Chapter 2 The Beginning of Her Breaking

Aria's pov.

The moment Zac's roar echoed through the lobby, I thought everything would change. For one wild second, I believed justice had finally found me. My heart raced in my chest as I looked up at him, tall and terrifying, the Alpha who commanded fear from every wolf in the pack. His presence was like a storm pressing down on everyone. No one dared breathe wrong way in his shadow.

And yet, I felt a fragile hope. Because he wasn't just the Alpha. He was mine. He was the man who whispered promises in the dark, who traced my skin with his lips, who told me that one day I wouldn't have to bow before anyone.

But before I could say a word, Vanessa was already moving like the snake she was.

She let out a soft gasp and stumbled forward, clutching Zac's arm like it belonged to her. Her fingers curled around his bicep, her face filling up in perfect sorrow, her eyes wide with practiced innocence.

"Alpha," she said, her voice trembling just enough to sound believable, "thank the Moon Goddess you came. I don't know what I would have done."

I froze, confusion rushing through me. What was she talking about?

"She..." Vanessa jabbed a finger at me, her eyes filling with fake tears, "she insulted me. She's always talking behind my back. And just now, she splashed dirty water on me."

She lifted the edge of her gown, showing the wet fabric clinging to her legs. My stomach dropped. It was the water from the bucket she had kicked herself, but she had twisted it. Turned it into something else to make herself the victim and I, the villain.

Her friends gasped on cue, covering their mouths like they had witnessed a crime.

"She's jealous of me," Vanessa went on, her voice sharp under the sweetness. "Everyone knows it. She can't stand that you've chosen me."

I felt the words like a slap across my face. I opened my mouth, desperate to defend myself, but something stopped me. Alpha Zac's cold gaze, his eyes were dark and fully locked on me without any strings of emotions there.

He would see the truth, I told myself. He had to. He knew me better than anyone. He knew I would never disrespect Vanessa, never dare throw water on her. He had seen me at my weakest, at my most vulnerable. He had held me and promised that one day I would be safe.

So I didn't speak, I chose to stay silent, my chest rising and falling with anticipation, waiting for him to choose me.

But sadly he didn't.

"Marcus," Zac said, his voice low and sharp like a blade. "Take her away."

My breath stopped and my body froze, refusing to believe what I'd just heard.

"Alpha....," I whispered, my voice breaking, but he didn't even look at me.

Marcus stepped forward, his footsteps making noise against the marble. His hand gripped my arm, rough with no mercy, and pulled me up from the wet floor.

"No....please, wait," I begged, panic clawing at my chest. My eyes darted to Zac, searching his face for any sign of warmth, any trace of the man I loved at night. But all I found was a stranger. His eyes were empty, cold and unreadable.

"Alpha, I didn't do anything wrong," I pleaded, my voice shaking. "It was her, she kicked the bucket...she..."

"Silence." His voice cracked like thunder. My entire body flinched.

The room went quiet, His command carried this force that pressed down on my lungs until I couldn't breathe.

"You will take your punishment," Zac said, his gaze slicing through me like I was nothing more than a nuisance. "You will kneel in front of Vanessa's house until nightfall. Only then will you be free."

My heart dropped into the pit of my stomach, my knees nearly gave out beneath me.

Kneel? Outside? In front of Vanessa's house? For the entire pack to see? The humiliation would crush me. Everyone would laugh, everyone would point and whisper and sneer at the weak little omega who dared offend the Alpha's chosen Luna.

"No," I whispered, shaking my head. Tears burned in my eyes. "Please, Zac. Please, don't do this to me. I didn't do anything wrong."

I stepped forward, reaching for him before I even realized what I was doing. My fingers twitched, aching to touch him, to remind him of who I was.

But before I could move any closer, his eyes snapped to me, burning with something I couldn't name. Anger? Disgust?

"Shut up," he growled, his voice low and dangerous.

The words sliced through me. My chest tightened like he had shoved his claws straight into my heart.

"Alpha..." My voice cracked, the plea falling from my lips without control. "Please, believe me. You know me. You know I would never...."

"I said shut up."

His tone was final, colder than ice.

Vanessa leaned closer to him, her arms curling around his like vines, her head tilting against his shoulder. Her lips curved in a soft pout, her eyes flicking toward me with triumphant fire.

"She deserves it," Vanessa whispered loud enough for me to hear. "She should learn her place."

Zac didn't argue, he didn't correct her. He didn't defend me, rather He let her stay against him, let her words linger like law. As if to seal it and also to mock me, Vanessa rose on her toes and brushed her lips against his. A light kiss. A soft kiss. But it felt like a dagger shoved deep into my heart.

Every memory of his arms around me, every whisper of promises he made every night I snuck into his room, it all shattered in an instant. My mouth went dry, my throat closing as I stared at them.

At him, at her.

Vanessa turned, her eyes locking on mine. A smirk tugged at her lips, cruel and gleaming.

"Worthless omega," she mouthed.

Marcus's grip tightened on my arm, dragging me toward the door. My feet stumbled against the marble, my body weak and shaking as I fought the urge to collapse.

The last thing I saw before being pulled away was Zac's face, hard and unreadable; his eyes were empty of emotions that I thought would be there, especially after everything we had shared at night

It made me wonder if all his promises of love to me were just lies.