The Beast’s Prey Novel – The warriors are training outside, and it’s a sight to see for me. My eyes stay wide, fixated on them like a dog watching a rabbit. Only the warriors are far more interesting, and as I watch them, I can’t help but imagine myself amongst them, sparring and wrestling and fighting just as hard as any of them.
That will never happen, of course. For one, I am a woman, and women are not allowed to train as warriors. And, I’m a runt. “Rhea,” I turn as I hear a familiar voice, it’s Ethel. “You can’t be out here. You’re needed inside, there’s a lot of stuff to do before the party and you gawking at those males isn’t going to get anything done.” “I’m not gawking,” I huff, following Ethel back towards the Alpha’s packhouse. “I’m watching.” “Well, watch something else.
If Alpha Elias sees you, he’ll be pissed, and I, for one, don’t want to deal with his temper right now.” The packhouse was usually a quiet place, but today, it was a flurry of activity. Wolves were rushing around, cleaning, decorating, and preparing for the Alpha’s birthday celebration tonight. The warriors, on the other hand, were training.
Training like they did every day on the acres of ground that surrounded the packhouse. “Rhea,” Ethel snaps again, this time sounding a bit too frustrated. “Get your head out of the clouds. There’s a lot of work. Get started with handling the flower arrangements. The florist delivered them a while ago. They are in the storage shed.
Start arranging them and placing them.” “Yes, ma’am,” I reply, trudging to the back of the packhouse where the storage rooms are. The storage rooms are usually dark and dusty, but today, they are brightly lit. I have never understood why we need so many storage sheds. But this is a packhouse and it is meant to accommodate the entire pack, so I guess having multiple storage facilities made sense.
Just as I open the door, numerous smells of different flowers hit my nose. They are all neatly packed in boxes and baskets, wrapped with plastic and ribbons. I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do. I’ve never done this before. I pick up the first box, the weight is surprisingly heavy. I can smell the fragrance of lilies even through the wrapper.
Slowly, I take out the delicate flowers and arrange them into a vases which I bring back into the packhouse and into the ballroom where the party is going to be hosted. It’s the Alpha’s 35th birthday tonight, and tenth year anniversary of the Blackfang Pack being under his ruling. It’s a momentous event. A chance for everyone in the pack to come together and celebrate the Alpha’s legacy and accomplishments.
After I’m done arranging the flowers, I move on to the next task, which is setting out the champagne glasses that Ethel gives me. There are caterer’s here who are handling the food, but the rest of it is on us. On Ethel. She’s the housekeeper of the pack house, and under her, there are other staff members, including me. But for an event like this, we are certainly short staffed.
There are going to be a hundred’s of people coming here and we nearly don’t have enough hands to handle the work. Several other pack Alphas are going to be here, including some high ranking warriors. Ethel has been running around like a chicken with its head cut off, and I really can’t blame her.