5.

Scarlett’s lungs burned, her breath tearing raggedly from her throat as she stumbled down the mansion steps. 

The night air was thick and damp, clinging to her sweat-drenched skin, the bruises on her ribs screaming with every movement. Her ankle throbbed, swollen and twisted from where her mother had kicked her earlier, but she forced it to move, to carry her away from the hell that house had always been.

"Run, Scarlett, run."

The Omega’s words echoed in her skull. "The horse will be waiting on the other street. Don’t stop. Don’t look back. Don’t let them catch you."

She limped across the gravel, every step like glass piercing her bones, but the thought of staying...of being shoved back into that room, of Liora’s smirk as she whispered poison into her ear...made the pain worth it.

Her heartbeat pounded louder than her footsteps. The mansion behind her glowed like a prison lit up for the night, the masked guests laughing and drinking inside, oblivious to the broken girl fleeing into the dark.

She rounded the corner, hair whipping across her face.

And froze.

A sleek black car purred at the base of the steps, its tinted windows gleaming like obsidian. The luxury vehicle looked out of place among the pack’s modest wagons and carriages. Even the air around it carried weight...an aura of power and danger that clung like smoke.

Alpha King Ronan leaned against the hood, one hand sliding a gold ring over his finger, his sharp eyes fixed on the world as if it were prey waiting to bow.

His gaze landed on her.

Scarlett’s heart stopped.

She must have looked pitiful...hair wild, ankle bent, dress torn, face swollen. Her body screamed desperation. But she refused to drop her stare. If he saw weakness, she would die.

“Who is that?” Ronan’s voice was casual, but it carried enough command to make nearby guards stiffen.

Before Scarlett could speak, Beta Alaric stepped smoothly forward, his bow precise, his tone quick. “No one, Alpha King. A clumsy maid. She must have tripped while running errands.”

Scarlett’s chest tightened. "A nobody. That’s all I’ll ever be to them."

Ronan’s eyes lingered, sharp and assessing, but then...he looked away. Just like that. As if she were dust on the wind.

He slid into the backseat of his car, the door shutting with a clean click. The engine roared to life.

Scarlett’s legs moved again, dragging her down the road, blood pooling in her shoes as she pushed herself toward the other street.

Inside the car, silence settled.

"You noticed her," his wolf’s voice teased in the back of his mind. "The girl with the broken body still running like her life depends on it. You almost cared."

Ronan’s jaw clenched. “I don’t care. She only caught my eye because she looks like a carcass pretending to be alive. Injured… yet still moving. That’s all.”

"Liar," the wolf chuckled.

He growled low, reaching for the small leather pouch resting on the seat beside him. “Where is my bracelet?” His voice dropped into a dangerous calm.

Alaric stiffened in the front seat. “Bracelet, my king?”

Ronan’s fingers curled into fists. “The lucky charm my mother gave me. It was missing from my chamber this morning. If anyone dares lay their filthy hands on it, they will not live to tell the tale.”

His mother’s face flashed in his memory...warm, smiling, the only softness he’d ever known. Dead now. Buried. All he had left was that bracelet.

Alaric swallowed. “I’ll find it. I swear it.”

“You’d better.” Ronan’s eyes narrowed on the street as the car pulled away. “And when you do, kill the thief.”

---

A cluster of girls in silk masks stood at the edge of the courtyard, their giggles piercing the night air. Among them was Liora, her jeweled mask glittering as her sharp eyes followed the sleek car.

She knew that car. Everyone did. It belonged to the Alpha King. The man every family whispered about, feared, and dreamed of. Even her father, powerful as he was, could never afford such a treasure.

Liora’s chest burned with envy.

That car should have been mine. That man should have been mine.

Her friends leaned in, voices dripping with admiration.

“Did you see it? No one has wealth like that.”

“Even our fathers would kneel for a ride in it.”

“Imagine being chosen by him…”

Liora’s nails dug into her palms. A fool...that’s what she’d been. She had almost sold Scarlett off like a lamb to slaughter, thinking the Alpha King wasn’t worth the trouble. But now, seeing his worth, his power, his car that screamed dominance...she wanted him more than ever.

She plastered on her sweetest smile, tossing her hair. “Of course, I don’t have to imagine.”

Her friends turned, wide-eyed.

“What do you mean?”

Liora tilted her head, letting her voice drop to a coy whisper. “Last night. In his chambers.” She let the words hang, relishing the gasps. “He chose me. I was with him. He...” she smirked, “...couldn’t get enough.”

Her friends squealed, their admiration instant. Envy painted their faces, exactly as she wanted.

But a shadow loomed nearby, listening.

Beta Alaric.

He leaned casually against a pillar, smirk tugging at his lips as he sipped from a flask. Liora’s voice carried clearly to his ears, her lies spilling without hesitation.

So, he thought, she’s the one who claims the Alpha’s bed.

But Ronan’s words echoed in his mind...her face was blurred.

A dangerous smile stretched across Alaric’s face. He had just found his lead.

And if Liora wanted to play with lies, he would happily let her. Because sometimes, the easiest way to find the truth was to let a liar hang themselves.

Scarlett, meanwhile, stumbled onto the dirt road where the horse waited, tethered and restless. The Omega had done what she promised. The beast shifted its weight, snorting as if sensing her desperation.

Scarlett grabbed the reins, her ankle screaming as she pulled herself up. Pain blinded her, but freedom pushed her forward.

She had no money. No allies. No wolf.