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Chapter 1: Callie

I stood outside Luca's apartment door, my heart hammering against my ribs like it was trying to escape. Tonight was supposed to be different. Special. After six months of dating, I'd finally decided I was ready to take things further with him.

My hands smoothed down the front of my purple dress—the one Sienna had convinced me to buy last month. "You look hot in it," she'd said. I didn't usually wear things like this, preferring my oversized hoodies and jeans that let me blend into the background at college. But tonight, I wanted Luca to see me differently.

I knocked on the door, clutching the bottle of his favorite whiskey I'd splurged on. The door swung open, and my smile froze.

A she-wolf with bright pink hair stood there, wearing nothing but an oversized t-shirt. My eyes zeroed in on the design—a wolf devouring the moon. Cannibal Moon. The concert shirt Luca had bought when we went together three months ago. The same shirt that had a bleach stain on the left sleeve from when I'd accidentally caught it while cleaning his kitchen.

"Can I help you?" she asked, her cherry-red lips curling into a smirk.

My stomach twisted. "I'm looking for Luca."

"He's busy." She leaned against the doorframe, and that's when I saw them—fresh bite marks covering her neck and shoulders. Bruises shaped like fingerprints decorated her thighs where the shirt rode up.

My wolf snarled inside me, but I kept my face neutral. The meek college nerd. That's what everyone expected. "I'm his girlfriend. Who are you?"

"Oh, sweetie." She laughed, stepping aside to let me in. "I'm so much more than his girlfriend."

I walked past her into the apartment, my hands trembling. The place was a mess—blankets thrown everywhere, clothes scattered across the floor. The smell of sex hung heavy in the air, making my wolf pace anxiously.

The bathroom door opened, steam billowing out. Luca emerged wearing nothing but a towel slung low on his hips. His chest was covered in scratches, and he had matching bite marks on his neck.

Our eyes met. For a second, guilt flashed across his face. Then it was gone, replaced by annoyance.

"Callie. What are you doing here?"

What was I doing here? The bottle of whiskey suddenly felt heavy in my hands. "I thought... we had plans."

"Plans?" He ran a hand through his wet hair. "I don't remember making plans."

The pink-haired she-wolf sidled up next to him, running her fingers down his chest. "Baby, who's this?"

"Nobody important," Luca said, not even looking at me.

Nobody important. The words hit me like a physical blow. My wolf whimpered, but I forced myself to stay calm. "Luca, what's going on?"

"Look, Callie." He sighed like I was inconveniencing him. "This was never serious. You kept making such a big deal about 'taking things slow' and 'waiting until it meant something.' I got tired of waiting around."

My throat tightened. "You said you understood. You said you'd wait—"

"Understood what?" He laughed, cruel and sharp. "That you're some innocent little Omega who needs everything to be perfect? Do you know how boring that got? Always having to pretend I cared about your feelings, your boundaries?"

The she-wolf—Bianca, I heard him call her—smirked. "He told me all about you. How you wouldn't put out, how you were always whining about emotional connection. God, you sound exhausting."

Heat flooded my cheeks, but it wasn't embarrassment anymore. It was rage. "You talked about me? About our private relationship?"

"Oh, honey, it gets so much better." Bianca pulled out her phone, tapping the screen. "Tell her about the bet, Luca."

My heart stopped. "What bet?"

Luca's jaw clenched. "Bianca—"

"No, she should know." Bianca turned her phone toward me. On the screen was a photo—heavily edited and clearly AI-generated—showing her and Luca in an intimate position. But my face had been photoshopped onto her body. "The guys at college made a bet. Who could get the uptight Omega nerd to finally loosen up? Luca said he could take your virginity within six months."

The room spun. Every sweet word, every patient gesture, every time he'd told me he loved me—it had all been a lie. A game. My meek persona had made me a target, and I'd fallen for it completely.

"I already won the bet, actually." Bianca's smile widened. "Posted this pic last week. Everyone thinks Luca already sealed the deal. You're just too stupid to know he's been playing you this whole time."

Something inside me snapped.

My hand moved before I could think. The crack of my palm against Bianca's cheek echoed through the apartment. Her head whipped to the side, and she stumbled back, clutching her face.

"You bitch!" she shrieked.

"Me?" My voice came out low and dangerous—nothing like the quiet girl everyone thought I was. "You created fake pictures of me? Spread lies about my body, my choices? Being a girl yourself, how low can you go? Have you no self-respect?"

"Callie!" Luca stepped between us, his hand shoving my shoulder. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

I stumbled back but caught myself. Everything crystallized in that moment—all the times I'd played small, made myself invisible, let people walk all over me because it was easier than fighting back. The Cinderella at home who scrubbed floors while her stepfamily partied. The nerd at college who let people ignore her existence.

Not anymore.

"What's wrong with me?" I straightened, my wolf rising to the surface. "What's wrong with YOU?"

Luca moved toward me again, his hand raised. "You need to leave before—"

My leg shot out, my knee connecting solidly with his groin. Luca's eyes bulged. He made a strangled sound and crumpled to the floor, hands clutching himself.

Bianca screamed and lunged at me, nails extended like claws. I grabbed a fistful of that bright pink hair and yanked hard. She yelped, stumbling into me as I pulled out my phone with my free hand.

"Let go of me!" She tried to scratch at my arm, but I twisted her hair tighter.

"Smile for the camera." I switched to video mode, angling it to capture Luca writhing on the floor and Bianca's tear-streaked, furious face. "Actually, don't smile. I want everyone to see exactly what you really look like."

"Don't you dare—" Bianca hissed.

"Too late." I hit the live button, streaming directly to my social media. My college network. The local pack feeds. Everyone.

"Hey everyone, it's Callie Mason. You know, the quiet Omega nerd who keeps to herself?" My voice was steady, cold. "I want you to meet Luca Rodriguez and his girlfriend Bianca. They're the ones who created fake AI pictures of me and spread them around campus to win a bet."

"Turn it off!" Luca groaned from the floor, trying to crawl toward me.

I stepped back, keeping Bianca's hair wrapped around my fist. The comments were already flooding in—shocked emojis, angry reactions, people tagging others to watch.

"Luca made a bet with his friends that he could take my virginity within six months. When he couldn't, because I'm not an object to be won, his girlfriend here decided to fake it." I turned the camera to Bianca's face. "Tell them. Tell everyone what you did."

"You're insane!" Bianca shrieked, but her eyes were wide with panic as she saw the viewer count climbing.

"Am I? Or am I just done being your victim?" I released her hair, shoving her toward Luca. "This is who they really are. Luca Rodriguez, who manipulates innocent girls for sport. And Bianca, who has so little self-worth she'll help destroy another woman just to feel special."

The comments were exploding now—disgust, outrage, support for me. I could see pack members tagging the Council. College administrators being notified. Luca's friends frantically commenting that they never agreed to any bet.

"I'm not the meek little nerd you all thought I was," I said to the camera, my voice strong. "I'm Callie Mason. I'm an Omega. And I will not be anyone's joke or victim ever again."

I ended the live stream and pocketed my phone. Luca was still on the floor, pale and sweating. Bianca had collapsed against the wall, mascara running down her face.

"You're going to regret this," Luca wheezed.

"No." I picked up my purse, leaving the whiskey bottle on his coffee table. "The only thing I regret is wasting six months on someone who never deserved me."

I walked out, my head high, my hands steady. Only when I reached my Jeep did I let myself breathe. My phone was already exploding with notifications—messages of support, offers of testimony, even texts from she-wolves thanking me for exposing Luca's true nature.

A text from Sienna lit up my screen: "HOLY SHIFT! Everyone's watching! You're my HERO! Get to Savage NOW—we're celebrating! "

I smiled, real and genuine. Tonight was supposed to be special. And you know what? It was. Just not in the way I'd planned.

I texted back: "On my way. Time everyone sees the real me."