Did he really save her?
1989 Words
A dull ache throbbed in Lyra’s head as she stirred awake, her body swaying slightly with the motion of—wait. She wasn’t in her bed. She wasn’t in her packhouse. Cold leather pressed against her arms. She blinked, the world sharpening into focus.
She was in a car.
Panic clawed up her throat as she turned, her breath catching at the sight of a man sitting beside her. He was watching her—worried, but calm. He wasn’t someone she recognized, which only made the terror sink deeper into her bones.
“Who—” Her voice cracked, her throat raw. “Who are you? Where are you taking me?”
The man held up his hands, as if to assure her he meant no harm. “I’m Beta Chase of the Bloodfang Pack,” he said smoothly, his voice deep yet oddly reassuring. “We came with Alpha Kyson and Xander to visit the Moonveil Pack. And, well…I happened to witness something very interesting.”
His smile was warm, but Lyra only stiffened further. She didn’t care who he was. She only cared about why the hell she was here.
“Take me back,” she said immediately, sitting up despite the nausea twisting her stomach. “Right now.”
Chase’s brows furrowed, but he didn’t look surprised. He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck before glancing at her again.
“Are you sure? Do you really want to go back to a place where you were rejected?” His voice was gentle, but his words hit like a knife to the gut.
Lyra swallowed hard, her heart squeezing painfully.
Rejected.
She could still hear Kyson’s cold voice in her mind. ‘I don’t want a mate. Especially not a weak omega like you.’
The way he had looked at her—indifferent, dismissive. Like she was nothing. Like fate had played some cruel joke by tying them together.
She clenched her jaw, shaking her head. “That’s none of your business,” she bit out. “Take me back.”
Chase sighed again, but he didn’t turn around the car. “Look, I get it. You’re hurting. But do you even know what you’re walking back into? Once Kyson officially rejects you, do you think your pack will welcome you with open arms?”
His words sent a fresh wave of dread washing over her.
He was right.
What was waiting for her back at Moonveil ?
She had no family left. No status. No protection. As an omega, she was already treated like dirt. But a rejected omega? She’d be worse than worthless.
A bitter laugh escaped her lips before she could stop it. “So what? I’m supposed to just… what? Run away? Hide?” She turned to Chase, her chest tightening. “I don’t have anywhere else to go.”
Chase hesitated, then shook his head. “You do now.”
Lyra stared at him in disbelief. “What?”
“Our pack,” he said simply. “Bloodfang. Kyson’s pack. And your pack now, too.”
Lyra flinched. The mere thought of being forced into the same place as her mates, where they could ignore her existence every day, made her stomach churn.
“No,” she whispered. “I don’t belong there. I don’t belong anywhere.”
Chase’s expression softened, but there was something unreadable in his eyes. “That’s not true.”
She turned away, staring out the window as trees blurred past.
She had dreamt of her mate for so long. She had clung to the stories of fated love, of an Alpha who would protect her, cherish her. She had endured so much—her parents' deaths, her pack’s cruelty—all for the hope that one day, her mate would come and make everything worth it.
And now?
She had two mates.
One who rejected her. One who didn’t even know if he's thinking about rejecting her too.
The irony was cruel.
What kind of mate was she, to be so unwanted? Was she cursed?
Chase’s voice pulled her from her thoughts. “You don’t have to decide now, but at least let me take you somewhere safe.”
Safe. The word felt foreign.
But at this point, did it even matter?
She had nothing left to lose.
The car was silent except for the low hum of the engine and the occasional crunch of gravel beneath the tires. The silence stretched, thick with unspoken thoughts, until Lyra finally spoke.
“So… you’re taking me to Pack Bloodfang?” Her voice was hoarse, her throat tight with exhaustion.
Chase, who had been watching the road, flicked a glance her way and nodded. “Yeah. That’s the plan.”
Lyra swallowed hard, hesitating. “Why?”
Chase sighed, as if he had expected the question. “Because it’s where you belong. You’re Kyson and Xander’s mate, and whether they like it or not, the bond will bring them around.” He offered her a reassuring smile. “Especially Xander. He’s not like Kyson.”
Lyra’s heart twisted. Especially Xander.
So there was at least one mate who might accept her. One who might not look at her like she was a burden.
She should have felt relieved. But instead, all she felt was hollow.
She turned to Chase, gripping her hands in her lap. “Do they…do they even know I’m coming?”
Chase didn’t answer immediately. His fingers tightened slightly on the steering wheel.
“Chase.” Her voice wavered. “Do they know?”
He exhaled through his nose. “Not exactly.”
Her breath hitched. “Then who asked you to bring me?”
Chase hesitated before finally admitting, “Alpha Maverick.”
Something inside her cracked.
Of course. Not Kyson. Not Xander. Not even an order from the twins themselves—just their father, cleaning up after his son’s mess.
Chase must have sensed the shift in her energy because he quickly added, “But that doesn’t mean they won’t—”
Lyra let out a bitter laugh, cutting him off. “So what? I’m supposed to just show up at their doorstep, unwanted? Force myself into a pack where I was never invited?”
Chase frowned. “That’s not what I meant.”
Lyra’s voice trembled, but her eyes burned with something raw. “No, I get it now. Kyson rejected me. Xander doesn’t even know I'm coming. And the only reason I’m being taken there is because their father felt guilty.” She shook her head. “I can’t do this.”
“Lyra—”
“Stop the car.”
Chase’s brows furrowed. “What?”
“Stop the car, Chase!”
He looked at her as if she had lost her mind. “No. It’s not safe out here.”
“I don’t care.” She reached for the door handle.
Chase’s eyes widened in alarm. “What the hell are you doing?”
“Either you stop, or I jump.” Her voice was dead serious.
Chase cursed under his breath, gripping the wheel tighter. “You’re being reckless. You don’t even know where you’ll go.”
“I don’t have anywhere to go.” Her voice cracked.
His jaw clenched. “Lyra, listen—”
“No, you listen.” She turned to him, eyes shining with unshed tears. “I am not walking into another place where I am unwanted. I spent my whole life being a burden, being tossed aside, hoping one day my mate would want me. And now, I have two of them—and neither of them brought me to their pack. Their father did.” Her breath hitched. “I won’t be someone’s obligation, Chase.”
Chase stared at her, something conflicted flashing across his face.
For a moment, it looked like he wanted to argue. But then, slowly, he exhaled.
“Damn it,” he muttered, pulling the car to the side of the road.
The tires crunched against the gravel as they came to a stop. The moment the car was still, Lyra yanked open the door and stumbled out, the cold night air biting against her skin.
Chase followed, slamming the door shut behind him. “You’re making a mistake.”
Lyra laughed, but it was broken. “Wouldn’t be my first.”
He ran a hand through his hair, exasperated. “Where are you even planning to go?”
She hesitated. The truth was, she didn’t know.
But she knew one thing—she couldn’t stay. “I’ll figure it out,” she said finally.
Chase sighed, looking at her as if he wanted to argue more, but he didn’t. Instead, his voice softened. “At least take this.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small folded card, pressing it into her palm.
She glanced down. His number.
“If you ever need help,” he said, “call me.”
Lyra’s throat tightened, but she didn’t respond. Instead, she nodded once, slipping the card into her pocket.
And then, without another word, she turned and walked into the darkness.
The cold night air sliced through Lyra's skin as she bolted into the dense jungle, her feet barely touching the ground. She didn’t know where she was going—only that she had to get away. Away from Kyson’s rejection. Away from the suffocating expectations. Away from the suffocating emptiness that gnawed at her soul.
But her breath came in ragged gasps, the thudding of her heart loud in her ears. Her legs ached with each step, her mind fogged with the suffocating weight of her emotions.
Suddenly, the sound of rustling leaves behind her made her freeze. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end, and her instincts screamed that something was wrong.
Before she could react, the snap of a twig broke the silence, and a rogue wolf leapt from the shadows, its eyes gleaming with malicious hunger.
Lyra’s breath caught in her throat. Her heart pounded as terror gripped her chest. Another rogue appeared, and then another. They circled her, their growls low, their eyes hungry and predatory.
She had nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.
The rogue in front of her lunged, and Lyra barely managed to sidestep before the creature’s claws slashed across her arm. She screamed, the sharp pain shooting up her arm, but before she could react further, the rogue’s teeth closed around her throat.
Her breath caught in her throat as the pressure tightened, and for a moment, everything went black.
This was it, she thought, feeling the warmth of her blood spilling down her neck. This is how it ends.
Her vision blurred, and everything felt like it was slipping away. But just as the rogue's teeth sank deeper, a deafening roar split the air.
A massive silver wolf crashed into the scene, his body a blur of muscle and fury. The rogue who had been about to rip into Lyra’s throat was tossed aside like a ragdoll, its body crashing into a tree with a sickening c***k.
Lyra barely had time to process what was happening before the silver wolf was upon the other rogues, his claws flashing with lethal precision. He tore through them with brutal force, his growls reverberating through the trees, sending the remaining rogues scattering into the night.
Lyra collapsed to her knees, clutching her bleeding neck, gasping for air as the world spun around her. She tried to stand, but her legs felt like jelly, her vision narrowing. The pain from the gash on her arm and the bite on her neck throbbed through her body, raw and relentless.
The silver wolf turned to her, his eyes softening as he approached. His form shifted before her, and in the blink of an eye, the massive wolf was gone, replaced by a tall, familiar figure.
Kyson.
- Writer
