2 - Silence!

“I’ll come with you,” Mama said immediately.

“No Juliet. You stay here with Selena. It’s better this way.” His eyes met mine, a silent instruction. ’Stay with your mother. Keep her safe.’

I hated it. Hated feeling so helpless. I was twenty years old, an Omega wolf, yes, but not weak. Not inside. Inside, I was a storm of things I couldn't show.

Papa left. Mama and I sat in silence for a long time. The only sound was the crackle of the small fire and the wind whistling through the cracks in the walls.

I picked at a loose thread on my tunic. Every minute that passed felt like an hour.

“He’ll be alright Selena,” Mama said, trying to sound reassuring. But I saw the fear in her eyes. We both knew what Alpha Henry was capable of.

He wasn’t like his father, Vorlag, who was a calculating tyrant.

Henry was just a brute, cruel for the sake of it. He’d inherited his Alpha position from his father, after Vorlag died some years back.

Austin, Vorlag’s other son, the dangerous one, had been exiled long before that. When I was just a baby. Rumour said he was a psychopath.

My brother, Rhys, walked in then. He was twenty five, strong, with an ambition that always made me uneasy. He’d always complained about our Omega status, about not having enough. He looked restless.

“Where’s Father??” Rhys asked, his tone abrupt.

“He went to see Alpha Henry.“ Mama said.

Rhys scoffed. “About time he learned to stand up for himself. Groveling for scraps.”

“Rhys!” Mama’s voice was sharp. “That’s your father you’re talking about. The man who raised you.”

Rhys just shrugged, looking away. He never called Papa ‘father’ if he could help it. Always ‘Alfred’ or just ‘he’. I felt that familiar contempt rise again, this time for my own brother. He had Papa’s dark hair, but none of his kindness.

His eyes were a pale, cold blue, like chips of ice. So unlike Mama’s or mine. More like... I pushed the thought away.

Hours passed. The sun started to dip below the trees, painting the sky in shades of orange and purple I usually loved. Tonight, it just looked like blood.

Papa wasn’t back.

“I’m going to look for him,” Mama said, her voice tight with anxiety.

“No, Mama, it’s too dark!” I pleaded. “Let Rhys go.”

Rhys looked up from sharpening a hunting knife, a smirk playing on his lips. “Worried, little sister?”

“He’s your father too,” I bit out, surprising myself.

His smirk widened. “Is he now?”

Before Mama or I could react to that strange comment, the door burst open.

Two guards stood there, their faces grim. Not Marcus. These were higher-ranking. More dangerous.

“Juliet Veridian?” one of them growled. “You’re to come with us. And the girl.”

“What is this?” Mama demanded, stepping in front of me. “Where is my husband?”

The guards just looked at each other. Then, one of them grabbed Mama’s arm.

“NO!!” I cried, trying to pull him off. The other guard backhanded me. Pain exploded in my cheek, and I stumbled back, tears stinging my eyes.

“Stay out of it pup!” he snarled.

Rhys just watched. He didn’t move. He didn’t say a word. His face was unreadable.

They dragged Mama out. I scrambled after them, my heart pounding in my chest like a trapped bird. “Mama! what’s happening?”

They didn’t answer. They pulled her towards the center of the Omega sector, towards the meeting clearing. My dread grew with every step.

When we got there, my blood ran cold.

Alpha Henry was there, standing on a small, raised platform. He was a big man, thickset and brutal looking, with a cruel mouth. His eyes scanned the gathered Omegas, most of whom looked terrified.

And then I saw him.

Papa.

He was tied to a post, his head lolling. Blood matted his hair, his clothes were torn. He was barely conscious.

“Papa!” I screamed, trying to run to him, but a guard grabbed my arm, his fingers diging in like talons.

“Silence!” Henry bellowed. His gaze fell on Mama, who was struggling against the guards holding her. “Juliet Veridian. Or should I say Juliet, mate of Vorlag?”

A gasp went through the crowd. Mama froze. Her face went white.

“What..what are you talking about?” she whispered, her voice trembling.