Chapter 2 The flashback

Damon- 18 years old.

Elle- 16 years old, a month away from her 17th birthday

Elle

The constant beeping of my alarm clock rouses me from my no-dream sleep, letting me know it's 4 am and time to head off into training with the Beta and Gamma of the New Moon Pack. It is strange how much Alpha Charles and Luna Olivia have invested into a nobody Omega from another pack. I never really bother to question it, I can't remember anything from my old life, and they treat me like their own.

What do I have to complain about? They have made sure I have everything I could ever need or want. I am personally trained by the Beta and Gamma daily; no other Omega is lucky enough to receive that kind of one on one training. I have a beautiful room that they spent thousands of dollars to redo, even though I explained it wasn't necessary, and I was more than happy with the room the way it was when I moved in.

They insisted that it be perfect and precisely as I desired. I have a massive bathroom with a rainhead shower, a large clawfoot bathtub, and a small sauna in the bathroom as well. Attached to the bathroom was a decent-sized walk-in closet. It's pretty bare, though, as most of my wardrobe consisted of sweatpants, t-shirts, and sneakers.

Not that I didn't want any of those cute, stylish clothes other girls, in my school wear or that the Luna would say no. She and the Alpha have never denied me anything I have wanted before, but I knew one person would throw an absolute fit.

Damon Ledger is my biggest enemy and a paranoid control freak. Especially when it comes to me. He has had it out for me since the day his parents brought me home. His controlling behavior towards me started small. First, I wasn't allowed near him or his friends. However, within weeks, it had escalated beyond what my twelve-year-old self could comprehend.

Next, I wasn't permitted to train, which didn't matter; I would never be training with the pack per the Alpha's orders. I started training with the Beta, Gamma, Luna, and occasionally the Alpha in the private soundproofed gym they had built for me. Before I knew it, I wasn't allowed in the pool, and he picked out my clothes. I am not allowed to look him in the eyes.

I'm positive he is why all of Timberlake high treats me like a leper; I am on his blacklist. He hated me before I said a word to him, and I have no idea why. But no one will go against him or his wolf Slade. Damon is nothing like his father or mother; he is angry and dangerous. A skilled warrior and the future of the pack I am living in.

As soon as he takes his position as Alpha, I know I will be out on my ass. Luckily, I have been preparing for that day- I have excellent grades, can code, and save every penny I earn. I have created a nice little nest egg to escape this place once I shift and turn eighteen. I love the Alpha and Luna, but I will never survive with Damon as Alpha.

Absentmindedly putting on the random clothes I picked from my closet, I try to stop thinking of Damon Ledger and enjoy my last day of this summer. Damon's been away at Alpha training for the entire vacation, and I have never felt so much inner peace. With him and his cronies gone, I have started feeling the confidence I shoved aside long ago.

With Damon gone, I am beginning to come out of my shell and act like my old self. I forgot so much of myself trying to make Damon's adjustment to my presence here easier but fuck that shit. I am deciding that I will no longer allow him to have any more control over my life.

Putting my hair into a ponytail, I leave my bathroom, taking my new resolve to my private gym to work out my frustrations on the poor unsuspecting Beta and Gamma.

****************************

After a quick breakfast at the kitchen counter, I place my dirty plate in the empty dishwasher before grabbing the Eloisa James novel I brought with me off the counter before exiting the room. Walking through the swing door into the dining room that leads to the main hall. As I pass by the den, I hear the rasp of whispers too low to make out, but the scents leaking from the room tell me who it is inside.

Not wanting the Alpha and Luna to think I am eavesdropping, I scurry down the hall and out the front door inhaling the cleanliness of the fresh air surrounding me and being thankful for it. My boots scraped against the driveway pavement as my mind mindlessly took my feet in the same direction it had every day for the last three months.

Breaking from the pavement onto the dewy midmorning grass, my boots sank slightly into the soft dirt. Without thinking, I let my body take me to a spot that has slowly become my favorite over the summer. With Damon gone, I have felt safe enough to venture back after staying away for years. As I make my way through the forest, the sticks and leaves crunch beneath my feet as I get further away from the packhouse.

The longer I walk in the quiet forest, enjoying the subtle chirps of the birds sitting high in the trees or the squirrels' dash between the branches chasing one another, my mind wanders to the first time I ever came to this spot.

*******FLASHBACK*********

Two Weeks After Elle's Arrival.

After waiting two long weeks of only being allowed to wander around the packhouse with nothing else to do, Luna Olivia and Alpha Charles determined I had enough time to adjust, and it was finally time to see the town and meet other kids my age before starting school. Thank the Goddess, too, because I was about to go crazy looking at the same four walls around me.

At least I had been smart enough to avoid Damon most days except for dinner, so at least I had that going for me until Luna Olivia showed me around the town. Goddess helped the woman, but she brought me to Damon and his friends. While she introduces me to the kids hanging around her son, the next Alpha, he is glaring daggers at me.

As soon as I could steer her away, I did, but not after five excruciating minutes of awkward pleasantries. It was unbearable, trying not to look at Damon, knowing the damnation that lay within. It wasn't until we walked away that I could finally breathe. After Luna Olivia showed me every nook and cranny of the town, she gave me the okay to explore independently.

"Have fun, sweetheart. You have money on the card if you want to go in the shops," Luna Olivia says, "and our numbers are programmed into the phone we gave you. Once you join the pack, you'll get to mindlink everyone else too." She wraps her arms around my body; being tall for my age, I am only a few inches shorter than her, so my hair tugs uncomfortably on her earrings as we separate from each other.

"I will be back in time for dinner," I say before stepping away and walking back towards the pack house. Having seen a small path in the woods at the end of the driveway, I am dying to explore. Wasting no time hurrying my way down the path, evergreen clinging to the air, invading my nose so that everything else slowly fades away, including my scent.

Determined to follow this path to the end, I continue walking until the path widens, revealing a large field of the most vibrant green I had ever seen. A pigment that could only be found on healthy land. Tiny yellow flowers littered the field reflecting brightly against the afternoon sun. A gentle breeze causes them to sway.

As my foot extends to step further, I hear the snap of a twig behind me and muffled voices coming down the path. Not wanting to be found, I find a tree with a low branch before hoisting myself up, my skin brushing against the rough bark as I climb higher. Once I get to the top, I watch for the people to pass below me. As they near, I hear a voice I could pick from a hundred different ones.

"Come on," the blonde-haired and pale boy Luna Olivia introduced as Matt whines, "tell us more about that Elle girl."

"My mom says she is an omega orphan from another pack," Andrew says if I remember him correctly. "I don't care who she is," Matt says, "she is super cute," Damon says nothing as they pass under the tree, stopping to lift his nose to the air and sniff, looking around for its source. My lungs are burning as the oxygen I have been holding in my lungs begs for release. He continues onward when he doesn't find what he is looking for.

"Come on, Damon," Matt says, "tell me about her so I can make my move before the other guys in the pack try to. Have you seen how cute she is? Imagine how hot she'll be when she gets older." He continues on, not paying attention to the deadly look on Damon's face. Matt is about to say more when a low rumble shakes the trees, including the one I am in, when a sending me a little off balance that I grab the trunk in a vice grip.

In the span it took me to blink, Matt's neck in Damon's vice grip, he slowly lifted him from the ground, face turning blue from the lack of oxygen. "NEVER go near Elle," Damon says, his eyes black voids. "Don't talk to her; she isn't yours to conquer. If I see either of you talking to her without permission, you'll wish I killed you today. Understood?" Damon doesn't need to scream to make his words frightening; his aura is doing it all alone.

"UNDERSTOOD?" Damon screams, bringing Matt's face closer so he can hear the small croak of a "yes" from his lips before dropping him to the ground. The same black eyes focused on Matt a few moments ago are now looking at Andrew, waiting for his nod of acknowledgment to the new rules.

Giving Damon the smaller nod of agreement, Damon shoves past him, making his way back to the drive. Andrew rushes to help a coughing Matt stand before following behind their Alpha. I don't move, frozen in the tree, my arms still around the trunk as I try to decipher Damon's words.