Chapter 127
The morning sun peeked through my window, casting a warm glow on the walls. I turned my head on the pillow, but the ache in my chest remained unbearable. I missed the twins so much it physically hurt. Their laughter, their little hands reaching for me—now, it all felt like a dream I had woken up from too soon.
Maybe Sophie and Fatima were right. Maybe I should apologize to Jake. Even if he didn’t forgive me, I had to at least try. I couldn’t bear this silence anymore, this emptiness.
I got out of bed, straightened my clothes, and ran a brush through my tangled hair. As I made my way through the corridors, rehearsing what I’d say to Jake, a voice stopped me in my tracks.
A voice I hadn’t heard for quite some time now she was here it could only mean trouble.
“Please, Alpha,” she said, her tone desperate. “I didn’t know. I swear, if I had known, I would never have allowed her to come here.”
I froze, my heart plummeting into my stomach. It was her. My stepmother.
My hands trembled as I crept toward the staircase, peering down into the main hall. There she was, standing before Jake, her head bowed low. Her perfectly styled hair and immaculate dress contrasted sharply with the mess of emotions I felt inside.
Jake stood with his arms crossed, his jaw clenched in a way that made my wolf shudder. The council leaders were gathered as well, their expressions stern and unforgiving.
“She lied to all of us,” one of the council members said, his voice cold. “It is unacceptable. Deception of this magnitude cannot be ignored.”
“I understand,” my stepmother said quickly, her voice trembling. “I’ll take her back, I swear. We’ll deal with her properly at home. Please, don’t let this reflect poorly on our family.”
“She has already brought shame to this pack,” another council member chimed in. “Her presence here is a disgrace.”
My breath hitched. Shame. Disgrace. The words pierced me like daggers.
Jake’s voice was low, dangerous. “She will leave today. This cannot be allowed to continue.”
I stepped down the stairs, unable to stay hidden any longer. “Jake,” I said softly, my voice shaking.
All eyes turned to me. My stepmother’s glare was ice-cold, but Jake didn’t even look at me.
“Good,” one of the council members said. “She’s here. Ayla, you have betrayed your Alpha and your pack. Do you have any idea how serious this is?”
I swallowed hard, my throat dry. “I—I didn’t mean to deceive anyone,” I stammered. “I just—”
“There is no excuse,” the council leader snapped. “Being an omega is not something you hide. You knew exactly what you were doing.”
“I was afraid,” I admitted, my voice barely above a whisper. “Afraid of being treated like nothing. Afraid of not being given a chance.”
“Enough,” Jake said sharply, finally looking at me. His eyes were cold, devoid of the warmth I had once thought I’d seen there. “You’ve done enough damage.”
I felt like the floor was crumbling beneath me. “Jake, please,” I whispered, taking a step toward him.
He stood abruptly, his chair scraping against the floor. “You’ll leave with her,” he said, his tone final. “This pack deserves better than lies and half-truths. You should never have been here in the first place.”
Tears burned my eyes, but I forced myself to stand tall. “Can I at least say goodbye to the twins?”
The council leader’s expression darkened. “You will stay away from them,” he said firmly. “If we find out you’ve gone near them again, not even the Alpha will be able to protect you from the punishment you deserve.”
My heart shattered into a million pieces. I nodded numbly, unable to speak.
The council members filed out, their faces grim. My stepmother stayed behind, her gaze fixed on me like a hawk eyeing its prey.
As soon as the door shut behind them, she slapped me across the face, hard enough to make me stagger.
“You useless, pathetic girl,” she hissed, her voice dripping with venom. “Do you know how much trouble you’ve caused?”
I held my cheek, tears streaming down my face. “I didn’t mean for any of this to happen,” I said weakly.
“You never mean for anything to happen,” she snapped. “You’re a curse, Ayla. A stain on this family. I should have left you to fend for yourself when your father died.”
Her words tore through me, reopening old wounds I had tried so hard to heal.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered, though the words felt hollow.
She scoffed, shaking her head. “Sorry doesn’t fix this. Do you think I wanted to come here, to grovel before an Alpha for your mistakes? You’ve embarrassed us all. If I could get rid of you, I would.”
I bit my lip to keep from sobbing. This was my reality. It always had been. The gods had given me a taste of something better—a pack, a mate, a family—only to rip it all away.
“Let’s go,” she said coldly, turning on her heel.
I followed her silently, my head bowed. My wolf whimpered pitifully, her pain echoing my own. Jake didn’t look at me as I passed him, and I didn’t dare speak.
As I stepped outside, the crisp air stung my skin, a cruel reminder of the life I was leaving behind.
---
Hours later, I sat in the passenger seat of my stepmother’s car, staring out the window at the passing scenery. The weight of everything pressed down on me, suffocating in its intensity.
The twins’ laughter echoed in my mind, a bittersweet memory that made my chest ache. Jake’s cold gaze haunted me, his words replaying over and over.
“You should never have been here in the first place.”
I closed my eyes, letting the tears fall freely. Maybe he was right. Maybe I didn’t belong.
But a small part of me had hoped so badly to belong with him.
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