The Alpha's Ugly Mate

How it all began. RACHEL POV Although my back hurt from bending for too long this was the only perfect spot to hide. No one had ever found me when I was here. It was where Davina kept her crates before they were taken away and resupplied with beer. The restaurant had been running for two years now but even The Slates which had been in business for 5 years still envied Davina’s. Well, Davina had always been good in business and she was beautiful as well. And kind. Davina was everything I wasn’t. She was perfect. She was also my lifesaver. But today I held my ground. I was tired of running to her every day. Enough of Davina. My name is Rachel, but most people call me the Ugly Slave. It was no exaggeration; I was both a slave and ugly. Most people had surnames, but I had none. I was just Rachel. Or ugly Rachel. Today started especially badly for me. My master's daughter kora had lost her favorite hairbrush which was imported and blamed me. Even though I knew she had taken it along with her the day before when she had gone to play, I couldn’t say that to my defense. If nothing else, my experience as a slave had taught me that my masters were never wrong, so all I could do was hold my tears and harden my back as my master lashed my back with his horsewhip. I cleaned the whole house while my back felt like there was no skin covering my bones. I thought I would get used to it with time but I was wrong. Horsewhip hurt like hell. I would rather bathe with boiling water and let my skin get scalded than subject myself to horsewhip willingly. I had been a slave for 12 years. I don’t know exactly how old I was when I became a slave but from my guess, I was either seven or eight, which means I am either 19 or 20 years old. I like to think I am 20, it would mean I was a year closer to the day I would die. I used to hope someone would come save me from these people but time had shown me that only death could. I prayed for whenever it got too tough. When the street clock ticked 3:00 pm, I gladly sneaked out of my hiding spot, making sure no one had seen me coming out of there. It would be terrible if I was discovered. I made my way into Davina’s through the back door and made sure to change into my uniform before going to show myself to Davina. Davina was a few years older than I am but she was quite luckier than I was in almost everything. Not almost. Everything. She had no mother but her father cherished her with all he had, and boy, he had lots of things. Davina’s father was very rich. These days money solves everything. “You’re right on time Rachel.” Davina greeted me the moment she saw me. “Don’t tell me you’ve been inside there waiting till it’s 3 o’clock before coming to show yourself. This was why I would rather hide behind crates than come in here before 3 PM. “Nope, I came in at exactly 3.” Which was not a lie. “Can you help me fill the fridge with those drinks so they can get chilled before customers begin to come in?” This was one of the reasons I loved Davina. I worked for her, yes, we were friends, but she paid me wages, yet she always politely assigned duties to me while the place I worked day and night and got no form of pay still treated me like dirt and delivered whips to my back. I bent down to pick up the crate but I had underestimated it, it was too heavy for my back. It was something I carried daily, but my back was whipped this morning and I had bent myself within those crates for over an hour. I was momentarily weak. The crates would have fallen to the ground if Davina had not held the crates from under. “What the f**k happened?” I couldn’t lie to Davina when she asked like that. Tears fell from my eyes as I spilled the whole story. I could see how angrier she got with each word that fell from my mouth, I also knew she wasn’t angry at me or even my masters, not even kora who had lied against me, but Davina was angry with herself because she couldn’t help me. Many times, Davina and her father had come to my Master to seek a price that my master would sell me for. But the result never changed. I was not for sale. “Is that all?” Davina asked after I told her how I was whipped this morning. Trust Davina to know there was always more I didn’t say. “I met Amanda and Sophia on my way here.” “And they called you ugly.” Davina finished. “Well, I tried to hide from them, so maybe I had bent my back behind the crates you kept at the end of the street over the last 2 hours?” “You bent this back for 2 hours? Are you crazy? It must have hurt so badly.” Her voice switched to teary when she said the last words.” This was why I didn’t like sharing my problems with her, Davina wasn’t emotionally strong. She wept for me more than I would weep for myself. “You should take the day off.” She concluded. “No.” I fired back, I had been expecting her to say that and my reply was ready. “I wouldn’t carry heavy things for today but I am not taking the day off.” She seemed pacified with that as I began to take the bottles in hand to the fridge instead of moving the whole crate closer. “Don’t let me catch you carrying anything heavy.” She warned. “Yes, my lady.” I curtsied. Life was easy when it was just Davina and I. Soon customers began to troop in. One special thing; about us wolves is our sense of smell. When food was ready, we didn’t need to make a sign board that said ‘Food is ready’ or ring a bell. Wolves could smell the signs and come in right on time. We still had a signboard, but we all knew it was for humans, these days we kept our identity under covers and blended well with the human world. Two men at a table beside the window asked for beer and I went to the fridge, glad to see the drinks were cold enough to be served. Everyone seemed pacified and was enjoying their meal but Davina seemed out of sight. I knew she wouldn’t be far, her office was the first place I went to check. She was there, sitting comfortably on her armchair, but her posture told me her mind wasn’t in the comfort her body portrayed. The words she said as soon as she noticed my presence shocked me. “I think I know how you can be free from slavery.”