Chapter two

Christina's Pov

“No,” he said quietly. “Not banishment.”

My brows furrowed. Even through the haze of pain and confusion, I knew something was wrong.

For a moment, I thought I had misheard him. What did he mean by not banishment? That was the law. Everyone knew that. Betrayal meant exile.

Cruel, yes, but clear.

“Take her,” Kael ordered.

The enforcers  grabbed  my arms. Their grip was sudden and firm, fingers digging into my skin like they expected me to fight. I gasped, twisting instinctively, but it was useless.

As they dragged me away, one thought settled heavy and terrifying in my mind. This wasn’t justice.It was done too quickly. Too cleanly. There was no room for discussion. No hesitation.

This was a decision that had been made long before today and I was never meant to survive it.

They dragged me out of the pack house, my hands bound tightly behind my back. The rope scraped and burned against my wrists as I struggled. I dug my feet into the ground, trying to slow them, trying to make them stop, but my body was pulled forward anyway.

“Let me go,” I yelled again and again, my voice breaking. Each word sounded weaker than the last but it all fell on deaf ears.

The enforcers’ grip tightened as they hauled me toward the tree line. My bare feet scraped against the ground, stones cutting into my skin. I stumbled more than once, my weight dragging behind me, but they didn’t stop. They didn’t even look back.

Pain spread up my legs, sharp and hot, but it barely registered over the panic clawing at my chest.

I turned my head, searching the crowd desperately.I looked at the pack members for help. Faces I recognized. Wolves I had lived among my entire life.

Some looked at me with pity, their expressions tight and  uncomfortable but the moment I tried to meet their eyes, they turned away. Others didn’t bother pretending. They watched openly, their faces twisted with satisfaction, with relief, with something close to excitement.

“That’s what we get for keeping a traitorous wolfless omega.”

“Ungrateful wretch.”

“She’s finally getting what she deserves.”

“Wolfless trash.”

“Traitor.”

“How could the Moon Goddess ever give our alpha such a mate?”

Each word landed like a blow.

Some of them I expected. I had heard them my whole life. Others hurt more because they confirmed what I had always feared. That I had never belonged. That this pack had only tolerated me, waiting for the day they could justify getting rid of me.

The physical pain in my feet faded beneath the weight of it.

The forest closed around us as we moved deeper inside. The sounds of the pack faded away, replaced by the rustle of leaves and the dull thud of boots on dirt. Branches scratched at my arms. Thorns caught in my dress and tore at the fabric.

The farther we went, the quieter it became.

My breathing grew uneven. Every step felt heavier, slower, like my body was already giving up.

We reached a clearing.

I stopped struggling.

A shallow pit sat in the middle of it.

For a moment, my mind refused to understand what I was seeing. It looked unfinished, temporary, like something dug for training or punishment.

I turned around, searching their faces, searching Kael’s for an answer.

“What’s this?” I asked, my voice shaking. “What’s going on?”

No one answered.

“Get in,” Kael said.

I stared at him, disbelief flooding through me. My chest felt tight, like it was hard to breathe.

“No,” I said, shaking my head as panic set in fully. I tried to step back, but the rope pulled tight, stopping me. “No.”

“Don’t make this harder than it needs to be,” he said, calm and controlled, like he was speaking to someone being difficult.

“The pack punishment for betrayal is banishment, not this,” I yelled. My voice echoed in the clearing, thin and desperate.

Caitlin snorted and walked forward.

“Banishment wouldn’t be enough,” she said lightly, like she was discussing something trivial. “Not when the bond refused to sever.”

My heart slammed painfully against my ribs.

“You felt it too, didn’t you?” she continued, tilting her head. “Even after the rejection. Still there. Still clinging.”

I shook my head, tears streaming freely now. My throat felt tight, my chest aching. “You’re wrong. You’re wrong. Please.”

She smiled.

“For a mistake like you,” she said, “the bond has to die with you.”

“Please,” I cried. “I’ll leave. I won’t come back. I swear. I’ll disappear.”

“So long as you’re alive, it exists,” Caitlin continued. “And I won’t risk that.”

“This isn’t right,” I said louder, fear creeping into my voice. “Banishment is the punishment for betrayal. You can’t do this.”

“This ends tonight,” she said calmly. “It’s better this way.”

I shook my head slowly, my body trembling. “You don’t get to decide who lives.”

She smiled. “I already have.”

She shoved me hard

I fell into the pit, landing awkwardly on my bound hands. Pain shot up my arms, white and blinding. A scream tore out of me before I could stop it.

“Begin,” Caitlin said to the enforcers.

Dirt hit my legs first.

Then my stomach.

Then my chest.

I screamed until my voice went hoarse, until my throat burned and my lungs hurt. Tears streamed down my face as soil filled my mouth and nose. I choked, coughing uselessly, my body thrashing in the small space.

I looked up desperately.

Kael stood at the edge of the pit.

“You could still end this,” I said, my voice barely more than a plea. “You know I didn’t betray the pack.”

His jaw tightened.

For a moment, I thought he might look at me. That he might say something. Anything.

Instead, he turned away.

“Finish it,” he said.

For the second time that night, something inside me cracked completely.

The shallow grave filled quickly. Dirt pressed in from all sides, heavy and suffocating. I stopped screaming when breathing became too difficult. Every breath dragged dirt into my lungs, leaving a burning sensation.

Darkness swallowed everything.

I couldn’t see.

I couldn’t hear.

My body trembled as strength drained from me.

My chest ached with every shallow breath.

Thoughts came and went, slipping away before I could hold onto them.

Memories surfaced without warning. Insults shouted in passing. Hands pushing me aside. Laughter behind my back. The way I had learned to make myself small.

I realized I had never truly known happiness.

Fear faded.

Pain dulled.

Only anger remained.

As my eyes closed and my body finally gave up, a voice spoke inside my head.

Breathe.