Chapter 2

What are you doing, Sia? I chidded myself, my wolf yipping in my head like a pup thrilled to be free.

The bond had dragged me here, an invisible thread tying me to Rio. My wolf didn’t care that he hated me. She didn’t care about the disgust in his eyes every time he saw me. All she knew was that he was our mate.

And now, he was staring at me.

The yard was alive with voices until his eyes found me. They were blue ice, glinting under the harsh light of the moon. His nostrils flared, and the air around us thickened. The chatter died in a wave of silence, like a forest just before the predator strikes.

“You.” He snarled, stomping toward me.

His boots crushing the gravel underfoot. Each step he took made me step back, my heartbeat like a drum in my ears. Around us, whispers erupted, a current of excitement and malice. Some pack members whipped out their phones, their screens glowing in the dim light.

I shouldn’t have come. Why did I come?

Every step was a war with my wolf. She clawed at me, desperate to run to him, to bask in his presence. But Rio’s face twisted with hatred, veins bulging on his arms and forehead.

When my back hit the rough bark of a tree, Rio’s hand shot out. His fingers closed around my throat, squeezing just enough to send a shiver of fear through me.

“You did this, didn’t you?” His voice was low and venomous.

Before I had a chance to respond, he threw me to the floor. Agony pierced my back as I touched down, my hands dragging across the ground.

“Absolutely not,” Rio bellowed, his voice resonating in the silence. “No chance in hell the goddess would do something so foolish as to match me with you!”

He stalked toward me again, crouching until his face was inches from mine. His breath was hot and smelled faintly of alcohol.

“I’m the future alpha,” he growled. “My Luna wouldn’t be something as disgusting as you.”

The yard erupted in cheers from his friends.

“She probably dabbled in dark magic,” Brian sneered, his voice loud and mocking. “Bound you to her, despite knowing you’re mated to Jenny.”

“Should’ve kicked her out of the pack long ago,” another voice chimed in. “No room for weaklings here!”

My throat burned with the effort to speak, to defend myself, but the words were locked away as always. My hands trembled as I shook my head, hoping against hope that Rio would see the truth.

“Admit it,” Rio snarled, his voice rising. “Admit you forged the bond to covet me.”

I shook my head again, tears stinging my eyes.

“Admit it!”

His grip tightened painfully, and I nodded. It wasn’t the truth, but I couldn’t take the pain, the humiliation. His eyes lit with a twisted sort of satisfaction. I was a fool to believe the goddess has answered my prayers anyway.

“I knew it,” he spat, shoving me away. “You’re pathetic. Coveting something that doesn’t belong to you.”

He straightened to his full height, looking down at me like I was dirt under his shoes.

“You know I'll never accept you.”

The words struck harder than any blow. My chest ached, and my wolf whimpered in pain.

“I, Alpha Rio, future alpha of the Maple Grove pack, reject Sia as my mate.”

The rejection pierced me like a knife cutting into my spirit. I bent forward, gripping my chest as the connection shattered. My wolf cried out in pain, her wails reverberating in my thoughts.

The crowd didn’t wait. Stones pelted me, sharp and cold, their laughter ringing in my ears.

“Imposter!”

“Traitor!”

“Get out of our pack!”

I pushed myself up, reeling from the burden of their animosity. I started to run away, but Rio obstructed my way.

“Where do you believe you’re headed?” he mocked.

His eyes blazed with anger as I locked eyes with him. For the first time, I didn't avert my gaze. I stared intensely, channeling all the anger, sorrow, and animosity I experienced into that gaze.

He was not fond of it.

"Do you believe you can escape uninjured after your actions?" Rio growled. “Ruining my name? Binding me to you?”

I tightened my fists, yet I remained silent. I was unable to answer.

“I should punish you myself,” he said, his lips curling into a cruel smile. “But I’ll leave that to Jenny. She’ll have fun with you.”

Fear crawled up my spine. Jenny’s punishments were never quick or clean. They were calculated, designed to leave scars you couldn’t hide.

Rio turned away, and this time, I didn’t wait for him to dismiss me. I ran into the woods.

I didn't know where i was going. Didn't care. Just knew i needed to get away. To be free.

The forest thinned after hours of running, giving way to uneven terrain. The moon’s light barely reached this far, leaving shadows to twist and shift on the ground like restless spirits. I trudged forward, each step heavy, my body aching from Rio’s rejection.

I didn’t belong anywhere now. Not in the pack. Not to myself. I must've wandered so far that I found myself at the edge of a market. The black market.

The stories I’d heard about the black market played over in my mind. A place where rogues and outcasts bartered secrets, power, and things better left unnamed. Like lonely witches setting up base in one of the huts, rumored to have spells strong enough to conceal mate bonds.

"Maybe we can get something for this pain." My wolf mumbled in a barely audible voice.

Maybe. It wouldn't hurt to look.

The black market is no place for a weak omega like myself. But what else have I got to lose?

I wasn’t sure if I could find what I needed there—or if I’d even make it out alive. But the alternative was worse.

The first sign of the market was the smell. A pungent mix of spices, sweat, and decay hit me like a wall. Then came the noise. Voices overlapped, some raised in arguments, others low and conspiratorial. My pulse quickened as I stepped into the chaos.

The black market was unlike anything I’d imagined. Narrow, crooked paths snaked through clusters of makeshift stalls. Wooden crates piled high with strange, glittering objects. Furs, herbs, weapons, and artifacts that hummed faintly with power. Oil lanterns swung overhead, their dim light casting everything in a warm, flickering glow.

The rogues moved with purpose, their eyes sharp, always watching. They were dressed in patched clothes, their faces shadowed by hoods or scarves. A few pack wolves were mixed in, their clean-cut appearances out of place here. Most of them seemed to linger around a group of black SUVs parked in front of a building that towered above the stalls.

I wrapped my arms around myself, hoping to shrink into the background. My bare feet were silent on the dirt path, but I couldn’t shake the feeling of eyes following me.

“Looking for something, little wolf?” a vendor rasped, his voice like gravel.

I shook my head quickly and kept moving.

“You’re in the wrong place,” another muttered, his yellowed teeth flashing in the lantern light.

Finally, I spotted a woman sitting on an overturned crate near a stall selling charms and trinkets. Her eyes were dull but calculating, and she didn’t flinch when I approached.

I raised my hands, signing as best as I could: Witch? Where?

She snorted and gestured lazily toward the tall building with the SUVs in front. “That’s where the witch hides, if she’s still here. But if you’re smart, you’ll turn around, girl. Not all who enter come back.”

I swallowed hard, ignoring the lump forming in my throat, and headed toward the building.

The structure loomed larger the closer I got. It wasn’t like the rest of the market. Where the stalls were ramshackle and chaotic, this building was precise. Polished. Its walls shimmered in the moonlight, and a subtle fragrance of death hung in the atmosphere.

I didn't expect a witch to live in a hotel. But I don't know what to expect.

At the doorway, two men dressed in black suits stood guard, their stances firm. They didn't recognize me as I moved by them, yet I sensed their stares on my back.

The lobby was immaculate, with its marble floor gleaming like a mirror. A chandelier was suspended above, its crystals reflecting the dim light from the wall sconces. It seemed overly extravagant for the black market, like a wolf disguised as a sheep.

A faint hum of energy tickled my skin as I wandered deeper. My eyes scanned the space, searching for anything that might belong to a witch. My nerves tensed, urging me to leave. But I pushed forward.

Toward the back, I spotted an open door. A beaded curtain draped in the entrance, glimmering softly. The space beyond shone with the gentle illumination of candles.

"This must be the place," I thought, walking through the curtain, my breath hitching as I absorbed the surroundings. Apart from the prominent death stench wafting with dark themes, it looks so ordinary.

I invited myself in, taking a seat in the lone chair in the vacant room, my legs shaking as I waited for the witch to make her appearance.

The silence pressed in around me. My chest ached, the weight of Rio’s rejection settling in again. My wolf whimpered softly in my mind, her usual spark dimmed.

Moments extended into infinity. Just as I began to think I might have erred, a noise disrupted the calm. A door swung open with a creak, and footsteps echoed on the mable floor.

I glanced upward, anticipating a stooped, elderly woman. Instead, I saw him.

The moment he stepped in, the room was engulfed in a suffocating aura mixed with prominent alpha pheromones. He was tall, his shoulders broad, his torso bare except for the tattoos that snaked across his skin like living art. His gray eyes pinned me in place, sharp and unyielding as water dripped from his damp hair, and a towel hung low on his hips.

Goddess...

He paused, tilting his head a bit as he observed me. His brows tightening as though he were attempting to solve a riddle.

"You're not supposed to be here," he remarked, his tone low and raspy.

I parted my lips to answer, but no noise emerged. My throat constricted as heat surged to my core.

His nostrils flared, tilting his head and sniffing the air. "You're in heat."

The words struck me with shock. I stood up abruptly, but the lack of blood in my head had me stumbling as perspiration collected on my skin.

In the blink of an eye, he was in front of me, catching me before I kissed the ground.

Hot. That was what he was.

"What brings you here?" he husked, wrapping strong arms around me.

I attempted to raise my hands to clarify, yet my mind was a chaotic jumble. His touch was overpowering, his scent—smoke and cedar—invading my senses.

He must've mistaken my expression for something else as a lazy smirk graced his scarred lips.

"Bold," he whispered, his tone shifting into something perilous. “Walking into my space uninvited. Daring to tempt me.”

I shook my head quickly, panic clawing at me. I wasn’t trying to tempt him. I wasn’t—

“Shhh,” he said, leaning down, his face inches from mine. “It’s alright. Bold girls turn me on.”

His gaze met mine, and for an instant, everything around us disappeared. It was just him—his scent, his rut, the irresistible draw of his being.

And as his lips touched mine, my thoughts vanished.