Sold to Bastard Alpha after My Divorce! novel Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Chapter 1

Aria’s POV

The smell of grease and stale beer clung to my uniform as I wiped down the last table at Moonlit Velvet. My feet ached. My back screamed. But I couldn’t stop moving—not yet.

"Aria!"

My boss’s voice cut through the noise of the closing restaurant. I straightened, smoothing my apron with trembling fingers.

"Yes, Mr. Garrett?"

He stood by the register, arms crossed, face twisted in disgust. "Table seven. Someone puked all over the floor."

My stomach dropped. "But I wasn’t—"

"Don’t care." He pulled out a twenty from the register drawer. My twenty. The one I’d earned after eight hours of carrying trays and dodging wandering hands. "Consider it docked from your pay."

"That’s not fair! I cleaned that section twice already. The customer was drunk when he came in—"

"You trying to tell me how to run my business?" His eyes flashed amber, making my wolf whimper inside my head. "You’re just an Omega. A Shadow Moon Omega at that. You should be grateful I even hired you."

The words hit like a slap. I bit down on my tongue, tasting copper. Artemis, my inner wolf, snarled in the back of my mind, but she was too weak to do anything. We were always too weak.

"I understand," I whispered.

"Good. Now clean it up before you leave."

Twenty minutes later, I stumbled out into the cool night air. My hands still smelled like bleach and vomit. The walk home should have been quick. Fifteen minutes through the back alleys of Meridian Territory, past the invisible line that separated the Blood Crown district from Shadow Moon slums. But tonight, someone waited for me at the corner.

"Aria."

I froze. That voice. I knew that voice.

Serena stepped out from the shadows, her blonde hair catching the streetlight. My sister. Half-sister, technically. Different fathers. Same terrible mother.

I ducked my head, pretending I hadn’t seen her. If I just walked past—

Her hand clamped around my wrist like a vice. Pain shot up my arm.

"Don’t even think about it," she hissed.

I looked up, meeting her pale blue eyes. The disgust there was so familiar it barely hurt anymore. Barely.

"Serena, I need to get home. Lilith needs dinner, and Finn—"

"Mom wants you."

Those three words made my blood run cold. Not tonight."

"Not asking." Her nails dug into my skin. I could feel them starting to shift—sharpening into claws. "She said it’s urgent."

"Everything is urgent with her." I tried to pull away, but Serena’s grip tightened. For an Omega, she had surprising strength. "Please. It’s my fertile day. Finn will be waiting—"

"Oh, please." She rolled her eyes, dragging me forward. "Like he actually cares about that."

The words stung because they were true. The walk to our mother’s house felt like a death march. The house—if you could call it that—sat at the edge of Shadow Moon territory. Peeling paint. Broken windows covered with cardboard. The scent of cheap alcohol and cheaper perfume wafted out even before Serena shoved open the door.

"I brought her," Serena announced, finally releasing my wrist.

Our mother, Moira, sat on the stained couch in the living room, practically vibrating with excitement. Her makeup was smudged. Her clothes wrinkled. But her eyes gleamed with something dangerous.

"Aria! Finally!" She leaped up, surprisingly agile for someone who’d spent the day drinking. "Sit down, both of you. I have news."

I stayed standing. "Mom, I need to—"

"Did I ask what you need?" Her voice cracked like a whip. "Sit. Down."

"Because you’re pathetic!" Spit flew from her mouth. "You can’t even keep your own husband interested! Five years of marriage and what do you have? A useless daughter. A girl who won’t inherit a damn thing. You couldn’t even give him a son!

The room spun. My chest tightened.

"You’ll go to the ceremony too," Mom said, turning away like I wasn’t worth looking at. "Maybe some desperate wolf will take pity on you. Maybe you can finally be useful for something. And you’d better buy Serena a dress, making her look like she belongs in Blood Crown society."

"I don’t have money for—"

"Then steal it!" Mom whirled around. "Sell something! Pawn your wedding ring for all I care! Figure. It. Out."

Serena stood up, walking over to me with deliberate slowness. She crouched down, meeting my eyes. "You want to know your real problem, Aria?"

I didn’t answer. Couldn’t.

"You’ve been married for five years. Five. Years." She counted on her fingers like I was stupid. "And you still haven’t given Finn what he actually wants. What any man wants from an Omega like you."

Tears burned my eyes. I blinked them back.

"You think Finn married you for love?" Serena continued, voice syrupy sweet. "You think he saw you and thought, ’Oh, what a lovely wife she’ll be’? No, sweetheart. He needed a womb. An incubator. And you’ve failed spectacularly."

I stood on shaking legs. The walls felt like they were closing in. I stumbled toward the door. My vision blurred. My hands trembled.

"I have to go..."

"Oh, Aria?" Serena’s voice stopped me cold.

I didn’t turn around. Couldn’t.

"Maybe you should try giving Finn another baby. I mean, he was charitable enough to marry trash like you. The least you can do is give him what he actually needs. After all—" I heard the smile in her voice, vicious and sharp. "You haven’t even given him an heir yet, have you?"

The door closed behind me.