Chapter 16

Keira's POV 

I had never seen so many beautiful girls gathered in one place before.

The hall smelled of expensive perfume, fresh roses, and something sweet like vanilla cream. Gold and silver drapes flowed down the walls, shimmering under the morning light that streamed in through the tall glass windows. Dozens of girls stood in line, their dresses sparkling with crystals and delicate embroidery, hair styled into elegant curls and buns, makeup glowing like the goddess Selene herself had kissed their skin.

And then… there was me.

I shifted awkwardly in my place near the end of the line, my cheap borrowed dress clinging to my damp skin in the worst way. The faded pale blue fabric was too tight around my chest and too loose at my waist, leaving me feeling exposed and awkward. My hair was still damp from my rushed bath, pulled back into a simple low ponytail, and my face was bare, showing every freckle and shadowed bruise from sleepless nights.

“Who even let her in here?” I heard someone whisper behind me, her voice dripping with disgust.

“I heard she doesn’t even have a family. She’s just an orphan omega. Look at her… she probably begged her way in.”

A shaky breath rattled out of my chest, my fingers curling tighter into my palms as I tried to keep my tears from spilling. 

I forced my gaze to remain on the floor, praying the moment would pass, that the Trials would begin and I could focus on survival rather than the humiliating stares digging into my skin like thousands of burning needles.

“Stand up straight,” a sharp voice snapped beside me.

I flinched, glancing up to see a woman in a sleek black dress glaring down at me with narrowed eyes. 

Her hair was pulled into a tight bun, not a single strand out of place, and her lips were painted a dark plum. A clipboard rested against her chest, her manicured fingers tapping impatiently against it.

“Name?” she demanded coldly.

“K-Keira,” I stammered, my ce shaking.

She looked down her list, her brow arching high when she found it. “Keira… no surname listed,” she read out loud, making sure everyone nearby heard. 

Her lip curled in disdain as she looked me up and down. “Where is your supporter? Your family representative? Don’t tell me you came here alone. The Trials will soon begin and I don't have time for this.”

I swallowed hard, the dryness of my throat making it painful to speak. “I… I came alone.”

Whispers exploded around me like the buzzing of angry bees.

“Pathetic.”

“She doesn’t even have a family?”

“Why is she even here?”

The woman clicked her tongue, shaking her head as though I was the most disappointing creature she’d ever laid eyes on. “If you have no representative, no sponsor, and no preparation, you have no business being here. Do you understand how many girls were turned away today? Girls who came with gold and silk and powerful families to support them. You’re taking up a place that belongs to someone better.”

I couldn’t look at her. My vision blurred with unshed tears as I stared at the polished marble floor, seeing my reflection ripple through the tears clinging to my lashes. 

My chest ached so deeply I wondered if my ribs would crack under the pressure. My wolf whimpered in my mind, curling into herself as though trying to hide from the shame that burned through us.

As if it was my fault my parents died. 

“If you want to save yourself the humiliation, you should step down now,” the woman continued, her voice lowering to a mocking sweetness. “It would be less painful for you. You clearly have no chance here.”

I felt everyone’s eyes on me. Hundreds of eyes. Judging, mocking, pitying. My legs trembled under my weight, the urge to run away screaming pounding in my chest like a trapped bird’s wings.

But I didn’t move, I didn’t run, and neither did I cry.

I just stood there, trembling, my fingers digging into my palms so hard I felt blood bloom under my nails. The wounds on the back of my hand had clotted, and I had gone numb. 

Because no matter how much my pride whispered that leaving would save my dignity, my heart… my soul… they whispered something else.

They whispered that if I left now, I would never forgive myself.

That if I left now, I would never have another chance to become something more than a ragged omega girl hidden in the shadows.

So I stayed.

“Stupid girl,” the woman muttered, writing something on her clipboard before striding away to the next girl in line.

I closed my eyes, sucking in a shaky breath as the tears finally slid down my cheeks. I felt them drip onto the thin fabric of my dress, darkening it in small wet spots.

“Look at her… crying already.”

“Pathetic.”

“She’s going to get eliminated on the first day.”

Their words stabbed at my chest like tiny sharp knives, but I kept my eyes down, refusing to meet anyone’s gaze. I didn’t want them to see the fear in my eyes. I didn’t want them to see the way my heart was shattering piece by piece.

A quiet scoff reached my ears, and my eyes flickered up instinctively, searching for the source.

Alia stood at the far end of the hall, her red silk dress hugging her curves like molten blood, her dark hair cascading in perfect waves down her back. Her lips were painted the deepest scarlet, her eyes lined in kohl that made her emerald gaze glow like fire.

Our eyes met, and for a brief moment, something flickered across her face. I didn’t know what it was. Disgust, pity, annoyance, maybe all three. Then her expression settled into cold indifference, and she turned away, dismissing me with a single glance.

My chest tightened painfully as I watched her walk away, her hips swaying gracefully with every step.

She didn’t care.

She never cared.

I was nothing to her. Nothing to anyone here.

Just an unwanted girl in a borrowed dress, standing among flowers she could never bloom beside.

And for the first time since I arrived in this place, I wondered if my dream of freedom was worth the humiliation that came with it.

But still… I stayed.