Chapter 2

Damon:

“What do you mean she’s gone?” I asked Ethan, my best friend and beta, glaring at him. “How the hell can the Omega be gone without anyone knowing where she went?”

“We couldn’t find her at her house. I knocked a few times, and when she didn’t respond, I broke the door down, but she wasn’t there…”

“Find her,” I said, cutting him off. Ethan nodded and ran out to follow my order, knowing I wasn’t joking around at this point. The last thing that I wanted to deal with was that Omega wasa was running away right now.

Lysandra, my girlfriend, frowned when she saw my concern. She didn’t know that Sienna was my mate or that I had rejected her for Lysandra over a month ago. Of course she wouldn't. She wouldn't be here, nor would Sienna be alive, if Lysandra knew. She would have had her head a long time ago.

“She left. Why are you upset about it?” she asked, crossing her arms as she walked toward me. Her blonde hair and brown eyes met my green ones. Shaking my head, I walked past her without saying a word. “It is not like she's of any importance; she's nothing but an Omega.”

I tried catching Sienna’s scent, but it was nowhere to be found. Being the pack’s orphan and an Omega, I knew that losing her would only anger my father. Somehow he seemed to care about her. He had kept her here when he could have gotten rid of her a long time ago. Perhaps if he had gotten rid of her long ago, I wouldn't find myself in this mess, but here I was.

“I am talking to you, Damon,” Lysandra said, wrapping her hand around my arm to stop me. I growled in warning, forcing her to let go. She shook her head, confused, trying to process what just happened. “Why are you avoiding me? Could you please let me know why you haven't responded yet? It's not like she should matter to you. Nothing should matter to you. It's not your fault, and being an alpha, you shouldn't even care about omegas.”

“I do not care about her. But if my father finds out she’s gone, I’m in for more trouble than I want to handle. You know how much he cares about her, and we both know he’ll lose it when he finds out about this…”

“She left on her own. You can’t possibly be blamed for that, Damon.” She said, stopping me. “Plus, you are the alpha. It is not like he is the alpha anymore. It is you who is in charge, and it is your word that goes, not his. You need to keep that in mind.”

I took a deep breath, forcing myself not to respond. I knew she hadn’t just left because she wanted to. Watching me with Lysandra had broken her more than she let on, and even though she didn’t say a word, I had a feeling she’d collapse eventually. I just didn’t expect her to leave.

I knew that Lysandra neither understood nor cared about anything that did not concern her. I didn't expect her to understand why I would be looking for any of the park members if they chose to run away.

“Lysandra, can you leave me alone to think? For crying out loud, just give me my space…”

“I’m your girlfriend, and I don’t think watching you get worried over another woman is something I should allow,” Lysandra snapped. “And I don't think that leaving you to be alone when you seem to need someone by your side is the right thing to do.”

I sighed and turned to face her. Cupping her cheeks, I made her look at me, leaning in to peck her lips. The kiss felt different, not a good one, much like the other kisses we’d shared since that night.

“My gorgeous neonata, you know the last thing I want is for you to be upset. But I need to find her before my father loses his mind.” I gently ran my finger along her jawline.

Lysandra sighed but nodded, finally allowing me to step back without arguing.

I tried to catch Sienna’s scent. Rejected or not, the bond between us as mates was still unbreakable, especially since I hadn’t marked my chosen mate.

“Where are you, Sienna?” I hissed, walking around the pack grounds. I knew she wasn’t here, but I needed to know which path she’d taken to avoid being caught. She was smart enough to use different routes, typical of her. “And where the fuck would you even think of going?”

************************************

“What do you mean she’s gone missing?” Dad asked angrily, rising from his chair at the dining table just as we entered the house. Noticing her absence at dinner, he knew something was wrong. Of all the pack members, of course, he would only notice the orphan that he took ten years ago, an orphan that should have died alongside her parents that night.

“It’s not Alpha Damon’s fault. She left the pack unnoticed…” Lysandra began, only to be silenced by Dad banging the table.

Alpha Kael, my father, had taken Sienna in as his daughter and always hoped the two of us would be mates. He didn’t know his wish had come true; it was a secret I planned to take to the grave.

“No one addressed you, Lysandra. If you’re at my dining table, don’t assume you mean anything more to me…”

I let out a low growl, warning him not to insult her. I was still the alpha of the pack. He was my father because he chose to resign, but that did not mean that he had any right to speak to my woman this way. He chuckled in response.

“She was a good friend of yours. How can you be so calm about this?” He asked, shaking his head in question as he glared at me.

“I’ve been searching for her all morning. But if she chose to leave, I’m not responsible for tracking her down. Any other Alpha would have banished her and turned her into a rogue. I said, snapping at him as I ignored the clumps that I felt in my chest.

“Sienna wouldn’t have left without a reason, Damon. We all know that,” Mom interrupted. “Whatever her reason, we’ll find out when she’s back. Until then, don’t stop searching for her. She won’t last long out there. And when she returns, she is not to be banished.”

I nodded, knowing objecting would only make things worse. My parents had taken Sienna in after her parents sacrificed their lives to save me and Mom. They died in a fire, unable to escape, after handing Sienna to my mother. She was barely a few months old at the time.

“And I want her reason for leaving, from her, when she’s back. Do you understand me, Damon?”

“Yes, Father,” I said, glancing at Lysandra, who looked like she wanted to comment. I shot her a glare, silencing her, and took a seat beside Mom.

Sienna’s seat was empty, and Lysandra tried to sit in it. Dad banged the table in warning, making her step back.

“Lysandra, child, this is your last warning,” Dad said coldly. “You’re an outsider, not from this pack. If I find you crossing boundaries with the pack members, I’ll deal with you personally. You’re not this pack’s Luna, and you never will be. Do you understand me?”