Claimed by the Vengeful Alpha

Maya tried to distract herself by watching Winnie knead the large mound of clay. Her hands punched, slapped, cut, folded, and smashed the clay to even out its consistency.

However, even the intense and fascinating way she worked still didn’t keep her thoughts away from their earlier conversation.

It felt like a fire had been lit and she found herself getting excited at the thought that it might go well if she told Keenan. She had never let herself envision the possibility but now that Winnie had mentioned it, she couldn’t ignore it any longer.

It still felt a little rushed—she had to do more, make more amends—but she was excited. Would things return to what they were? Would Keenan want her close? Could they reach an understanding?

"This clay is ready," Winnie said and wiped sweat from her forehead as she smiled at Maya.

Winnie’s voice cut into her thoughts and she forced herself to pay attention. She was seated next to the table Winnie worked on to get a better look.

They were in the workshop located towards the back of the town. It was much bigger than Maya had expected. It had a roundish build with only one exit, but there were more than enough windows.

The workshop had several sections and approximately four workers. Winnie said they were originally ten, but not everyone showed up at the same time. Her co-workers were nice and didn’t meddle with Winnie; they all seemed to be fine doing their own thing.

There were four different sections. The sifting section, where fresh clay was separated from stones and pebbles after digging it out of the earth. A mountain of unsifted clay could be seen stacked in the corner.

The second section was the kneading section, where she sat with Winnie. There were two huge tables placed in the center of the room that could be accessed from all sides.

The third section was the shaping section with a potter’s wheel and then finally the drying area. The drying area was close to the windows and had shelves that stretched to the ceiling. Only the last two were filled, and Maya remembered Winnie saying something about selling off the old batch.

The kiln for firing the clay was outside. It was the first thing Winnie had shown her as soon as they arrived. The clay was never dried outside, as sunlight dried the clay unevenly and that often led to cracks. Only after it had fully dried was the pottery fired up in the kiln.

"Your job is taxing," Maya commented.

Winnie laughed as she pulled her hands from her face. "Indeed," she replied and wiped her dirty hands on the apron. "But that’s what makes it worth it."

Maya nodded. "You look like you’re having so much fun, no matter how exhausting it is."

"Well, the payoff is always satisfying. This lump of clay is about to become a pretty vase and many other items." She grinned at Maya. "A very pretty vase. I can let you decide how it’s designed after it’s kiln-fired."

"Really?" Maya asked with wide eyes.

"Yes," she said and lifted some of the heavy prepared clay. "Let’s move to the shaping area. The potter’s wheel helps make molding a lot faster. Unfortunately, we only have one."

"How long does it take?" Maya asked as they sat by the table and Winnie prepared to get to work.

"Molding or everything?" She asked.

"Molding."

"I have to mold it before the clay stiffens. If it hardens, that becomes a problem. However," she smirked, "I don’t have to worry about that. I should be done with this in under an hour."

"An hour?" Maya asked with wide eyes.

"If it was a simple bowl, it would be less. Sifting and kneading the clay is usually the hard part."

"Wow. How long does it take to dry?"

"It depends. Bowls and cups take about three days but this vase will be somewhere between seven and ten days. After it’s completely dry, it will be fired in the kiln for about a day or more, depending on how much pottery is in it."

Maya watched with wide eyes as Winnie finished the vase in less than an hour as she said. She carefully took it off the potter’s wheel and placed it on the shelves. Then she went on to mold several other items. The bowls took her only minutes, and Maya couldn’t stop watching.

"You want to try?" Winnie asked. "I will need to take a break. You can play around with the clay if you like."

"I don’t want to ruin—"

"What are you talking about? There is more than enough clay to waste. You don’t even have to use the wheel—that takes some time to master. Just get your hands dirty." She giggled.

Maya nodded without hesitation and immediately took some of the kneaded clay. She made a very shabby-looking cup, which Winnie praised endlessly even though it was obvious it wouldn’t hold a lick of water.

She was laughing at the three monstrosities she made: a bowl, a cup and what was supposed to be a flower pot. They were all lopsided and had finger marks on them. She couldn’t get them to be smooth no matter how hard she tried.

"You shouldn’t have let me waste your clay," Maya laughed as she stared at her creations.

"What are you talking about? I can’t wait to put them on my bedroom shelf." Winnie let out an evil grin.

"What? Absolutely not. I’ll smash them now before they dry."

"I won’t let you," she said and snatched the cup.

Maya stretched out her hand and tried to snatch it back but Winnie stopped smiling and looked toward the open doors.

"Arlo," she called and dropped the cup on the table before slowly standing on her feet. "What are you doing here?"

"Arlo?" Maya asked as she also turned to the door.

Agnes’s son stood by the entrance, squinting his eyes as he peered into the workshop. His chest was heaving as though he had run all the way there.

He was dressed in shorts and wore a pair of sandals. His shirt matched his black hair, both fluttering in the wind.

"You know him?" Winnie asked, glancing at Maya.

Maya wondered what gave it away. Was it the way she called him? "He is Agnes’s son. We met once." Her stomach knotted as she recalled their first meeting and her discovery.

"I see."

"Winnie," he cried and ran toward them. He stopped in front of Maya but turned to Winnie as he spoke, "I am here for the Alpha’s mate."

"She has a name, Arlo," Winnie said sternly. "Call her Lady Maya and speak to her directly."

"L-Lady Maya," he mumbled and took a step back. "Alpha Keenan said you should return to the main house."

"Is something wrong? Did he say why?" She asked.

"I don’t know if anything is wrong and he didn’t say why. He just said to bring you back." He didn’t meet her eyes as he spoke. He was clearly avoiding her.

She glanced at Winnie. She didn’t want to leave yet. She was having so much fun, and when had she ever left the main house? She couldn’t imagine why Keenan would want her back already.

Was it distrust? She was with Winnie. What could she possibly do here? She wanted to mold more shabby cups.

"It’s fine. It’s almost lunch, anyway. Agnes always sends my lunch, so I never have to leave the workshop but I didn’t tell her you were here. I’ll come see you as soon as I return and there is always tomorrow. I still have a lot of work to do here, and the second half of the day the workshop gets very busy until evening."

"Okay," Maya said reluctantly. She knew Winnie was trying to cheer her up. She didn’t want to worry her by complaining. She turned to Arlo. "We can wait a moment to let you catch your breath. You’re tired and a little pale—"

"I am not pale."

"Wait, she’s right," Winnie replied. "Step closer, Arlo."

"You always boss me around, Winnie."

"No, I don’t. You’re just a stubborn little boy. Step closer."

He glared at Maya but did as Winnie asked. "I am fine," he muttered but his voice sounded forced.

"Are you ill?" She asked as she peered at his face.

"No," he grumbled and wiped his face.

"Don’t overdo it, Arlo. I don’t want you worrying your mother."

"I know," he replied. "Can I go now, Winnie?"

"Yes."

"Okay, I will be back later with your lunch."

"Thank you, Arlo. If it’s too much for you, you can send someone else."

"It’s not! Hmph. Let’s go, Lady Maya," he dragged her name unnecessarily.

"Okay. Later, Winnie."

"Wash your hands outside before you leave," she said as she waved her goodbye.

"I won’t forget," she replied and went after Arlo, who was already taking off.

"Slow down," she called out.

He barely responded. It wasn’t until he stood outside the door that he stopped running. Maya let out a sigh as she caught up with him.