I set my phone to Do Not Disturb and sank into the couch, unable to sleep all night. The weight of the mate bond still lingered, a dull ache in my chest, though it had been severed. My wolf whimpered softly in the back of my mind, a quiet echo of the pain I was trying to suppress.

The next day, when Castiel O'Brien showed up at my door, he seemed slightly taken aback by the sight of my red, swollen eyes. But any sign of regret disappeared the moment Bridget Hawkins, trailing behind him, started to speak.

"Hey, Ramona, are you alright?" she asked, her tone dripping with false concern. "Castiel mentioned you wanted to apologize to me for what happened the other day. It's no big deal; we've always been playful like that. Maybe you're just not used to it."

She paused, her lips curling into a sly smile. "But you know, you're no angel either. You and Castiel got pretty rowdy in that video, didn't you? And you call me shameless?"

Castiel shot her a warning look, but Bridget just covered her mouth and shrugged, acting as if she hadn't meant any harm. "Oops! Sorry, Ramona! You won't hold it against me, will you?"

I looked directly at Castiel, thrusting my phone with the video in his face. "Was it you? Why?"

Castiel shrugged it off, his voice cold and detached. "You called Bridget shameless. I was just being fair."

He smirked, his tone mocking. "You shouldn't worry; it's just a video. They can look but not touch, right?"

Even now, Castiel could say such things. My hand swung up, striking him hard across the face and turning his head to the side.

"Ramona, have you lost your mind?" he growled, his alpha aura flaring, though it no longer had the same effect on me.

"Yes, I must have been crazy to be with someone like you for five years," I spat, my voice trembling with anger. "Castiel O'Brien, get out!"

Bridget clung tightly to his arm, her eyes wide with feigned innocence. "Castiel, did I upset her? But she insulted me first, why is she hitting people?"

"You get out too!" I snapped, my voice rising. "If you keep talking, I'll hit you as well!"

She feigned weakness, hiding behind Castiel, who gripped my wrist tightly. "Ramona, stop this nonsense!" he barked, his alpha tone sharp and commanding.

"Bridget cried all day because of what you said. She came to comfort you, and this is how you treat her?" he continued, his voice laced with accusation. "Apologize!"

"Not just to her. You should bring her a coffee to apologize with!" he added, his tone demanding.

Castiel held my hand tightly, refusing to let go. Naturally, I wanted no part in it.

The difference in strength between us was clear as he tried to drag me out. At that moment, I used every ounce of strength to fight back—calling for help loudly and using my nails as a defense.

Soon, the neighbors heard the commotion and rushed out, seeing me being dragged by a tall man, and immediately intervened.

"What are you doing? Let her go!" one of them shouted.

"If you don't, we're calling the police!" another threatened.

Castiel was furious, his alpha aura flaring again. "She's my mate!" he snapped, though the bond between us was already broken.

I struggled violently, taking the chance to kick him hard and finally breaking free.

But before I could regain my balance, Bridget announced loudly, "Ramona, Castiel is doing this for your own good. You're about to be marked; how could you film such videos?"

"Castiel was angry because of your shamelessness!" she added, her voice carrying across the crowd.

Bridget's phone screen openly displayed the video, causing the neighbors to cast sidelong glances my way.

Several men blushed, and a surge of anger filled me. I lunged at her, pulling her hair.

"Yes, I'm shameless and driven mad by this!" I shouted, my voice raw with emotion.

"If you push me this far, we might as well go down together!"

Bridget shrieked, and Castiel, enraged, grabbed my wrist and shoved me aside forcefully.

"Are you insane? You filmed this indecent stuff and blame others?" he snarled, his alpha tone cutting through the air.

I lay on the floor, my forehead hitting the corner of the wall, dizziness overwhelming me as blood smeared my face.

The crowd stepped back, their murmurs filling the air.

I looked up at Castiel, feeling as if my heart was being torn apart.

"Did I film it, Castiel? Tell me, did I?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

Castiel froze, a flicker of guilt in his eyes.

"I..." he started, but his voice trailed off.

"Castiel, I hurt so much!" I cried, my voice breaking.

Bridget clutched her face, weeping theatrically.

That flicker of guilt was gone in an instant, and Castiel's arm went around Bridget as he looked at me coldly. "Ramona, the marking ceremony is off. When you can own up to your mistakes, then we can talk about being mates!"

His words cut deeper than any physical wound, and I felt my wolf whimper in the back of my mind, a quiet echo of the pain that was tearing me apart.

Castiel O’Brien walked away with Bridget Hawkins, his hand resting casually on her shoulder as if it belonged there. The pack members around us sneered, their disdain palpable in the air. I could feel their judgment like a weight pressing down on my chest.

“Such a reckless Omega,” one of the Deltas muttered, loud enough for me to hear. “No wonder her mate rejected her.”

“I didn’t notice before, but she’s got a nice figure,” another chimed in, his tone laced with mockery. “What’s your rate for a night, sweetheart? Or are you only free for the higher ranks?”

“You hussy,” a female wolf spat, stepping closer. “Trying to seduce my mate while I’m still around!”

Their words were sharp, cutting into me like claws. Some of them didn’t stop at words—they shoved me, their strength as werewolves making the blows sting far more than they would have if I were human. I snapped, grabbing a nearby stick and swinging it wildly, my wolf instincts flaring in defense.

When they finally backed off, calling me crazy, someone thought to call the pack enforcers. By the time they arrived, I was lying on the ground, bleeding and bruised, my clothes torn and my pride shattered.

As they escorted me to the pack healer, the crowd pressed in, their whispers sharp and unrelenting. Even with my eyes closed, I could hear them—none of them were sympathetic.

“She’s an Omega,” someone said, as if that explained everything. “What did she expect, trying to rise above her station?”

Lying in the healer’s den, I called my mom. “Mom!”

“Ramona, honey, I’m on my way,” Georgia Jacobs, my mother, assured me. Her voice was steady, but I could hear the underlying fury. “Don’t worry, I’ll get those videos sorted out.”

“It’s just… about the mate bond with Castiel…”

“Ramona,” my mother cut in, her tone firm. “You don’t have to say it. I know you’re done with him. And you’re right—he’s not worthy of you.”

While I was recovering, someone posted a video of the attack, and it spread like wildfire through the pack. The headline in the pack’s internal forums read, “Omega with no self-respect gets rightful comeuppance—a modern-day Jezebel!”

“Such wolves shouldn’t live among us—kick her out!” they demanded.

In no time, the pack was ablaze with outrage, and my video became infamous. Bridget Hawkins, the Delta who had walked away with Castiel, chimed in with a post. “Cassy said the mate bond is off.”

“Ramona must feel terrible, so lay off the criticism,” she urged, earning applause from the pack for her supposed kindness.

Bridget even posted pictures of her with Castiel, misleading the pack into thinking they were more than just friends.

“Are you two together?” someone asked in the comments. “Then why was Ramona bonded to Castiel?”

Bridget responded vaguely, “Oh, it’s complicated. But our connection is still the same!”

Her cryptic words painted me as the villain, and some pack members even sent mocking sympathy cards to the healer’s den.

I was spiraling, my nerves shot. Every notification from the pack’s communication system made me jump.

Then Castiel showed up.

Seeing me battered and swollen in the healer’s den, he seemed moved—or at least he pretended to be. He held a bouquet of wildflowers, a weak attempt at an apology.

“Ramona, I’m so sorry,” he said, his voice soft but insincere. “I shouldn’t have done that to you.”

“Don’t worry,” he continued, as if he were the one doing me a favor. “The mate bond is still intact. I’ll make it right.”

“I’ve arranged for the videos to be taken down. It’s all behind us now.”

He held my hand gently, assuring me that everything would be okay. I leaned into his embrace, pretending to be relieved. But I knew it was all a farce.

We shared a cloud account with access to each other’s devices. Just half an hour earlier, I’d seen his chat with his Beta friends.

“Cassy, canceling the bond with Ramona? That’s a bold move!”

“It’s a big scandal now, Cassy. Aren’t you worried it might spiral out of control?”

Castiel brushed off their concerns. “She’s socially ruined. Who else does she have but me?”

“If it escalates, so be it. We’ll just turn the marking ceremony into a public event. By then, Bridget will have completely salvaged her reputation!”

Castiel, you’re despicable.

He showered me with attention, gifts, meals, and surprises—playing the perfect mate. I swallowed my disgust and saved all the evidence.

On the day I was discharged, Castiel said, “Ramona, I’ve arranged a dinner, just a small gathering with pack members.”

“Okay,” I replied, forcing a smile. “Let me change, and you go ahead.”

He suspected nothing, convinced by my week-long act of reliance.

Once he was gone, I got into my mom’s car and headed straight to the pack council.

“I want to report someone for maliciously distributing my private videos for illegal purposes,” I declared, my voice steady despite the storm inside me.