Let go of her
1384 Words
Lyra could hardly breathe once inside the hall.
The overwhelming force of Alpha auras pressed down on her. The invisible weight wrapped around her lungs was like a steel fist, making every inhale feel like she was drowning.
Her fingers tightened around the tray she carried, trying to focus, but the effort was useless. She was suffocating.
Maybe she really was the weakest Omega.
The thought made her want to laugh—bitter, self-deprecating. She had always known she wasn’t strong. She didn’t have the resilience of the other Omegas, nor the beauty that granted them favor.
She had nothing.
And yet, something else made her skin crawl. Something colder than the Alpha energy suffocating her.
A gaze.
A Sharp, calculating and wild gaze. She could feel it from somewhere among the other Alphas. But she felt too scared to lift her head and met that gaze.
A soft click of heels against the marble floor. Then, a voice—smooth as silk, laced with mock concern.
“My dear little sister,” Indigo Brightwood sighed, stepping in front of Lyra, making her stiff.
Indigo was a vision in black satin, the dress hugging her figure like it was crafted by the Moon Goddess herself. Her long, raven hair cascaded over her shoulders in soft waves, and her sharp emerald eyes gleamed with amusement.
She was perfect.
Elegant, adored and famous. She's the daughter of the Beta of the pack and the rising star of the modeling world.
The complete opposite of Lyra.
Indigo’s lips curled into a perfect little smile as she tilted her head. “What are you doing here, sweetheart? This…” She gestured vaguely at the grand doors behind them. “This place might actually kill you.”
The words were playful, but Lyra heard the bite beneath them.
She swallowed down the resentment threatening to rise. “I’m here to serve the Silver Brothers.”
For a fraction of a second, Indigo faltered. Just the tiniest flicker in her expression—shock, disbelief and probably jealousy.
Then, just as quickly, she smiled again, tilting her head. “Mother sent you, didn’t she?”
Lyra nodded.
A delicate pout appeared on her lips. “That woman is always so cruel to you.” She reached out as if to brush a strand of hair from Lyra’s face, but her fingers barely grazed her cheek before pulling away. “You don’t have to do this. If you want, I can talk to her. Find a way to get you out of this.”
The words were sweet but Lyra knew better than to believe them. She knew Indigo had always wanted her good but at last, she's also a female Alpha.
But still, she had to admire the act.
Instead, she gave a small, forced smile. “Thank you for the offer. But I don’t want to trouble you.”
Indigo’s gaze lingered, searching her face as if trying to find something to manipulate. “Alright, please take care of yourself.”
Lyra nodded and began to walk but suddenly she gasped when she felt a push.
Lyra gasped as her body lurched forward—no, was shoved forward—her ankle catching the hem of her own skirt.
The world tilted and she hit the ground hard, the silver tray slipping from her grasp with a loud crash. The sound echoed through the hall, drawing gasps from the other Omegas around her.
Pain shot up her palms, but worse than that—
“What the hell are you doing?” A sharp scream shattered the tense silence. Then—before Lyra could even react—a shock of ice-cold liquid poured over her head.
The sudden chill made her gasp, her entire body flinching as the water soaked through her thin dress, plastering the fabric to her skin. The icy sting numbed her scalp, trailing in frozen rivulets down her neck, her back.
She barely had time to process what was happening before the sharp voice came again, dripping with rage.
“You filthy Omega!”
Lyra sucked in a breath, blinking past the water clinging to her lashes. She lifted her head—just a little—only to be met with the furious glare of an Alpha woman.
Tall. Regal. Dressed in an elegant wine-red gown that clung to her curves, the woman radiated privilege and cruelty in equal measure. Long golden hair tumbled over her shoulders in flawless waves, and her painted lips twisted in disgust.
Her eyes burned with fury. “You ruined my new shoes!” the woman snarled, lifting her drenched, jewel-encrusted heels for emphasis.
Lyra’s heart stopped. “I—I didn’t—” she stammered, but before she could finish—
CRACK!
A sharp, stinging pain exploded across her cheek.
The slap knocked her sideways, her already weak body nearly collapsing under the force. A burning sensation spread across her face, and for a second, all she could hear was the ringing in her ears.
She gasped, tasting blood on her lip.
The Alpha woman’s fingers dug into her hair before she could recover.
“How dare you look at me?” the woman hissed, jerking Lyra’s head back so violently that pain shot through her scalp. “A lowly, disgusting Omega like you—do you think you have the right to stare at me?”
Lyra whimpered as her scalp burned under the harsh grip. “I—I didn’t mean to—”
“Shut up.” The woman yanked her closer, lowering her voice to a venomous whisper. “Since you’re already on the ground like the little dog you are, why don’t you make yourself useful?”
Lyra’s blood ran cold. She felt the shift in the air.
The woman smiled cruelly. “Lick my shoes clean.”
A hushed murmur rippled through the gathered Alphas and Betas—some amused, others indifferent. But no one objected.
No one stopped it.
Lyra’s breath came faster, her chest tightening in panic. “P-Please,” she choked out. “I swear, I didn’t—”
The woman yanked harder. “I didn’t ask for your excuses,” she said sharply. “I gave you an order.”
Lyra’s hands shook against the cold marble. Her knees throbbed where they pressed against the ground, her entire body rigid with humiliation. The weight of dozens of gazes bore down on her—some entertained, some apathetic, none sympathetic.
Tears burned her eyes, no matter how much she tried to hold them back.
“Lyra,” a soft voice whispered. She turned slightly—just enough to see Indigo standing beside her, pretending to look concerned.
“Just do it,” Indigo murmured, her tone almost gentle. “If you resist, she’ll only make things worse. You know that, don’t you?”
Lyra clenched her fists.
Of course, Indigo wouldn’t actually help her. She never did.
But what choice did Lyra have?
She was nothing. No one here cared whether she was humiliated, broken, or discarded.
The Alpha’s grip on her hair was like a noose tightening around her neck.
“Go on,” the woman purred, pressing the tip of her ruined heel against Lyra’s trembling lips. “Be a good little Omega.”
Lyra’s entire body shook. She wanted to run. To disappear. But she had no power. No strength. No way out.
Slowly, painfully, she let her body go slack—resigning herself. Her face inched closer to the filthy, wet shoe. The sour scent of wine and leather filled her nose.
“LET GO OF HER!”
Her lips were just a breath away when a cold voice pierced through the hall making everyone flinch.
The entire hall froze. The oppressive atmosphere shifted—darkening.
The Alpha woman’s fingers instantly uncurled from Lyra’s hair, as if burned by an unseen force.
And Lyra felt it. A new presence. More powerful and dangerous than anyone else.
A shadow who was silently watching all this from a far corner also came into the light after watching his brother’s entry.
A shadow of cold rage seeped into the air, making the flames of the chandeliers flicker.
Slowly—so slowly—Lyra turned her head.
And there he was.
Kyson Silver.
- Writer
