Chapter 1

The acrid smell of bleach burned my nostrils as I scrubbed the damp stones of the pack house dungeon. My knees ached against the cold floor, hands raw and red from hours of cleaning. This was my life now—Sophia Bennett, once destined Luna, now the lowest Omega, tasked with the jobs no one else would touch.

Four years. Four years since my Coming of Age ceremony when my wolf failed to appear. Four years of whispers, mockery, and the pitying glances that hurt worse than outright cruelty. Four years of watching my sister Charlotte rise as I fell.

"The mixture has been effective for years now. I don't understand your concern." The pack healer's voice drifted from around the corner, making me freeze mid-scrub.

"My father wants assurance it will continue to work." James Crawford's voice—my childhood mate, the future Alpha who had once promised to love me forever—was cold, businesslike. "The Luna ceremony is in three weeks. We can't risk complications."

I pressed myself against the wall, heart hammering. They weren't supposed to be down here. No one came to the dungeons except Omegas on cleaning duty.

"The herb mixture was specifically designed to suppress her wolf," the healer replied. "As long as Charlotte continues administering it daily, Sophia's wolf will remain dormant. The girl believes she's wolfless—that psychological barrier alone helps maintain the suppression."

The bucket I was holding clattered to the floor, soapy water splashing across the stones. My wolf... suppressed? Not absent?

"What was that?" James snapped.

I scrambled to pick up the bucket, forcing my trembling hands to steady. "J-just cleaning, Alpha-in-waiting," I called out, keeping my head bowed as they rounded the corner.

James's eyes narrowed. "Finish quickly and get out."

I nodded, not daring to look up as they walked past, continuing their conversation in hushed tones. My mind was reeling. A mixture to suppress my wolf? Charlotte administering it?

The implications crashed over me like a tidal wave. I wasn't broken. I wasn't wolfless. I had been betrayed—by my mate, by my family, by everyone I had ever trusted.

I finished my duties mechanically, my body moving while my mind splintered and reformed around this new, terrible truth. When I finally returned to the Omega quarters—a cramped, windowless room I shared with three others—I collapsed onto my thin mattress.

My gaze fell on the small table beside my bed where a cup of coffee sat waiting. Charlotte brought it every morning—a "kindness" from sister to sister that I had gratefully accepted for years. The only warmth in my cold existence.

With shaking hands, I lifted the cup, sniffing cautiously. The rich coffee aroma masked something else—something bitter and earthy. I tilted the cup, examining the dregs at the bottom. Tiny purple-black specks clung to the sides.

Wolfsbane.

The cup nearly slipped from my grasp. Wolfsbane—toxic to werewolves in large doses, but in small, consistent amounts... perfect for suppressing a wolf spirit. And my sister had been feeding it to me. Every. Single. Day.

I set the cup down carefully, bile rising in my throat. The morning ritual I had cherished—the one moment when Charlotte still treated me like a sister—had been nothing but the daily administration of my poison.

That night, I lay awake, my mind racing through memories, reinterpreting every moment of the past four years. The convenient timing of my "failure." Charlotte's sudden kindness in bringing me coffee. My parents' quick acceptance of my condition. James's immediate distancing.

It had all been planned. My entire life—stolen.

When dawn broke, I made my decision. I left the coffee untouched, dumping it down the drain when no one was looking. Hours later, as I swept the pack house entrance, the first tremors hit. My vision blurred, sweat beading on my forehead.

"You look awful," Ben, another Omega, whispered as he passed. "Should I get someone?"

"No," I gasped, clutching the broom for support. "I'm fine."

But I wasn't fine. By midday, I was burning from the inside out, every muscle screaming in agony. I barely made it back to the Omega quarters before collapsing onto my mattress, convulsions wracking my body.

Something was clawing inside me, fighting to break free. A presence I had been told didn't exist—my wolf, awakening after years of forced slumber.

"I'm here," a voice growled within my mind as silver light exploded behind my eyes. "I've always been here."

As consciousness slipped away, I caught a glimpse of her—magnificent, silver-white, and furious. My wolf. My true self.

And she was out for blood.