Page 14 of New Blood (Werewolf Alliance #1)

D anielle filled the dishwasher with dirty dishes from breakfast and started the machine, then began washing the pans by hand. She was about to dry them when Flora entered the kitchen.

“Oh, good, you’re almost done with the kitchen,” Flora said.

“I’ll start with the lunch prep in a few minutes,” she said quickly. “But we’ll need to go grocery shopping either today or tomorrow. With so many people—”

“I’m aware of it,” Flora interrupted. “Priscilla and I can do that today or tomorrow. I have another job for you.”

Danielle gave her an expectant look. She was used to being assigned different tasks every day at Flora’s whim.

It was difficult to plan her day when the mistress of the house—which she essentially became when William’s wife had died—constantly changed her schedule.

Almost as if she wanted to keep her on her toes, aware that as a low member in the pack hierarchy, she had very few rights.

Maybe now was the time to do something about it.

Change was in the air, and it might as well be for the better.

It was time to remind her of what William had promised her when she’d first come to live with the Gallaghers.

“About that,” she started, wiping her hands on the dish towel.

“Yes?”

“Even though William is gone… You remember a while ago, when he said that he’d find a job for me in one of the Gallagher businesses…

” She swallowed hard. It wasn’t easy to ask for something.

“He mentioned last month that there was a position for me at the vineyard. And I was wondering if now was a good time to take that job.”

For a moment, Flora stared at her as if she hadn’t really heard her.

“You know I’ve been studying accounting online, and I’ve passed my exams.”

Flora sighed and cast her a sad smile. “Oh, dear. You know I spoke to William about this only a few days ago. I’m sorry…”

“Sorry, why?”

“William wasn’t serious. He never had any intention of giving you a job outside of this household.”

“But why would he say it then…?” Her voice broke.

“Because he thought that if he told you straight out that he didn’t want to give you a good job, you’d be too resentful.

So he just kept making you promises that he had no intention of keeping.

I told him that he shouldn’t play with your feelings like that, but you know him.

He’s very stubborn.” She sighed again. “And now, with William gone and a new alpha here, I have no idea what will happen. I certainly have no power to give you a job outside this household.”

Disappointment threatened to swallow her whole. She pushed back the tears and dropped her head, nodding.

“I understand.”

If she’d gotten the job at the vineyard or even at the shipping company, it would have meant that she could be away from the estate.

She would have been more independent, and first and foremost, she wouldn’t have to live in the same house as Jude.

All she could do now was to stay out of his way and bide her time, because there was something the Gallagher family didn’t know.

She had a plan B: one day, she would leave this pack and make her own life, because she had some money her mother had saved for a rainy day.

She’d never touched any of it and saved every penny.

Now that she knew she wouldn’t get a real job with the Gallaghers and remain a lowly servant, she had to make a decision.

“Good, good,” Flora said, before returning to her own topic. “From now on, you’ll be in charge of cleaning and tidying up the alpha’s master suite.”

She hesitated, but couldn’t really say no. Flora was still her superior, even if William was gone. “Alright.”

“But make sure that you only go to his room when he’s not there. He doesn’t want to be bothered by you.”

The words were like a slap in the face. Maybe she deserved them. After all, she’d almost kissed him, and he had every right to say that he didn’t want her near him.

“But, why then not assign Priscilla instead?” She hadn’t meant to say it out loud, but only realized she had when Flora huffed.

“What do I know? That’s what he requested. You’re to clean his bathroom and bedroom, but do it out of sight. You should be able to figure out quickly when he’s not upstairs. That’s when you can do the work. Just fit your other duties around that.”

Jude had requested her to clean his suite? Why do that when he didn’t want to see her? It made no sense. Was it his way to put her in her place, show her that he was the one who gave the orders, and she had to comply no matter what?

“I asked whether you can do that.”

Flora’s sharp voice made her realize that she’d stopped listening.

“Yes, yes, of course. I’ll take care of it.”

“Good. Now the other thing. You’ll need to pack up all of William’s clothes.

I only managed to pack up some of his personal items last night before Jude insisted on occupying the master suite.

There are plenty of boxes down in the basement.

Pack everything with care. Wrap delicate items in paper and line the boxes with plastic bags.

We’ll ship him his things once we get word where he’ll be sent.

I don’t intend to repack the boxes. So make sure they are ready to be shipped. Understood?”

Danielle nodded. Sometimes Flora spoke to her as if she were a child, or stupid, or both. Well, she was neither. She bit back a snide comment. It wasn’t worth it to start an argument. What would be the purpose of it?

Perhaps it had been a mistake to follow her mother’s advice to seek help from the Gallagher pack should she get into trouble.

And she had gotten into trouble not long after her mother’s death when she’d been twenty-three years old.

A few months before her mother’s death, they’d been invited to join a pack in Southern California, and her mother had thought it would provide them with the protection they needed.

Two female werewolves were prime targets for any pack that wanted to strengthen their ranks.

Her mother had been in an abusive relationship with a human man, who wouldn’t take no for an answer.

Carl had been a drunk, and Danielle hadn’t liked him from the start, but her mother had been happy for a while.

However, it hadn’t lasted. His constant promises that he wouldn’t drink anymore had been mere lies to pacify her mother.

Instead, he’d eventually gotten violent.

After a particularly violent episode, she and her mother had done what was necessary and left in the middle of the night, glad that they’d gotten away with their lives.

But they’d realized at the same time that they needed protection, and only a werewolf pack could provide it.

When they finally found a pack in Southern California that was willing to take them in, they stopped running.

Finally, they were safe and had everything they needed.

But it was only an illusion. Her mother’s death had been a tragic accident.

A drunk driver had plowed into her car, killing her instantly.

While she was still grieving, Danielle had overheard two pack members talk about her future.

She was to be mated to one of the pack members, one that she’d always disliked because he was cruel.

But she wouldn’t comply. She’d seen her mother suffer in an abusive relationship, and she wasn’t going to repeat history.

So she did what she had to: she fled. A letter from her late mother in hand, she traveled north to William Gallagher.

She didn’t know what the letter said, but when William read it, he gave her a roof over her head and promised to protect her.

She’d finally felt safe again when she’d joined his pack.

But her world was being upended again. A new alpha and an uncertain future loomed over her. Was she destined to run all her life?