Chapter 4

• Karin
• “Where the hell have you been?!” my father bellows the second I come home. His tone is so angry that even the maid, Emma, turns tense behind me in the hallway.
• “Uh…I think I will head out now,” Emma says quickly before opening the door and escaping right before my father storms towards me with murderous eyes.
• Fear hits me hard and fast when I see him towering above me, but I know I can’t get away from my punishment. I was supposed to come home way earlier. Instead, I got carried away and slept beside Alpha Killian. And while Anna wasn’t too furious, my father isn’t known for being understanding.
• “I don’t understand why you stayed so long with Alpha Killian when Anna texted me and said you didn’t even have sex with him! What is wrong with you? What part about the mission of ‘getting pregnant with the Alpha’don’t you understand?”
• I’m not given enough time to answer before my father lifts me up by the throat and presses me against the wall. Breathing becomes harder, yet I don’t claw at his hands. I know better. It would only end up with me getting more hurt. So I calm down and meet his feral eyes.
• “Just what are you plotting, Karin?” he asks in a tone that hints at his suspicion.
• I stare right back at him and choke out, “Wh…what are you talking about?”
• “Don’t play dumb with me, Karin! If you spent extra time with Alpha Killian, then you’re obviously planning something…” He trails off then and laughs. “You’re not planning to pretend to be your sister for a longer time, right? Because that wouldn’t work. You’re just a useless and wolfless little Omega, and if Alpha Killian knew who you truly were, then he wouldn’t still be interested in you. It’s your sister he wants!”
• Even though I already knew that Alpha Killian wouldn’t want someone like me, my father’s words still hurt. Not only is my body injured, but now my heart is bleeding as well.
• “Come to think of it, why am I even worried? It’s not like you could ever possess a threat!”
• With that, my father’s fingers press into my throat one last time before he flings me away like discarded trash. I hit the floor hard, gasping for air as the world spins around me. His words echo in my mind, magnifying the pain from my bruises tenfold.
• “Remember,” he growls lowly as he towers over me. “Your only worth to this family is getting pregnant by Alpha Killian. Nothing else matters.”
• As he stomps away, his cruel laughter echoes through the eerily silent house, stirring something within me. A bitter anger wells up inside me—a mix of shame, guilt, and a desperate yearning for freedom. For the first time in my life, I feel a spark of defiance flicker to life within me.
• But it’s quenched quickly by reality. I’m not stupid enough to believe that a wolfless Omega like me could stand against my own father, let alone an entire pack that sees me as someone totally useless. Yet, deep down inside, a part of me dares to dream of escape.
• If I had a wolf, just a wolf, not magic or anything, then I could possibly run away from this tragic life of mine. If only…
• ***
• Later that same day, my sister and her best friend Nikki pop up in the kitchen while I’m studying. We are all college students, but my sister’s grades are only good because she usually forces me to do her assignments.
• “Hello, Karin,” my sister stretches as the sun coming from outside hits her body. She is wearing brand-new clothes while I’m dressed in her hands-me-downs that are too big for me. It’s been like this since we were kids—she always gets the best of everything while I get what’s left.
• “Hey, Anna,” I mumble back without lifting my gaze from the book in front of me.
• Anna loves to make fun of my studying habits. She thinks I’m wasting my time, saying that it doesn’t matter how wise I am when I don’t have a wolf. She may be right about that, but studying is the only thing that gives me hope for the future.
• What are you doing?” Nikki asks, coming up behind me to peek over my shoulder.
• “Just trying to study,” I answer, closing the book and cradling it to my chest as if to guard it from them.
• Nikki lifts an eyebrow at Anna, and they both share a knowing look before Anna snorts. “Still trying to be smart, eh?”
• “Why not? Somebody has to be,” I shoot back, surprising myself with my sudden boldness. My sister’s eyes widen and Nikki snaps her head towards me, equally taken aback. For a moment, the room is deathly quiet, then Anna lets out a low, cruel laugh.
• “Listen to that,” she says to Nikki, pointing at me with a red manicured nail, “the little Omega grew a backbone.”
• Their laughter fills the kitchen, but this time, it doesn’t crush me as it usually does. Instead, it fuels the spark of defiance within me. I sit up straighter, refusing to let their mockery knock me down.
• “Actually,” I say calmly, “I’m not trying to be smart. I am smart. I just choose to use my intellect, something else than deceiving others.”
• Its a jab meant for Anna and the deception she has roped me into by forcing me to sleep with her future husband. The laughter dies off immediately as my words hit home.
• “You little bitch,” Anna glares at me. “How fucking dare you? I came here in peace, and you’re already insulting me?”
• A slap to my face is carried out by her half-shifted werewolf hand. It stings more than any slap before, leaving a burning print on my skin that I can’t help but reach out to cradle.
• “Don’t you dare talk back at me ever again, Karin,” she hisses, her face inches from mine. “Remember, you’re nothing without me. You’re lucky that I even bother using you for my purposes since our parents hate you.”
• Anna spits in my face after her words, and Nikki tries not to laugh as she watches the scene unfold. She is wearing a sickly sweet smile on her face that grows bigger when Anna searches for her bag.
• “I didn’t come here to chat,” she says and lifts up a massive book from it. “It’s beautiful weather outside, but Nikki and I have a lot of homework.”
• She says the last part with a smirk, tossing her glossy hair over one shoulder as she places the heavy book on the table. The thick volume lands with a thud that makes me jump.
• “Do my homework for me, Karin,” she orders, tapping a manicured fingernail against the cover of the volume. “I want to highest grade in this class, and I want my homework done by tomorrow.”
• I can feel the heat rising to my cheeks as I look at the book. It’s a dense calculus textbook filled with complex equations and problems. A part of me wants to refuse, to push back against her constant demands. But another part, the part that has been conditioned after years of abuse and neglect, knows better.
• “Sure, Anna,” I respond meekly as I reach for the book.
• “Great,” Anna looks at Nikki. “Why don’t you give her your homework too?”
• Nikki immediately gives me her own textbook. “Here, make me the queen of this subject, too.” She grins at me, the malicious glint in her eyes matching Anna’s.
• “Sure,” I repeat, too afraid to refuse.
• “Oh, and before I forget…” Anna fishes up her phone from her pocket, placing it in front of my nose. “Alpha Killian will be busy with pack meetings this week. He has asked me to keep in contact over text. Flirt with him, will you? I know you’re a nerd, but try not to sound like a dork, okay? It’s my reputation you will ruin.”
• I stare down at the phone in silence, shocked by my sister’s request. I can barely handle the thought of sleeping with Alpha Killian under the guise of my sister, and now I’m supposed to win him over by conversation?
• “But...” I stumble over my words, looking up from the cell phone to my sister expectantly. “What if he wants to meet?”
• Anna rolls her eyes and waves an impatient hand at me. “He won’t. He’s been tied up with pack politics lately. That’s why he needs to be distracted and kept entertained. But if he does want to meet, then you will head out and see him. You look the same as me, so maybe it could lead to sex… Anyway, the mall won’t be open forever, so Nikki and I should get going. Goodbye, Karin, don’t disappoint me.”
• My sister and Nikki leave the kitchen while I sit there, my eyes kept on the phone.
• Am I supposed to text Alpha Killian just like that?
• A blush creeps up my face at the thought. I don’t have any friends, and I’ve never had to flirt with anyone before. Let alone with an Alpha and through text messages.
• But this needs to be done.
• My hands tremble as I pick up the phone and start typing out a message to Alpha Killian. “Here goes nothing…”