Obey.

Cayden

All the progress I had made with Hayley was not only gone, but now it was worse.

"What did he do to me? Or what did you do?" Her words haunted me. Was I to blame?

What had I done? I tried my best by her, I did everything she asked. Even joined the stupid pack.

"I want to thank you for you words, it drove us that much closer," Hunter found me outside.

"What are you talking around?" I whipped around to face him, my fist clenched so hard I could feel the bite of my nails piercing the skin of my palm.

Hunter smirked, his usual smirk that made me want to rip his face off and help up his phone, tapping the screen, he watched my expression as my voice came on.

"Keep your stupid omega bitch," my eyes closed in realization, feeling as as if a ghost dragged his cold finger down my spine. "Who wants someone so easy anyway," my words were thrown at me, hitting me square in the chest.

"You showed that to her?" I asked incredulously. "Why? Why hurt her like that?"

Hayley.. "What did you do?" she had said. And now I knew.

I was the driving force that pushed her to let go, that shattered her so much she gave into Hunter in such a way that was hard to come back from, if at all possible.

"I wouldn't have had to, if you hadn't of tried to take her from me," his hissed into the night. "We were fine before you came along, just fine."

"Just fine?" I questioned with a raised eyebrow. "I saw the bruises, the dead look in her eyes. You were fine, she was broken. And now she's shattered."

"Heh, yeah she is, because of you, the guy who swept her off her feet and then betrayed her with his words," he replayed the recording for effect. And it worked, hitting my ears, I felt the shame.

But she knew, she knew I was omega. I'm like her. How could she believe this? Her trust in me was so thin.

But how could I blame her when Hunter's negativeity was always in her ear. I've heard it all before.

You deserve it.

You're nothing.

No one will want an omega.

They'll use you up. Toss you away.

I've heard it all said to my poor mother.

Even some of it to me. But I was lucky enough not to be used in the way Hunter used Hayley.

It had to break her spirit. But Hayley had stayed strong, long before I arrived to town.

Until I allowed myself to be recorded saying something I didn't mean. It was me. It was me... of course. She cared about me, trusted me, believed in me.

And then Hunter showed her evidence to suggest otherwise. To suggest I had deceived her.

And once someone thought they saw your true face, they wouldn't believe anything else.

I fought back tears, not daring to let Hunter see me so weak. He came out to gloat. After his little power move display. Hayley on his lap, him kissing her.

The feather light kisses she had given me felt like a ghost of a memory, always back when I saw her, wanting nothing more for us to go back to that day. Of watching her laugh, eyes nearly shut as she watched the tv screen, holding her sides, the look of surprise when she realized she could in fact, still laugh. How she looked over at me, how her eyes danced down to my lips.

And now this. Having to watch her all over her abuser. Watching her look at him as if he was her savior.

And knowing I had pushed her to that, to give in to him.

"Anyway, I would leave you to your suffering but I have to save face, so let's go inside, let me welcome you to this pack, you so desperately wanted to be apart of," Hunter laughed, shaking his head as I stormed passed him, knowing I had no other choice now.

When I got inside, my gut twisted at what I was seeing. Hayley snorting a line, looking up at me, and unlike before when she'd hold my gaze, she quickly looked away. I could feel Hunter next to me as we both watched her do a few more lines.

"You broke her heart, don't worry, I'll fix it. The only thing I'll break of her pelvis bone," he practically said next to my ear.

"And all her other bones," I hissed looking at him in a glare.

He looked angry but then recovered with an easy smile. "She's mine after all, I'll do with her what I want. Either way, she begs for it, begs and calls my name out, not yours."

I growled, seeing red again, but then Hunter looked around with an easy smile. "Stop the music!" he shouted as I looked back at Hayley, who was now looking at Hunter like a cult member looking at their leader.

I drowned out his words as I stared at her, wanting to her look back into my eyes and see that I loved her. I fucking loved her and would never have said the things I did if I had known it would get back to her, hurt her like this. I was only trying to help her, I didn't mean them.

But she never would look back at my face that night. And I couldn't bare to see Hunter's hands all over her anymore, so I left.

I didn't want to drink away the pain or do drugs, I didn't want to end up like my father. Poor, spending money he should be on rent, at the bar, trying to drown his sorrows in the bottom of a bottle.

"Dad," I greeted when I got home, surprised to see him home early.

"Hey son."

"Not at the bar?" I asked bitterly, not being able to help the mood I was in.

"Nah, rent's due soon, gotta save money, I was actually thinking, no more bar ya know? Maybe it's time, I think we should go to your mother's grave, take a trip outta town, her death anniversary is coming up, and I think it's time," he said as he stood up at me and looked at me with sincerity.

and I knew what it meant.

"Yes, dad, it's time." Time to lay the dead to rest, time to move forward and not stay frozen in despair.

It was a week later, when we got back. The conversation I had with my dad dancing in my head.

"Dad, tell me, when is it too late?" I brought up at the gravesite.

"Too late?"

"You know, when Mom gave in fully to him as an omega, was it too late or was there something to be done? Could we have saved her?"

"Oh son, no." He answered and my heart did a somersault. "Not after he claimed her."

My ears perked up. "Claimed?" This was news to me.

"Yes, after she gave over, he'd have to um, mate with her and bite down at the base of her neck. And from then on she was lost. I'm sorry son, if I had known I'd gotten there sooner-"

"No," I stopped him realizing he thought I was blaming him, bringing up a woulda-shoulda convo. "I just needed info. That's all."

"You? I thought you broke past that."

"Not me, can we change the subject now?"

"That girl, Hayley?" He asked and I just looked away.

"It ok son," he laid his hand on my shoulder. "There's something you can do, now that you have a strong wolf."

"What?"

"Make her submit to you, just to get her away, then you're going to have to let her go. But she'll be ok, if she's in the wrong hands, you can walk away knowing you saved her from that person."

I snapped back to myself. I could save her. I could. There was a way. As long as he hadn't claimed her yet.

But then, she'd be lost to me forever. I realized I was ok with that. At least she would be free. Maybe I could train her first and then let her go. Just have that time with her...no matter how small.

But could I do it? Could I make her submit? Even to just save her?