Chapter 2 The Omega's Shame

The days that followed were a blur of humiliation and sorrow. Ariana kept to herself, unable to face anyone. Her room became her refuge, the only place where she could hide from the world. But even in the safety of her room, she felt the weight of the rejection bearing down on her like a suffocating cloud.

Her wolf, Nyra, was silent, distant. She, too, was grieving the loss of their mate. The rejection had broken them both. Ariana could barely summon the strength to leave her bed, let alone face her father-the Beta of the pack-who had never been particularly kind to her. She could feel his disappointment, even though he never voiced it.

In the quiet of the night, as the moonlight filtered through her window, Ariana made a decision. She could not stay here. Not after what had happened. She couldn't bear to live in the pack that had witnessed her disgrace, the pack that had watched her mate choose her sister over her.

Packing a small satchel with whatever belongings she could carry, Ariana slipped out of her room, careful not to make a sound. The walls of the Silverclaw Packhouse felt like they were closing in on her, suffocating her with the weight of shame and failure.

She made her way to the edge of the pack territory, where the woods began, and where the legends spoke of the Forest of No Return. It was a cursed place, a forest where creatures of darkness roamed, and those who entered never came back. But Ariana didn't care. She wasn't afraid of death anymore.

She was already broken. What more could the world take from her?

With one last glance over her shoulder, Ariana stepped into the shadows of the cursed forest, her heart heavy but determined.

The deeper Ariana ventured into the forest, the more the air seemed to thicken, as if the trees themselves were watching her. The forest felt alive, a dark, sentient presence that seemed to whisper her name with every rustle of the leaves. It wasn't just the eerie silence that unnerved her-it was the feeling that something was watching her, waiting.

Her legs were growing tired, her feet sore from the rough terrain. She had never been this far into the forest before, and now she realized how foolish she had been to come here alone. But it was too late to turn back. Her heart longed for release, for an end to the torment she had endured at the pack.

The wind picked up, howling through the trees. Ariana shivered, wrapping her arms around herself for warmth, but the cold that gripped her bones was more than just the weather. It was a deep, empty cold that had nothing to do with the environment. It was the cold of a broken soul.

She stumbled over a thick root and fell hard onto the ground. Her palm scraped against the rough bark of a tree, blood welling up from the wound. She didn't care. She was too far gone to feel pain

As she tried to push herself up, she froze