A Slave Became A Respected LunaChapter 1: Invitation
CINDY'S POV
"Breaking news: Alpha Luis Fenrir, leader of the respected Fenrir Pack, turned thirty today! It's time for him to choose a Luna, and his mansion is reportedly overflowing with single women vying for the position. Who will be the lucky lady to become the next Luna of the Fenrir Pack?"
The radio reporter's announcement filled the room as I mopped the floor.
"Move it, Cinderella!" my adoptive mother, Aunt Jezel, snarled, kicking the bucket of water.
The black water splashed, soaking the thick living room rug. This enraged Aunt Jezel further, and she ordered me to clean it immediately.
I spent the entire morning cleaning the house and scrubbing the rug. Her twin daughters, Stephany and Jenny, were occupied with frivolous activities. Stephany slept most of the day, while Jenny was out flirting in the park.
They're twenty-five, my age, and should be helping with the housework, but Aunt Jezel tolerates their laziness. I do all the chores—cooking, cleaning, washing, and grocery shopping—as if I were their maid. It's physically and mentally exhausting, but I can't leave.
Every day is like slavery. I wake before sunrise to boil water for their baths, chop wood for the fire, and carry buckets of water. Then I clean the house, only to have it dirtied again by Aunt Jezel's judgmental friends who lounge around all day. Her daughters devour everything I cook, leaving me with only scraps. At night, I sleep not in the large bedroom my father built for me, but in the stables, amidst the smell of horse manure.
After my father's death and his marriage to Aunt Jezel, she seized his money and manipulated him into leaving his will in her favor, ensuring I received nothing. She even manipulated him into giving her ownership of this house.
The bottom line: I'm broke and have nowhere else to go.
"When will my luck change, little mouse?" I whispered to my only companion, a white mouse.
Like the mouse, I feel like a pest in this house, an unwanted guest. I cry myself to sleep every night. Despite the pain and heartache, there was this one boy I truly loved: Henry Fenrir, our neighbor and Alpha Luis' nephew.
We were friends for three years, lovers for two. But Jenny seduced him one night during a large celebration at Henry's mansion. Everyone in town was invited, including me, but Aunt Jezel forbade it.