A Betrayal Thereafter

It had been almost a year since Caden's rejection, and her life had taken a tragic turn. Life became more unkind to her than it ever was. Her bullies became more vile after Caden’s rejection, and one of them even tracked her back to the Omega's quarter and beat her up. She had made use of crutches for two weeks.

It was as if Caden's rejection had opened more doors to misery into her life. She could feel the misery pouring into her life. 

More Omegas had joined the quarters. Harris, Noah, and Jessie. And, although River had thought they'd fill the void in her and made her life a little less tragic, her life had not been any better. The bullies had no mercy. They made her miserable. Ever since Caden's rejection, she had never lived a day without a scar. It was either a scar or a broken bone every other day. So, the day she clocked eighteen, she made her decision.

"You can't be serious," Tessa echoed in the room, looking up from the laptop with a broken screen in which she was engrossed in before River dropped the bombshell.

Tessa had always had River’s bag through the bullying she faced. She confronted her and reminded her each time that no condition was permanent. Whenever River came home with broken limbs or broken ankle or bruised face, she try to cheer her up by joking that she was going to get married to an Alpha in the North and get revenge on her behalf. And, she would manage to make Tessa laugh through the cracked lips, bruised face, and broken bones. Now, she had just told that friend that she would be leaving the Pack for good.

"Are you joking?" Tessa spat when she realized River was dead serious, pushing her bowl of cereal and her laptop aside.

"I've thought this hard, Tessa. I'm sick and tired of being a punching bag for those monsters. I want to leave."

River's tone had indeed sounded bitter and tired. She was moved to tears. She had had the thought since Caden rejected her ruthlessly. 

"Look, I understand why you would want to leave, but have you thought this enough? You know the fate that awaits you once you leave the Pack, right? You know what would become of you."

"I know," River breathed, picking at the loosened wools of her jeans. "I'd become a rogue. I'd become an outcast in Packs."

"You might be treated worse, River."

"No," River cuts in, her voice cracking. "I've experienced worse already, Tessa. I've tasted worse. I've seen worse. I'm prepared for anything that's to come my way in the future. I'm prepared for this life."

"So, you would abandon me?" River heard the dread in Tessa's tone and a bile rose in her throat. 

She had no choice. The torture she was going through in the Pack was too much. Every morning, when the morning sun assaulted her eyes, she had always questioned why God had bothered to wake her up - her grandmother always said God was the one who woke everyone up. He protect his own, she had always said. 

Her life was misery. And, it was all because of what Caden did to her. He made a ruin of her life and left her to fix it. But, there was nothing there to fix. She had been ruined beyond damage.

"River, I'm not trying to be selfish. I know what is best for you. I know leaving this hell hole is the best option for you. But, I'm still worried for you. For the life waiting for you out there."

River understands Tessa's point. Life as a rogue was far worse than life as an omega, sometimes. A rogue was an outcast, wolves that were kicked out of their Packs or wolves that left the Packs to seek revenge in other Packs. Either way, they were outcasts, and sometimes, an Alpha of a Pack passes a cruel judgement to kill them if they are ever found.

River was playing with death, but she had accepted, times and times again, that death would be far better than the life she lived.

Still, River didn't say all that. She just nodded to her friend and whispered, "I know."

Tessa watched her with a sorrowful gaze and a huge frown as her friend climbed up the wooden stairs. She swallowed her tears. River was still limping. Anthony, one of her bullies, had cornered her in the restroom and stabbed her feet with a mop stick. Though the healing process was slow because she didn't have a wolf at the point, it finally healed after a few days. 

~

After sobbing a little more, River put herself to sleep. But, she was woken up by a continuous banging. When the banging proceeded, she got off her bed and followed the noise. It was past eleven, and she had heard everyone retire to her room when she was sobbing silently awhile ago. 

She went downstairs, tiptoeing the lazy wooden stairs, praying it wouldn't creak like it always does so that she could catch the intruder. 

When she followed the sound to the kitchen and saw a familiar figure standing over the work table, chopping onions aggressively, her mouth flew open.

Her uncle, Uncle Derek.

"Oh, you are awake! I thought you wouldn't wake up." Uncle Derek said cheerfully after he had spotted her standing by the kitchen entrance from the corner of her eyes.

"It's past eleven!"

River snapped, rushing over to the stove to turn it off just as he was about putting the spaghetti into a boiling water. 

"What the hell do you think you are doing in my kitchen?" She asked, eyebrows raised at him angrily. "Give me that!" She snatches the spaghetti from his grip, shoving it back into a cupboard.

"I just wanted to make something for my princess. It has been a while, and I miss you."

"Get out." River bit out, glaring hard at him.

"Oh, come on, River. I thought we were past this? Let's make amends, okay? I remember you always love my spaghetti mixed with ca—"

"I said, get out!" River yelled, shoving him slightly. "Leave now before I do something you'd regret."

"Come on, Princess. Let's not do this. We are way past this." Uncle Derek tried in a pleading tone, his eyelashes fluttering with plea.

"I don't want to talk to you now. Maybe sometimes in the future, but not just now when everything you did is still fresh."

"I'm returning back to my Pack this night, and I might not return again. This is the last time you might see me, River. And, I'm here to make amends. Please."

Uncle Derek pleaded. 

"Okay. Just a walk. Take a walk with me. I just want your company before I finally leave for good."

River gazed up at him, staring into his caramel brown eyes. They were just like her father's. The way Uncle Derek had taken almost every feature of her father, leaving her with nothing, was almost scary.

Slowly, River nodded and walked past him.

Uncle Derek smiled softly and followed after her, into the cold, chilly night.

"How is life here?"

Uncle Derek is the first person to break the overwhelming silence.

As River parted her lips to share her experience with him, she realized all of them were filled with horrific events. And, she didn't want to pressure Uncle Derek into helping her out of it, so she had chosen a lie instead.

"Good. Normal. Just like every life of an omega."

River dug her hands into her black hoodie pocket, breathing in the chilly air.

"You can always ask if you need anything." Unvle Derek offered, smiling softly. And River nodded, already warming up to him.

"I'm sorry I didn't make it for your mother's death anniversary."

"It's fine. We didn't do it anyway."

Uncle Derek frowned.

"Why?"

"No money." River responded matter-of-factly, as if it was already obvious.

"About that." Uncle Derek stopped on his track, forcing River to a halt as he fishes out a phone with cracked skin from his pocket. He extends it to her. "Put your number in."

"Why?" River curved a brow.

"I would wire you some money when I get back to my Pack. Use it to eat good meals."

"You really don't have to..." River started. 

"I do, River. I should have become your father figure after the death of your father, but things happened. I became too greedy, and my worst side took over. This is like compensation. So please, don't say no." 

River nodded and typed in her number. He was right. If anything, she deserved to be put on the first page of his will for what he did to her and the damage he had caused her. When she passed back to him, he was absentminded, staring around the woods anxiously.

Maybe he was running away from somebody.

River tapped him gently, drawing his attention back to her. He accepted the phone and passed her an apologetic smile. 

"Can you wait here? I'd like to pee."

Uncle Derek said, dashing into the woods. 

River waited for him for several hours, leaning against the tree that was behind her. And, when he reappeared, he did with two hefty men in black from head to toe. 

She frowned at them as they sauntered towards her in sync. When they all stopped before her, Uncle Derek suddenly pointed to her, all the warmth she had seen in his gaze minutes ago disappeared and retired.

"That is her." Uncle Derek suddenly barked.

The men in Black tshirt, black leather jacket, Black pants, Black boots, and black masked that had done well to hide their facs, stepped forward, and collecting River by her elbow.

"What is going on?!" River struggled wrenching free from the masked men grip, but her struggles were ruthless.

"What is going on is that I finally put you to good use in my life."

River caught Uncle Derek's smirk.

"What do you mean?!" Uncle Derek doesn't answer. He just turns to the masked men and smiles widely. "Tell Alpha that I appreciate his generosity. I never thought he would be buying her with such a huge amount."

River's eyes widened. Buying her?!

"Buying me?! What do you mean?!"

"Slavery fits you better than an Omega, don't you think? In that case, have a nice life, Princess."

Then, he swirled around, disappearing into the darkness of the woods.

"Uncle Derek?! Come back here and explain what you mean! Derek!!"

He had walked into the woods, and her cry fell on deaf ears. When she had struggled too much, a syringe was stabbed into her skin, and the next thing, her world went blank.