Meredith.
I walked out of the ballroom, flanked by my family like a prisoner as the murmurs of wolves trailed behind me, thick with shock, disgust, and morbid curiosity.
I couldn't feel my body when my father's grip tightened around my arm—hard enough to bruise, tight enough to snap it in half if he wanted.
He hadn't stepped in when I was bullied, humiliated, and mocked. But the moment Draven Oatrun claimed me as his, then—only then—did he finally cross the room and grab me.
And now, as we left the Lunar Ball before the party was even over, his silence was deafening because I hadn't just embarrassed myself tonight. I had embarrassed him and my entire pack.
Not only had I become the topic of ridicule, but I had drawn the eyes of important pack leaders, elders, and even the future Alpha King. And my father had had enough of me.
I was numb, trapped somewhere between humiliation and anger, then fear and regret.
---
The drive back to our family estate was suffocating and almost unbearable.
No one spoke. My father's anger was a living, breathing force in the Mercedes van, thick and unforgiving.
My mother sat beside him, lips pressed into a thin line. She has never defended me since that nightmare of a cursed day, and she wouldn't start now.
Monique and Mabel exchanged looks behind our parents, amusement flickering in their eyes occasionally.
And Gary's gaze kept flickering to the rearview mirror, where our eyes accidentally met. A sneer was practically carved into his face.
I quickly stopped looking and cradled my torn veil in my arms before he burned me with his gaze.
---
MOONSTONE PACK.
The Carter's Estate.
The second the car stopped in the driveway, my father yanked the door open and fixed his death stare on me.
"Get out!" he ordered, voice cutting like a blade as his hand shot out.
Pain exploded up my shoulder as he dragged me out, his grip so tight my bones protested. My veil slipped from my fingers, landing in the dirt as I stumbled to keep up.
Father pulled me inside, hauling me through the front doors amidst the wandering stares from the guards stationed around the estate.
My mother and siblings followed behind us at a much more leisurely pace.
The moment the doors slammed shut behind us, father's palm struck my face before I could prepare.
CRACK!
Pain exploded across my cheek almost immediately, whipping my head to the side as a buzzing sound filled my right ear.
My hand instinctively reached out to cradle my cheek as I tasted blood. I didn't dare to lift my head for fear of being hit again.
"Gabriel!" Mother's voice cut through the air calmly. And for a second, I stopped breathing.
My father turned, his expression darkening. "What?" he snapped, impatient.
A heavy pause followed before my mother spoke again. "Don't hit her face."
My stomach twisted as my siblings stilled in surprise.
I lifted my head, something close to hope flickering to life for the first time in years. Then she added, "The injury will reopen, and we will have to waste more herbs on sealing it again."
The hope died before it even had a chance to breathe.
I felt nothing, realizing that Mum's indifference towards me was better off than her concern because it just didn't make sense.
My father shifted his furious gaze to me before taking a seat a second later. He agreed with my mother on this, unlike my siblings, who simply didn't give a fuck.
"Kneel!" My father commanded, his eyes blazing with fire. And almost immediately, I got on my knees before him and dropped my gaze, clasping my fingers nervously in front of me.
"You are such a big disappointment and a disgrace to our family and our pack!" My father started, jabbing a finger in front of my face. "I warned you never to take off your veil!"
"And Father, I warned her to control her stupid pheromones!" Gary cut in as his height towered above me. "Now look what she did tonight, seducing more than half of the men with it!"
Then he slapped my head. "Even catching an Alpha's attention."
My fingers tightened around each other until my knuckles turned white.
From behind my father, Monique scoffed. "Look at her," she muttered. "Feeling like she's worth something."
Mabel sighed dramatically. "I told you she'd embarrass us eventually."
My father's breathing was ragged as he stood to his feet. His hands trembled at his sides with barely restrained fury.
"You have shamed this family," he spat, pacing like a caged wolf.
I curled my fingers into my palms, nails biting into my skin. I stayed silent. It was the only defence I had.
"You were already a disgrace," he continued, voice dripping with disgust. "A wolfless, cursed mistake. But now, you've let yourself and our family become a spectacle."
I swallowed back the words I wanted to scream—that I never asked for any of this. That none of it was my fault.
That he, my mother, my siblings, my mate… they had all already decided I was worthless because of that damn curse. But I knew better than to speak.
Father's glare was pure hatred. He was disgusted by me, and then I knew he wished I had never been born.
"First, your mate rejected you. Then, you made a fool of yourself with those disgusting pheromones. And now, you let Draven Oatrun claim you?" he questioned.
I didn't let Draven claim me.
But none of that mattered to my father because to him, I was a disgrace no matter what.
I braced myself for another blow, but instead, my father turned to my mother and then uttered the words I dreaded most.
"Lock her in the poultry shed!"
My stomach dropped instantly. The poultry shed, the place they had thrown me every time I had brought disgrace to them.
Dark, cold and crawling with filth.
My mother hesitated, eyes flicking toward me. "Gabriel, maybe—"
"I said now!" my father snapped. And just like that, my mother nodded.
"Yes, dear."
Her hands trembled as she grabbed my wrist.
I didn't fight, and I have never had to because fighting only worsened my situation.
So, I let her lead me outside, past the main house, to the small wooden shack behind the estate.
The scent of damp hay and the faint musk of birds long gone filled my nose. I stepped inside without a word. The door slammed shut behind. The lock clicked, and mother walked away.
But a few minutes later, a servant sneaked in with a small bowl of rice and curry sauce, and a cup of water.
"Your mother wants you to eat quickly."
I furrowed my brows. "My mother?"
"Yes," the servant confirmed.
That was so… unexpected.
Why would my mother suddenly show me kindness? Was she afraid that I would starve to death?