Chapter 3: The Myth

Callie woke up with a choked gasp, her throat was burning as if someone had poured acid through her veins. The pain struck suddenly, searing through her chest, crawling up her neck, and tightening like a noose. 

She couldn’t breathe. Her body twisted violently against the sheets, as she clawed at her own skin in desperation. The scream that tore from her throat was muffled into the pillow, her legs kicking as she tried to escape the invisible agony.

It felt like poison pulsing through her bloodstream.

Last night, Amelia had dropped her off and Callie had not said a word. She had stumbled into the house, straight into her room, and locked the door behind her. 

She had cried over and over, till she slept. Her tears had already dried on Alpha Owen’s harsh words.

And now this.

She knew what it was. She had heard the stories told in cruel details by elder wolves… the pain when a mate sleeps with someone else before the bond is fully severed. 

Alpha Owen and Lily were having sex.

The moment the realization clicked in her head, her stomach curled, bile rising in her throat. She had heard of this kind of pain before, but never believed it would happen to her. 

She used to imagine finding a mate like her parents, gentle, strong, and protective. Someone who would cherish their bond.

Instead, she had been gifted to a monster.

Callie screamed again, a hoarse, guttural sound as her body arched from the bed, her nails digging into the mattress. Her veins felt like they were on fire, and her wolf was scratching inside her, howling with betrayal. 

Her entire being felt like it was splintering.

And then suddenly… it stopped.

Callie collapsed onto her side, drenched in sweat, trembling and breathless. Her heart thudded violently in her chest, and she lay still, too weak to move.

Relief washed over her.

But it only lasted for a moment.

As the second wave came harder and faster. Her eyes snapped open in terror, her hands gripping the bedsheets as the pain returned in full force. 

They were doing it again.

“Nooo.” She groaned. “Make it stop… please!”

***** 

Callie woke up looking like a newly transformed zombie. Her eyes were sunken and ringed with bruised shadows. Her skin looked pale and clammy, and her hair was a tangled mess from all the tossing and turning. 

She barely recognized herself when she stood in front of the mirror. But what made her pause was something far worse… Green, vein-like burn marks trailing from her neck down to her chest, faintly glowing and jagged like lightning scars.

If it wasn’t so horrific, it might’ve looked like a striking tattoo.

Callie sighed. “It’ll heal soon,” she murmured to herself. 

She pulled on a large hoodie to cover most of it, ignoring how the fabric scratched against her raw skin. The weather was far too hot for a hoodie, but she didn’t care. She didn’t want any questions. And most of all, she wasn’t ready for anyone’s sympathy.

Callie slipped back into her bed hoping to catch some sleep for her exhausted body. She had barely dozed off when a soft knock on her window brought her back, she knew exactly who it was.

“Oh dear goddess!” Amira exclaimed as soon as climbed in, her eyes bulging. “Callie, what the hell happened after I left? You look like you were hit by a truck!”

Callie didn’t respond. She just walked forward and leaned into Amira’s arms, resting her head against her friend’s shoulder. It felt safe there. But as the fabric of her hoodie scraped against her burns, she winced and flinched away with a quiet gasp.

Amira’s brow furrowed. She stepped back and scanned her friend. “What’s wrong?” she asked softly.

Without a word, Callie reached up and tugged down the neck of the hoodie, revealing the jagged, pulsing green bruises spreading across her collarbone and chest.

Amira’s jaw dropped. “What the…? Callie. The myth… it’s real?”

Callie gave a weak nod.

Amira leaned closer, eyes wide with disbelief. “But… why aren’t you healing?”

The question landed in Callie’s brain like a spark.

She blinked, confused. She glanced down at the burns again, her mind racing. Why wasn’t she healing?

She reached inward, calling for the presence that had always been there… her wolf.

‘Ember?’

She was met with silence.

‘Ember? Please…’

Still nothing.

Her chest tightened. A fresh wave of fear swept through her. “She’s gone,” Callie whispered, eyes flooding. “I can’t feel my wolf.”

Amira’s face fell. “No…”

Callie’s knees threatened to buckle, but Amira stepped in, holding her tightly. She wrapped her arms around her friend and rubbed her back as Callie quietly sobbed into her shoulder.

“I’ll talk to my brother, okay?” Amira whispered gently into Callie’s ear. “I’ll make Theo talk some sense into that stupid alpha of ours.”

Callie didn’t respond, she knew that Amira would definitely do that. She was a beta and so was her brother.

But deep down she knew they didn’t have the authority to overrule Owen, he was the alpha after all.

********** 

Callie had been told that the mate bond would fade within a few weeks… maybe months, since the Alpha had not fully mated her. All she and her wolf had to do was stay strong. 

But as each morning came with less sleep and more ache, Callie began to wonder how much longer she could handle it.

One of those mornings, after barely surviving another restless night, she dragged herself to ‘Nail IT’, the tools store where she worked. Her body was heavy, and her mood even worse. 

She didn’t have any appetite for food and was running on the motivation that she’d at least get paid at the end of the week.

Despite everything, she had managed to hold it together, drawing some forced politeness to the customers from whatever shred of grace the Moon Goddess granted her. 

Until someone decided to push her off the edge.

A loud screech echoed into the shop as a flashy car pulled into the lot. Callie’s jaw clenched. She hated the noise. Her head was already throbbing from lack of sleep, and the sound felt like nails scratching her brain.

Then, a guy walked in. She could tell that he was the noise culprit.

He looked young. Tall, dark-haired, with strange golden eyes and a presence that took up all space in the room. His build was quite fit. He walked in sipping from a drink can, as if he owned the place.

Callie didn’t have the strength to care. To her, he looked like a walking stick with a face. 

He walked straight up to the counter where she stood, gulped down the rest of his drink, and without a word, he crushed the can and dropped it right on the counter in front of her.

Before he could speak, Callie’s voice cut through the room.

“There’s a trashcan right in front of you. Please throw your trash in there.” 

The man paused, staring at her like he wasn’t used to being spoken to that way. Callie met his eyes, and for a second it felt like she had just committed a grave offense. Something in those eyes dared her to look away or fall to her knees. 

But she forced herself to hold the stare.

“I would need some ropes, steel pegs, and a few industrial hooks.” He said, totally ignoring her remark.

Callie blinked and broke eye contact, shaking herself slightly as she turned away. Whatever that had been, she wanted no part of it.

She returned a moment later, carrying a bundle of heavy tools wrapped in her arms. She dropped them on the counter with a solid thud.

That was when the man’s expression changed.

His eyes were twitching, like he was fighting something in himself. He muttered a curse under his breath and suddenly turned for the door.

Callie watched him walk away and felt her blood boil.

He had made her lift that much weight only to flee like some spooked deer?

Without thinking, she grabbed the crushed can he left on the counter and threw it at his head.

It bounced off the back of his neck and the man paused. He turned slowly, and gave her a look so venomous it could burn through walls. Then he turned back and walked out.

“Prick,” Callie muttered under her breath.

When she turned back around, she realized her manager had seen the whole thing.

The older woman approached her calmly, gently placing a hand on her arm.

“Callie,” she said softly, “I know you’re going through a lot right now. Maybe it’s best if you take the rest of the day off, alright? Go home. Get some rest.”

Callie opened her mouth to explain that it hadn’t been her fault, but she didn’t have the energy to argue.

Outside, the young man jumped back into the car. His sister shot him a weird look, “Why do you look like you got chased out? Where are the tools?” she asked.

“Drive Autumn,” he gritted. “This is bad… this place is fucking jinxed.”

Autumn started the engine, “Speak Damon.” She said, losing her patience.

“I think… I found my mate.”