Home Isn't Safe

Olivia's POV 

The ride home passed in silence.

I sat beside my father and stared through the car window as darkness swallowed the road ahead. The pain in my chest had dulled enough for me to breathe without wincing, but it hadn't disappeared. It lingered beneath every thought, a constant reminder of everything that had happened at the ceremony. My wolf hadn't spoken since we left the hall, but I could still feel her curled somewhere deep inside me, hurt and confused in a way that made my chest ache all over again.

Several times, my father opened his mouth as though he wanted to say something. Several times, he changed his mind. I was grateful. There was nothing either of us could say that would make tonight better.

The moment we pulled into the driveway, I reached for the door.

"Olivia."

My father's voice stopped me. I paused but didn't look at him.

"I'm sorry."

The words were quiet. Sincere. And far too late.

For a moment, I considered telling him that it wasn't his fault. The problem was that part of me believed it was. Not the rejection itself, but the silence afterward, the way he had stood there and watched while the entire pack stared at me, the way he had lowered his head when I needed him to stand tall. Instead of saying any of that, I simply nodded and stepped out of the car.

The front door opened before we even reached it. Diana stood in the entrance hall with her arms folded across her chest. The sight immediately exhausted me. News traveled quickly within a pack, and everyone in the territory probably knew what had happened by now. Diana's expression confirmed it. For once, she wasn't angry or disappointed. She looked uncomfortable, and I wasn't sure whether that made things better or worse.

The moment my father entered, she turned toward him. "How bad was it?"

I almost laughed. Not because the question was funny, but because apparently being publicly rejected by my fated mate could still be measured on a scale.

My father rubbed the back of his neck. "Diana."

"What? I'm asking because everyone is talking about it."

The response came too quickly. Even she seemed to realize it. A moment later, she sighed and looked at me. "I'm sorry you had a difficult evening."

The sympathy sounded rehearsed, as though she'd practiced it  before we arrived..

I nodded. "Thank you."

The lie sat awkwardly between us.

Before either of us could continue the conversation, another voice drifted down the staircase. "Is she home?"

I closed my eyes. Of course. Vanessa.

My stepsister appeared a second later, leaning over the banister with all the casual confidence of someone who had never doubted her place in the world. She was twenty years old, beautiful, popular, and effortlessly charming when she wanted to be. Growing up, people constantly compared the two of us. Vanessa got her mother's sharp cheekbones and perfect figure. I got uncomfortable silences and sympathetic smiles. Life wasn't always fair.

Vanessa descended the staircase slowly, her eyes immediately finding me. For a second, she almost looked concerned. Then she spoke.

"Wow. You look awful."

There it was. The Vanessa I knew.

Diana sighed. "Vanessa."

"What? It's true."

I was too tired to argue. Honestly, I was too tired to care. I kicked off my shoes and started toward the stairs. Unfortunately, Vanessa wasn't finished.

"You know, people are still posting about it online."

I stopped. A fresh knot formed in my stomach.

"Vanessa." This time it was my father.

She ignored him. "They've already turned it into a story."

My fingers tightened around the railing. "Can we not do this tonight?"

She shrugged. "I just think somebody should be honest."

I laughed softly. The sound surprised even me. People always claimed they were being honest right before they said something cruel.

Vanessa stepped closer. "Seriously, Olivia. What did you expect?"

The house went quiet. Even Diana looked uncomfortable. Vanessa either didn't notice or didn't care.

"He's Alpha Ryker Blackthorn," she continued. "The future Alpha King. Did you really think he was going to choose you?"

The words hit exactly where she intended. I felt them land, felt them settle, felt them join every insecurity I'd spent years trying to ignore. Yet somehow they hurt less than they would have yesterday. Maybe because Ryker had already delivered the worst blow imaginable. Everything after that felt smaller.

"Vanessa, that's enough." My father's voice finally hardened.

Unfortunately, she merely rolled her eyes. "No, it isn't enough." Her attention returned to me. "Everyone knew this would happen. Everyone except you."

I stared at her. She mistook my silence for surrender and continued.

"Why would a whole Alpha choose somebody who's as big as a mountain? Wise up, Olivia. You dream too high."

The words echoed through the hallway. Diana looked horrified. My father's face turned red. Neither mattered, because the person they were aimed at was me.

A younger version of myself would have cried. An even younger version might have believed her. Tonight, I was simply tired, tired of apologizing for existing, tired of shrinking myself for people who had already decided who I was, and tired of allowing others to define my worth.

"Are you finished?" I asked.

Vanessa blinked. The question had clearly caught her off guard. "What?"

"I asked if you're finished."

The confidence she'd been wearing all evening faltered, just a little. "You should be thanking me."

"For what?"

"For telling you the truth."

I looked at her for several long seconds. Then I smiled. It wasn't a particularly pleasant smile.

"The truth is that my mate rejected me tonight."

The hallway fell silent.

"The truth is that it hurt."

For the first time, my voice nearly cracked. I swallowed and forced myself to continue.

"But if the best thing you can think to do after watching someone go through that is kick them while they're already down, then maybe the problem isn't me."

Vanessa stared. So did everyone else. Without another word, I turned and walked upstairs. Nobody tried to stop me.

By the time I reached my bedroom, my hands were shaking. I stepped inside and locked the door. The click sounded unusually loud. For several moments, I simply stood there. Still, silent, and alone.

My reflection looked back at me from the mirror across the room. My makeup was smudged. My hair was falling out of its careful style. The silver dress that had seemed beautiful a few hours earlier now felt ridiculous.

Slowly, I crossed the room and sat on the edge of my bed. One by one, I removed the jewelry I'd spent an hour putting on. The earrings came first, then the bracelet, then the pins holding my hair in place. Each item landed on the dresser with a soft sound. Piece by piece, the girl who had walked into the mating ceremony disappeared, the girl who had believed fate might finally choose her.

A burning sensation suddenly shot through my wrist. I sucked in a breath. Not again.

Pulling back my sleeve, I stared at the silver mark. It was larger than before. The glowing lines stretched farther across my skin, twisting together in patterns that seemed almost alive. The sight sent a chill through me. My wolf stirred immediately.

Olivia...

"I see it."

The mark pulsed once, then again. The silver light brightened until it illuminated the darkening room. I watched in stunned silence as another symbol briefly appeared inside the first, something ancient, something unfamiliar. The image lasted only a second before disappearing. Then, just as suddenly as it had appeared, the room fell quiet.

A voice whispered inside my mind. It wasn't my wolf. It wasn't me. It belonged to someone else.

Find me.

I shot to my feet, my heart hammering against my ribs. The room was empty. No one stood beside me. No one stood outside the window. Yet the voice came again.

Soft. Urgent.

Find me before they find you first.

The light vanished. The mark cooled. And I stood alone in the darkness, wondering whether I had finally lost my mind.