Chapter 3
Elara's POV
The silence in the infirmary stretched like a rubber band about to snap. Blythe's smile was still plastered on his face, all concern and boyish charm, but I could see the calculation behind his blue eyes. Sophia stood beside him, her red-brown waves catching the fluorescent light, her expression the perfect blend of worry and relief.
They were good. I'd give them that. If I were actually Elara, traumatized and desperate for approval, I would've melted under their fake warmth like snow in the sun.
But I wasn't Elara. Not anymore.
I let my gaze drop to the cheap carnations in Blythe's hand, noting the wilted edges of the petals. Grocery store flowers. The kind you grabbed on impulse when you needed to look thoughtful but couldn't be bothered to actually care. My fingers twitched with the urge to snap his wrist and shove those carnations down his throat until he choked on them.
Instead, I forced Elara's shy, grateful smile onto my face and murmured, "I... I'm okay. Thank you for checking on me."
My voice came out soft. Meek. Exactly how Elara would've sounded. The words tasted like ash in my mouth, but I swallowed them down and kept my eyes lowered, playing the part of the broken little Omega they expected.
Sophia's shoulders relaxed. Just a fraction, but I caught it. She'd been tense, waiting to see if I remembered. If I'd piece together that she and Blythe had locked me in that storage room and left me to suffocate.
Blythe stepped closer, setting the flowers on the nightstand with exaggerated care. "You really scared us, Elara. When we heard someone found you in the storage room, not breathing..." He trailed off, shaking his head like the memory pained him. "Do you remember what happened? How you ended up in there?"
His tone was gentle, but there was an edge underneath. A test. He wanted to know what I knew.
I let my brow furrow, mimicking confusion. "I... I don't remember much. Everything's kind of blurry." I pressed a hand to my temple, selling the act. "My head hurts."
It wasn't entirely a lie. This body was still recovering from oxygen deprivation, and the migraine pounding behind my eyes was very real. But the memory loss? That was pure bullshit. I remembered everything. The dust choking my lungs. The locked door. Sophia's cheerful voice outside, dismissing the storage room like it was nothing.
Like I was nothing.
Blythe's expression softened, and he reached out to pat my hand. I forced myself not to flinch, even though every instinct screamed at me to break his fingers. "That's okay," he said, his voice dripping with false reassurance. "The important thing is you're safe now."
Safe. Right. Because being locked in a room to die was just an unfortunate accident.
Sophia moved closer, her heels clicking softly on the tile floor. She perched on the edge of the bed, her smile warm and sisterly. "Good thing you didn't remember," she said lightly, then paused, her eyes flickering to Blythe before she caught herself. "I mean, it must've been so scary. It's better not to dwell on it."
I almost laughed. She'd nearly said something else. Something that would've given away her involvement. But she'd course-corrected at the last second, smoothing over the slip with practiced ease.
These two were more dangerous than I'd thought. Not because they were strong. They weren't. But because they were good at pretending. Good at hiding behind smiles and social hierarchies and the assumption that no one would ever call them out.
I let my eyes drift shut, feigning exhaustion. "I'm just... really tired."
"Of course," Sophia said quickly, standing up. "We should let you rest. But before we go..." She hesitated, glancing at Blythe again. He gave her a subtle nod, and she turned back to me with a bright smile. "There's something I wanted to ask you about. Tomorrow, after combat training, I need to collect some herbs from the edge of Black Ridge Forest for a biology project. I was hoping you could come with me."
My eyes snapped open. The request was casual, almost offhand, but I felt the weight of it immediately. Elara's memories stirred, a warning bell ringing in the back of my mind. Every time Sophia asked her to "help" with something, it ended badly. A misplaced book that got Elara blamed for stealing. A group project where Sophia took all the credit. An errand that somehow turned into public humiliation.
And now she wanted me to go into the forest. Alone. With her.
I didn't need Elara's memories to know this was a trap.
"I..." I started, my voice still soft, still playing the part. But then I stopped. Let the silence stretch. And when I spoke again, my tone was different. Flat. Final. "I refuse."
The room went still.
Sophia blinked, her smile freezing on her face. "You... what?"
"I said no." I met her gaze, my expression calm. Detached. "I'm not going."
Blythe's head snapped toward me, his confusion almost comical. "Elara, what are you talking about? Sophia's just asking for help with a school project."
I didn't answer him. I kept my eyes on Sophia, watching the way her smile cracked at the edges. The way her fingers curled into fists at her sides.
"Elara," she said slowly, her voice tight, "you know I wouldn't ask if it wasn't important. This project is worth twenty percent of our grade."
"Then you should've started it earlier." My voice was still calm, but there was steel underneath now. "I'm not going."
Sophia's mask slipped. Just for a second, but I saw it. The flash of fury in her eyes. The way her jaw clenched. "Are you serious right now?" she hissed, her voice dropping low. "Do you even understand what you're saying? You're a wolfless Omega. A charity case. And you're refusing me?"
There it was. The truth underneath all the fake sweetness. She didn't see me as a person. She saw me as a tool. Something to use and discard.
I tilted my head, studying her like she was a specimen under glass. "I heard you just fine. And my answer is still no."
Blythe stepped forward, his expression shifting into something sharper. "Elara, I get that you're upset, but you're being unreasonable. Sophia's trying to include you. Do you know how many people would kill for a chance to work with her?"
"Then let them." I leaned back against the pillows, my gaze steady. "I'm not interested."
Blythe's face darkened. He wasn't used to being told no. Especially not by someone like Elara, who'd spent years worshiping him from the sidelines. "You're making a mistake," he said, his voice low. "Sophia's trying to help you. If you keep acting like this, people are going to think you're ungrateful."
I almost smiled. He was trying to shame me. To guilt me into submission. It was textbook manipulation, the kind of move that would've worked on Elara.
But I wasn't Elara.
"Let them think whatever they want," I said evenly. "I don't care."
Sophia's eyes narrowed. She leaned forward, her voice dropping to a whisper. "You're going to regret this, Elara. You think you can just hide in the infirmary forever? Once you step outside, you're going to remember exactly where you stand in this school."
I met her gaze, my expression unreadable. "I'll be waiting."