Moonlight poured through my small window, casting silver shadows across the walls. I sat curled on my bed, knees pulled to my chest, mind spinning with pain.
Everything had shattered—the bond I'd thought I sensed with Evan all these years, the hope that maybe I'd find my place. My family had stripped it all away, leaving me unwanted, adrift in a home that had never truly been mine.
Every muscle ached from holding myself so tightly, as if I could physically keep from falling apart. My throat burned from swallowing back tears I refused to shed.
Then something shifted inside me—a presence I'd felt long ago but never truly heard. Hyde, my wolf, the silent companion who'd endured every beating, every cruel word alongside me.
"They've shown their true faces, Atlas."
I froze. The voice resonated through my mind, steady and certain. For a moment I thought I was imagining it. Hyde had never... in all these years of abuse, of being called broken and wolfless, he'd never spoken.
My heart hammered against my ribs. "Hyde?" I whispered internally, barely daring to believe.
Hyde stirred within me—my wolf, strong and steady, an anchor in the storm.
"We don't belong here," he continued, his presence stronger than I'd ever felt it, wrapping around me like armor. "We never did."
All those years they'd said I was defective because I couldn't shift, all those times they'd beaten me for being weak... and Hyde had been there. Silent, but there.
I closed my eyes, clinging to his newfound voice, to his warmth. He was the only constant, the only one who'd never abandoned me—even when I'd thought he didn't exist at all.
"But where would I go? I have no one. They've made sure of it."
"Anywhere is better than this," Hyde insisted, his conviction absolute. "They've chosen him. Let them have their golden son. You and I—we'll find freedom. Somewhere we can breathe."
But my heart felt like stone, cold and heavy. I wanted to believe him, but fear held me captive.
Outside these walls was uncertainty, danger, the wilderness where rogues died alone. Here, at least, I knew what to expect—even if it was cruelty disguised as family.
I couldn't sleep. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Evan's arm around Dominic, heard Father declaring me insufficient and Mother confirming they didn’t need me, that they prefer my brother.
The images played on repeat, each one a fresh wound.
Unable to bear my room's suffocating silence, I crept down the darkened hallway, drawn by voices from Father's study. My bare feet made no sound as I pressed against the wall, hidden in shadows.
My heart pounded so loudly I was certain they'd hear it.
"This plan has worked perfectly," Mother said, satisfaction thick in her tone—a warmth I'd never heard directed at me. "Evan bonded to Dominic just as we'd hoped. Atlas is hanging on by a thread."
My breath caught. Plan?
Dominic's laugh cut through the air—sharp, mocking, victorious. "I told you he'd break. Poor thing can't handle being alone, let alone without his ‘fated mate’."
The way he spat those words made my stomach turn. I pressed my hand over my mouth, holding back a gasp. My chest tightened.
They'd orchestrated everything? From the beginning?
"Atlas needs to learn his place.” Father's voice cut in, cold and calculating. “He's always been too soft. This will break that foolishness out of him. By sunrise, Atlas will be out of our lives for good. And Dominic will step into his place, just as it should be.”
"And if he's not?" Mother asked, concern finally creeping into her voice.
"Then we'll ensure he understands there's nowhere else to go," Father replied casually. "A broken son is far more useful than a defiant one. He'll serve Dominic's rule perfectly—quietly, obediently, invisibly."
Dominic laughed again, the sound making my skin crawl. "He already thinks he's nothing. A few more weeks, and he'll be begging to stay in whatever corner we allow him."
I gripped the wall, fingernails digging into wood. Fury rose within me, hotter than my pain. This wasn't just favoritism—they'd actively worked to destroy me, to break me into an obedient shell who would never question their authority.
A chill ran down my spine. What if they wanted to do more than just banish me? What if breaking me wasn't enough? I could almost see Father stepping into my room in the dead of night, Mother's approval shadowing him as Dominic watched, triumphant.
Fear seized my chest.
But then—something snapped.
Deep inside, something fundamental shifted. A primal instinct to survive roared to life, burning away the helplessness and resignation.
No.
I wouldn't sit here waiting to be crushed. I wouldn't let them turn me into the hollow thing they wanted. I'd already lost everything worth keeping—their love and respect, my supposed fated mate, my future as Alpha.
But I hadn't lost myself. Not completely.
My decision crystallized, sharp and certain. The fear remained, but underneath burned something stronger—desperate determination to reclaim my life.
I won’t let them win. I’m out of here on my terms.
I will leave tonight. Before they could do more damage.
I walked back to my room, steps quiet but purposeful. I had nothing to pack—they'd made sure of that, keeping me dependent. But I had Hyde, my will to survive, and the fury burning in my chest like a guiding star.
By sunrise, they expected me gone—broken and defeated, crushed by their betrayal.
They were half right.
I would be gone. For real.