Chapter 7. kill her.

**Stella's POV**

Cold.

That's the first thing I feel when consciousness returns.

"Awww," I groan in pain while I try to open my eyes, but my lids feel like they're made of lead. Everything hurts—my chest, my head, my throat. Even breathing sends sharp pains through my ribs.

'Stella.' Piper's voice is weak, distant. 'Stella, wake up. We're in danger.'

Danger?

I force my eyes open.

The sky above me is gray, heavy with clouds. Tall pine trees surround me, it blocks out most of the light.

Where am I?

I try to sit up and immediately regret it. Pain explodes through my body, and I collapse back onto the ground with a choked gasp.

"She's awake Alpha." I hear a familiar male voice speak.

I turn my head slowly, my neck protesting the movement.

That's when I see Cole standing a few feet away, with his arms crossed. Behind him, at least a dozen pack warriors form a semicircle, their expressions carefully neutral.

"Cole..." My voice comes out as a rasp. "What's happening?"

"You're at the pack border," Cole says flatly. "The southern edge. Neutral territory is about fifty feet that way." He gestures vaguely to his left.

I blink, confused. "Why am I—"

"You survived the rejection." There's something in his tone I can't quite name. Surprise? Annoyance? "I honestly didn't think you would. Omegas usually don't."

The rejection.

The memory crashes into me—the pain, the tearing sensation in my chest, the blood.

I press my hand against my chest. My shirt is stiff with dried blood, but the bleeding seems to have stopped.

"I'm... alive?" I whisper.

"Unfortunately." He shrugs. "But since you are, I'll spare you. Consider it a mercy from me and the goddess."

Mercy from you?!

I almost laugh, but I'm too exhausted.

"You're banished from Black River Pack," Cole continues, his voice businesslike. "Effective immediately. You will leave this territory and never return. If you step foot on my land again—" His eyes harden. "I will kill you myself. No trial. No mercy. Just death. Do you understand?"

"No." The word comes out before I can stop it. "No, Cole, you can't—"

"I can. And I am." he cuts me off coldly.

"But the pups—" I try to push myself up again, managing to get to my elbows before the pain forces me back down. "Cole, please. I can't leave without my pups—"

"They're not your pups anymore." His voice is cold. Final. "They're my heirs. They stay with me."

"No—" Tears stream down my face, hot against my cold cheeks. "No, please, Cole. Please don't do this. They need me—"

"They need a strong mother," he interrupts. "Sabrina will give them that."

"She's not their mother!" The words tear from my throat, raw and desperate. "I am! I carried them. I birthed them. I've loved them every single day of their lives—"

"And yet Maya can't stand you," Cole says simply. "And Noah won't even remember you in a few days."

The words hit like physical blows. I clutch my hand on my chest.

"Cole, please." I'm sobbing now, my body shaking. "Please, I'm begging you. Let me take them. Both of them. Or—or just Noah. He's so young. He still needs his mother—"

"He needs a mother," Cole responds coldly putting emphasis on the word 'a'. "Not you specifically."

"He's a pup—"

"He's the future Alpha of this pack," Cole says. "He stays. End of discussion."

"Please." I reach toward him with a shaking weak hand. "Please, Cole. I've never asked you for anything. I've done everything you wanted in all the years we have been together. Just please, let me have my son—"

"Your son?" His eyebrow rises. "He stopped being yours the moment you rejected me."

"That's not fair—"

"Life isn't fair, Stella." He turns away, already bored with this conversation. "You should have learned that by now."

"Wait—" I try to stand, but my legs won't hold me. I collapse back onto the ground, my hands digging into the dirt. "Wait, please. Just—just let me see them. One last time. Please."

He pauses and for one horrible, hopeful moment—I think he might actually agree.

Then he scoffs and keeps walking.

"Cole!" My voice breaks. "Cole, please! Just five minutes! Just let me say goodbye—"

He stops beside his car, parked at the edge of the tree line. Without turning around, he speaks to the warriors.

"Make sure she leaves the territory. If she tries to come back—" His voice drops. "Kill her."

"Yes, Alpha," they respond in unison.

"And if any of you feel sorry for her—" He finally turns, his eyes scanning the group. "If any of you think about helping her, remember that her presence is now a threat to this pack. Treat her accordingly."

The warriors' expressions harden.

Cole gets into his car without another word.

The engine starts. The tires crunch on gravel.

And then he's gone... Oh moon goddess, what have I done to deserve such treatment from the man I thought loved me? Tears stream out of my eyes. I can't believe this moment...

"Ahem," One of the warriors—a young man named Derek who I've known for years—steps forward.

"Luna—" He stops. "I mean... Miss Stella. You need to leave now."

"Derek, please." I look up at him, tears still streaming down my face. "Please, just let me see my pups. Just for a minute—"

"I can't." He won't meet my eyes. "Alpha's orders."

"I'm not asking as Luna." My voice cracks. "I'm asking as a mother. Please."

"I'm sorry." He actually sounds like he means it. "But if you're not gone in five minutes, we have orders to... to escort you out by force."

Escort me out by force. That's a nicer way of saying they'll hurt me if I don't leave on my own free will.

"Please..." I try one more time, but I can already see it's useless.

They're not going to help me.

No one is.

I force myself to stand, using a nearby tree for support. My legs shake beneath me, barely able to hold my weight. The rejection has left me weaker than I've ever been.

Cole, I will be back for my pups sooner than you think.... I vow silently.

'Yes we shall, but we need to shift,' Piper suggest urgently. 'I can't let you walk like this. We'll never make it far.'

She's right. I can feel the exhaustion and weakness in my bones, the way my vision keeps blurring at the edges. I won't make it a mile on foot like this.

'Okay,' I tell her. 'Let's shift.'

I close my eyes and reach for the familiar sensation of the shift that gives way to my wolf.

But nothing happens.

I try again, pushing harder.

Still nothing.

'Piper?' Panic starts to creep into my voice. 'Piper, why can't I shift?'

'Must be the rejection,' she whimpers. 'I might be too weak.'

"No." I say it out loud. "No, no, no. Piper, you have to try—"

'I am trying!' Her voice is anguished. 'But I can't. I'm sorry, Stella. I'm so sorry.'

The apology echoes in my skull, hollow and useless.

I stare down at my trembling, weak, human hands. If I can’t shift… then how am I supposed to fight for my pups? How am I supposed to get them back?

A cold, crushing truth wraps around my ribs.

What good am I like this?

What good am I… alive?