On the verge of tears, I knock on the door in front of me.

I was absolutely petrified what would happen to me if I messed up or I didn't convince Alpha Ryan's guests that I was ok. Why did they want to meet me in the first place? As far as I was concerned I was less important than the pet goldfish the Delta's 5 year old son had won at the carnival.

Regardless, I'd have to play the part of a normal teenager who hasn't spent the last 6 years of her life slowly being broken by the entirety of the pack.

I heard Alpha Ryan sweetly call out "come in" and I hesitantly held the doorknob before twisting it open to reveal Alpha Ryan, a grossly handsome man, 2 other men that looked eerily like the first, and another man and woman off to the other side of them.

I instinctively take a step back, instead of forward and I see Alpha Ryan's face harden a bit warning me.

I take several steps into the office, trying my best to hide my limp. I keep my distance from the group and stop pretty far away from them. I see the handsome man's face perk up as he begins staring at me, analyzing me. I didn't like it, so I simply bowed my head in submission to my Alpha and his guests.

"Phoenix, come take a seat" he coerces, leading me towards the couches where everyone else currently sat. The 3 that looked similar to each other sat on one couch, while Alpha sat on the other with the other 2 guests that must have been mates.

Next to the couches was an armchair that sat one. I took the seat still looking down at my hands, but grateful that my aching limbs could rest for a bit.

"You probably don't remember us, as last time we met we were both young" a deep voice speaks out, I'm almost tempted to look up and see who it is, but I already know it's the handsome guy. Wolf instincts I guess.

"When you were abandoned as a baby my father brought you here to a pack he knew would love and care for you, and we're happy to see you've been doing well here" he speaks out again, not sounding entirely convinced.

I nearly smirk at his words. A loving pack? Doing well? If only he knew.

Who is he?

"Do you know who I am?"

I shook my head no, not daring to look up. He oozed dominance and I was terrified of the power he must have held.

"Phoenix, I am Alpha of the Royal Pack. King Maddox of the werewolves."

My throat goes dry, I should not even be in his presence, why is he even talking to me? I can't even speak at this point without it coming out as incoherent babbling, so I remain quiet, my head bowed in respect.

"Does she speak?" I hear the king inquire with Alpha curiously.

"Yes. She does" his voice cold, despite his efforts to act kind.

I hesitantly looked up, "Apologies, your highness. I'm just not used to conversing with someone of such high ranking. Forgive me." I whisper, my voice barely audible to myself.

His head tilts a bit to one side as if confused by my response, and the others who I can only assume are part of the Royal Pack as well sport similar reactions. Perhaps they were just surprised by how timid I sounded.

By the looks of it the 5 of them were mind linking each other, and the room fell into an awkward silence for a minute before the King spoke up.

"Please call me Maddox, no need for the formalities. Let me introduce you to the others as well."

The 2 that looked like Maddox were his cousins Hunter, who was their highest ranking warrior, and Carter, the the Gamma of the pack. The couple across from them were the Beta Isaac and his Mate Zoe. They were all very important to their pack and werewolf kind, I was not.

Just my mere presence in this room of important wolves confused me, I felt out of place to say the least.

Thankfully Alpha Ryan spoke up "Phoenix, you should catch up with the rest of the pack for today's training, we don't want you falling behind do we?"

I suppressed the urge to laugh at him and promptly shook my head, and stood to leave, before saying. "It was lovely to meet all of you."

I watched as she turned around and left. Although it looked like she was making great efforts to hide it, I could still detect the limp, I wonder what that's from. Training perhaps?

How had she not recognized the bond? It nearly drove me mad ignoring it during that meeting, but I didn't want to make a scene especially since she seemed so disinterested.

I was going to talk to her again, not around this Alpha. He used to be great friends with my Dad, hence why he left Phoenix in his care, but the guy always gave me the creeps. Something seemed seriously off about him and I could almost guarantee he befriended my Dad simply for the power. However I'd respect my Dad's friendship with him and come to pay my respects for his retirement.

It's what my Dad would have wanted.

"How is Phoenix doing here?" I couldn't help but ask, wanting to know more about her.

The Alpha looked up at me, seemingly uninterested at the topic, but responded regardless "She really fits in here, she has many friends, is excellent in her training, and is helpful around the pack house."

It seemed like a pretty generic answer, no real details being explained, but I dropped it and excused myself and my friends saying we needed to go settle in.

As soon as we got into the hallway I turned to Zoe and asked her "does something seem off about the girl?"

"She seemed sad, a little out of place maybe. Why do you care?" She mulled over the question before her face brightened considerably and she squealed "Is she your mate?! Why didn't you say anything to her?"

That got the attention of my cousins and Beta and they began throwing similar questions at me, before I silenced them.

"I couldn't sense her wolf, it was like she had built up her walls to block people out of her head, or maybe it's been suppressed? It was weird, something just feels very off about her."

The group continues to discuss the girl Phoenix, but I have other plans as I smell the intoxicating scent of apples and pears. I follow it to a door which I can only assume is her bedroom, even though she was meant to be training with her pack.

Without thinking, I open the door, and I'm shocked.