The slap cracked across my hand but barely fazed her. She yelped, stumbled back, clutching her cheek, but didn’t drop. That should have knocked her out cold. These pretty omega arms were useless.
I was supposed to be Arya Storm, warrior of the Crimson Fang Pack, first into battle and last to retreat. Now I’m Landra, some delicate thing in a frilly dress, and my hand stings like I hit a wall. “Try that again,” I snarled, “and you won’t have any hands left. ” The maid just gaped.
My voice came out too soft, too breathy. Where was I? This wasn’t my body, wasn’t my pack, wasn’t my life. I’d traded one nightmare for another.
The door burst open, and two girls in black uniforms rushed in, nearly tripping over their skirts. “My lady, you must prepare! The Alpha has summoned you. ”
I bit my tongue.
Fine. Let’s see what this Alpha wants. Hours later, they stuffed me into a pale blue dress, laced so tight I could barely breathe. “Where exactly are we?
” I asked, trying to keep my voice steady. The girls exchanged glances. “Well, my lady, as you know, you haven’t seen Alpha Rafe since childhood. But he’s asked for you.
”
Alpha Rafe. The name hit like a blow. My enemy. The man I swore to destroy.
I’d spent years learning his battle tactics, his weaknesses, his every habit. And now I was supposed to be his omega bride. They pushed me into a meeting hall. A tall, broad-shouldered man stood by the window—Rafe.
He looked exactly as I remembered, cold, calculating, with those piercing eyes that saw everything. But when he turned, his gaze swept over me like I was furniture. “You must be Landra,” he said, his voice flat. So he didn’t even recognize me.
I was just some arranged bride, a pawn in a political game. He didn’t see the warrior behind these soft eyes, the fury buried in this fragile chest. I wanted to scream at him, to tell him who I really was, but the words died in my throat. What right did I have to be Arya anymore?
She was burned in a pyre of my own failure. Then the door opened again, and Kai walked in. My heart stopped. Kai—my childhood friend, my sparring partner, my oldest ally.
He wore a smug expression as he sauntered past me, heading straight for Rafe. “Well, well, brother,” Kai said, clapping Rafe on the shoulder. “The rumors don’t do your bride justice. ”
Brother.
I stared at him, my mind reeling. Kai was Rafe’s brother? That couldn’t be. I’d known Kai all my life, and he’d never once mentioned a brother.
But more than that, his eyes—the same eyes that once held warmth and loyalty—now looked at me with nothing but amusement. “Pet,” he murmured, leaning close enough that only I could hear. “You look prettier than I expected. ”
The nickname made my blood run cold.
He’d called me that when we were kids, after I’d fumbled a training exercise. I’d thought it was playful. But now, hearing it in his voice, I realized it was never affection. It was a reminder that he saw me as lesser.
Always had. And I’d never known. I’d trusted him, shared my plans with him, considered him family. But he was Rafe’s brother.
He likely played me from the start. Another betrayal to add to the pile. I spent the next weeks in a daze, learning to be Landra. The servants watched me like I might break.
The other omegas whispered about my clumsy manners and my unfashionable opinions. They thought I was weak because I had soft hands and a gentle voice. Kai visited often, always polite, always with that hidden smirk. “You know,” he said one evening, leaning against the doorframe, “I used to wonder what Arya would be like as an omega.
”
I froze. “Who? ”
He laughed, waving a hand. “Old story.
A warrior who died in disgrace. They say she threw away everything for love. ” His eyes glinted. “Can’t imagine being so foolish, can you?
”
Days turned into weeks. I kept my head down, watching, learning, waiting. The pack had enemies, and whispers of rebellion reached even the omega quarters. Kai was always at the center, charming the guards, smiling at the elders, feeding them poisonous little doubts.
And Rafe—Rafe ignored me except for official appearances. He didn’t want a wife. He wanted a treaty. Fine.
Let him think I was useless. That would make it easier to strike. One night, I slipped out of my chambers, following the sounds of shouting. In the training yard, a young omega was being beaten by three beta soldiers—something about a stolen loaf of bread.
No one intervened. No one cared. I watched from the shadows, my fists clenched so hard my nails bit into my palms. The next morning, I marched to the training grounds before dawn, borrowed clothes too big for my frame.
The soldiers laughed when they saw me, a fragile omega holding a practice sword. “Come to teach us a lesson, little bird? ” one mocked. I didn’t answer.
I just lunged. They stopped laughing quickly. My body wasn’t as strong as before, but muscle memory held. I dodged, struck, feinted, and within minutes, all three of them were on the ground.
I stood over them, breathing hard, my borrowed blade at their captain’s throat. “First rounds on the captain,” I said, my voice cold. “I’m buying. ”
Silence.
Then cheering. Some of the omegas clustered at the edge of the grounds, watching with wide eyes. One stepped forward, a pretty blonde named Elara. “Maybe I should have been your fiancée instead,” she whispered.
“At least you’re interesting. ”
Heat crept up my neck. “Or do you only like me when I’m an omega? ” The joke fell flat.
Rafe was watching from the balcony. When our eyes met, something flickered there—surprise, curiosity, maybe a hint of respect. But it vanished as quickly as it appeared, replaced by that familiar mask of indifference. Later, he found me in the garden.
“Do you have any idea what you’ve done? ” he demanded. “You made the captain look like a fool in front of his men. ”
“He was a fool,” I said flatly.
“And his form was terrible. ”
He stared at me, and for a moment, I thought he might yell. Then he laughed—a low, surprised sound that caught us both off guard. “You’re nothing like I expected, Landra.
”
“Good,” I said. “I’d hate to be predictable. ”
The days that followed blurred together. I kept training, kept smiling, kept playing the game.
But beneath the surface, I was searching, listening, waiting for an opening to reach Kai, to discover what he was planning, to stop him before he destroyed everything. Then one night, I heard it. Voices from the annex—Kai’s voice, low and intense, speaking with someone I didn’t recognize. “The pack is weak,” Kai was saying.
“They’ll fold the moment we strike. ”
“And the Alpha? ” the other voice asked. I crept closer, my heart pounding.
Kai’s laugh sent shivers down my spine. “I’ll handle Rafe myself. I just need the right moment. ”
My blood ran cold.
Kai wasn’t just plotting against the pack—he was plotting to kill his own brother. And I was the only one who knew. I turned to flee, to find Rafe, but I tripped over a root. The sound was loud in the silent night.
The voices stopped. I scrambled to my feet, but a hand grabbed my arm, rough and unforgiving. Kai’s face swam into view, his eyes cold and calculating. “Well, well,” he murmured.
“Our little omega is nosy. ”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said, my voice trembling. “I was just taking a walk. ”
He tilted his head, considering.
“You know, you remind me of someone. A spoiled warrior who thought she could defy her Alpha and get away with it. She didn’t. ”
Fear clawed at my chest, but I held his gaze.
“What happened to her? ”
He smiled, all teeth. “She died realizing she was nothing more than a pawn. ”
He let go, stepping back.
“Run along, little bird. And if you know what’s good for you, you’ll forget what you heard tonight. ”
I fled back to my chambers, my heart racing. Kai wasn’t just a traitor.
He knew who I was. He’d known all along. And he was toying with me. The next morning, I dragged Rafe into the gardens, speaking in hushed tones.
“Your brother is plotting against you. He wants the pack. ”
Rafe stared at me, his face unreadable. “That’s a heavy accusation, Landra.
”
“I heard him myself. He called you weak. He said he’d handle you himself. ”
Rafe was silent for a long moment.
Then he shook his head. “Kai is my brother. I trust him. ”
“Then you’re a fool,” I spat, turning away.
But his hand caught my wrist. “Why do you care? You’re a stranger. ”
I met his eyes, the truth burning on my tongue.
“Because I’ve seen what betrayal costs. And I won’t watch it happen again. ”
That night, I couldn’t sleep. I kept replaying Kai’s words, Rafe’s doubts.
Desperate, I slipped back to the annex, hoping to find evidence, anything to prove I wasn’t just a paranoid omega. The window was open. Voices floated down—Kai’s and another’s, urgent and hushed. “She knows,” the voice said.
“You should kill her. ”
“Soon,” Kai replied calmly. “But first, I need her to lead me to Rafe. He trusts her now.
It’s the perfect opening. ”
My blood ran cold. They were going to use me to get to Rafe, and I couldn’t let that happen. I turned to run, but a hand clamped over my mouth, yanking me backward.
“Did you think you could escape? ” Kai whispered in my ear. “You never could. ”
He dragged me toward a dark corridor, and I fought, kicking and scratching, but my delicate omega body was no match for him.
He threw me into a cell, the door slamming shut with a final click. “Stay here, little bird,” he said through the bars. “Once I’m Alpha, I’ll decide what to do with you. ”
I sat in the darkness, my mind racing.
Rafe didn’t trust me. Kai had the upper hand. And I was trapped, powerless, with no way to stop him. Then I remembered the vial hidden in my sleeve, the one the old medicine woman had given me, clutched as a weapon of last resort.
“It’s a heat trigger,” she’d said. “If your Alpha can’t come to you, it will call him. ”
I stared at the vial, the liquid gleaming in the faint light. If I drank it, Rafe would feel the bond.
He’d come for me, even if he didn’t trust me. He might reach me in time. But it would leave me vulnerable, weak, and Kai would know exactly what was happening. Desperate times called for desperate measures.
I uncorked the vial and drank. The heat hit me like a wave, crashing over my senses. My body burned, my skin hyper-sensitive, every breath ragged. I curled into a corner, trying to stay conscious, praying Rafe would feel the pull and come.
Above me, footsteps thundered. The door to the cell burst open. “What did you do? ” Kai snarled, grabbing my arm.
“C-called my Alpha,” I gasped. He laughed, cruel and mocking. “Rafe? He doesn’t care about you.
He doesn’t care about anyone but himself. ”
We both froze at a new sound—a growl, low and dangerous. Rafe stood in the doorway, his eyes wild, burning with a possessive fury I’d never seen before. “Step away from her,” he said, his voice a growl, “or I’ll tear you apart.
”
Kai sneered. “You really think I’m afraid of you? ”
“You shouldn’t be,” Rafe said, his voice dropping. “But you should be afraid of the pack you’ve betrayed.
”
The words hung in the air like a challenge. Kai’s confidence flickered, just for a moment, as the sound of approaching footsteps filled the corridor—the pack, roused by Rafe’s call. And I knew, in that moment, that I wasn’t just a pawn anymore. I was the trap, the bait, the one who had brought the wolf back to his den.
The cell door swung open, and Rafe stood before me, his hand extended. “Come with me,” he said. “We have work to do.
”
