Chapter 3

Chapter 3

We are back safe, for now, at least. I leave Kerstin at the front door; she's staring at me like she doesn’t know me anymore. Maybe I am not what she always thought. I have nothing to say to her. Nothing that will change what she saw and heard. I hope she keeps her mouth shut and doesn’t run to daddy and spill it all. I pad away from Kerstin as I feel her eyes boring into my back. I enter the pack house from one of the side entrances. I have not one single piece of clothing on my back. I came through the laundry room and grabbed a huge shirt; it must be one of the large-ass warrior’s shirts. I pull it over my head and head up the stairs to my room.

I feel filthy.

I still feel his hands on my body. Normally, I love the feeling of his hands on me hours after our encounters. But not today.

I feel genuinely scared. I have never felt so frightened before. I thought he was going to kill my sister right there in front of me.

I took a quick shower and got dressed; it’s almost dinner time in the pack house. Three days a week, the Alpha and Beta families eat in a private dining room together, away from the rest of the pack members who live in the pack house. Today is one of those evenings when it’s a more private dinner.

I rush down the stairs and hit a hard chest.

The man patted my head and said, “Easy there, little pumpkin pie.”

So damn annoying, I don’t have to look to see who it is. The scent is madly acquainted with me. Since I was a child, I was madly in love with him. The oldest son of the Beta. He, on the other hand, has always ignored me and annoyingly treated me like a small child, even now when I am 15 years old. Since I was a child, and my mother told me about mates and what they are, I always hoped that he would be mine. He is five years older than Lennart. Oskar is sinfully handsome.

“Stina, get a move on; it's dinner. I came to find you. Truefully your father sent me.”

An annoyed sigh slipped from my lips.

“I am coming. If you didn’t notice before, your large chest was in the way.”

He strokes his chest muscles and looks offended.

“You mean my fit body drew you in, and you couldn’t help wanting to feel me up.”

He knows he is stupidly hot. I groan and feel my cheeks betray me with a light pink coloring. I hit his arm and try to sound as angry as I can, “Why don’t you just shut up?”

I walk past him and hurry without running to the dining room. A booming laugh is following me as we both enter. Both our families are seated at the table, looking at us.

The alpha command throws us all off. “Sit and eat. Also, stop teasing Kristina.”

The silence around the table was very uncomfortable until my mom started chatting and laughing with the beta wife. That broke the silence, and it is as if not my father's harsh voice had told us off.

I am a little glad, at least, that Oskar hasn't found his mate. He is 22 and should have found her and mated her already. Maybe she’s from another pack. It is fairly common for alpha and beta offspring to mate. Not just mates, but fated mates. In our pack, chosen mates aren’t accepted. The heir will be weaker when conceived from a chosen mate. My mate is a rogue alpha; it is a bit odd since I still want Oskar. I always thought he would be mine. I was born to the Alpha couple, and he was born to the Beta, so it made sense he would be my mate, but no such luck.

The meal was enjoyable as always. The chefs always spoil us.

I ate as swiftly as I could and asked to be excused, which my father granted me. Tomorrow is the tournament for the position of heir to the pack as well as for the beta position. I need to get some rest to have the best chance of winning over my brother. He is 3 years my senior and better trained, since my father always had hopes for him and Stefan. Stefan had two alpha wolves, and Lennart had one alpha and one beta. But I am only one beta wolf and a lesser one at that. Always overlooked both my wolf, Ayame, and me. Ayame hates it as much as I do. She wants to teach them all a lesson so they see us and know that we are no less than anyone else. To make them not ignore us. Surely my family loves me, but not as they love my siblings.

We will make them see us. My wolf growls in my mind. She is angry. Angry at everyone. At the touch of our mate, she gets agitated.

I lay in bed talking to my wolf before I drifted off to sleep. It was restless sleep full of anxiety.

I woke up and dressed in gym clothes. Today is the trial for the heir position. It's not just physical trials but mental ones to prove you are strong enough to lead a pack. The Psychological and mental trials are the first after breakfast this morning. I decided to take the stairs down all the floors. I rarely take the elevator; we have the Pack Mansion. The better to sneak down the stairs, accidentally eavesdrop on people, and gather information. Arriving on the first floor, I stand by the staircase in the shadow and listen with my wolf's incredible ears. In the distance, I hear my mother, father, and Lennart talking about today's challenges. I hear them encourage him and tell him he will easily win over Kerstin and me. Kerstin is young, and her wolf can’t be at full strength because her human is still too young. But no matter the age, one is forced to attend. It is an ancient pack law. My mother tells my brother not to worry about me. Because at 15, human and wolf are at one and strong enough, but he shouldn’t worry because both my wolf and I are weak and will never be anything more than an omega.

I gasp in horrified shock at my mother's words. I slam my hand over my mouth to make it soundless. I hope that they didn’t hear. I hope they were too engrossed in their conversation to hear me.

I saunter into the kitchen with more confidence than I feel. I act like I haven’t heard a word. I take a plate and start loading it with food from the buffet spread. I didn’t say a word. All eyes are on me.

“Good morning, darling.” My mother's sweet words were filled with love.

No way do I believe them.

“Good morning to you all.”

My fathers base tone voice grumbles,

“Sugar top, I hope you are pumped for today.”

“Sure, Daddy, I am ready to beat Lennart’s ass.” I start laughing.

They exchanged looks with each other.

Yes, they had plans. I can see it, so can my wolf.

My mother says cheerfully,

“Good, good.”

I take my plate and sit on the back porch, which faces north. It has a view of the far end of the field where the outdoor fighting enclosures are located. Later today, I will be in the big arena that you can barely see from here. I ate as I looked to the north, where I knew pack members were making the arena ready. My wolf and I are one, and we will defeat those who think we are nothing. I sit there and gaze.

Silently, I padded towards the porch where my sister was sitting and having her breakfast. In wolf form, I can tread up to anyone noiselessly, and my alpha wolf hides our scent so no one can smell us coming. Kristina is sitting there, looking to the north, as it seems. I feel sorry for her, so very sorry. She has a weak wolf unbefitting of an alpha-born daughter. I feel sadness that she can’t accept that she will never be an alpha heir. Out of necessity, we try not to be too harsh towards her, but she has to understand that she will be the lowest-ranked wolf. Basically, an omega among high-ranking wolves. We all have to accept the fate given to us. Accept the plan our moon goddess has for us all. I sit beside her and decide to mind link,

“Hey, don’t be sad. I am always in your corner, no matter who wins today.”

“Same. Same.” I respond.

Even though nothing will be the same again.

The head judge that’s here for the contests mindlink the pack it's time to gather for the first test. Lennart says,

“Come on, sis, let's go.”

I stand without saying a word, and I gesture with my hand for him to start walking. He changed to his human form and put on his gym clothes. We walked side by side to the arena for the mental test. There was a stage set up with two chairs and large monitors so everyone could watch. This part is a series of tests of one's mental ability and strength. I sit down in our chairs, which are far apart on the stage. We get hooked up with electrodes to monitor how we respond to every challenge. My nerves are like guitar strings that are too firmly adjusted. I tell myself I get this; I am fearful.

The test starts with a test to test your mental strength to handle pain. Within minutes, I have fallen off the chair in agony and screaming. I peek over to my brother's tight face with visible pain on it, but he doesn’t say a word.

The judge stops the test and says,

“This win is Lennart's. We will abort the rest of the mental trials. Kristina’s wolf is too weak to withstand the tests. Mental test wins go to Lennart.”

Ayame wine in my mind before anger takes over us both. I can’t accept being labeled as weak. We will fucking show them in the arena. Because they didn’t do all four mental tests, we have extra time for lunch before the fighting in wolf form. I stomp away and sit in the forest by myself. Sitting there in silence. Ayame doesn’t say a word; she's lying down in my mind, sulking. I say it out loud, “I will steal his water bottle!” Ayame perks up and smirks.

I hurry to the pack house, grab a quick lunch, then run up to the alpha floor. I'm listening by Lennart's door, it's quiet. I open it, and he’s not there- lucky me. Thrown in a corner by his gym bag is his water bottle. I grab it and leave.

I put a few lucky clover and alsike clover in his bottle before I filled it with water. I run down with the bottle in hand, and on the second floor, I run into Johannes, the youngest son of the beta couple. I ask him to find Lennart because he forgot his water bottle. Johannes eagerly takes it and runs off to find his target.

I walk to the arena, now it's a fight first in human form and then in wolf form. My brother is already there, topless in only gym shorts. As I walk into the fighting arena, I see Johannes give him the bottle of water. Lennart takes a big swig of water. I smile as I walk closer. A fighting instructor asks if we are ready. At the same time, we nod, and the warrior gestures for the fight to start. I wasn’t prepared, nor did I see when his fist was coming at me and connecting with my nose. It flew blood from it, and his hand was all bloody, and it was streaming down my face. Fucking hell, how it hurts. My brother actually didn’t hold back. I duck and hit his stomach. He kicks my leg, and I lose balance, and he hits my face repeatedly until the warrior backs the match. My face is swollen, but still I can see through my bloodshot eyes. I’m still on the ground when I see my family run up to Lennart and congratulate him, without sparing me a glance. Can’t they see I am hurting? He beat me into a broken rag doll. With much effort, I stand, and Evelina, my friend, comes to help me out of the arena to tend to me. Evelina is the beta daughter and one of my true friends. My wolf tries to heal me as fast as she can. When the call for the second match is called out over the mind link, I am still not fully healed. Ayame says, “I show that fucker and his wolves.”

I walked back to the arena somewhat healed, and I looked at the section where my family sits. Their eyes are cold. I turn my head and look at Lennart's wolf. I let Ayame take over and shift. I am pushed back into her mind space like a spectator.

My brother's wolf is moving like he is in pain. I grin as I think of the clovers. The lucky clover is poisonous to humans, and the alsike clover is poisonous to animals like wolves. I take advantage and attack. I bite him on the back, and he turns around and bites my leg. Suddenly, he howls and starts to vomit. I use that to my advantage and attack by biting down on his large neck. I scew over and over again. Blood is sprayed all over the ground and me. I hear the gasps of the pack. I get hit after hit on my back as a man screams at me about how disgusting I am. I am dragged off my brother by my father, which I saw when I turned to look at who it was.