Weakness

Ava kneeled on the floor of the training pit, rain pelting her barely clothed body. Her entire frame shuddered, caught between the chill of the storm and the warmth of her own blood trickling down her split lip into the mud beneath her trembling hands. She tried to move but her muscles collectively voted against it.

Laughter rang out around her, bouncing off the pit walls.

"Pathetic," Sharon sneered.

Ava would have rolled her eyes if she wasn't so busy trying to breathe.

The beta's daughter stood over her with the superiority of a deity surveying her lowly subjects. Wet golden strands of hair clung to her sculpted face but somehow managed to make her look pretty. Some people just had unfair genetics and Ava had drawn the short end of the stick in both beauty and social standing. Or so she thought.

Sharon sighed theatrically. "How can you consider yourself useful to this pack if you can't even defend yourself? There should be a rank lower than omega. You'd be perfect for it."

Ava considered responding but figured the only reward would be another round of being used as a human punching bag. She was already at full capacity for the day.

"I suppose we'll have to make do with the omega position for now," Sharon lamented. "Until my father can think of something even lower for you. Something more fitting for weak, disposable, wolfless things."

Ava clenched her jaw, focusing on the sting rather than the words. The pain grounded her, kept her from letting her rage bubble over. She had learned that lesson the hard way.

This was nothing new. She once got beaten for coughing too loudly. Another time, Luna Selene slapped her so hard her ears rang for hours because she dared to pause for a sip of coffee. Apparently, hydration was a privilege.

Before she could prepare for the next wave of abuse, Sharon delivered a swift kick to her shoulder, the heel of her boot digging into bone and sending Ava skidding across the mud like an abandoned rag doll. The crowd of onlookers cackled as if watching the comedic highlight of their night.

"Enough!"

The voice boomed like thunder, silencing the laughter instantly.

Ava didn't have to look up to know who it was. The very air around her shifted with the force of his presence. Leon, Alpha of the Crimson Pack, stood at the edge of the pit. Once, the sight of him would have filled her with something warm and hopeful. Now, it just made her want to throw up.

He was supposed to be hers. Her fated mate. The one chosen for her by the Moon Goddess herself. But apparently, political alliances were far more binding than divine will.

He jumped into the pit. "Get up."

Ava tried. She really did. But her body felt like a bag of broken bones held together by sheer willpower.

She struggled against the ache, pushing herself up inch by inch. Her legs wobbled but she refused to stay down.

And then Sharon, the graceful embodiment of evil, slammed a fist into her ribs.

Ava collapsed. The laughter resumed, louder than before.

"If you cannot stand, you do not belong in the Crimson Pack," Leon stated.

Ava wanted to scream. She wanted to grab a handful of mud and hurl it at Sharon's flawless face. But life was not fair.

So, she swallowed her pain and got to her feet.

Leon scoffed. "I have never seen anyone so weak. I can't believe I once thought you could be my Luna."

Those words hurt more than any punch or kick ever could.

Sharon smirked. "I still don't know why Luna Selene keeps her around."

"Get out of here, idiot!" Sharon barked.

Ava stood there for a moment, absorbing the humiliation like she always did. Someday, she told herself. Someday they would all regret this.

Limping away, she made her way towards the servant quarters. Every step sent waves of pain through her body, but at least she was away from them. Small victories.

She reached her door, only to find fresh torment waiting for her.

"Ava, the Crimson Pack's favorite punching bag," Jake drawled, stepping out from the shadows.

Ava sighed. "You again."

Jake, her stepbrother, had all the charm of a venomous snake. He leaned against her doorframe, arms crossed in that infuriating way that made Ava want to kick him in the shin.

"I don't have time for this. Move."

"Omegas should say 'please'." He smirked.

Ava considered it for all of one second before deciding she would rather eat mud.

"What do you want, Jake?"

"I just came to check on my dear sister."

Ava let out a dry chuckle. "You never considered me your sister."

"Correct," he said, grinning. "But I do care about you. Which is why I'm here to offer you a way out."

"Not interested."

"You haven't even heard it yet."

Ava crossed her arms. "Fine. Let's hear it."

Jake stepped closer. "Luna Selene is getting impatient with you. She hasn't forgotten you were once her husband's mate, and let's just say... she'd prefer you didn't exist anymore."

Ava clenched her fists. "And?"

"And," Jake said, "I have a solution. You should just die."

Ava stared at him. He was dead serious.

"Think about it," he continued. "No more beatings. No more humiliation. And best of all, you won't have to listen to Leon and his wife every night. Must be exhausting, huh? Knowing he's fucking another woman while you rot away?"

Ava tilted her head. "Tempting."

And the terrifying part? She wasn't being sarcastic. There were worse fates than death, and she had been living one for months.

Jake stepped back. "Do as I say, or it will only get worse. I hear something's brewing, and trust me, you don't want to be here when it does."

With that, he walked away.

Ava watched him go. She let out a breath and stepped into her room. Maybe one day, she'd take Jake's advice. But not today.

Because someday, they would all regret ever thinking she was weak.