|chapter 3|

|Talitha|

The days since my night with Cain pass swiftly in a strange blur. The atmosphere in the pack house buzzes with a precarious tension, although I can’t pinpoint exactly why. Cain hasn’t come to see me since that night he'd saved me from the rogue. He promised that he would, but every passing day of silence gnaws at me. Did something happen? Has he forgotten about me—his mate? The growing dread coils in my stomach, but there’s no time to dwell on it. Luna Cleo and Daezahn are working me harder than ever, as if they’ve sensed the flicker of hope inside me and are determined to snuff it out like always.

The aroma of roasted herbs permeates the kitchen and I'm busy stirring the pot of simmering broth for tonight's dinner when the front door suddenly bursts open, and Daezahn’s voice echoes through the entire house, high-pitched and dripping with excitement.

“I found him!” She exclaims, sounding breathless. “I found my mate!”

My heart lurches as a sense of foreboding settles in my belly. Turning around, I see Daezahn standing in the doorway of the kitchen with Luna Cleo by her side but it is the familiar and intoxicating scent of sandalwood and musk filling the air that has me freezing where I stand, eyebrows furrowing into a frown.

Cain? Could Daezahn be referring to Cain as her mate— No. It can’t be.

But then to my horror, his familiar figure steps in behind them, his tall frame carrying an arrogance I don't recognize. Cain's eyes meet mine, looking cold and triumphant as he casually loops his arm around Daezahn's shoulders, causing her to beam up at him before he presses a kiss to her forehead.

My gaze shuffles between both of them, shock and confusion making me stutter. “C-Cain? Why are you with her? Wh–What’s going on here?”

Daezahn's gaze snaps to me, her face twisting with rage as she storms toward me. But before I can get out of her way, her hand cracks against my cheek, the force of it sending me to the floor and making me drag the pot of broth with me. I yelp in pain as the hot liquid douses the exposed skin of my arms and legs, scalding me.

“You stupid bitch!” Daezahn spits, her voice laced with more venom than I've ever been subjected to. “You, good for nothing whore! How dare you try to steal my mate? Did you seriously think that you could fool anyone into believing you're an Alpha's daughter, huh? Look at you. You’re nothing but a lowly, pathetic omega!”

A sob escapes my mouth as I try to stand up, only for Daezahn to shove me back, making me land in the mess on the ground again. “Daezahn, I didn't lie—”

“Shut the fuck up!” she shrieks, towering over me. “You’ve been nothing but a parasite in this family, leeching off us for years. But this—this is the peak of it.”

My body quivers uncontrollably, a mix of searing heat and icy chills sinking into my bones. I glance up at Cain, my eyes pleading as I hope to see the man who'd saved me that night; the man who had confessed to having waited for me, his mate, all his life; the man who’d touched me, whispered sweet nothings in my ears and shown me great pleasure; the man I'd given my first everything to.

However, when I stare into those brown eyes I'd previously thought gave me hope and warmth, all I see there now is a bottomless pit of frigid cruelty, one that makes the hairs on my nape rise in alarm. Cain stands silent, his face stoic as he watches me be humiliated.

“I’ve always known your inner slut would rear her head one day, but going after my daughter's mate, Talitha?” Luna Cleo tuts, shaking her head. “Even the Alpha won't spare you this time. Now quickly clean up your mess and make sure that our meal is finished in time for dinner. You wouldn't want to starve our guest now, would you?”

Then she walks out and the world blurs as I watch Daezahn hiss one last time at me before returning to Cain and pulling him down for a kiss that has my stomach churning uneasily. “Let’s go, my love. I promised you a tour of the house, especially that of my room,” She giggles and bile threatens to rise up my throat.

Then Daezahn grabs Cain's hand and leads him away, but not before he glances over his shoulder at me, his eyes glinting with cruel satisfaction. It is only after I can no longer hear their footsteps, I allow myself to break down, uncaring of the mess I'm seated in.

•|•|•|•

I spend the rest of my eve in a dulled stupor, heart hollow, and my limbs moving of their own accord as I scrub the floors clean before remaking supper. The broth from earlier was ruined beyond saving, with only a few chunks of meat and vegetables left in the pot. And with only less than an hour before the dinner bell, there was little else I could manage —hence the array of rye bread, soft curds, and pot of honey on the dining table.

As foretold, I'm denied the right to dine—the first of my many punishments to come, they said. And though my stomach offers no protest, my appetite having abandoned me after the earlier fray, I'd had the foresight to squirrel away some scraps of meat from the ruined broth to my chamber, should this punishment extend till the morrow.

I've grown well accustomed to starvation, its sting now a familiar companion, but what I'm not used to is the cruel ache of a mate's betrayal. The agony is far deeper than hunger. Rage and grief twist and churn just beneath my skin but I do not give them a voice because defiance will only beget worse.

As dusk deepens into true night, marking the end of the workday for everyone but myself, I stand alone in the backyard, scrubbing the remnants of dinner from chipped pewter dishes. The chill breeze bites at my exposed skin, but I pay it no heed as my eyes drift wearily to the pile of soiled linens Luna Cleo had dumped at my feet, her parting words ringing in my ears: I must scrub everything clean, fill every barrel and jar with fresh water, which will cost me multiple unguarded trips to the stream in the dark and only then will I be allowed to rest. I sigh again because if not, then I shall surely turn to weeping and I’ve already shed my fill of tears for one day.

An hour later, I'm wrist-deep in the tub of linens, every small cut on my knuckles stinging from lye, when I suddenly sense someone approaching. My body stiffens at the familiar smell of sandalwood and I hesitantly lift my head to see Cain strutting toward me.

He approaches with that self-assured arrogance he exhibited earlier today, but one I hadn't seen at all that night in the forest, his hands stuffed into his trouser pockets as his brown eyes glint with cruel amusement. The flickering lantern light from the house casts shadows across his face, making him look even more sinister.

This man is nothing like the one who had rescued and made love to me.

“Talitha,” he drawls, his tone thick with mockery. “You really thought you could fool me, huh?”

I stand, my fingers gripping the sodden fabric of a shirt I was scrubbing. The chill in his voice sends a shiver down my spine. “Cain, I swear I never lied to you.” I whisper, forcing myself to meet his gaze. “I-I tried to tell you that night by the lake, but you wouldn’t let me speak—”

“Silence,” he snaps, his voice a lash across my skin. “You had ample chance to tell me, but you let me believe you were someone you're not. You allowed me to touch you, to claim you, thinking you were the Alpha’s daughter. While truly, you are naught but a filthy, pathetic whore of an omega.”

The words sting worse than Daezahn’s slap. I suck in a sharp breath, willing myself not to crumble in front of him. “I wasn’t trying to deceive you,” I whisper, my voice cracking despite my resolve. “I was afraid and overwhelmed that night, and I kept trying to tell you, but you—”

“But I what?” Cain’s lips curl into a sneer. “I was so besotted by the bond that I couldn’t see you for what you truly are? A liar? A desperate, simpering wench willing to spread her legs, just to leave the gutter?”

Tears burn behind my eyes, but I squeeze my eyes shut, refusing to let them. “If I’m truly your mate, Cain, then how—how can you be Daezahn’s mate too?” My voice wavers as I ask the question that’s been eating away at me since he walked into the house with her.

His sneer deepens, and something dark flickers in his expression. “Oh, Talitha,” he murmurs, voice dripping with amusement. “There’s so much you don’t know. So much you’ll never know because you’re not important enough to matter. You were just a pawn in my game, a means to an end. And you almost ruined everything with your lies.”

My stomach churns violently. “W–what game?” I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.

He closes the distance in a blink, gripping my chin in his claws and forcing me to look at him. My cry is muffled and I writhe to escape but his distended talons only sink into my cheeks until I taste blood. His touch burns me, not from warmth, but rather from the cold, unyielding cruelty behind it.

“That’s for me to know and for you to find out, if you manage to live long enough, that is,” he grins, the menacing sight of it making goose pimples rise across my skin. Cain studies me from head to toes, his lips curling in distaste. “I find it hard to believe I was fooled by this. I should reject you right now but alas,” He leans closer, breath brushing my ear, “for a bloody virgin, you were quite a good fuck. I rather enjoyed seeing you tremble, hiding the pain while trying to keep pace.”

His cruel chortle makes me jerk away but he yanks me back so suddenly my teeth clatter, catching my tongue between them. The taste of iron floods my mouth further.

“Let me make it plain; you belong to me, Talitha. I will do to you whatever I please. And you will be quiet and take it like a good little bitch. Understand?”

I flinch, my breath coming in shallow gasps. His words coil around me like chains, suffocating, inescapable. “I don’t belong to you,” I say, though my voice comes out incoherent and the tremble in it betrays the conviction I wish I had.

Cain chuckles darkly, his clawed thumb brushing over my trembling lip before he shoves me away as though my existence displeases him. “Oh, but you do.” He steps back, eyes glinting with satisfaction. “And you will learn that lesson properly, even if it must be branded into your skin.

Then he whirls around and strides off, leaving me to crumble. The night air is frigid, but it’s nothing compared to the cold emptiness encasing my heart in Cain's wake.

The first tear falls, then another, until I’m silently sobbing, my hands clenched into fists as his words echo in my head.

I was but a pawn in his cruel game. And now, I’m wholly at his mercy.