Chapter 1

AVA

“Hey, Omega!”

I didn’t look back. I couldn’t afford to. Not when I heard the footsteps closing in behind me. My grip tightened around my books as I pushed forward, weaving through the crowded hallway of Nightshade Academy.

The laughter came next—sharp, mocking. Too familiar.

“Ava Daniels, don’t be rude now,” Logan’s voice carried over the noise, smooth and taunting.

I rounded the corner, heart racing, but they were faster. A hand snagged my arm, yanking me back.

“Going somewhere?” Liam’s grin was all teeth as he leaned in, his emerald-green eyes sparkling with amusement.

I yanked my arm free, glaring at him. “Leave me alone.”

The words barely left my mouth before the others appeared. Logan crossed his arms, blocking my path with his broad frame. Lucas stood beside him, watching silently, while Landon lingered just out of reach, his cold gray eyes boring into me.

“Aw, don’t be like that,” Liam said, stepping closer. “We just want to talk.”

I backed away, my shoulders brushing the wall. “What do you want?”

Logan smirked. “Respect. And maybe a little gratitude. After all, we’re your future Alphas.”

“Over my dead body,” I muttered, the words slipping out before I could stop them.

Silence. Then Logan laughed—a low, dangerous sound that sent a shiver down my spine.

“You’ve got guts, I’ll give you that.” His smirk widened. “But let’s see how far it gets you.”

Before I could react, Liam stuck out his foot, tripping me. My books scattered across the floor as I hit the ground, pain shooting through my knees.

Their laughter followed me as I scrambled to gather my things, my hands shaking with anger and humiliation.

“Better hurry, Omega,” Lucas said quietly, his tone devoid of the mockery in his brothers’ voices. But he didn’t stop them either. None of them ever did.

I shoved my books into my bag and bolted without looking back. Their laughter echoed in my ears long after I’d left the corridor.

I burst through the academy doors into the cool afternoon air, sucking in deep breaths. My knees ached, and my palms stung from where they’d scraped against the floor, but the physical pain was nothing compared to the fire of shame burning inside me.

Why did it have to be me? What had I done to deserve this?

The truth was simple: I was an omega. The lowest of the low in the pack hierarchy. And here, in the Nightshade Pack, that made me a target.

I started walking toward the woods, my sanctuary when everything felt like too much. The towering trees shielded me from prying eyes, their whispers a balm to my wounded soul.

I dropped my bag by the base of an old oak and leaned against its trunk, closing my eyes. The quadruplets’ faces flashed in my mind, Logan’s piercing blue eyes, Liam’s wicked grin, Lucas’s detached gaze, and Landon’s icy stare.

They were my tormentors, but they were also the future Alphas of the Nightshade Pack. That meant no one would ever stand up to them, not for me, not for anyone.

I sighed, tilting my head back to look at the canopy above.

“I hate them,” I whispered to the trees.

But even as I said it, something deep inside me stirred, a feeling I couldn’t name, one I didn’t want to acknowledge.

The sound of a twig snapping yanked me out of my thoughts. My head whipped around, my heart pounding as I scanned the shadows.

“Who’s there?” I called, my voice trembling.

Silence.

I waited a moment longer, then shook my head. Just my imagination. I stood and dusted off my pants, grabbing my bag. It was getting late, and I couldn’t afford to be out after dark.

As I walked back toward the pack house, I couldn’t shake the feeling that someone or something was watching me.

As I clutched my books to my chest and fled down the corridor, I swore to myself that one day, I would leave this place. I would leave the Nightshade Pack, the bullying, the torment, everything.

Little did I know, the Moon Goddess had other plans.