Chapter Two

Mel was to finish her moping and then disappear to change. The servants had a uniform for this event. She didn't mind it since, it consisted of a white button-down shirt and a black skirt. The men had the same uniform with black pants to replace the skirt.

Mel didn't think she looked bad in the outfit, just overwhelmingly average. She was used to flashy dresses she was usually forced to wear, so this was a nice change. She never liked being dragged to meetings and parties anyway.

The black flats she was given were a bit tight but she couldn't change them now. Mel shoved her feet into them and practically ran down the stairs. There was no way she was being late again. Especially when the building is full of Alphas, Betas, and Gammas. If my parents were alive I would have been here, Mel thought.

Passing by a clock Mel noticed the time; nine twenty-five. In a matter of five minutes, the leaders would be led into the ballroom. That's where they would discuss peace treaties, rogue situations, and other issues with other leaders. The event masked itself as a fun night when in reality it was nothing but business. Mel thought that made sense, leaders always meant business. There were no fun nights for them.

As Mel thought about it she had only really seen her parents carefree when they were at home. Even then they still had work to do sometimes. Whenever her parents were out of the house it was strictly business. Mel shook her head, now was not the time to get lost in her past.

Mel's skirt fluttered in the breeze as she made her way into the gigantic kitchen. She couldn't help but marvel as she watched older males and females cook and rush around. Mel has never been one to cook, so when she saw people who could it amazed her.

"Here," a bright-eyed girl said as she handed Mel a tray.

The silver tray had small cupcake shaped hallow bread with egg and pieces on tomato in them.

"You'll be handing out hors d'oeuvre tonight. Remember do not talk unless spoken to. Move swiftly and silently and always keep your tray full."

Mel simmered over the rules. So be a ghost, she thought, easy.

All of the younger servants lined up at the doors to the ballroom from the kitchen. In about thirty seconds all of the leaders would be flooding into the ballroom. Mel couldn't help the nerves that tickled her insides.

She exchanged small smiles with the servants around her. Mel knows their thought processes were around the same as hers. They were curious and excited. But as the doors opened she knew those emotions quickly turned to nerves just the same as her.

Mel weaved through leaders looking for Alpha Wren. A few stopped her and took food off of her tray. She offered all of them a soft smile with her eyes focused on the tray. A couple thanked her, but the majority pretended she didn't exist. That's how a lot of leaders were though. They thought they were superior to everybody else. At least Mel could pride her old self with that; she had always treated everybody equally.

Mel finally spotted Alpha Wren when her tray was getting a bit low. She would have to be fast. She rushed through leaders, making sure not to brush them or make a sound out of line. When she reached Alpha Wren she was almost panting.

Alpha Wren automatically gave her a wide smile. Mel was relived. She had finally found somebody familiar.

"Mel! What are you doing here? It's great to see you, but I figured after your parents..."

Alpha Wren trailed off as her eyes glassed over. She had known Mel's parents rather well. It made her sad to think of their deaths.

"I'm a part of The Dark Fang Pack now. They took me in as an Omega when I ran to their land," Mel said.

Mel wasn't surprised Alpha Wren didn't know this. The details of the rogue attack had been cryptic to keep the survivors safe.

"Ugh, I wish I had known earlier. I would have taken you in," Alpha Wren said. "And I would have treated you better than this."

Alpha Wren wasn't big on servants. She was one of the few packs that weren't. Mel appreciated her kind words, but it would be too hard to switch packs again.

"Thank you, Alpha, but I'm good here. I just wanted to see you. I needed to see somebody I knew."

Alpha Wren gave Mel a sad smile. As an Alpha, she was supposed to know how to comfort people, but right now she was at a loss. The poor girl has lost everything.

Alpha Wren took Mel's tray and sat it on a white-clothed table. She pulled Mel into her red silky dress and held her tight.

"I know there is nothing I can say that will make you feel better, but I know how strong you are. It doesn't matter whether you're a Gamma or an Omega, I know you will do great things," Alpha Wren pulled away and held Mel's shoulders. "You are smart, beautiful, and strong. Soon enough you will have the world at your feet, Mel."

Mel wasn't sure how to react. Her idol had just told her that she was going to have the world at her feet. Mel's mouth spilled into a wide smile and she thanked Alpha Wren for her words.

"Now, you'd better get back to work. Wouldn't want you to get in trouble."

Mel nodded and picked her tray up. There were just hors d'oeuvre left. People must have taken some while Mel wasn't paying attention.

"Crap," she muttered to herself.

Mel weaved her way back through the crowd and back into the kitchen. She pulled more food into her tray and made her way back into the ballroom. The number of powerful people in the room made her chest hurt now. Without an agenda, she finally noticed how heavy the room was.

Mel's wolf was naturally submitted. She didn't like it, but according to her new position she had to be.

She bit down her nerves and walked over to a couple of Alpha's she had met before. One was roughly fifty with salt and pepper hair. Mel remembered a meeting her parents had had with him before. His name was Alpha Mark. Mel remembered he had been kind enough. The other Alpha was younger. He looked to be about twenty-five. Mel couldn't remember his name but she had seen his jet black hair before.

Mel offered the food to the two men and their mates. She then recognized the younger male was a Beta.

"Thank you," he said giving her a smile.

She nodded and walked away. As she walked, she noticed a small water she had missed. She cursed under her breath and walked forward fast. To her surprise Mel crashed into a hard chest, causing her tray to fall to the ground.

Mel's eyes widened as she looked up at the person. She recognized the scent of sandalwood and felt relieved.

"You really are Hulk," Jax complained, as he rubbed his chest.

Mel gave him a small smile, "Sorry, I wasn't paying attention."

"It's fine," Jax said grabbing her tray off of the ground.

They both silently picked the food up and started their way to the kitchen. Mel was grateful for the help that Jax was consistently giving her. Perhaps she could even count him as somebody that she could rely on.

"What did your punishment end up being? I hope it was nothing too bad," Mel said hurriedly.

Jax shook his head, "All I got was a stern talking to about being considerate of time. It was mostly about how when I take the Beta position I need to be selfless and strict and blah."

Jax dramatically pushed open the doors to the kitchen. All of the servants automatically bowed their heads to him and he waved them off.

"I hate that," he muttered. "Anyway, me and future Alpha Jessica plan on running the pack a little bit looser. Although she has to be careful about that seeing as though she will be in the minority of female Alpha's."

Mel nodded, "I hope that you guys are nicer to the pack. As an Omega, I see the problems. Maybe I can help you guys when you're appointed?"

Jax smiled as Mel filled the tray up, taking her sweet time. He liked the way she was goal-oriented. If Mel wanted something done, it would get done. Jax felt like her opinion was something to consider. It was almost as if she was a natural-born leader.

"That sounds great."

Mel smiled. It felt good to be appreciated again.

They both re-entered the event. This time Jax stayed close to Mel. He would rather hang out with her than hear dull leader conversations anyway. He would have to deal with enough of that when he was appointed Beta next month. That was when Jessica turned eighteen and took over the Alpha title from her father. Jax was ready, he had been trained for years. That didn't mean he wouldn't need help though.

"Are they going to announce you and Alpha Jessica along with the other soon-to-be leaders tonight?" Mel questioned.

"That's the plan," Jax answered.

Mel furrowed her eyebrows, he didn't seem excited about it. Mel knew if she were still a future Gamma she would be excited to be announced.

"You don't seem happy about it," Mel pointed out.

Jax pulled his face into a blank expression, "I guess I'm just worried. I want to be the leader everybody wants me to be. I'm just worried that maybe I won't be good at it if that makes sense."

Mel thought it made perfect sense. It was hard trying to do and be what everybody wanted you to. Sometimes you lost who you wanted to be.

Mel gave him a smile, "I know you'll do great. Not many people are willing to chat up an Omega, but you were."

Mel quickly stopped as she was flagged over by some leaders. Jax watched her walk over and try to avoid contact. He noticed it was hard for her, almost as if her wolf was resisting. This made him curious. Who had she been in her old pack? There had been a strong aura from her that drew him in after all.

Mel was stopped a few more times on her way back to Jax. When she got back to him she noticed his attention had been on her the entire time.

"Well, anyway, I also wanted to say I'll always be here if you need to talk or whatever."

Jax smiled, "Unless you're busy serving hors d'oeuvres ."

Mel scrunched her nose up, "Yeah, maybe not then."

"I can tell you don't like it. It doesn't seem like your wolf likes being a servant."

At Jax's words, Mel's wolf huffed in agreement. She certainly did not like being submissive to others. She was mostly okay with submitting to Alpha's and Betas, but Gammas were a different story. She thought she was as good as them still.

"She doesn't like it," Mel confirmed.

That sent the gears in Jax's head turning. Mel's old pack as The Red Eye Pack. All of the leaders had died. The Alpha couple had a son that had also died. The Beta pair had no children. She couldn't have been either of those. But she could be of Gamma blood. They had a daughter that hadn't been confirmed dead. Bingo, Jax thought.

Jax quickly grabbed the tray out of Mel's hand and forced her out of the ballroom. He could see Mel's breathing become faster, but he needed to ask her if she was Gamma-blooded. This could help him with his main issue.

Mel fought Jax as he pulled her out of the ballroom and into the hallway. She knew she would be dead if the Alpha noticed she was gone.

"Jax," she hissed. "What are you doing?"

Jax ignored her and kept yanking her along. Mel couldn't get his grip to loosen. Jax outranked her which made it very hard to get loose. He didn't stop pulling her until he stopped in front of a door on the fifth floor of the packhouse.

Mel knew the packhouse had five floors. The main floor was where everybody would eat and carry out pack business. All of the leader offices were on this floor as well. The second floor was basically for entertainment. There was a game room, a living room, and a large gym. The third and fourth floors were to house pack members that didn't own their own houses on pack territory. The fifth floor was for the Alpha, Beta, and Gamma families.

Mel was breathing slightly heavy when Jax shoved her into the room. She knew by the overwhelming sandalwood scent that this was his room.

"I have to ask you something important, Mel."

Mel's heart started to race. What did Jax have to ask her? Was he mad at her? Did he want her to be kicked out of the pack?

"What is it?" Mel asked, hesitantly.

"Where you the future Gamma in your old pack, Mel?"

Mel's breath caught in her throat. How did Jax figure that out? Only the Alpha and Luna of the pack knew and they swore not to tell anybody. They weren't the nicest to Mel, but the did value her safety.

"How did you...?"

Mel couldn't form a full sentence and Jax knew he needed to comfort her. This was all for a good reason.

"I'm not mad and I'm not going to tell anybody. I just put it together because of the attack and then your wolf's resistance to submitting. It all just made sense."

Jax could still see Mel was on edge. He put a comforting hand on her shoulder and waited for her to speak. He didn't want to overload her with too much information at once.

"I don't know what to say, Jax. I'm trying to be cooperative, but it's hard when I can't do what I'm meant to do. I'm meant to lead."

"I know," Jax said, smiling wider.

Mel gave him a confused look, but quickly sobered up when she saw the time. It was almost time for the new leader announcements.

"We have to go Jax, you are going to announced soon."

Jax nodded, "Yeah, we need to go."

Mel noticed his stress on the word 'we' but she didn't dwell on it. She had to be back to serve the main course while the speeches and announcements were made. And to steal some of the food, Mel thought, mentally smiling.

Jax led her back to the ballroom soundlessly. His plan was coming together. All he needed to do was speak to Jessica. He would be in a bit of trouble, but it was worth it to him. Time to make my first real decision, he thought. Jax needed to do two things and this one move would take care of both. He just hoped his father would react the way he hoped he would.

As Mel and Jax made their way back into the ballroom they both had an agenda. Mel's being to find the heavenly coffee and vanilla scent she suddenly was obsessed with. Jax's was to make his first big move as Beta.

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Hey everybody! How are y'all doing? I am having so much fun writing this story! I hope you are enjoying reading it!

Reading Questions:

-What do you think Jax is going to do?

-What is Mel smelling?

-Did you like Alpha Wren?

Have a great day everybody! :)