The Alpha's Genius Dud (The White Wolf's Awakening )

The soapy water was grey, lukewarm, and smelled of bleach, a scent that Faith had to endure. At five in the morning, the bungalow was silent.

Faith wiped her sweat and tied up her hair to stop

it from falling over her forehead, her knees ached.This was her life in the "trenches". a cycle of scrubbing, serving, and staying silent.

She didn't mind the work. What she minded was the cage.

"Still in the hallway, Faith? You're slowing down. Maybe you're getting old," a mocking voice drifted from the top of the stairs.

Faith didn't look up. She didn't need to. That sharp, entitled tone belonged to Maya, her cousin. Maya was nineteen, the same age as Faith, but they lived in two different worlds. Maya wore silk pajamas and smelled of expensive vanilla: Faith wore a hand-me-down oversized shirt and smelled of chemicals.

"I'm almost done, Maya," Faith said quietly, her voice breaking.

"It's Miss Maya to you dummy", her cousin snapped, stepping over Faith's bucket and purposely kicking it.

The dirty water splashed over the floor Faith had just cleaned. Faith's grip tightened on the rag until her knuckles turned white. She closed her eyes, counting to ten. In this world, a world governed by the Moon and the strength of the Wolf-Faith was a "Dud." At eighteen, most of the pack had already shifted. Maya had shifted into a sleek, sandy-brown wolf a few months ago. Faith? Nothing.

To the pack, she was just a human-shaped error. A freak.

"Clean it up. Again," Maya smirked, admiring her manicured nails. "And don't forget, the Silver Moon Scholarship applications close today. Not that a wolfless charity case like you would ever have a chance."

Maya strutted into the kitchen, leaving Faith alone in the wet hallway.

Faith let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. She reached into the hidden pocket of her leggings and felt the crumpled piece of paper. It was the entry form. She had spent the last three months sneaking into the back of the local library, using the outdated computers to research urban development and sustainable energy.

While Maya spent her nights at pack parties, Faith was teaching herself advanced calculus and architectural design. She wasn't just "brilliant for a girl who barely went to school"....she was a prodigy. But in a house where her brilliance was seen as a threat to Maya's ego, she had to play naive to survive.

Two hours later, the house was a whirlwind of chaos.

"Faith! Where is my blue blazer?" her Aunt Sarah screamed from the master bedroom.

"Faith! Make me a smoothie! No kale this time, it tastes like grass!" Maya yelled from the vanity.

Faith moved like a ghost, navigating the demands with practiced precision. She handed the blazer to her aunt, a woman whose beauty was a sharp mask for her cruelty. Sarah looked at Faith, her eyes narrowing as she took in the girl's face. Faith was really beautiful. She had