Pain. That was the first thing I felt.

The brand still burned into my skin, the scent of scorched flesh curling around me like smoke. My breath came in ragged, broken gasps, my body trembling where I knelt in the dirt of the square.

But it wasn’t over.

I could see it in my father’s cold, unforgiving eyes.

I could feel it in the tension hanging in the air, in the hungry looks of the pack as they waited—waited for more.

They didn’t just want me branded. They wanted me destroyed.

The Alpha raised his hand. “For your crimes, you will suffer further punishment.”

A wave of murmurs rippled through the crowd.

“I order twenty lashes,” my father announced, his voice cutting through the noise like a blade. “To serve as a lesson to all who would betray us.”

A sick thrill passed through the gathered wolves. They wanted to see my blood spill.

The warriors who held me tightened their grip. I couldn’t even struggle. I could barely lift my head.

Through the haze of my pain, my eyes locked onto my mate.

Cedar.

He stood tall, his broad shoulders squared, his face an emotionless mask.

He wouldn’t let this happen. He wouldn’t.

I forced my cracked lips to move. “Cedar… please…”

He met my gaze. And smirked.

“You still don’t get it, do you?” His voice was calm, almost lazy. Like none of this mattered to him. Like I didn’t matter.

“Cedar,” I choked, my voice barely above a whisper.

His lips twisted into something cruel. “You are nothing to me.”

The words stole the air from my lungs.

“I, Cedar Stormveil, reject you as my mate.”

It felt like my soul was being ripped apart.

But he wasn’t done.

He took a step closer, lowering his voice so only I could hear. “But I won’t complete the rejection.” His hand came up, brushing a strand of blood-matted hair from my face. “I want you to feel it. Every ounce of pain. Every moment of agony.”

A low chuckle.

“You don’t get to walk away free, little traitor. You get to suffer.”

A roar of approval rose from the crowd, but I barely heard it.

The rejection burned like silver through my veins, twisting, crushing, shattering something deep inside me. My wolf whimpered, clawing at the edges of my mind, trying to hold onto a bond that was already poisoned.

He had taken everything from me.

And now he was leaving me with nothing but pain.

The warriors wrenched me up, forcing me forward. I could barely feel my feet dragging across the dirt. The world blurred around me as I was shoved against the whipping post, my arms locked in iron restraints above my head.

I heard the crack of the whip before I felt it.

And then—agony.

The first lash tore through my back like fire, cutting through the fabric of my dress, biting deep into my skin.

I gritted my teeth. I would not scream.

The second lash came harder.

The third.

The fourth.

By the tenth, I couldn’t hold it in anymore. A broken, ragged cry slipped from my lips.

This is what they wanted. This is what she, my dear sister, wanted.

To see me broken.

Another lash.

And another.

I wasn’t sure when I collapsed, my body hanging limp in the chains.

But I heard Ruby’s voice through the haze of pain. Sweet. Mocking.

“Oh, sister,” she whispered. “You always thought you were so much better than me.”

I didn’t have the strength to lift my head, but I could picture her perfectly—standing beside Cedar, her hands on his arm, her smirk of victory.

“You should have just disappeared quietly,” she sighed. “It would have been less painful.”

She leaned in, her lips brushing against my ear.

“Goodbye, sister.”

The last lash came harder than the others, ripping the last shred of my strength away.

Darkness swallowed me whole.

---

I woke up to rain.

Cold. Soaking through my bloodied dress. Mixing with the warm, sticky wetness on my back.

I wasn’t in the square anymore. The pack had left me there, discarded like trash.

I tried to move. Agony shot through me.

My arms trembled as I pushed myself up, biting down on my lip so hard I tasted blood. The pain made my head spin, my vision blurring.

I had to get up.

I had to move.

I forced myself onto my hands and knees, then slowly—so slowly—dragged myself across the ground. The world around me was dark, the storm rolling overhead, thunder shaking the sky.

I had no idea how long it took. Minutes. Hours.

But I found it.

The old shed.

It had been abandoned for years, tucked near the edge of the training grounds, forgotten by the pack. I had hidden here as a child, back when I still believed I had a place in this world.

Now, it was the only place I had left.

I pushed the door open with the last of my strength and collapsed inside, landing hard on the wooden floor.

I couldn’t move.

I couldn’t breathe.

I had survived.

Even if it was just barely.

I learned quickly that pain wasn’t just something you felt. It was something you lived.

Every moment. Every breath.

Pain followed me like a shadow. It clung to my skin like the filth I couldn’t scrub off.

The wounds on my back had barely begun to heal when the real punishment started.

They hadn’t just taken my title. They had taken my right to exist.

---

The packhouse loomed in front of me, warm light spilling from the windows, the scent of roasted meat and freshly baked bread drifting through the air.

My stomach twisted painfully, hunger clawing at my insides.

I hadn’t eaten in two days.

I had managed to survive on scraps before, sneaking into the kitchens late at night, stealing what little I could without being seen. But the moment they realized I was still breathing, they had taken that from me, too.

The pack warriors stood guard at the doors, their gazes cold.

They didn’t have to say anything.

I wasn’t welcome here.

I turned away before they had the chance to throw me down the steps again. The bruises from last time still lingered.

I would not beg.

I would not give them that satisfaction.

---

I scavenged what I could from the outskirts of the village.

Old bread tossed out behind the baker’s house.

I hunted when I could, but my injuries slowed me down. I wasn’t strong enough to take down anything bigger than a rabbit.

Even that was a risk.

Wolves who were caught hunting outside their ranks without permission were punished. And I was already a traitor.

I took what I could carry and made my way back to the shed—the only place I could call home now.

The nights were the worst.

The cold crept in through the broken walls, sinking deep into my bones. My wolf whimpered, desperate for warmth, for comfort.

There was none.

I curled up on the dirt floor, the only blanket I had draped over my shaking form. I listened to the sounds of the pack in the distance—laughter, music, the echoes of a life that no longer belonged to me.

Once, I had been part of that.

Once, I had mattered.

Now, I was nothing.

---

It wasn’t just the hunger.

It wasn’t just the cold.

It was them.

Every day, they reminded me what I was.

A pariah.

An outcast.

A traitor.

I had barely stepped into the village square when something hard struck the side of my face.

The taste of dirt filled my mouth as I hit the ground, my vision spinning.

Laughter rang in my ears.

“Oops,” a sickly sweet voice cooed. “Did that hurt, sister?”

I forced myself to my knees, wiping the blood from my lip.

Ruby stood above me, dressed in fine silks, her golden curls gleaming in the sunlight. She looked like a queen.

And she had everything I had lost.

Cedar stood beside her, his arm draped around her waist, his lips pressed lazily to her temple.

I swallowed the bile rising in my throat.

He was mine.

He had been mine.

But he had thrown me away like I was worthless.

Now he looked at me like I was something stuck to the bottom of his boot.

“Are you still here?” Cedar sighed, feigning boredom. “I thought by now you’d be smart enough to leave.”

“Where would she go?” Ruby smirked. “No other pack would take a traitor.”

The crowd around them murmured in agreement, their eyes filled with contempt.

I could feel their hatred, their scorn.

Once, they had been my family.

Now, they wouldn’t even spare me a kind glance.

Because of her.

Because of the lies she had spun, the web of deceit she had woven so carefully around me.

And because of him.

Because he had chosen to believe her.

Cedar’s lips curled. “She’s like a cockroach. No matter how many times you crush it, it just won’t die.”

Laughter rippled through the crowd.

Ruby giggled, running her fingers down his chest. Touching him like she had every right to.

Rage burned in my veins, thick and suffocating.

I wanted to scream.

I wanted to rip that smug smile from her face.

I wanted justice.

But I had no power here.

No voice.

Nothing.

So I picked myself up, ignoring the pain, ignoring the taunts, and walked away.

One day.

One day, I would make them regret this.

---

I clung to that thought as I lay in the shed that night, staring at the cracked wooden ceiling, my stomach twisting in hunger.

There was only one way out of this.

Only one chance.

The Lycan King’s Selection.

A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. A chance for warriors from every pack to prove themselves, to fight for a place in the Lycan King’s army.

If I was chosen, I would no longer be bound to this pack. I would no longer be the traitor they spat on in the streets.

I would have a new title.

A new rank.

A new life.

But there was a problem. The Selection was two months away.

And I had to survive until then.

I had just finished washing the dirt off my face in the small bucket of rainwater I had collected when I heard footsteps approaching.

Heavy. Purposeful.

Him.

I didn’t turn around. I didn’t want to see his face, didn’t want to hear whatever poison he had come to spit at me this time.

But I had no choice.

Cedar always made sure I had no choice.

“You’re looking better.” His voice was smooth, almost amused.

I scoffed, not bothering to hide it. “If this is me looking better, I’d hate to see what you think looking worse is.”

I turned to face him, my arms crossed over my chest, my expression blank. He stood a few feet away, dressed in fine black leathers, his golden hair windswept, his piercing blue eyes locked onto me with an intensity that made my skin crawl.

He still looked like the man I had once loved.

But he wasn’t.

Not anymore.

He leaned against the wooden beam of the shed, his gaze sweeping over me in a way that made my stomach turn.

He didn’t look at me like he hated me.

He looked at me like I was still his.

“I’ve been thinking,” Cedar said, voice casual. “About you. About us.”

My fingers curled into fists. “There is no ‘us.’”

His lips twitched. “You don’t really believe that, do you?”

I narrowed my eyes, heart pounding. “What do you want, Cedar?”

He exhaled a slow breath, stepping closer. “You’re struggling here. I see it. Everyone sees it.”

I said nothing.

“There’s no need for you to keep suffering like this.” He tilted his head, voice almost gentle. “Come to me. Be mine again.”

My stomach churned.

“I already told you, there is no—”

“Not as my mate,” he cut in, his blue eyes gleaming. “That ship has sailed, and we both know why.”

A knife twisted in my chest, but I swallowed the pain.

“But you can still belong to me,” Cedar continued, his voice dropping to something silkier, darker. “You wouldn’t have to live like this. You wouldn’t have to starve.”

He reached out, running his fingers over my cheek. I wanted to rip his hand off.

“I could take care of you,” he murmured. “Like I used to. You wouldn’t have to be alone.”

I stepped back. “You’re asking me to be your mistress?”

Cedar didn’t even have the decency to look ashamed.

“You’d have everything you need. A place to sleep. Clothes that aren’t falling apart. Food—real food. Not the scraps you dig out of the trash.”

His words struck deep, shame curling in my stomach.

But I would rather rot than let him touch me.

I let out a hollow laugh. “You’re unbelievable.”

His lips curled, his confidence unwavering. “It’s better than what you have now.”

I looked him up and down, taking in the man who had once held my heart in his hands and crushed it without a second thought.

And then I smiled.

“Do you think I’d ever lower myself to that?” I asked, tilting my head. “Do you think I’d rather be your pathetic little mistress than die with my dignity?”

His jaw tightened. “You’re proud for someone who sleeps in a shed.”

I stepped closer, my voice sharp as a blade. “And you’re arrogant for someone who threw away his mate for a liar.”

His eyes darkened.

Good.

I leaned in, lowering my voice. “You disgust me.”

He grabbed my arm, squeezing tightly. “Watch your mouth.”

I didn’t flinch. Didn’t blink.

I wanted him to see it.

The utter lack of love I had left for him.

I wanted him to choke on it.

I smiled sweetly, my voice laced with venom. “Or what? You’ll throw me to the ground like you did the last time? Have me whipped again? Or maybe this time, you’ll finally do what you’ve been wanting to do and put a dagger through my throat.”

His grip tightened, his nostrils flaring.

And then—

The sound of approaching heels.

I knew who it was before I even turned around.

Ruby.

Of course.

She always had a way of showing up at the worst times.

She was dressed in an elegant lilac gown, her golden curls falling perfectly over her shoulders, her lips painted a soft pink. She looked like a goddess.

A goddess who had stolen everything from me.

Her eyes flickered between me and Cedar, her expression unreadable. Then, slowly, her lips curved into a knowing smirk.

“Well, well,” she purred, stepping closer. “What do we have here?”

I tried to pull my arm free, but Cedar’s grip remained firm.

Ruby’s smile widened. “Oh dear,” she mused, voice dripping with false sympathy. “Were you throwing yourself at my mate again?”

I almost laughed.

Almost.

I turned to her, my patience hanging by a thread. “Are you serious?”

Ruby sighed dramatically, placing a hand over her chest. “It’s sad, really. You just can’t seem to accept that he chose me.”

She looked at Cedar then, blinking up at him with wide, innocent eyes. “I told you, my love. She’s still obsessed with you.”

I gaped at her, my blood boiling. “Are you insane?”

Cedar let go of my arm, his expression shifting.

I recognized that look.

It was the look he always gave Ruby when she played the victim.

He was going to believe her.

Again.

My mouth went dry. “Cedar—”

“She’s lying.” His voice was sharp.

I stilled.

But then he turned to me.

And I realized he hadn’t been talking to her.

Cedar’s gaze burned into me, his face twisting in disgust. “I can’t believe I ever thought you were worth anything.”

I inhaled sharply, but the pain that came with his words didn’t surprise me.

Not anymore.

“Stay away from me,” he ordered coldly. “Stay away from Ruby.”

I clenched my fists. “That’s rich, coming from the one who just asked me to be his personal wh—”

His hand flew before I could finish.

I braced myself for the impact—

But the slap never landed.

Ruby grabbed his wrist, her expression carefully composed. “No, my love,” she murmured, placing a gentle hand on his chest. “She’s not worth it.”

I let out a shaky breath, my cheek tingling with phantom pain.

Ruby turned back to me, her eyes gleaming with victory.

She had played him. Again.

And she had won.

Again.

I forced myself to stand tall, ignoring the ache in my chest.

I would not break.

Not here.

Not now.

Cedar turned and walked away, his arm slipping around Ruby’s waist as she giggled into his ear.