The Unwanted Omega: Claimed by the Shadow Alpha Chapter 02
The hospital corridor was long and sterile. Every stepÂ
left a small bloody smear on the polished tile from myÂ
knee, but no one stopped to help. I was the pariah.Â
The Alpha had commanded me to leave, and the packÂ
obeyed the Alpha.Â
I could hear them through the thin walls of the VIPÂ
room.Â
“I want to go to Moon Island now,” Willow whined, herÂ
voice high and childish. “I don’t feel safe here with herÂ
lurking around.”Â
“We’ll go tonight,” Ryker promised. “I’ll have the jet prepped.”Â
“Can Ember come?” Willow asked. It was a trap. IÂ
knew her tone.Â
“Absolutely not,” Axel’s voice cut through the air like a scalpel She’s unstable. Her jealousy is toxic. She doesn’t deserve the sacred ground of Moon Island.”Â
I leaned against the wall, closing my eyes. Moon Island. The place where Dad taught Ryker to fish. The place where Mom taught Axel to identify herbs. TheÂ
place they swore was our sanctuary.Â
Now, it belonged to a stranger,Â
The door opened. Axel stepped out. He stopped whenÂ
he saw me leaning against the wall, clutching my bleeding leg. For a brief moment, his gaze snaggedÂ
on the blood. A flicker of confusion crossed his face-Â
a doctor’s instinct warring with his prejudice.Â
Then he looked at my face, and the wall slammedÂ
back down.Â
“Since you are here,” Axel said, checking his watch, “IÂ
need you to move your things.”Â
“What?” I asked, my voice hoarse.Â
“Willow needs the south–facing room at the PackÂ
House, Ideally, the Master Suite, but Ryker is keepingÂ
that as a shrine to Dad. Your room has the bestÂ
sunlight. It will help her recovery.”Â
My room. The room with the balcony where I grew my medicinal herbs. The room Mom had painted yellowÂ
because she said I was her ‘little sun.”Â
“Axel,” I said, staring at him. “That’s my room.”Â
“It’s a room in the Alpha’s house,” he corrected coldly.Â
“You are a guest there. A burden, really. Pack yourÂ
things. Be out of that room by tomorrow.”Â
Something inside me snapped. It wasn’t a loud snap. It was quiet, like a dry twig in winter.Â
“Okay,” I said.Â
Axel blink. He had expected a fight. He had expected tears. He didn’t know what to do with my sudden,Â
hollow calm.Â
“Okay?” he repeated.Â
“I’ll move out,” I said. “Enjoy the island.”Â
I pushed off the wall and limped toward the elevator. I didn’t look back. If I had, I might have seen the confusion on his face. But I didn’t care anymore.Â
I went back to the Pack House. The servants watched me with pity, but they didn’t help. They couldn’t.Â
I went to my room. I didn’t pack everything. I took theÂ
photo of my parents. I took my acceptance letter. I took my hard drive with five years of research on the Silver Poison cure–my life’s work.Â
I left the clothes Ryker had bought me years ago. I left the medical books Axel had given me before heÂ
started hating me.Â
I packed one suitcase.Â
The next morning, I was standing in the foyer. TheÂ
house was silent. They were leaving for the airport irÂ
an hour.Â
Axel came down the stairs, holding a stack oÂ
passports. He stopped when he saw the suitcase.Â
“Finally acting out the runaway drama?” he sneered, “Where are you going? To cry at a friend’s house until we beg you to come back?”Â
“I’m moving to the university dorms,” I lied. My voice was steady. “You wanted the room. It’s yours.”Â
Willow appeared at the top of the stairs, wearing theÂ
silk dress I had bought her. She twirled.Â
“Oh, Axel, look! It fits perfectly now that my ankle is better!” She beamed. She looked at me, her eyesÂ
mocking. “Leaving so soon, Ember?”Â
“Yes,” I said.Â
Ryker walked in from the kitchen, holding a mug ofÂ
coffee. He looked at my suitcase, then at my face.Â
His wolf, the giant black beast inside him, seemed toÂ
sense something was wrong. He frowned, rubbing hisÂ
chest.Â
“You’re leaving on a family holiday?” Ryker asked.Â
“You didn’t invite me,” I reminded him.Â
“Stop being a brat,” Ryker grumbled. “We’ll be back inÂ
two weeks. Make sure the house is clean when weÂ
return.”Â
“I won’t be here,” I said softly.Â
“Good,” Axel snapped. “Maybe the distance will fixÂ
your attitude. If you aren’t back by the time we return,Â
don’t bother coming back at all.”Â
“Okay,” I said again.Â
I turned to the door.Â
“And Ember?” Axel called out.Â
I paused, my hand on the brass handle.Â
“Don’t expect us to pay for your dorm. You’re on yourÂ
own.”Â
“I know,” I whispered.Â
I opened the door. The sky outside was dark gray. AÂ
storm was coming.Â
“Roll,” Axel spat the word like a curse. “Get out.”Â
I stepped over the threshold. The heavy doorÂ
slammed shut behind me, severing the warmth of theÂ
house.Â
I stood on the porch. I was homeless. I was broke. IÂ
was injured.Â
But for the first time in ten years, I was free.

