Once Rejected: A Slave To My Alpha Stepbrothers

Veil. I cross the borders of the Moonbloom pack at the first peek of the sun and draw to a halt, bending to my knees. Exhaustion pulls through me from hours of running from Ryder's men, and I gulp in a breath. I made it, thank goddess. A beat later, I rise back up, flitting my gaze around the pack that was once my home several years ago. I left thinking I was walking into the promise land Ryder promised me, but it all turned out to be lies. I was only his bait. It was during the night of Quin's coronation, the son of Alpha's Moon's first Luna, that I eloped with Ryder. A very crucial night in the pack. Quin was my biggest bully right from high school. However, his bullying worsened when my mother agreed to marry Alpha Moon as his last wife. Alpha Moon was impotent; however, his desire to strengthen his lineage of alpha blood made him marry widows with alpha blood, my mother included. I never liked Quin because he made my life a living hell. The rest of the alpha's stepsons, Rio and Hunter, completely ignored my existence in the pack house. I guess it was only fair I disappeared rather than watch them treat me like I was nothing. But now, I'm back here to the polygamous family, full of the stepbrothers I hated. Ryder has proven to me that I don't have a choice. I take a step, focusing on getting to the pack house where my fate will be decided, when I feel someone cock a gun behind me. "Halt!" My heart flips. That voice. It isn't the first I was expecting to hear. A thick lump gathers in my throat, and my hands raise above my head as he commanded. I close my eyes as his footsteps begin to echo behind me, making my pulse race erratically. He stands before me, and I raise my head and meet his smoky green eyes. Hunter. The son of Alpha Moon's third Luna. The strong warrior and biker who handles the pack's security affairs. His smoky blonde hair and olive skin shimmer under the morning sun. He looks...more handsome and dangerous than I remember. He wields his gun tightly like he's facing his enemy. As I expected, his gaze narrows when he realizes it's me, the look scorching my body. "Veil." He drawls, scanning me with something akin to hatred and shock in his eyes. "Hun...ter..." I manage, hoping that seeing me here, looking unkempt and homeless, will at least soften him up. But his next words snap breaths from my lungs. "The fugitive." He steps away from my space, a sinister smile tipping up his lips. "Bold of you to come here after what you did." He points his gun at me and whistles. Men dressed in black fall out of the woods. The patrol warriors, and of course, members of his MC. They have a contemptuous look on their faces as they stare at me, and I wonder what's going on. "Hunter...look..." I start talking, ready to drop the drama for now, maybe when I've rested and regained strength, we'll continue, but Hunter's orders stop me. "Arrest her!" Two hefty warriors walk over to me and nab my arms. My body goes rigid, alert. They begin to drag me away to goddess knows where. I whimper, looking over my shoulder at my stepbrother, who's glaring at me. "Hunter. Please just let me go to the pack house...it's urgent." I need to see my mom and Alpha Moon. They're the ones I'm looking to for mercy, not Hunter, not Rio, and especially not Quin. Hunter doesn't budge. My pleas fall on deaf ears as the warriors drag me through the border woods until we reach their barracks. They throw me into one of the cabins, and I land on the wooden floor, grunting at the searing impact. The door slams behind me, and I tense. I surge to my feet and race to the door, banging on it. "Hey!! Could you please let me out? I need to see my mother!" I plead, knocking on the door. They don't respond. I press my back against the door and sink to the floor in exhaustion. Why would Hunter do that? He just called me a fugitive, and I don't understand why. I think he's nuts. That I eloped with Ryder doesn't make me a fugitive, and I wasn't banished either. Well, I need to see my stepfather and explain things to him. I wait for several minutes for Hunter's return, but he doesn't show up. I feel abandoned. Lonely. I decide to look for something I can munch on in the cabin, which makes me ransack the room. Turns out it's Hunter's cabin. The bed linens bear his sandalwood and leather scent. There are guns and bullets scattered on it, causing a hitch in my breath. I check the mini fridge, and it only has a bottle of water and a leftover sandwich. Seeing that, my stomach grumbles. I reach for the leftover and devour it hurriedly, polishing the plate in under a minute. I take a drink of water and then resume looking through his things. The bunch of condoms on his nightstand leaves me speechless. Unthinkingly, I grab one. It's half used and smells of his warm skin, the rubber stretching in my hand. Just like the rest of my stepbrothers, Hunter is promiscuous, always throwing parties and messing around with girls. Good thing I hardly crossed paths with him back then because his lifestyle irritated me. The door opens before I can drop the condom. I turn my head to the door, and there he is, looming over it in his 5'9 height. He's strapped his gun over his chest, a hard grit to his jaw. He steps in, slamming the door closed, brooding as he walks towards me. I can feel it, the hammering of my heart as he narrows his gaze on the forbidden item in my hand. My hand wobbles, fear mixed with something strange I can't put a name to swirling through me, and the condom drops before I know it. I peer up at him, swallowing hard. "It's...not what you...think." I start, but his angry voice interrupts. "Traitor." I blink rapidly, ogling him. I don't understand. "You think returning to the pack after six years will make us forget what you did, witch?" What is he talking about? My brows furrow. "Hunter, I don't understand..." "You left the pack in ruins. Turned the goddess against us, and destroyed the lives of everyone. Now you walk in here pretending not to understand what I'm talking about?" "Look, Hunter, I think there's a misunderstanding somewhere. I'm innocent. I didn't..." The hollering voices outside the cabin and the banging on the door cut through my words. I look at the door, confused. Why are they making noise? "Bring her out!!" "The thief!" "Bring out the traitor!" Nervous, I look between the door and Hunter. "What's happening?" The terror rising inside me now leaks through my voice. "Hunter, what's going on?" He doesn't respond; he only smirks. "It's time for judgment, Veil. You were never going to escape it. Pay the price of your actions. You should've thought twice before you took what was never yours." He says. His smoky green eyes have flecks of gold, and I realize he's mind-linking someone. My mind rattles. There has to be a misconception somewhere. I didn't take anything that wasn't mine at all. I work up words to defend myself, but the door slams open and the warriors from before shove inside. They grab me like I weigh nothing and pull me outside. Then I see them, the angry mobs that are the pack members, calling me names and spitting curses at me. "Thief!" "Traitor!" "She deserves to die!" But I didn't steal anything. I'm innocent. Yet, the fear restricts me from talking as they drag me away, heading to the pack square. Tbc.