Alina's POV
"You're pathetic, Alina." Marcus's voice boomed loud and cruel in the courtyard, reverberating off the brick walls as though it wasn't enough to break me just once. My knees buckled threateningly beneath me, but I stood firm, clenching my shaking hands into fists to prevent them from betraying my weakness. The whole pack was watching-every face a mask of either humor or disgust. "Did you really think I'd want someone like you?" he went on, the corners of his mouth curled in a sneer. His eyes, warm and hazel, were cold and distant now when they looked at me. My voice was gone, caught in my throat. The soft hum of the bond between them was an insidious thread tugging at my chest with longing when his words should have shredded me. "Marcus…" My voice broke, barely audible above the murmurs of the crowd. “Don't say my name," he growled, body closing in on mine. "I, Beta Marcus of the Silvercrest Pack, reject you, Alina, as my mate." My wolf whined at the pain, its forlorn cry echoing inside my head, as I stumbled backward, grasping at the invisible scar ripping through me. The bond whipped apart, and an emptiness yawned open, so deep, so resounding, that part of me had ceased to exist. "No," I whispered, head shaking wildly. Tears blurred my vision, but I forced myself to look into his eyes. "Please… You can't do this." Marcus sneered at me; the mockery dripped from every angle of his face. "I just did. And why not? You are just an Omega, weak and worthless. You're a shame to this pack.” A wave of laughter filtered through the audience. At the sound, my heart wrenched painfully. These were people I had grown up with, people I cared about. And now, they delighted in my humiliation. "Enough!" Alpha Richard's voice cut through the noise, sharp and commanding. The crowd fell silent at that, parting quickly as he stepped forward. The towering frame and icy demeanor of the Alpha sent a shiver down my spine. "Marcus has spoken," he said, his lips curling into a cruel smile. "You are no longer his mate. And as far as I'm concerned, you are no longer one of us." My heart plummeted. "Alpha, please," I begged, my voice shaking. "I've done nothing wrong. I've served this pack loyally— “Loyal?" He laughed, the sound low and humorless. "You call yourself loyal while your family plots against me? You're lucky I'm being merciful, Alina. If it were left to me, you'd rot alongside them." "Alongside them?" I repeated, some thread of horror seeping into my tone. The smile now extended to the Alpha's features. "Oh, you haven't heard? Your parents are in custody for treason. They were caught conspiring with rogues to overthrow me." "No!" I shrieked, my head shaking in violent denial. "That's not true! My parents would never—" "Take her away," he said, his hand flicking in a dismissive wave. But I didn't. I whirled and sprinted back to the packhouse, my head reeling. This had to be some horrible lie. My parents, who'd been loyal always, who'd instilled into me the respect due to the Alpha, would never commit treason against their own country. I flung myself upon our house, my breathing in tattered gasps. The thing which met me glaciated me right where I was. My mother and father knelt in the dirt, hands locked behind their heads, mouths gagged. Two enforcers stood on their backs, arms clamped against my father's shoulders from behind. "No!" I yelled running to their side. "What am I doing? Let them go!" One of the enforcers snarled as his firm hand connected with my chest, sending me backward. I teetered, caught my balance. "What have they done?" I asked, desperation shaking my voice. "Why are you doing this?" The enforcer sneered. "Orders from the Alpha. Stay out of the way, girl." I turned to my mother-her wide eyes filled with fear. "Mama…" My voice cracked. "What's happening? Tell me what's happening!" She shook her head frantically, her face streaming with tears. "Get her out of here," one of the enforcers growled. "No!" I shrieked again this time trying to push my way past them. But they were too strong. They dragged my parents from the house, and I followed after them, my heart pounding against my chest. "Stop!" I yelled. "Please! You have to tell me what's going on!" They said nothing. They dragged my parents through the streets, the pack gathering to watch. I could hear their whispers, their snickers. "She's pathetic." "Like mother like daughter." "Probably conspiring with rogues herself." The words cut into me, yet I didn't falter. I raced after my parents, my breathing seizing at every step. Finally, when we reached the pack courtyard where just a moment before Marcus had denied me-the Alpha was waiting. "Alpha Richard!" I shrieked, hurling myself up onto my knees in front of him. "Please! Whatever you think they've done, it's not true. My parents would never betray you. They've served this pack faithfully their entire lives!" He gazed down at me with a cold, pained amusement. "And yet, here we are." "They're innocent!" I exclaimed. "You know they're innocent!" Richard was looming over me, his eyes edging closer and closer to mine. "What I do know," he drawled with languid ease, "is that your family has been found in conspiracy with the rogues for the sole intention of overthrowing my rule. It is proof absolute." "That's a lie!" I shrieked, my voice rising shrill. "You're lying!" His hand shot out and caught my chin, forcing me to look up at him. His eyes were cold and pitiless. "You would do well to watch your tone, Omega," he said in a soft, measured voice. "Or you'll join them in the dungeons." I yanked myself away from him, my chest heaving with ragged sobs. "Please…," I begged my voice breaking. "Please don't do this. They're all I have." He snarled over his back at me. "Take them to the dungeons." "No!" I shrieked scrambling onto my feet. Tried giving chase but a cold Marcus stepped into my path. "Don't make this harder than it needs to be," he said, the temperature in his voice. I glared at him, my sight blurring through my tears. "How can you do this? After everything my family has done for you-after everything I've done for you-you stand here and do nothing?" Marcus's face didn't falter. "You're not my responsibility anymore, Alina. You're nothing to me." The words shattered what was left of my heart. I turned in time to see my parents being dragged away, their muffled cries ripping into me like cold blades. My mother turned back to me; her eyes implored mine, with her tears glinting in the sun. And then they were gone. Cold, hollow rage began to well inside me, drowning out the pain. "You'll regret this," I said, my voice low, my body shaking with rage. The Alpha turned back to me, the hint of an amused smile playing on his lips. "Is that so?" "I'll come back," I said, my voice growing braver. "I'll come back and I'll destroy everything you've ever built. I'll make you pay for what you've done to my family." And then silence fell over the courtyard. For one very still moment, the Alpha's smirk faltered. Then he laughed. "You?" he spat, the word dribbling with malice from his lips. "You are nothing, Alina. You will die out there, all alone, and nobody will ever remember." I heard the crowd laughing along with him-cruel voices that seemed to close in around me on all sides. And I didn't care. I looked back at the Alpha, my eyes ablaze with unshed tears. "I'll make you pay for this," I whispered, more for my ears than for his.(Alina's POV) The courtyard was empty, yet the jeering laughter of the crowd still echoed in my ears long after they were gone. I stood paralyzed staring after where my parents had been dragged away. My hands shook, an open hollow sensation filling my chest where my heart once lay. Gone. Every step they had taken away from me felt like a knife carving into my soul. My parents—my only family—wrongfully imprisoned, humiliated in front of the pack they’d served faithfully for years. The Alpha’s cruel words replayed in my mind like a taunt: You’ll die out there, alone and forgotten. My fists clenched as I swallowed hard around the lump in my throat. I wouldn't cry. Not here, not now. They didn't deserve to witness my tears. But as I turned to leave, the reality of what lay ahead-the real part-hit with the force of a physical punch. I had nowhere to go. Not a house anymore, not even a home, just some mangled piece of what once stood here. The door was open, the living room ransack
(Kennedy's POV) I stood over the unconscious woman sprawled at my feet, the soft glow of the moonlight catching the blood staining her torn clothes. Her breathing was shallow but even. Her dark hair was matted, strands clinging to her sweat-dampened face. A face so delicate, yet marred with bruises and scratches from the fight. I frowned. This was supposed to be a simple task. I hadn't been patrolling this stretch of the Northern borders out of duty-I had simply been clearing my head after another tiresome dispute among my council members. The rogues had been nothing more than a distraction, an irritation that required swift elimination. And this girl… She was an unexpected complication. "Troublesome," I growled under my breath, crouching beside her. It was then that her scent hit me, something faint and sweet, yet layered with a sorrow so deep it cut through the coldness I'd so carefully nurtured. My wolf stirred, pacing restlessly in my mind. I ignored him. She was a stranger,
(Kennedy's POV)I just couldn't take my eyes off of hers. She lay statue-still on the cot, wide, round, bewildered eyes fixed on me. The word still lingered in my mind—mate.I didn't mean to inch closer, didn't mean to let my defenses drop. Yet my body did, of its own accord, at the insistence of something so utterly beyond my control. I was beside her in one heartbeat, tucking my arms around her shaking form.“You're my mate," I snarled softly and low into her, yanking her up against me. She fit so completely within the circle of my arms that my wolf growled in satisfaction.She didn't push away, but she didn't react either. Her hands remained loose at her sides, her head still cocked up to mine, the expression on her face shocked and disbelieving.I didn't care. I didn't let it bother me that she didn't get it, didn't care my actions made no sense - not even to me. All I knew was the way my chest burned, the way my heart raced like it never had before.She was mine.But why? How?I
(Alina's POV)The warm light coming through the window seemed to scald my skin. My body hurt, but my heart was an even further ache.I lay staring at the ceiling and tried to put together pieces of my life that I was picking up in shards. Every breath I took reminded me of how weak I was, how powerless I would always be. My throat pulsed in pain with every intake of air, a sharp, relentless reminder that even my voice, my only way to scream out my agony-was gone.My parents…Their struggles flashed in my mind then, the stifled screams, the pack's jeers, the sadistic laughter that had haunted me as I had crawled on my knees in supplication. I clutched at my chest as if that would hold it inside, keep it from bursting free, but it wouldn't. It never did.I had sworn vengeance, hadn't I? I had promised to destroy them all. But now, I couldn't form the words to repeat that promise.Tears slipped hot and uncontrolled down my cheeks. Mom and Dad gone, my pack gone-everything I'd ever known,
(Kennedy's Pov)Days passed with Alina receiving treatment for her injuries but there was still no sign of her talking. Communication has been hard but I was glad she could write. I watched her sleep, wake up, eat little, and stay in a daze all day without being responsive, and I could do nothing other than sit with her, hoping my being close to her would help a bit since I was her mate. But, to be honest, I couldn't help it anymore, I wanted her to pay attention to me, I wanted to know what was going on in her heart, I wanted to know her past, I wanted to know who had hurt her so badly so I could go for a kill! But she wasn't telling me, and the mate pull was not helping at all as it seemed to affect just me and not her, making me wonder if she truly accepted me.*Sitting in the infirmary as I talked with Jerry.*“So what do you want to do? Do you want to keep her here? What if her family is looking for her?” Jerry asked worriedly as he mixed the next herbs that were to be taken by
(Kennedy Pov) I waited with bated breath after asking the question. I couldn't wait anymore, it was time for her to know what was going on, I know it was too early and she was facing some challenges but I wished to help her legitimately. I looked at her widened eyes as she looked surprised and then she furrowed her brows in contemplation, I wanted to know what was going on in her mind. This is one of the reasons I said I want to make her mine. After she becomes mine, then I will be able to read her thoughts and know when she is in distress. Then she sat up gently and looked deeply at me then shook her head heavily. My heart clenched painfully.“Are you rejecting me, Alina?” I asked and it seemed my voice came out too hard as I saw her flinch. I softened my voice, “Why? You are my mate! Don't you feel the connection between us? You can't deny it, it will happen anytime. The bond is real. Don't reject me, hmm..” I looked at her expectantly. Then she took her pen and book to write,
(Alina Pov)I looked at his shocked face speechlessly, then dressed myself appropriately with an embarrassed smile. I felt ashamed. I said I didn't want him but my body reacted so heavily to him. Thinking about the way my body has felt putty. I couldn't control myself, I didn't feel disgusted, all I felt was sweet sensations all over my body, I can't deny that. But… I can't give it a chance, I can't get hurt again, I don't want to face that same embarrassment, that same pain I had faced that day. And what I need now is not love, but power, I need to strengthen myself, I want to take revenge, I want to save my parents and take them out of the hole they are. I looked at him and decided to make things clear, so I wrote in the book, “Yes, I truly had a mate before, but we didn't get married, but he is one of the reasons I left and you met me in that situation. I was rejected by my mate and now I don't have a mate. But you saying you are my mate is more confusing, because how is it possi
(Kennedy's POV)I stormed out of her room, my mind storming with all sorts of emotions. Her words echoed inside my head, each word deeper and more painful than the last."I don't have the heart to take in someone as beautiful as you."Beautiful? That's all she thought of me? Like some passing fancy, something she could admire but never have. And her rejection wasn't a hit against my pride, it ripped the bond I felt so well. She thought she was saving me from pain, but in doing so, she was ripping me apart.My hands fisted, my nails digging into the palmar surfaces. The mention of her past mate, Marcus, seemed to fan the fire in me. He had rejected her? Hurt her so deeply she couldn't even see her worth anymore? I wanted to hunt him down and make him pay for what he had done to her. My wolf growled low in my mind in complete agreement."Weak fool," my wolf growled. "He didn't deserve her. But you do. She's ours to claim!I exhaled sharply, trying to steady myself. No. She wasn't ready
(Kennedy's POV)The woods smelled damp from the morning dew, the faint aroma of pine and earth mingling with something sharper—a metallic tang carried by the wind. I didn't need to smell it to know it was blood. Faint traces lingered in the air, old enough to dull its freshness but recent enough to remind me that rogues had passed through.My grip tightened on the reins as my steed snorted uneasily, ears flicking at invisible dangers. The stillness of the woods was unnatural; it felt forced, the kind one experienced before a storm or the ambush of an enemy."Alpha," Dean called out softly, his voice low and to my right as he flanked me. "Signs of movement ahead. Inconsistent tracks, but they're moving deeper into the woods.I didn't turn to him; my eyes stayed fixed on the shadowed expanse before us. "Scattered patterns," I said, my voice listless. "They're rogues. Sloppy, disorganized. They don't even know what they're running toward."Dan, riding just behind me, let out a low chuckl
(Kennedy's POV)I stormed out of her room, my mind storming with all sorts of emotions. Her words echoed inside my head, each word deeper and more painful than the last."I don't have the heart to take in someone as beautiful as you."Beautiful? That's all she thought of me? Like some passing fancy, something she could admire but never have. And her rejection wasn't a hit against my pride, it ripped the bond I felt so well. She thought she was saving me from pain, but in doing so, she was ripping me apart.My hands fisted, my nails digging into the palmar surfaces. The mention of her past mate, Marcus, seemed to fan the fire in me. He had rejected her? Hurt her so deeply she couldn't even see her worth anymore? I wanted to hunt him down and make him pay for what he had done to her. My wolf growled low in my mind in complete agreement."Weak fool," my wolf growled. "He didn't deserve her. But you do. She's ours to claim!I exhaled sharply, trying to steady myself. No. She wasn't ready
(Alina Pov)I looked at his shocked face speechlessly, then dressed myself appropriately with an embarrassed smile. I felt ashamed. I said I didn't want him but my body reacted so heavily to him. Thinking about the way my body has felt putty. I couldn't control myself, I didn't feel disgusted, all I felt was sweet sensations all over my body, I can't deny that. But… I can't give it a chance, I can't get hurt again, I don't want to face that same embarrassment, that same pain I had faced that day. And what I need now is not love, but power, I need to strengthen myself, I want to take revenge, I want to save my parents and take them out of the hole they are. I looked at him and decided to make things clear, so I wrote in the book, “Yes, I truly had a mate before, but we didn't get married, but he is one of the reasons I left and you met me in that situation. I was rejected by my mate and now I don't have a mate. But you saying you are my mate is more confusing, because how is it possi
(Kennedy Pov) I waited with bated breath after asking the question. I couldn't wait anymore, it was time for her to know what was going on, I know it was too early and she was facing some challenges but I wished to help her legitimately. I looked at her widened eyes as she looked surprised and then she furrowed her brows in contemplation, I wanted to know what was going on in her mind. This is one of the reasons I said I want to make her mine. After she becomes mine, then I will be able to read her thoughts and know when she is in distress. Then she sat up gently and looked deeply at me then shook her head heavily. My heart clenched painfully.“Are you rejecting me, Alina?” I asked and it seemed my voice came out too hard as I saw her flinch. I softened my voice, “Why? You are my mate! Don't you feel the connection between us? You can't deny it, it will happen anytime. The bond is real. Don't reject me, hmm..” I looked at her expectantly. Then she took her pen and book to write,
(Kennedy's Pov)Days passed with Alina receiving treatment for her injuries but there was still no sign of her talking. Communication has been hard but I was glad she could write. I watched her sleep, wake up, eat little, and stay in a daze all day without being responsive, and I could do nothing other than sit with her, hoping my being close to her would help a bit since I was her mate. But, to be honest, I couldn't help it anymore, I wanted her to pay attention to me, I wanted to know what was going on in her heart, I wanted to know her past, I wanted to know who had hurt her so badly so I could go for a kill! But she wasn't telling me, and the mate pull was not helping at all as it seemed to affect just me and not her, making me wonder if she truly accepted me.*Sitting in the infirmary as I talked with Jerry.*“So what do you want to do? Do you want to keep her here? What if her family is looking for her?” Jerry asked worriedly as he mixed the next herbs that were to be taken by
(Alina's POV)The warm light coming through the window seemed to scald my skin. My body hurt, but my heart was an even further ache.I lay staring at the ceiling and tried to put together pieces of my life that I was picking up in shards. Every breath I took reminded me of how weak I was, how powerless I would always be. My throat pulsed in pain with every intake of air, a sharp, relentless reminder that even my voice, my only way to scream out my agony-was gone.My parents…Their struggles flashed in my mind then, the stifled screams, the pack's jeers, the sadistic laughter that had haunted me as I had crawled on my knees in supplication. I clutched at my chest as if that would hold it inside, keep it from bursting free, but it wouldn't. It never did.I had sworn vengeance, hadn't I? I had promised to destroy them all. But now, I couldn't form the words to repeat that promise.Tears slipped hot and uncontrolled down my cheeks. Mom and Dad gone, my pack gone-everything I'd ever known,
(Kennedy's POV)I just couldn't take my eyes off of hers. She lay statue-still on the cot, wide, round, bewildered eyes fixed on me. The word still lingered in my mind—mate.I didn't mean to inch closer, didn't mean to let my defenses drop. Yet my body did, of its own accord, at the insistence of something so utterly beyond my control. I was beside her in one heartbeat, tucking my arms around her shaking form.“You're my mate," I snarled softly and low into her, yanking her up against me. She fit so completely within the circle of my arms that my wolf growled in satisfaction.She didn't push away, but she didn't react either. Her hands remained loose at her sides, her head still cocked up to mine, the expression on her face shocked and disbelieving.I didn't care. I didn't let it bother me that she didn't get it, didn't care my actions made no sense - not even to me. All I knew was the way my chest burned, the way my heart raced like it never had before.She was mine.But why? How?I
(Kennedy's POV) I stood over the unconscious woman sprawled at my feet, the soft glow of the moonlight catching the blood staining her torn clothes. Her breathing was shallow but even. Her dark hair was matted, strands clinging to her sweat-dampened face. A face so delicate, yet marred with bruises and scratches from the fight. I frowned. This was supposed to be a simple task. I hadn't been patrolling this stretch of the Northern borders out of duty-I had simply been clearing my head after another tiresome dispute among my council members. The rogues had been nothing more than a distraction, an irritation that required swift elimination. And this girl… She was an unexpected complication. "Troublesome," I growled under my breath, crouching beside her. It was then that her scent hit me, something faint and sweet, yet layered with a sorrow so deep it cut through the coldness I'd so carefully nurtured. My wolf stirred, pacing restlessly in my mind. I ignored him. She was a stranger,
(Alina's POV) The courtyard was empty, yet the jeering laughter of the crowd still echoed in my ears long after they were gone. I stood paralyzed staring after where my parents had been dragged away. My hands shook, an open hollow sensation filling my chest where my heart once lay. Gone. Every step they had taken away from me felt like a knife carving into my soul. My parents—my only family—wrongfully imprisoned, humiliated in front of the pack they’d served faithfully for years. The Alpha’s cruel words replayed in my mind like a taunt: You’ll die out there, alone and forgotten. My fists clenched as I swallowed hard around the lump in my throat. I wouldn't cry. Not here, not now. They didn't deserve to witness my tears. But as I turned to leave, the reality of what lay ahead-the real part-hit with the force of a physical punch. I had nowhere to go. Not a house anymore, not even a home, just some mangled piece of what once stood here. The door was open, the living room ransack