Broken

Willow's pov

“Get out of my way, ” I said, pushing myself between the towering bodies. 

I didn’t wait to see if Zandro or Ronan listened.

I shoved past them, heart pounding so hard it made my vision blur, books clutched tight against my chest like they were the only thing keeping me upright. 

The crowd parted instinctively, no one wanted to be in the path of a girl who had just defied two alphas and lived.

Barely.

Behind me, I felt their eyes…their attention dragging along my spine like claws.

“Run,” Ronan called after me, his voice amused. “That’s usually how it goes.”

I didn’t look back.

I didn’t slow down until I reached the admissions hall, the heavy stone doors slamming shut behind me with a thud that echoed too loudly in the quiet interior. 

My legs shook. I braced myself against the wall, sucking in a breath that tasted like dust and ink and old magic.

My wolf finally stopped pacing.

Barely.

“Pull yourself together,” I muttered under my breath. “You’re fine. You’re fine.”

In less than an hour, I had already broken all the rules. Survival felt like an illusion, one I couldn't quite grasp. 

A clerk looked up from behind the desk. “Name?”

I told her and did everything that she asked for. 

My details glowed faintly on the pad. 

Wolf. Eighteen. Valid.

The clerk didn’t even blink. “Dorm assignment is Hall C. Room twelve.”

Just like that, I was official.

By the time I reached the hostel, the adrenaline had worn off, leaving behind exhaustion and a deep, aching humiliation I didn’t want to name. 

All I wanted was sleep. 

I pushed into my room and froze.  

My roommate was already in the room and when I checked my bed, my side of the room… It was soaked. The sheets were drenched

“What the hell...” I screamed as my bags dropped to the floor. “Hey! Who did this?" 

My roommate turned towards me, standing stiffly by her bed, hands clenched in front of her. 

It was the same girl from the courtyard. The one who had knelt. 

“I did. I am sorry.”

My stomach dipped. 

“You did this?” My voice shook despite my effort to steady it.

She nodded, eyes downcast. “They told me to.”

My brain exploded with fury. “They told you to ruin my bed?”

“They told me to teach you,” she whispered. “To remind you how things work here.”

I laughed… It sounded broken. “And so what? You just obeyed.”

She flinched. “They’re alphas.”

“And I’m what?” I demanded. “Nothing?”

She didn’t answer.

I stared at her for a minute too long. 

I grabbed my bag, fingers trembling, and stormed out before I did something stupid...like cry, or scream, or tear the room apart. 

I didn’t stop walking until the halls emptied and the lecture wing came into view.

That night, I slept curled on a wooden bench.

I felt eyes on me from across the hall, violet and unreadable, but before I could identify them, they were gone.

I pulled my jacket tighter around me, staring at the ceiling until exhaustion finally dragged me under.

The next morning, I had a sparring class, and my body protested every step. I was good with swords but not so much. 

I always wondered why my mother would include those in my lessons. 

I never took it seriously though. I couldn't bear standing close to her adopted daughter. 

The training arena buzzed with energy...wolves stretching, laughing, shoving each other. 

I stayed near the edge, hoping to disappear into the background.

I watched as the other wolves sparred, a smile curling on my face until I heard… 

“New girl.”

The coach’s voice cracked.

I stiffened. The smile disappeared immediately. “Yes?”

“Get in the ring.”

A few students turned to look. My pulse spiked.

“I said get in the ring.”

I swallowed and stepped forward, boots hitting the mat with a dull thud. 

The coach circled me once, “Let’s see what you’ve got.”

Before I could respond, a familiar presence pressed in.

“I’ll take her.”

The room shifted.

Zandro stepped forward, hands flexing at his sides, storm-grey eyes locked on mine. 

The coach hesitated.

“Alpha Zandro,” he said carefully, “she’s new.”

Zandro didn’t look away from me. “So?”

“You outweigh her. Outrank her.”

“She’ll kneel,” Zandro said calmly. “Or she’ll break.”

My jaw clenched.

“Do you need me to kneel for you so bad?” I said. “I won't" 

A few snickers rippled through the crowd. The coach glanced at me like I would regret saying that soon. 

“Fine,” the coach said, stepping down from the ring. 

The moment Zandro stepped into the ring, authority slammed down like a physical force. 

Zandro towered over me, close enough that I could scent him... Something dark and intoxicating.

“Kneel,” he said quietly. “ And I’ll make this quick.”

“No.”

He smiled. “You never learn.”

He didn't wait for me to adjust my stance as he moved. 

He was fast… too fast. I barely blocked the first strike. 

Power threatened to surge through me but I forced it back down. 

I was just a nobody. A weak wolf. 

I couldn't expose myself. 

Distracted by my thoughts, Zandro flinged my sword away. 

I stared at my own hands, breath ragged.

Zandro’s eyes burned. “Again.”

I sighed. 

We clashed. Once. Twice. I dodged, blocked, countered...my body moving on instinct, my wolf snarling with something dangerously close to delight.

“You’re enjoying this,” he murmured.

“I hate you,” I shot back.

He laughed. “Your body disagrees.”

Warmth flared traitorously. I remembered my bed. The humiliation.

“You told her to do it,” I said. “My roommate.”

Zandro’s grip tightened as he pinned my wrists. “Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because you disrespected me.”

“And that was punishment?”

“No…” he said, leaning closer, voice dropping, “just a lesson but I see you learned nothing from it.”

He pinned me fully then...too close, his breath warm against my skin. 

My wolf strained, confused, overwhelmed.

I twisted, pushing with everything I had.

He grunted, surprised.

I took the opportunity and hit him when he least expected it. 

For a heartbeat, I almost won.

Before another presence joined the ring. Lucien. I looked back among the crowd and found the other Alphas watching, Nyx, Alaric, and Ronan.

Ronan winked at me.

I stuck my tongue out at him as Lucien's voice smapped my attention towards him. 

“Interesting,” Lucien’s cool voice drawled. “Mind if I test her too?”

My strength faltered. 

Two against one? 

I stumbled, lungs burning, vision blurring. I couldn't. 

“Enough,” a new voice cut in.

Alaric stepped forward, broad and solid, placing himself between me and them.

“She’s done.”

Zandro bristled. “Get out of my way.”

Alaric didn’t move.

My legs finally gave out.

The last thing I felt was steady arms lifting me and Zandro’s gaze burning holes into my back.