WREN
Caius Blackthorn wrote me a letter.
It was in my hand. My fisted, shaky hand.
In my other hand was the rag I was using to clean the furniture of the
Blackthorn Castle. And for once, I didn't feel depressed or sad as I cleaned. Not with
my blood thrumming, with my heart threatening to break out of my skin.
I was excited.
Because Prince Caius Blackthorn, nephew of the Alpha King Draven
Blackthorn, was my boyfriend, my mate. We'd been together for 6 months then, and
even though nobody knew, it had been the best months of my life.
But I'd gotten used to that quickly. This? Him writing me a letter? It had never
happened before. But today, our 6th month anniversary, he'd walked in with his
friends, spared me a glance and slipped a piece of paper into my hands discreetly.
My eyes lingered on the stairs even though he was long gone, and the smile on
my face could not be contained.
"Starling!" The unfortunately familiar screech pulled me out of my trance, and
I looked down to find my rag on the ground.
Shit.
I hurriedly picked it up before looking up at the Matron. Elara Blackthorn was
the kind of woman who was evil enough to feature in your nightmares. Half sister to
the Alpha King, member of the High Court, and Overseer of all Royal staff. All fancy
words for 'pain in everybody's ass.'
Well, except the new guy at the farm —Roland's. Her new flavour of the
month.
"My lady," I muttered, eyes on the ground. Usually, Omegas like me —maids
especially— shouldn't dare to meet the eyes of Alphas or powerful Betas like she was,
but it was becoming more and more difficult to not glare into her slimy green eyes.
"So much work to do, and you're standing there lost in your thoughts!"
"Apologies, my lady. I was—"
"Come with me!" I winced at her shout, wondering if she knew it was possible
to speak without screaming.
Then I raised my head and followed her closely, holding on tightly to the paper
in my hand.
Goddess, I'd really wanted to get to my room quickly.
The thought of whatever he'd written inside was driving me crazy. We walked
down the long hallway that fucking echoed. Which meant, I got to listen to the
overwhelming sound of her heels clicking aggressively on the tiles for what felt like
hours.
Then we went up the hidden set of stairs, the one that led to the Royals'
private everything.
Finally, we stopped at the Royal Dining Room, and she turned to me, lips in a
thin line.
"Clean up this place until it's so spotless I can see my reflection."
I tensed up.
You see, in the Castle, there were Thirty two maids, alongside other staff. But
there was also a hierarchical system in here. And I was at the very bottom of it.
Not that it was my fault; my mother was a low class Omega, low class maid,
and I was born into it. To inherit the shitty titles.
If my mother hadn't died giving birth to me, I would have thoroughly
expressed my displeasure.
Anyway, I digress.
Being a lower class maid meant I was usually assigned to the public parts of
the Castle, the entry room, visitor's bathroom, guest rooms, etcetera.
The ground floor.
The higher maids were the ones who worked closely with the Royals, I hardly
ever got to see the Royals. In my 21 years on Earth, and in the Castle, I'd only seen
the Alpha King a total of Ten times. Six of which were during these last 6 months of
sneaking in and out of Caius' room.
So you see, obeying the Matron's orders right then meant waging war against
the higher class maids who had staked their claims on the Royal's private rooms. And
disobeying it meant getting whipped by the Royal Warden.
It was not easy to comprehend, but translation: I was royally fucked. I'd never
been a lover of pain, though, so I made the more obvious choice. "I'll get to it."
"Good. Make sure it's squeaky clean. The Crown Prince returns tomorrow, and
he hates dirt." She paused with a slight wince, realising her slip. "No other person
must hear of this, Starling."
Caius' cousin is returning?
"Yes, my lady."
She walked away, and I rushed into the room, only to escape the sound of her
heels again.
The room was squeaky clean already, but I took my rag and start to wipe the
long mahogany table as my thoughts trapped me again.
The Crowned Prince. Kael Blackthorn. I'd never seen him before, but I'd heard
a ton. He apparently left Thornscape when he was Seven, to study at the Ombrae
Triple School of Royals at the Ombrae Pack. If my sources were right, he should be
26 right now.
But my sources had also mentioned that he was supposed to return 4 years
ago, after graduating from the final School. And he didn't. I remembered the Castle
bustling with murmurs and squeals the day he was set to return. Everyone wanted to
be the one to serve him.
High-class maids had gotten into Catfights just to win the chance to be chosen
as the Alpha Prince's chamber maid. The Matron had a ton of fun hosting that one.
She'd also received an earful from Tobias Ashford —The Beta of Thornscape pack
after it was announced that the heir wouldn't be returning yet.
It'd made her a bitch for a full two months after that. Don't get me wrong,
she's one every second of the day, but she'd never bitched like that before.
Why is the Crown Prince returning 4 years late? And why are they keeping it
a secret?
I met my eyes in the glass settled atop the table; dull brown eyes framed by
short lashes. I tried not to wince. My years of insecurity were way behind me, and I
liked to tell myself I was beautiful these days.
Light brown hair, short and wavy. Brown eyes that disappeared when I smiled,
a dimple in my left cheek, six freckles around my nose, generous breasts, a soft
stomach —h and yes, thick thighs and slight hips.
What's not to love?
I wasn't fat. Slightly bigger than the other maids who love to call me fat, yes.
But I wasn't.
How could I be? We were given leftovers to eat, and there was hardly enough
time to sneak away for a quick snack with so much work to do.
Giving in, my eyes searched the room, confirming that no one was around,
before unfolding the paper in my hand.
Come to my room tonight? I miss you. I need you.
Oh fuck.