Chapter 2

The next day, I was summoned to the Silver Lake Alpha’s estate, by Felix’s mother herself.

I knew what it was: a setup, a trap.

Just like all those times in my previous life.

Every visit meant humiliation, scorn, and insults.

Another reminder that in their eyes, I was nothing but a disgrace, an Omega, beneath them and unworthy.

But this time, I walked in with my head high.

My stepmother and Bianca were already there.

Felix’s mother, Luna Sarah, sat in the seat of power, eyes hard as stone.

She didn’t bother with pleasantries.

Instead, she raised her hand, the silver-inlaid ring on her finger catching the light, then pain struck, searing and soul-deep, piercing straight into my wolf.

I staggered, gripping the edge of a chair to stay upright.

“So you do feel pain,” she said slowly, voice colder than ice.

“I thought rejecting your Alpha meant you weren’t afraid of anything anymore.”

She slammed her hand against the table.

“You’ve made Felix a joke. You’ve disgraced the Silver Lake Pack.”

“I rejected someone who disrespected me,” I replied and my voice calm.

“Insolent girl!” she barked.

“Felix is the future Alpha. Everything he does is right. And you, just an unmarked, low-blooded Omega, dare to question him?”

My stepmother chimed in, her voice sweet and poisonous.

“Exactly. Riley, you’re being ridiculous. Don’t be so ungrateful.”

“Felix and Bianca grew up together. Of course they’re close, you’re just overreacting.”

Bianca lowered her eyes like the perfect little martyr.

“Big sister, I’m sorry... It’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have gotten so close to Felix. Please don’t be mad at him. Blame me instead.”

What a performance, exactly like last time.

I looked at the three of them and felt only one thing: exhaustion.

Wasting time on these shallow, self-absorbed people was beneath me now.

“Are you done?” I asked, my voice calm but sharp.

They froze.

“Good,” I said, and turned to leave.

As I reached the stairs, Felix appeared.

He stormed down the steps, grabbing my wrist.

His Alpha aura surged, trying to suppress me.

“Riley! You owe Bianca an apology!” he barked, furious.

Still clinging to the illusion that he had power over me.

I yanked my arm away in disgust.

“Let go. You’re hurting me.”

“Oh, now you feel pain?” he shouted.

“Did you think about my pain when you humiliated me in front of the entire pack?”

“You’re nothing but a filthy Omega. You don’t deserve to be my Luna!”

His eyes swept over the warriors Aiden had stationed by the door to protect me, filled with jealousy and madness.

“You think a new master can save you? Think twice. You’re nothing but discarded trash. Even if another wolf picks you up, you’ll still belong in the garbage heap.”

He stepped closer, his voice dropping into a snarl.

“I should skin you alive and lay your pelt at Bianca’s feet.”

I turned away as Aiden’s warriors stepped forward, their formidable presence alone enough to make the Silver Lake guards recoil.

Behind me, I heard Felix scream in rage and the sound of something shattering, but I didn’t look back.

Back at my little cabin, I packed in silence.

There was nothing left here for me now.

Aiden had promised to send a car to take me to Westwood, the edge of the Northern frontier.

Soon, I’d leave for Westwood, where our pack betrothal ceremony would be held.

I wrapped my herbal remedies with care, tucking my handwritten notes between layers of cloth.

They were the only legacy I’d built in that life.

My phone rang with an unknown number flashing on the screen. I hesitated for a moment before picking up, only to hear Felix’s voice on the other end.

His voice was low, ragged. But that arrogance, it was still there, clinging like rot.

“Riley, Enough. Stop this nonsense.”

I said nothing.

The only sound was his breathing, shallow and angry.

“You think that Northern Alpha can protect you forever?”

A pause. Then venom:

“I’ll mark you, forcefully, on the next full moon. Right in front of him. In front of the whole damn world.”

“I’ll make sure everyone sees how you beg beneath me. Your wolf will scream in agony from the shame. And your new Alpha? He’ll just have to watch.”

“I’ll burn your precious herb notes. Rip out your claws. Crush what’s left of your pride.”

“You want a new life?” he growled. “I’ll drag you back into the ashes.”

“Now come back. We could pretend none of this happened.”

I listened in silence as he ranted, then simply smiled and, without a word, tossed the phone straight into the fire.

The plastic hissed, the metal popped, and his voice dissolved into smoke.

Outside, a pair of headlights cut through the trees as a sleek and black car pulled into view.

Aiden stepped out, tall and calm beneath the moonlight.

He handed me a cup of warm water as I slid into the seat beside him.

“Silver Lake has sealed all exits,” he said quietly.

“Felix used his authority as Alpha to command the entire pack to hunt you down.”

I stilled.

“The charges?” he added. “Treason and the attempted poisoning of Luna Sarah.”

I gripped the cup tighter.

Outside, the forest blurred past us, dark and endless.

This wasn’t the beginning of peace.

It was the start of war.