I didn't make it far.
The moment I crossed the edge of the clearing
"Seize her!"
The command cracked through the night like thunder.
My steps faltered.
Too late.
Rough hands grabbed me from behind, fingers digging into my arms, my shoulders, forcing me to a stop before I could even think to run.
A gasp tore from my lips as I struggled instinctively.
"Let me go!" I snapped, twisting against their grip.
But they didn't budge.
Of course they didn't.
They were warriors.
And I
I was still shaking from three broken bonds.
"On whose authority?" I demanded, forcing strength into my voice despite the chaos raging inside me.
Silence answered for a second.
Then
"Mine."
The voice was cold.
Familiar.
I stilled.
Slowly, I turned my head.
The Alpha stepped forward, his presence as commanding as ever but now, there was something else beneath it.
Not indifference.
Something darker.
"You think you can reject me," he said, his tone low and controlled, "and walk away without consequence?"
My jaw tightened.
"I didn't just reject you," I replied. "I rejected all of you."
A flicker of something dangerous crossed his eyes.
"I noticed."
A few steps behind him, the Beta stood watching, his expression no longer amused. There was irritation there now… and something bruised beneath it.
Possessiveness.
And the enemy
He hadn't moved.
But his gaze was still on me.
Heavy.
Unreadable.
Calculating.
"Rejecting a mate bond," the Alpha continued, circling me slowly, "is already a crime against the order of our kind."
My heart pounded but I refused to look away.
"Rejecting three?" he stopped in front of me. "That's not just defiance, Diana."
A pause.
"It's rebellion."
Whispers broke out around us.
Fear.
Curiosity.
Judgment.
Good.
Let them see.
"I didn't ask for any of this," I said, my voice steady despite the tightness in my chest. "You don't get to punish me for refusing something forced on me."
The Beta scoffed. "Forced? That's fate."
"No," I snapped, turning my head toward him. "That's control."
His eyes darkened.
The Alpha raised a hand slightly, silencing him.
Then his gaze returned to me colder than before.
"You've embarrassed this pack," he said. "You've disrupted sacred law."
"And what about you?" I shot back. "You rejected me publicly. Does that not break your 'sacred law' too?"
That hit.
I saw it.
A brief tightening of his jaw.
But it wasn't enough.
"It is my right as Alpha," he said flatly.
Of course.
Power made everything acceptable.
Even cruelty.
A bitter laugh rose in my throat, but I swallowed it down.
"Then this is mine," I said quietly.
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
Then
"Enough," the Alpha said sharply.
The word sliced through the tension.
His gaze shifted to the warriors holding me.
"Take her."
My stomach dropped.
"Take me where?" I demanded, struggling again as their grip tightened.
No one answered.
Not the Alpha.
Not the Beta.
Not even the enemy.
Fear crept in slow and unwelcome.
"Wait" I tried again, louder now. "You don't have the right to"
"Silence."
The command hit like a force against my chest, stealing the rest of my words.
Alpha command.
My body froze.
My lips pressed together against my will.
Rage exploded inside me.
I couldn't speak.
Couldn't fight it.
Couldn't even move properly as they began dragging me away from the clearing.
No.
No, I wouldn't go like this.
I dug my heels into the ground, resisting as much as I could.
The bond scars inside me burned in response, sending sharp pain through my chest but I held on.
I would not be silent.
I would not be weak.
Not again.
As they pulled me forward, I forced my head to turn
Just once.
My eyes met his.
The enemy.
He hadn't followed.
Hadn't interfered.
But he was watching.
Closely.
And then
He smiled.
Not wide.
Not obvious.
But enough.
Enough to send a chill down my spine.
Because that wasn't the smile of someone satisfied.
It was the smile of someone…
Interested.
The heavy doors slammed shut behind me.
Darkness swallowed the room.
Cold air wrapped around my skin, biting and sharp.
The holding chamber.
Of course.
They threw me forward, and I stumbled, barely catching myself before hitting the ground.
Chains rattled somewhere in the darkness.
My heart pounded harder.
"You can't keep me here," I said, my voice returning now that the Alpha's command had faded.
No response.
Footsteps retreated.
Then
Silence.
Complete.
I stood there, chest rising and falling, my body trembling but not from fear.
From fury.
Three bonds.
Three betrayals.
And now this.
Slowly… I straightened.
My hands curled into fists at my sides.
"They think this will break me," I whispered into the darkness.
My wolf stirred.
Stronger than before.
Angrier.
Awake.
A faint, dangerous smile touched my lips.
"They're wrong."