gaze caught on the curve of her neck where the faint, coiled shape of Vex, her serpent, rested like a living shadow.
For a brief moment, something flickered in his expression. Surprise...and a trace of something unreadable.
His gaze lingered on the faint coil of the Vex draped against her neck, its black scales shifting faintly as if aware of being seen
"I didn't expect you to embrace Vex," he said slowly, a shadow of surprise in his tone. "It was always the one thing that put a nerve in your gut."
Maria blinked, unsure what he meant.
He gave a small nod, as if deciding something.
"That's good sign. Now I see you're ready...ready to embrace your responsibility, and your title."
Her confusion only deepened.
"But," he continued, his voice dropping into a tone of quiet instruction, "Your Vex must be wholly bonded to you only then will you be powerful." His eyes on hers. "And that bond...is only possible when you're joined with your fated Omega."
Maria's heartbeat kicked hard in her chest. She said nothing, but the weight of his words coiled around her mind like the serpent at her neck.
She wanted to ask him, but stopped it would be strange. Adriana would have known exactly what he meant.
But she was Maria inside Adriana's life now, and asking would only raise questions she couldn't afford.
She tried to piece together what he'd said Fragments of memory stirred, but they slipped away before she could hold them. The more she reached for them, the heavier her thoughts felt until exhaustion dulled the effort entirely.
In the end, she only gave a small nod. "Yes."
"Have you eaten?" he asked gently.
"I can make you your favorite moonlight stew."
For a pitying moment, she thought Adriana was truly lucky to have this man as her father.
In her own past life, her father had never cared if she had eaten or not. She had been invisible...forgotten.
But here, this man-Adriana's father now her father in this life-looked at her with warmth in his eyes.
She shook her head softly. "I'm fine. I just want to rest."
He didn't press.
She stepped closer, wrapping her arms around him briefly, hugging him and placing a soft kiss on her father's cheek. "Thank you...good night, Daddy."
Then she turned toward the stairs, her footsteps slow but certain, the thought lingering in her mind:
How strange, to feel so cared for in a life that wasn't even hers.
...
Maria moved quietly across the bedroom, the soft folds of her robe brushing against her legs. She reached the cupboard, uncorked the expensive bottle, and poured the deep red wine into her glass.
Turning slightly, she took a slow first sip, the warmth sliding down her throat.
A second sip followed, her gaze distant, thoughts drifting.
Then it struck.
A sudden, scorching pain like fire racing under her skin, as if she were shedding it alive.
Her grip faltered; the glass slipped from her hand and shattered against the floor, wine bleeding into the rug.
She staggered, catching herself on the edge of the bed.
Vex, curled loosely on the blankets, jerked in a mirrored spasm, coils tightening as if it too felt the agony.
The pain didn't ease. It deepened every nerve alive with fire, every breath a sharp drag of air.
And then they came.
Voices.
Many voices.
Layered over each other, cracking with strain and urgency.
"You are the only one..."
"Our Queen..."
"Save us."
"Our Queen...claim your tittle."
"You are the only one who can save us."
Their pleas poured into her ears, into her bones, until she couldn't tell if it was theirs or her own.
Her nails dug into the carpet. Her body curled, trembling.
"Stop..." she gasped through clenched teeth.
But voices only pressed closer.
"Save us."
And then came the warning sharp, almost desperate:
"Save us all or come to us."
Her vision blurred; heat pulsed at the base of her skull.
Vex lay rigid on the bed, its body twitching in sympathy, eyes wide and unblinking.
The agony didn't relent and Maria couldn't tell if she was burning alive or hallowed out from within.
The last thing she heard was the chorus of desperate voices calling for her...and then, blackness.