Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Cass 

With a scowl on his face, my mate stares down at me.

“Ezra, finally home!” the Beta greets him.

Ezra rips his green eyes away from me and gives him a nod. “Yes, finally home…for good.”

What? That can’t be.

“I hear you finished your training?”

Ezra nods. “Yes.”

Lauren squeezes my hand. She’s the only one who knows Ezra turned out to be my mate.

I remember the way he looked at me that day, full of anger, as if it were my fault we were mated. I had been happy because I finally learned my real birthday. I never knew it growing up, so we celebrated on a random day until I got my wolf that autumn. Then I saw Ezra, and everything changed. He even flipped a car from how furious he was, though no one ever knew why.

But he didn’t reject me. At first, I didn’t understand why, but I do now. This is how he punishes me. I wasn’t what he wanted as a mate. He’s always shown disgust toward me, and he’s used the bond to torment me for years.

When mates find each other, an imprinting bond forms. It heightens attraction, but it also makes betrayal hit harder, even without marking. That includes unfaithfulness. He’s made it his mission to hurt me every chance he gets, just like this morning in the kitchen when he probably slept with one of the easy girls from the pack. A welcome gift, I guess.

He hates me. Even after I rejected him, he still refuses to accept it, just to make me suffer. All because he blames me for something I had no control over. I didn’t choose to end up as his fated mate. He’s the last person I would ever want. Not even the mate bond can make me crave him now.

I wish he would just reject me and move on. Fated mates don’t have to stay together if they don’t want to. Most do because they want that special bond, but you can create a new bond with someone else by marking. It’s not the same as the true mate bond, but it’s better than being stuck with someone you despise.

If only he would reject me.

James starts to drift away from the conversation, probably feeling out of place. Lauren follows him, and I turn on my heel and sprint after them.

We head to one of the tables filled with drinks.

“I seriously don’t understand why Papa allows them to come to the festivals. Look at them, so filthy.”

I don’t need to look to know who said that. Bryn, one of the twins. She and Miles are the youngest of the Alpha family. She’s just like her older brothers, but Miles isn’t. He’s always buried in a book and never bothers me or any of the Omegas. But Bryn? She’s a snob who thinks she’s better than everyone and goes out of her way to make sure we know it.

“They should have their own festivals somewhere else, away from the important people. Keep their filth away.”

What a bitch. If the Alpha and Luna didn’t give the Omegas the scraps of everything, maybe we’d look presentable too.

Omegas do all the undesirable jobs and cater to the Gammas, Betas, and the Alpha family, but that’s only in this pack. Every pack is run differently depending on the Alpha.

Lauren, James, and I ignore Bryn like we always do.

I grab a drink and turn my attention to the stage as the Alpha steps up to give his speech.

He’s in his late forties, with dark hair streaked heavily with gray, light skin, and green eyes.

“Our sons and daughters are finally home!” he says, lifting a glass. “A joyous day indeed. Hug them and love them, for tomorrow they could be gone. This war has taken many of our own. Our world is a cruel one. I drink to my son Colt, who today we are not able to hug or speak to anymore. He was a casualty of this war. In his memory, love your children every day and value every second you have with them. You never know when they won’t be here anymore.”

Colt…I disliked the guy, but I never wished him dead. Out of the five siblings, excluding Miles, he was the least of an asshole, though not by much. He died nine years ago. He and his mate, Skye, were at the training grounds when the Dark Fang Pack attacked.

Skye was just like Bryn, a bitch. But those two never left each other’s side, and she was a warrior too. One morning, the camp was destroyed and the entire company was killed. The bodies were piled up, mutilated, and burned by the enemy.

That’s what the Dark Fang Pack does. Our pack isn’t good either, but we’re nothing like them. The Dark Fang Pack is far worse, at least from what I’ve heard. There’s a mystery surrounding that pack and its Alpha. They’ve grown too big too fast. There’s a rumor that their Alpha has Alpha Command. It’s not rare, but not many Alphas possess it, not even our Alpha. It’s the ability to give a commanding suggestion to a member of their own pack. I say suggestion because you can refuse, but it takes a strong‑willed person to do it, and even then, you’d still face consequences.

As for the feud between our packs, none of the other packs want to get involved. There are no alliances here. Everyone has to fend for themselves, so they stay out of the way.

I look back at the stage, and now Kayce is up there giving a speech. He’s next in line to be Alpha since Colt is gone, but it’s obvious to everyone that he doesn’t want the job. He doesn’t hide how much he despises it.

A hand clamps down on my shoulder and yanks me around.

“You weren’t there to greet me this morning,” Ezra says, crossing his arms.

I roll my eyes. “Not like you wanted me there.” I glance at Lauren and James, who walk away without noticing I’m no longer with them.

“I kind of did,” he says. “I wanted you to see the babe I had in my arms.” He looks me over and winces, clearly unimpressed with what I’m wearing.

“Do you really think I would have cared?” I ask.

I’ve never shied away from talking back to him, even though it gets me into trouble.

He leans in. “Do you know how humiliating it is to have you as my mate?”

“You tell me every time. But if it’s so humiliating, then reject me.”

“No. I’m not done with you.”

“Why are you so cruel?”

“A mate is supposed to be a gift.” He shakes his head. “You are no gift. You’re a punishment. And since I’ve been punished, I’ll punish you too.”

Bryn suddenly appears beside him. “What, do you have a crush on my brother now?”

I laugh, mocking her. “I’d rather have a crush on a frog.”

“Ugh! You’re so nasty. You shouldn’t even be allowed to breathe. That’s probably why your real mother died. She died on purpose just to be rid of you. Actually, you had two moms who die—”

Her nose starts bleeding from the sucker punch I just gave her. It happened so fast that neither of us realized what I’d done.

She holds her nose and stares at me in shock.

Anger rushes through me like fire. “Pity. Clearly the wrong sibling died. It should have been one of you!” I shout.

I shouldn’t have said that, and I regret it the moment it leaves my mouth.

As guilt sinks in, I’m slapped.

“How dare you!” the Luna shouts.

“I—” Before I can finish, she slaps me again, this time hard enough to draw blood from my mouth.

“Shut your mouth,” she snaps.

Ezra looks a little surprised she appeared out of nowhere, but then he smirks behind her.

People are staring, and their whispers start spreading through the crowd.

Does this piss me off? Yes. Do I want to punch the Luna? Absolutely. But doing that would be signing my death sentence, so I hold back as much as I can.

“Nothing I do ever works on you, you horrible girl!” she screams.

Lauren and James rush over, but I shake my head at them, warning them not to say or do anything. The last thing I want is for them to get punished because of my mouth.

“Bring her.” The Luna turns and starts walking. One of the warriors grabs my wrist and drags me after her.

I don’t fight it. I just keep up. The Luna leads us to the back of the pack grounds, muttering curses under her breath. She stops at the door that leads to the basement from outside.

I sigh internally. She’s taking me to the cells. I’ve seen this place many times when I’m ordered to clean it, but I’ve never been a prisoner before. Usually, she deals with me using a whip, but I guess she doesn’t have time for that because of the festival.

She grabs a lantern from the wall at the top of the stairs. We go down the steps and turn right into the hallway that leads to the cells. There are six cells, but three already have prisoners. One of them I recognize—a rogue captured a few weeks ago. The other four I’ve never seen.

They must be the prisoners brought from the fort camps. The four men are naked, filthy, and beaten. There are two men in each cell, but one of the new four seems unconscious. The rogue is the only one alone.

“Keep her in here until I decide what to do with her after the festival.” The Luna opens the cell next to the unconscious man. The other two prisoners are across from them, and across from me is the rogue.

I am shoved inside, and the cell door is locked behind me. The Luna grips the bars and looks down at me. “You are cruel. The things you say…losing a child is no joke. I’ve already lost one, and now you wish me to lose another?”

I want to apologize, but if I do, she’ll come in here and beat me. So I stay quiet.

“If it were up to me, I’d let you rot in here for the rest of your miserable existence.” She leans closer. “Maybe I’ll do just that. Rid me of you.” She mutters the last part before leaving, and as they walk away, so does the light. The only illumination left is from the hallway and the moonlight slipping through the small barred windows.

I slide to the back of the cell and sit, pulling my knees to my chest. I can feel the men watching me.

“What did you do?” one of them asks from the cell beside mine. I look over, but all I can see are his eyes glistening in the dark. As my vision adjusts, I notice the man I thought was unconscious is also watching me, still lying on the floor.

I close my eyes and hide my head between my arms and knees.

How long will I be here?

I usually only come here to clean and feed prisoners, which is rare enough. But I’ve never been one myself.

Me and my big mouth.