ALPHAS TOY

selene looked at herself in the mirror It was her turn this year.

Every year, the dark, hungry eyes of the Three Alphas swept over the trembling girls dressed in white, their hulking bodies casting shadows like monsters out of old tales. And this year, it was Selene’s turn.

She was eighteen now, the age her village called sacred. The age of the offering. The age she was supposed to smile through, as though being handed to beasts was a gift worth cherishing.

Her chest burned with fury. How could anyone call this an honor? To be f*ck*d publicly, used, ruined and expected to thank them for it?

She sat in the bath, the water icy on her skin, but she didn’t move. Across the room, the white dress her mother had laid out seemed to glow in the lamplight, mocking her.

Selene sneered at it, her nails digging into her palms until the crescent moons of her anger marked her skin.

She had once thought of defying it all of sneaking into the men’s village, finding the baker’s son, and giving away what the Alphas demanded. But the memory of what had happened to the last girl who tried that clawed at her.

The wolves had razed house down to the ground, howling in rage, their fury lighting the night in flames. The girl had been dragged into the dirt, forced beneath their massive bodies and r*p*d multiple times by three Alphas while the village watched.

Selene still saw her sometimes in nightmares, her legs spread, her voice breaking in screams that melted into moans, her body betraying her even as each Alpha took turns to f*ck her in public, and the pack members cheered them on as they thrust faster and harder.

Selene’s stomach knotted. She sank deeper into the tub, water lapping at her chin. She had scrubbed herself raw, but nothing could wash away the truth: tonight, she would be their next victim. And her father would be there to monitor it.

She hadn’t seen him in years. He lived in the men’s village, as all men did, alongside her twin brother—a brother she had never met. The thought of seeing them under these circumstances twisted her heart in ways she couldn’t name.

Girls of the village became offerings at eighteen. They gave themselves to the Alphas and returned the next day as “women.” Then, and only then, could the men choose wives.

But being a wife wasn’t love, it was duty, breeding, survival. Her father had chosen her mother for her body, nothing more.

Selene rolled her eyes bitterly at her own chest, inherited from her mother, and sank deeper beneath the water to avoid the disgust that threatened to overwhelm her.

The door creaked open. Her mother, Elara, stepped inside. Her face dropped when she saw Selene still in the tub.

“Selene! Hurry! We need to be at the bonfire with the others,” Elara fretted, smoothing her blonde hair back into its claw clip.

Elara looked stunning, dressed in a royal-blue gown with a daring sl*t and a neckline that revealed more than Selene wanted to see. Crimson lipstick painted her lips perfectly. Selene knew exactly why her father would be there tonight.

“You look beautiful,” Selene said softly despite herself.

Her mother blushed, eyes flickering with hope. “Thank you, love.”

She rushed forward, trying to dry Selene, but Selene shoved her hands away and wrapped the towel around herself.

“I’ll be out in a minute.”

Elara hesitated, lips pressing tight, but she left.

Selene pulled the dress over her damp body. The silk clung to her curves, the sl*t cutting high along her thigh, the neckline dipping scandalously low. She hated it. It felt like chains, not fabric.

She grabbed the lace underwear and froze, glancing at the soft boxer shorts hidden beneath her pillow. They were more comfortable. But did it matter? Either way, they’d be gone before the night ended.

The door opened again.

“Don’t even think about it. Wear the clothes you’ve been given,” Elara snapped, eyes sharp.

Selene huffed and shoved the lace on. Her mother smiled in triumph, then began brushing out Selene’s raven-black hair, each stroke slow, almost reverent.

“Are you nervous?” Elara asked softly.

Selene shrugged. “No. It’s just s*x.”

Elara’s smile trembled. “Then you’re braver than I was.”

“Did it hurt?”

Her mother’s eyes shimmered with memory. She nodded. Selene’s heart skipped. Fear cracked her armor, creeping in like poison.

“But don’t worry. They’re gentler now. They will take it easy on you.”

Selene didn’t believe her.

“How many girls this year?”

“Twelve. You’re the last, because you were born in winter.”

Selene laughed bitterly. “Oh, right. Winter-borns are cursed. Maybe I’ll be lucky, they’ll be tired by the time they get to me.”

Her mother’s face tightened, but she cupped Selene’s cheek, her palm trembling. “It doesn’t work like that, my love.”

“Well, how would I know? You never tell me anything!” Selene snapped, spinning back in her chair.

For a long moment, Elara was silent. Then her voice came, distant, almost broken.

“They’ll inspect you all. Then you’ll ride in carriages. Their favorites will be chosen first. The rest… will be sent to the city compound. It’s beautiful, Selene. A mansion filled with luxuries beyond imagination. But once you’re inside… they’ll split you into groups. One Alpha per group.”

Relief flickered through Selene. “So, not all three at once?”

Elara’s sad smile crushed her.

“No. First, you’ll be with the Grassland offerings. Then they will swap.”

Selene stiffened. “swap?”

“Swap and trade which offering they want first, which Alpha will claim your virginity first”

Selene’s gut twisted, rage flaring. “So, payment.”

Her mother cupped her cheek again, whispering desperately, “They protect us, Selene. Without the Alphas, the vampires would own us. We’d be nothing but blood bags.”

“As opposed to walking s*x slaves?” Selene spat.

“Enough!” Elara snapped, her eyes flashing. “It’s the way of things. We are human, fragile, and small. We survive only by their grace. You must accept it.”

The words struck like a chain around her throat.

Before Selene could reply, the horn blared outside, echoing from the bonfire. Elara’s eyes widened in terror.

“It’s time, Selene. They are here.”

Selene! They are here! You cannot be late, Selene, or our family will be chased out of the pack, and we will become rogues!”

Elara’s voice broke, thick with desperation.

Selene froze. Her stomach clenched so hard she thought she might be sick. Chased out of the pack? Those words alone were enough to make her blood run cold.

She had never seen it happen, but the rumors were enough to haunt her dreams. Families vanished. Bones never returned.

Her mother grabbed her hand with trembling fingers and pulled her out of their house. Selene stumbled barefoot into the night, her toes sinking into cold mud, the chill biting her skin. She hadn’t even put on her twine shoes.

But shoes didn’t matter tonight. Not when her family’s future hung in the balance.

Elara didn’t slow. She dragged Selene between rows of huts toward the bonfire blazing in the village’s center. The music died abruptly, swallowed by silence as the pack members turned their heads.

Sele