The day my half-sister Mabel Morgan entered the Crimson Fang Pack as its new Luna, she forced me to attend the ceremony with a decree from the Lycan King himself.

I tried to feign illness, but there was no escape. Reluctantly, I stepped into the grand hall where she was preparing for the marking ceremony. The moment I crossed the threshold, I heard the soft click of the door locking behind me.

"Tallulah," Mabel’s voice slithered from behind an ornate screen adorned with silver and moonlight motifs. Her eyes gleamed with malice as she stepped into view. "I’ve been waiting for you."

She smiled, a predator’s smile, and spoke three truths—a rare and dangerous gift she possessed. "May you be rejected by your mate and forced into a bond with a rogue. May you never bear children, and may your life be filled with shame and disgrace."

Before I could react, Cruz Ellis, the rogue she had named, burst into the room, his aura crackling with anger.

"Tallulah Ellis," he growled, his voice low and accusing. "You’ve dishonored the Silver Moon Pack. To think you’d stoop so low as to bond with a rogue like me. You’ve humiliated us all."

Rogue?

What was he talking about?

I stared at him, stunned, but before I could defend myself, others began to gather around, their voices rising in unison, each one confirming the impossible.

"I saw it with my own eyes," one Delta said, his tone harsh. "Tallulah was seen with Cruz in the forest during the pack run. She’s tainted the pack’s honor."

"Disgraceful," another sneered. "She deserves to be cast out."

The accusations piled up, each one more damning than the last. They claimed I had bonded with Cruz willingly, that I had betrayed the pack’s trust. But it wasn’t true. I had been at the pack’s healing center, tending to our injured Beta, Jerry Anderson. How could I have been with Cruz?

"I didn’t do this!" I protested, but my voice was drowned out by the crowd’s jeers. Even my own memories seemed to shift, as if Mabel’s words had rewritten reality itself. Someone even told me that Jerry Anderson had passed away years ago, that I was delusional to think he was still alive.

"Sister, please," Mabel interrupted, her voice trembling with false concern as she dropped to her knees before me. "Tallulah made a mistake, but she’s still family. Please, have mercy on her."

Her act was flawless, and the onlookers were moved by her apparent devotion. Even Cruz’s anger seemed to waver, though his eyes remained hard.

"Fine," he said coldly, his gaze locked on mine. "If you’re so desperate for a rogue, then I’ll give you one. You’ll bond with me, and you’ll live with the shame of it."

The crowd parted, and there he stood—Cruz Ellis, a rogue with a scarred face and a damaged aura, his wolf’s presence weak and fractured.

And just like that, I was bound to him, a rogue, in a ceremony that felt more like a punishment than a union.

I was cast out of the Crimson Fang Pack with nothing to my name.

Even the clothes I wore were stripped from me by the omegas, leaving only a thin, damp undershirt clinging to my skin. The rain had soaked through it, making it nearly transparent.

My half-sister, Mabel Morgan, approached surrounded by her entourage, wrapped in a luxurious fur coat, a heated stone clutched in her hands. Her scent, a mix of rosemary and bitterness, wafted toward me, sharp and mocking.

"The former Delta has quite the figure, doesn’t she?" her servant Monica sneered, stepping forward and addressing the pack warriors nearby. "What do you think, boys?"

The warriors, rough and crude, erupted into laughter and whistles, their eyes raking over me with lecherous glee.

"She’s got more curves than the finest omega in the market!" one jeered.

"Imagine getting a taste of that," another added, his voice dripping with vulgarity.

"Who needs to imagine? She’s a rogue’s mate now—fair game!"

I stood there, my heart numb, my head bowed.

Monica grabbed my chin, forcing me to meet her cold, sneering gaze. "Can’t handle a little humiliation, Delta? You’ve got decades of this ahead of you. Better get used to it!"

With that, she spat on me, her saliva hitting my cheek as she and the others turned to follow Mabel, their laughter echoing in the cold air.

The sky was clear, the faint scent of pine and damp earth lingering in the breeze. The oak trees outside the pack house were bare, their leaves scattered on the ground.

I stood frozen, letting the spit dry on my skin. My eyes drifted to the stone wolves guarding the entrance.

Years ago, an omega had been falsely accused of theft and cast out. She had thrown herself against those statues, her blood staining the ground.

I had laughed at her then, called her weak. Now, I understood. In this world, a woman without protection was better off dead.

I walked forward, as if in a trance, imagining the cold stone against my forehead, the release it would bring.

But Cruz Ellis pulled me back.

“Sister, don’t die yet!”

He caught me around the waist, his voice sharp and commanding, his grip firm. “If you die now, you’ll miss out on everything! Your fortune is still ahead of you!”

In my entire life, no man other than the Alpha had ever touched me.

Startled, I forgot about my despair for a moment, struggling to break free from his hold.

The sun dipped low in the sky, casting long shadows across the ground.

Cruz Ellis stood silhouetted against the fading light, the golden hues of sunset brushing his shoulders.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead, his eyes filled with an earnest hope as he looked at me.

I stared back at him, wary and evaluating.

He was... unfortunate-looking.

His aura was scarred, damaged, and no matter how strong his frame or how sharp his features, it didn’t change the fact that he carried the weight of a rogue.

His limp only added to the impression of brokenness.

My gaze settled on him, disappointment clear in my eyes, perhaps even a hint of disgust.

Cruz must have noticed, but he didn’t falter.

“Sister, I may not look like much, but I’m kind,” he said, his voice steady. “And one day, when I rise above this, I’ll never take another mate. It’ll just be you and me, forever.”

Another mate?

I couldn’t help but laugh, bitter and cold.

“You’re a rogue, Cruz. If you manage to survive the winter without starving or freezing to death, it’ll be a miracle.”

I glared at him, channeling all the humiliation and rejection I’d endured earlier that day.

“As for rising above this? Don’t delude yourself. It’s never going to happen.”

I’d always been taught to hold my tongue, to speak carefully and never reveal too much.

But this time, I let it all out.

I hated him.

If he hadn’t touched me, if he hadn’t caused that scene, I wouldn’t have been rejected by the Alpha, cast aside like I was nothing.

I wouldn’t have become the laughingstock of the pack, labeled as shameless and impure.

My words were harsh, but Cruz didn’t seem fazed.

He chuckled softly, shaking his head. “How do you know I won’t rise? You’re too close to the situation to see clearly.”

“In peaceful times, a rogue like me might never have a chance. But if things change...”

He trailed off, his smile fading as he suddenly closed his eyes, frustrated.

“Fine, fine, I’ll stop talking! I won’t say another word, okay?”

He gestured wildly at the air, as if arguing with someone unseen.

I took a step back, my unease growing.

Was Cruz... unstable?

This was too much.

Seeing my alarm, Cruz quickly grabbed my hand, his grip firm but not threatening.

“Don’t be scared, I’m not crazy!”

“I just... I can sense things others can’t. That’s all!”

Sense things others couldn’t?

That wasn’t exactly comforting.

I wanted to cry.

Cruz Ellis, the man who had turned my life upside down, was now giving me one shock after another.

When I finally calmed down, Cruz gently pulled me along, leading me away from the edge of despair.

“Sister, you can’t die today. Why don’t you come with me? Stay for a few days, see how it goes?”

He was persuasive, his voice low and coaxing. “If after three days you still want to end it, then fine. But give it a chance.”

I hesitated, but his logic made sense.

My half-sister wouldn’t let me die, and I was too weak to fight her.

So, for now, I’d keep living, even if it was just a hollow existence.

Before leaving with Cruz, I turned back to look at the packhouse one last time.

The evening mist had settled over it, shrouding the grand building in an eerie, almost sinister haze.

The life I’d once lived there, the luxury and status I’d enjoyed, now felt like a distant dream, something that had never truly been mine.

I stared at it for a long moment, then turned away, my resolve hardening.

From this day forward, I would never look back.

I would never return.