The Alpha's Greatest Mistake

Chapter 3

Lucas began dragging Aria away. Aria writhed in pain, but instead of tears, a strange rage was beginning to grow inside her.

When she was thrown onto the cold stone floor of the dungeon, she lay there with her head resting against the rocky wall. It felt as though life itself was slowly slipping away from her. Alpha Xavier's cruel rejection had not only taken away her social status, but had shattered every cell inside her. For wolves, the breaking of a mating bond was like experiencing hell while still alive.

"You must not die, Aria..."

Suddenly, a faint and fragile voice echoed inside her mind. It was not her own voice. Aria was startled. Was she losing her mind?

"Who are you?" Aria whispered weakly.

"I am your soul... I am the wolf everyone believed was dead. They rejected you because they never knew your true worth. But now, it is not only me inside you... there are two more lives beating within you."

Aria slowly placed her trembling hands over her lower abdomen. A gentle warmth spread beneath her palms. Tears rolled down her cheeks. Even in the middle of this darkness, hatred, and humiliation, new life existed within her? Xavier's children? She was carrying the mark of the man who had thrown her away like an animal.

"I won't let them grow up in this hell," Aria vowed silently. A different kind of determination shone in her eyes.

At that moment, the dungeon door opened.

Xavier's Beta, Lucas, walked inside. Two huge guards followed behind him. There was a hint of sympathy in Lucas's eyes for Aria, but he was powerless before his Alpha's orders.

"Aria, Alpha Xavier has ordered us to erase your Mating Mark. It has already been burned from within. Now it must be burned from the outside. The Alpha does not want any mark of his to remain on the body of an accursed Omega like you."

Aria shrank back in terror. Removing a Mating Mark meant burning away raw flesh. It was more painful than death itself.

"No! Please! Let me go! I'll leave... I'll go far away! None of you will ever see me again!" Aria cried desperately.

Lucas let out a long sigh.

"I'm sorry, Aria. I don't have the power to disobey the Alpha's orders."

The guards grabbed Aria and chained her to a chair. One of them stepped forward holding a red-hot iron rod. Aria tried to scream, but her mouth was covered. The moment the burning iron touched the soft skin on her neck, Aria felt as though her brain was on fire.

A heart-wrenching scream escaped Aria's lips, echoing beyond the dungeon and reaching the borders of the pack. The horrible smell of burning flesh and the unbearable pain made her experience hell itself. The Mating Bond Xavier had given her seemed to shatter into pieces in an instant.

The intensity of the pain caused Aria's eyes to roll back. Her body convulsed several times before everything went still. She lost consciousness and lay motionless.

Xavier pulled the iron rod away. An ugly burn scar now covered Aria's fair skin, a scar that would remain the greatest disgrace of her life. For a brief moment, something flickered across Xavier's eyes, but the next second, his expression turned as cold as stone again.

"It's done," Xavier said coldly. "Take her away from here. She no longer has a place in this palace. Throw her into the old broken cottage beside the stable behind the palace. From today onward, she is the pack's 'Branded Omega.'"

The next morning, when Aria opened her eyes, she found herself lying in a filthy place beside the stable. The hay beneath her was damp, and the burn wound on her neck throbbed like poison. No one had treated her. No medicine had been given to her.

"You're awake, cursed girl?"

Sophia stood at the doorway. She was dressed in an expensive silk outfit and held a whip in her hand. Xavier had given her full authority to "discipline" Aria.

"Get up! It's the Alpha's order. From today onward, you'll wash the armor and bloodstained clothes of every warrior in the pack. And listen carefully—if I find even a single drop of blood left on those clothes, this whip will speak to your back."

With great difficulty, Aria forced herself to stand. She had no strength left in her body, yet she was dragged to the riverside. The water was freezing cold. She was forced to stand in the icy river all day, washing heavy metal armor and filthy clothes.

Hunger burned through her stomach. She was no longer alone. There were two more lives growing inside her, even though they had not yet taken shape.

When she reached for a small piece of bread, Marta, the head maid, threw it in front of the dogs.

"These dogs are more loyal than you, Aria. You're not even worthy of eating a dog's leftovers." Marta laughed cruelly before sending her back to work.

Aria swallowed all of her pain and anger in silence.

That evening, as Aria was returning in exhaustion, Xavier stopped her halfway.

Xavier stood there with one arm wrapped around Sophia's waist.

"Stop," Xavier said.

He deliberately smeared some mud onto Sophia's shoe and held it out in front of Aria.

"Clean my Luna's shoe, Aria. From today onward, this is your status."

Aria knelt down. Her hands trembled as she wiped Sophia's shoe.

Just then, Sophia deliberately stepped on Aria's injured neck. Aria cried out in pain.

Xavier simply stood there and watched. His wolf, Ken, struggled within him, but Xavier suppressed those feelings with his human stubbornness.

"Come, Sophia. This filthy girl's touch is making your shoes even dirtier."

That night, when Aria returned to her dark little cottage, she lay on the floor and cried endlessly. She felt as though she would die at any moment.

But suddenly, she felt a strange sensation.

There was a tiny movement inside her stomach.

At first, she thought it was only her imagination. But the next moment, a strong wave of nausea hit her. Her sense of smell had become several times sharper. She could now smell the scent of wolves' blood from a great distance.

Aria placed her hand over her stomach.

Her heart seemed to stop for a moment.

Among wolves, if a pregnancy survives even after the Mating Mark has been burned away, the children are destined to be extraordinarily powerful.

"No... the child of that poisonous man is growing inside me?" Aria whispered.

She finally understood why Xavier had not killed her.

Xavier wanted her to suffer and die little by little.

But now, Aria was no longer alone.

She could not die.

She had to live for the sake of her unborn children.

"You burned me, Xavier... You took away my dignity," Aria said as she clenched her bloodstained hand into a fist in the darkness.

"But remember this—one day, this burn scar will become the reason for your destruction. I will escape... and t

he day I return, I will reduce your pride to ashes."