Chapter 2: Shattered And Castout
743 Words
POV: Freya
I kept walking. Through branches that clawed my skin. Through mud that swallowed my steps. Through the ache in my bones that begged me to stop.
But I didn’t.
I couldn’t.
The pain in my chest was worse than anything I’d ever felt. Rejection wasn’t just emotional—it was physical. Like my soul had been ripped out and stomped on.
Why did she choose him? I thought bitterly. The Moon Goddess—why him? Of all the wolves on this earth, why bind me to the one man who looked me in the eye and threw me away like trash?
Each time I closed my eyes, I saw his face. Not the boy I used to smile at in secret. Not the Alpha I used to admire from afar.
I saw the man who laughed at me. Who rejected me in front of the whole pack. Who didn’t flinch as I crumbled at his feet.
My legs finally gave out beside a fallen tree. I dropped onto the forest floor and let the silence devour me.
I’m nothing now.
An omega. Mate-less. Useless.
I pressed my forehead to my knees and whispered the truth I didn’t want to say out loud.
“He was right.”
POV: Kade
I shouldn’t still be thinking about her.
Freya.
Even her name was soft. Sweet.
Too sweet for this world.
I stared out across the darkened hall as the celebration continued without me. Mates danced under the stars, wolves howled in joy, and yet all I felt was the echo of her eyes.
Big. Hurt. Wild with disbelief.
She looked at me like I’d just torn the sky apart.
I should’ve looked away.
Instead, I looked longer than I should have. Long enough to see the exact second her heart broke.
I downed another glass of wine. The burn didn’t reach the hollowness inside me.
“She’s gone, Alpha,” Steven said quietly behind me. “She ran into the eastern forest. Past the border.”
I didn’t respond.
“She could die out there.”
“She’ll survive,” I muttered. “Omegas are good at crawling through dirt.”
He paused. “You don’t believe that.”
I didn’t reply.
Because I didn’t know what I believed anymore.
POV: Freya
I don’t know how long I stayed there. Hours. Maybe the whole night.
Eventually, the cold began to sink in. My hands were numb. My stomach ached. My wolf—usually a steady presence in the back of my mind—was silent.
Then I heard it.
Leaves crunching. Low voices. Too many.
I froze. My body tensed, my nose twitching for scent.
Not Nightfang wolves.
Not pack wolves at all.
Rogues.
Panic surged, but my limbs were too slow. Before I could rise, a boot kicked my side and sent me rolling onto my back.
“Found something,” a voice sneered. “Looks like a lost little lamb.”
Four of them. Dirty. Scarred. Reeking of blood and smoke.
One stepped closer, crouching. His eyes glinted with amusement as he took in my torn dress, bruised arms, and trembling hands.
“Where’s your pack, little Luna?”
I lifted my chin. “Go to hell.”
He grinned. “Feisty. I like that.”
He reached for me—and that’s when another figure emerged from the shadows behind them.
Tall. Broad. Covered in black.
The rogues straightened instantly.
“Alpha,” one of them muttered.
The newcomer stepped forward. His presence sucked the air from the clearing. His face was mostly hidden under a hood, but his voice was sharp and cold.
“She’s mine now.”
The others backed away immediately.
He moved toward me and crouched down. I tried to scramble back, but I had nothing left.
“Easy,” he said. His voice wasn’t soft—but it wasn’t cruel either. “You’ve been thrown out, haven’t you?”
I glared up at him. “Why do you care?”
He tilted his head. “Because I know what it's like to be tossed aside.”
I stared at him, trying to find the lie in his voice. But there was only steel.
He offered me his hand.
“Come with me, little wolf,” he said. “Let me show you what power really feels like.”
My hand trembled as I placed it in his.
And just like that, everything I knew… ended.
- Writer
