Mr. swift

"Make it tighter, Malia"

It was Akira's voice. For some reason she thought it necessary to be in the same room with me but she was only there to bark orders at Malia and talk over me like I wasn't even in the room. And it worked for me too since I had nothing to say to her.

I stared at the mirror. The corseted dark green dress she shoved down my throat was beginning to leave marks on my body as Malia pulled at it with all her strength.

"I don't want to see that bulge there, everything needs to be pristine, Malia, make it tighter"

I couldn't hold back anymore since my life depended on it and so I spoke to Akira.

"That bulge, mama, is my stomach…any tighter and I wouldn't be going for breakfast but to a morgue because I would be dead!"

She stopped addressing Malia and looked at me.

I was definitely flushed, definitely aroused even though the pain of trying to look pristine, it was a miracle that I wasn't sweating profusely due to my heightened senses.

"You can't call me that in front of Mr. Swift" Akira said and came closer to take over from Malia.

She pulled at the ropes attached to the dress but she was gentler than Malia who I think wanted me dead.

"You can't call me, Mama, around Mr Swift" she whispered again. "You have to lie, Kaida"

"It wouldn't be a lie" I whispered to myself.

"What?" She strained to hear me.

I turned around to look at her. "I said it wouldn't be a lie. You ain't my mama, anyway." I went over to the little table by the little window, I needed a bit of fresh air. "At best, you are the cruelest stranger I have ever met and at worse, you are my pimp"

She came closer to take away invisible flint from my hair.

"Don't say hurtful things, dear. I'm only trying to help you. Come to breakfast when you are ready and meet Mr. Swift. He might surprise you".

She adjusted my hair and walked out.

I made it to Breakfast. It was more like a hostage situation since every door or window had a guard position there by dear old Dad.

Michael might have gotten it into his head that I might just make a run for it.

I walked into the dining room, short of breath and my heart heavy with dread.

My parents, Michael and Akira, sat at the table, their faces stern and unyielding. Akira avoided my gaze and Michael barely blinked as I stared at him until I realized that even though Akira might feel a modicum of guilt, Michael had none.

To him I was just the girl he met five days ago, and his daughter was the one sitting by his right hand side, sipping a glass of juice with her hand on his shoulder as she chattered in-between gulps with him.

Diara, the girl they had chosen to replace me as their own, smiled sweetly at me, her eyes gleaming with malice. I wonder if she knew the truth, if she knew she was an item Akira purchased to replace a defective product and somewhere in this world, Her real parents were just as worse as mine.

If she knew, she wasn't showing it.

I felt a surge of anger and resentment as I took in the scene before me. How could they do this to me? How could they so callously discard me and replace me with this...this fake?

"Kaida, we're glad you could join us this morning," my mother said, her voice dripping with insincerity. "Have a seat"

I slid into the empty chair at the table, my eyes locked on Diara, who was watching me with a smug expression as her hand tightened on Michael like she was yelling at me - 'He's my Dad!"

I felt a wave of revulsion wash over me as I turned to face my parents.

"Let's get this over with" I said, my voice flat and uncooperative.

My father cleared his throat, his eyes glinting with a cold, calculating light. "We've decided it's time for you to settle down. We've chosen a wonderful man for you to marry."

I felt like I'd been punched in the gut.

Marry? I thought this was just an introduction, that the final decision was mine but it wasn't the case.

Who do they think they are, trying to arrange a marriage for me like I was some kind of inconvenience they needed to get rid of?

And then, I saw him walk inside. Mr. Swift, a middle-aged man with a receding hairline and a condescending smile, and Michael stood up from his seat to introduce us.

"This is Kaida, she's the ward I told you about" Michael said.

"Ah, Kaida, delighted to finally meet you," he said, his voice oozing with self-importance. "I must say, you're even more lovely than your guardians described."

I felt a wave of nausea wash over me as I gazed at Mr. Swift in horror. This was the man they expected me to marry? This...this... creature?

I almost keened over trying to keep myself from vomiting.

Diara spoke up, her voice dripping with amusement "Yes, Kaida, you're so lucky to have us looking out for you. I mean, who wouldn't want to marry a man like Mr. Swift? He might be an Omega but he is the richest Omega in the Lunaria"

"One might argue in the entire world" Mr. Swift said and everyone laughed as if it was funniest thing in the world.

I didn't.

Why should I?

I dropped the spoon loudly.

"Tell me, Mr. Swift, why on earth would you want to be tied to an abomination like me? Aren't you better off with someone else? Perhaps someone from a weathier family. Don't the rich like marrying the rich. Take Alpha Michael here, he is willing to pimp his supposed daughter to a man no one has ever seen, a man more myth than real, our very own Lycan prince for clout and wealth, shouldn't you do same" I asked him with my eyes fixed on him.

Michael looked at me like I was asking for death. He looked like he wanted to stretch his hands to suffocate me in my treachery.

"I have more wealth than 5 generations of Swifts can spend, little Cherry. What I need is status, elevation… I am still a lowly omega, the bottom of the food chain and marrying a rare silver fur wolf will give me that"

My heart sank.

"You want my blood" I blinked as I felt a shiver go through me.

"Rumor has it that it can strengthen even the weakest bloodline, so, yes, I would need the occasional blood and it's not too much to ask considering I am doing you a favor".

"You are doing me a favor?" My voice was raised. I couldn't believe what I was hearing and I couldn't believe that my parents sat there and let an omega say such nonsense about me.

"Yes, a favor, little cherry…you can't produce heirs, can you?"

I waited for the outburst, surely Michael would react to his offensive remarks but he simply sat there and ate his omelette like he was deaf.

I stood up and dropped the plate loudly on the table and walked out.

"I'm sorry but this…" I gestured at Mr. Swift and I "It will not work"

I was close to tears and I couldn't breathe because of the blasted corset.

I wanted it off of me

I wanted them far away from me…as humanly possible.

"Kaida, sit down" Akira begged.

I was beyond mortified and I refused to sit there with them for one more second.

"Kaida!" Michael roared in his self righteousness.

I left anyway. Barely overheard Mr. Swift asking for permission to calm down his sensitive wife.

I made it to the hallway when he caught up with me. He grabbed my arm but not roughly and he spun me around.

"What do you want, Mr swift?!" I screamed at him

"To apologize. Kaidaira…little Cherry, I think in my excitement, I may have offended you. Could you ever forgive me?" He asked me.

I watched him. He must have been handsome at some point in his life but this point wasn't it.

His belly was too big, his mouche too long and too scratchy, height eluded him and if oral hygiene meant anything to him, he clearly wasn't letting anyone know.

But his apology meant a lot to me, so many people have been unapologetic to me for so long that his apology meant a lot to me but then he kept talking.

"You would gain from this marriage too. We Swift men, our manhood is very long and we haven't met a woman we are yet to satisfy"

My eyes widened.

"You know, we don't have to wait, little Cherry,we can just…"

It happened so fast. One moment, he was saying the most ridiculous thing and next, his hand was inside my dress cupping my boobs.

Something must have happened, I must have lost my mind or something because after I screamed and Michael came rushing down the hallway, Mr. Swift was unconscious on the ground and I had a bloody fist.

"What happened?!"

The room fell silent, with all eyes on me, waiting for my response.