Breaking Point

The obstacle course was worse than fighting Zara.

Much worse.

"Move faster, Tracker!" Jax shouted as I pulled myself over a wall for the third time.

My arms screamed. My ribs throbbed where Zara had kicked me. Blood still dripped from my split lip.

But I kept moving.

The course was designed for experienced Rogues. Walls twice my height. Rope climbs over muddy pits. A section where you had to crawl under barbed wire while wolves threw things at you.

I'd fallen four times already.

"Pathetic," one of the twins called out. "Even human soldiers do better than this."

Laughter rippled through the watching wolves.

I gritted my teeth and kept going.

Climb. Jump. Crawl. Run.

My lungs burned. My vision blurred at the edges.

"Time!" Jax called out.

I collapsed at the finish line, gasping for air.

"Twenty-three minutes," Jax read from his stopwatch. "The record is eight minutes. You're slower than dead wolves, Tracker."

More laughter.

I wanted to scream at them. Tell them I'd only been here two hours. That I'd been Pack-trained for diplomacy, not warfare.

But I didn't have the breath.

"Again," Victor said.

I looked up. He stood at the edge of the course, watching me with those dark, unreadable eyes.

"Again?" I choked out.

"You heard me. Again."

"She can't," Zara said. "Look at her. She's about to pass out."

"Then she'll pass out and wake up stronger." Victor's voice was cold. "Again, Aria. Now."

I tried to stand. My legs gave out.

Jax caught me before I hit the ground. "Boss, maybe we should—"

"I said again." Victor's Alpha command rolled over the yard like thunder.

Every wolf except me bowed their head in submission.

I looked at Victor through pain-hazed eyes. "Why are you doing this?"

"Because you need to understand something." He walked closer, crouching down so we were eye level. "Your old Pack? They trained you to be weak. To be pretty and obedient. To stand behind a strong male and look supportive."

His words cut deeper than Zara's fists.

"Here, you don't get to be weak. You don't get to be protected. You either become deadly, or you become dead." He stood. "So get up and run the course again. Or admit you can't handle my world and I'll send you back to the Pack House right now. Let them deal with you."

Go back?

To Kael's cold eyes and Rebecca's smug smile? To a Pack that saw me as worthless?

Never.

I pushed Jax away and stood on shaking legs.

"Good girl," Victor said softly. "Now run."

I ran.

By the time I finished the course the second time, I was crying.

Not from pain, though there was plenty of that.

From rage.

Twenty-seven minutes this time. Slower than before.

"Better," Victor lied. "Again."

"No."

The word came out before I could stop it.

The entire yard went silent.

Victor's eyes narrowed. "What did you say?"

"I said no." I wiped blood and tears from my face. "You want to break me. Fine. But not today. Not like this."

"You signed a contract. You obey my orders."

"I signed a contract to be your Tracker and Enforcer. Not your punching bag." I met his stare, even though every instinct screamed to look away. "You want me to be strong? Then train me properly. Don't just torture me in front of an audience so you can feel powerful."

The other wolves gasped.

Nobody talked to Victor like that. Nobody challenged him.

I waited for him to explode. To shift and tear my throat out.

Instead, he smiled.

It wasn't a nice smile. It was the smile of a predator who'd found interesting prey.

"Everyone leave," he said quietly.

"Boss—" Jax started.

"Now."

The Rogues scattered like leaves in a storm. Within seconds, the training yard was empty except for me and Victor.

He walked toward me slowly. I forced myself to stand still.

When he was close enough to touch, he stopped.

"You're right," he said.

I blinked. "What?"

"I am breaking you. On purpose." He circled me like Zara had earlier. "Because the Aria who walked through my gates this morning? That version of you would die in my world. She's too soft. Too trusting. Too trained to submit."

"I'm not—"

"You are." He stopped in front of me. "You spent your whole life learning to be a good little Pack wolf. Obey the Alpha. Support your mate. Don't make waves. And where did that get you?"

Rejected. Framed. Sold.

"So yes, I'm breaking that version of you," Victor continued. "Breaking her down so I can rebuild you into something that survives. Something dangerous."

"By humiliating me?"

"By showing you that pride means nothing. Dignity means nothing. The only thing that matters is strength." His hand shot out and gripped my chin, forcing me to meet his eyes. "You want respect in my world? Earn it. You want the others to stop laughing? Become someone they fear."

His touch burned like fire.

"I can teach you," he said softly. "I can make you into a weapon. But only if you let go of who you used to be. Only if you embrace what you're becoming."

"A monster," I whispered.

"A survivor." He released my chin. "There's a difference. Monsters kill for pleasure. Survivors kill when necessary. I'm offering you the chance to be the latter."

I thought about my father in the Sanctuary. About the debt that would have destroyed us. About Kael choosing power over love.

Victor was right. The old Aria had gotten me here.

Maybe she needed to die.

"Teach me," I said.

"Say it properly."I understood what he wanted. Submission. Acknowledgment of his authority.

I took a breath. "Teach me, Alpha. Make me strong."

Victor's smile was genuine this time. Pleased.

"Better. Now go clean up. Eat. Rest. Tomorrow we start your real training." He turned to leave, then paused. "And Aria? That little display of defiance? Do it again in front of my wolves and I'll punish you properly. Understood?"

"Yes, Alpha."

"Good girl."

He left me alone in the training yard, broken and bleeding and somehow more determined than ever.