Rejection on the Full Moon (Rejection Series) Chapter 76

I glare as the small device on my side table rings shrilly in the quiet morning, my alarm clock. With only four hours of sleep after training and talking to Lizaria, I want nothing more than to sleep in, but I have duties as an Omega to perform. Slamming my fist onto the alarm clock and turning it off, I take in the time of six o'clock in the morning and groan. Today is my day to cook breakfast for the pack, and with only an hour and a half to have the meal ready and on the table or face punishment from Beta Bastian, I will have to quickly get ready and make it downstairs within the next fifteen minutes.

I quickly look outside the window and notice the sky is still dark outside. I groan with frustration and fling the comforter off of my body, shivering with the cold fall air. Today is graduation day, with many of the wolves preparing to walk across the stage at noon. Chores will be delegated to the Omegas twenty years or older, meaning I will have most of the morning to myself after making breakfast. I can use this time to prepare to leave. My talk with Lizaria last night opened my eyes to needing to leave, being free and allowing myself to fully accept the power a Beta wolf should have. I feel especially trapped and suffocated, today of all days. Another sigh escapes my lips while I take out a simple pair of leggings and green T-shirt and head towards the shower, thinking about what I will need to leave and be on my own. The lukewarm water falls harshly onto my body, leaving me shivering as soon as I finish washing off and wrap myself in a thin old towel. I only have to make it through today, and once everyone is too preoccupied from the graduation party tonight, I'll escape.

The ringing in my left ear is persistent as I curl into a ball, my hands over my head protecting myself from any damage this beating will cause. I want nothing more than to look up and glare at Beta Bastian as he towers over me, rage radiating off of him in waves in my direction.

"You filthy bitch! I told you to have breakfast ready at exactly seven-thirty!" He screams at me, drops of what I can only assume to be spittle from his mouth landing on my exposed skin. Disgust creeps into me at his treatment, cementing my decision to leave tonight. A foot collides with my arms, his boot directing a blow to my head, making me thankful that I was quick enough to roll into a ball after the punch he threw my way moments ago left me on the floor.

"Do you know what I saw instead when I came downstairs, you filthy excuse of an Omega?" He continues. But I know better than to answer. Answering his rhetorical question will lead to a whipping with the silver-tipped whip. My silence must have pleased him as the kicks stopped, replaced by a hand grabbing my hair and pulling me up into a sitting position, making a whimper of pain escape my lips. I notice a crowd forming in the dining hall. The food is already placed on the buffet table and ready to be devoured by the pack, but everyone here would rather watch this spectacle.

"I saw you placing the last dish at seven thirty-five!" Beta Bastian screams in reply to his own question, more spittle landing this time on my cheeks. I want to argue that I was actually refilling the bacon that had already been devoured by the pack members who arrived earlier, now sitting by the windows with a smug smile as they enjoyed the show, but they would call me a liar. This pack has little respect for anyone deemed an Omega since Bastian and Jasmine took over as temporary leaders. Since I am the disowned daughter of the Betas, I am nothing but garbage in their eyes, so my treatment is worse than what the others get.

My body is flung backwards, and the back of my head collides with the wall behind me. Stars shoot across my vision before the all-to-familiar feeling of a boot colliding with my stomach has me curling into a ball of pain once more. I can hear a few snickers and comments about how pathetic I am, these words fueling my rage that I have no other choice but to restrain.

"Geminie, get out of my sight and go make yourself useful to the pack." A final kick is thrown my way after Beta Bastian dismisses me. When I hear his footsteps fade away, I push myself off the ground and use the wall as support to stand. Even through the overwhelming pain, I can feel everyone watching me either openly with a mocking smile or subtly, waiting for another show. I finally realize why Lizaria always mentioned that I should leave as I stare at each and every wolf in the room. Only a few cared about me in this pack, and the hope of one day becoming a Beta again has long been crushed. I have no other reason to stay here with Hidden Claws. With a slight limp, I walk out of the dining room, refusing to show weakness and refusing to cry anymore. My mind is now made up.

Making my way outside into the garden, I sit and take a deep breath of the crisp fall air. The trees surrounding the pack lands are starting to turn red and yellow with the changing seasons, and a slight chill is on the wind, breathing a fire inside me I thought I had given up. Since I could not shift into a wolf, my next step would be leading a life as a human, maybe in a large city like Toronto, Ottawa or Mississauga. Perhaps even a smaller town like Bolton or Barrie would be comfortable. I'd love to be nywhere but here, along the Hudson Bay.