Alphas Shackled Mate

CEDAR BLAKE

"Stop right there, you worthless Omega!"

Their voices were loud, vicious, and far too close. I could hear them breathing hard behind me, their footsteps pounding the forest floor in hot pursuit. The leaves under my feet crackled as I ran, the sharp twigs slicing into my bare soles, but I didn't stop.

I couldn't.

My heart thundered in my chest, beating wildly with desperation. Sweat trickled down my forehead, stinging my eyes. My lungs burned with each gasp, but I pushed forward. I couldn't afford to be caught.

I must escape.

I have to survive.

I have to live.

I repeated the words over and over like a sacred chant, trying to silence the sobs crawling up my throat. My mind screamed at me to focus. There was no room for weakness.

You've got to live, Cedar. Promise me, you will. Do it. Swear it, now.

My brother's final plea echoed in my skull, louder than the shouts behind me. I bit down hard on my cracked lower lip until I tasted blood, but I didn't slow down. I didn't look back to see how close they were. That would only waste precious seconds I didn't have.

I wasn't fast, never was. Even among the weakest Omegas, I couldn't compete in speed or strength. But none of that mattered right now. I ran because it was all I had left.

Behind me, the sounds of their pursuit grew louder, more aggressive. Their weapons... spears, claws, cruel intentions... slashed through the underbrush as they closed in. I didn't dare look. My only hope was reaching the edge of the Crystal Moon Pack's territory. Maybe another pack would find me, take me in. Maybe someone, anyone, would show mercy.

But my legs betrayed me.

My knees collided, clumsily knocking together. My body pitched forward and I slammed hard into the dry earth, face-first. Sand filled my mouth and pain exploded through my chin. Before I could crawl away, I felt a rough hand grab my ankle and yank me backward.

I screamed.

The Alpha twins, Adonis and Adonai, loomed over me, tall, strong, and filled with savage delight. Icarus, the pack's Zeta, joined them. I knew the Beta would be nearby too. They wouldn't miss this for anything. My humiliation was their entertainment.

I stared up at them, terrified, but refused to beg because that never got me anywhere near safety.

"I told you, brother. She's no good!" Alpha Adonai's voice thundered in my ears like he was whispering straight into my skull.

"A fucking slave," he spat.

"We should've gotten rid of this stinking cunt the moment her parents betrayed our father!" Adonis growled, his lip curled with hatred. "I don't know how we've let her live this long."

"Game over, Cedar! Give up already!" Icarus laughed as he raised his dagger. In his other hand, a chain glinted in the moonlight.

Their eyes burned with bloodlust. This wasn't punishment, it was a game to them. A hunt. A thrill. And I was the prey.

I didn't dare lift my head. I knew what they were capable of. I'd already survived being tied to a racehorse and dragged through the village square until I was nearly unrecognizable. Today's "fun" was just another cruel invention. A new way to break me.

According to the rules of their sick game, if I reached the border, I'd be spared. That was the only mercy they'd offered, to make it feel fair. But we all knew the truth.

I'd never make it.

Even if I did, they'd find a way to twist the rules. They always did.

Still, I ran. Because I promised.