The silence after Ethan's words was deafening. A thousand eyes pinned me to the spot, and every breath in the hall seemed to weigh on my chest like stone. My wolf whimpered inside, a sound that only I could hear, a sound of brokenness that clawed at my heart.
He wasn't supposed to say that. He wasn't supposed to look at me with disgust, as though I were poison. The mate bond wasn't a choice—it was fate. It was destiny. It was sacred.
Yet here I was, standing in front of my entire pack, rejected before I had even tasted what it meant to be loved.
"Ethan!" Daniel's voice thundered across the hall. My brother stepped forward, fury twisting his face. "Do you even understand what you've done?"
Ethan's jaw tightened, but he didn't waver. His eyes—those storm-gray eyes I had once thought beautiful—were cold steel now. "I understand perfectly. The Moon Goddess must have made a mistake. I will not take her as my mate."
Gasps rippled again. The Alpha's brows furrowed, his voice deep and sharp. "Ethan, you know the bond is sacred. To reject it—"
"I won't bind myself to weakness," Ethan snapped, cutting him off. "I'm training to be an Alpha one day. I need a Luna strong enough to stand beside me. Not… her."
Not me.
The words cut deeper than any blade.
My vision blurred as laughter and whispers spread like wildfire.
"She's nothing."
"He's right to reject her."
"Pitiful girl, she's not fit to be a Luna."
I wanted to scream, to run, to tear the cruel voices from the air. But my legs felt rooted to the ground, my throat locked tight. The pain of rejection pulsed through me, a searing burn that made it hard to breathe. My wolf whimpered again, curling in on herself.
"Enough." Daniel's voice was low, deadly. He stepped between me and Ethan, fists clenched, fury radiating from him like fire. "She's my sister. You will show her respect."
Ethan sneered. "Respect? She deserves pity, not respect. The bond is wasted on her."
I flinched as if struck. The room tilted, and for a terrifying moment, I thought I would collapse.
The Alpha's voice boomed, silencing the crowd. "This is not how it should be." His gaze slid toward me, unreadable. "Aria, child, go to your chambers."
I shook my head numbly. "No… I…" My voice cracked, barely audible.
The Luna stepped forward then, her hand warm as it touched my arm. "Go," she whispered gently. "You've endured enough tonight."
I couldn't bear their pity. Couldn't bear the way they looked at me now, like I was broken. My chest ached, every heartbeat a dagger.
I turned and fled, pushing through the crowd. Whispers followed me like daggers in my back. I didn't look at anyone, didn't meet Daniel's eyes, didn't let myself see Ethan's expression one last time.
Tears blurred my vision as I stumbled down the long corridor, my footsteps echoing off the stone walls. I burst into the night air, cold wind slapping my cheeks. My lungs burned as I sucked in breath after ragged breath.
The pain didn't ease. It deepened.
The rejection bond tore at me, shredding my insides, my wolf's cries echoing in my skull. It wasn't just heartbreak—it was agony, soul-deep and unrelenting.
I collapsed to my knees in the grass, clutching my chest. "Why?" I whispered to the night sky. "Why me?"
The moon stared down, silent and indifferent.
I pressed my palms into the earth, trying to ground myself, but nothing could stop the ache. Nothing could erase the memory of Ethan's words, the cruel laughter of my pack.
I was nothing.
No.
I refused to be nothing.
I wiped the tears from my face, my breaths sharp and uneven. My wolf stirred weakly, wounded but not dead. We had been humiliated, yes. But something deep inside whispered that this wasn't the end of my story.
It was only the beginning.
I didn't realize how far I had walked until the packhouse was nothing more than a shadow behind me. My feet carried me into the forest, branches scratching my arms as I stumbled through. The woods were dangerous at night, full of rogues and beasts that would tear me apart without hesitation.
Maybe that's what I wanted. Maybe I wanted the danger, the escape. Maybe I wanted the kind of pain that would numb the hole in my chest.
But another part of me—the part that still clung to life—knew better.
I was running, not dying. Running from whispers, from pity, from the boy who had shattered me in front of everyone.
Running toward something I couldn't yet name.
The night grew darker, colder. My breaths came in clouds. The bond ache still pulsed inside me, every step a reminder of what I had lost. But anger had begun to burn through the pain, steady and sharp.
If Ethan thought I was weak, if the pack thought I was nothing… then I would prove them wrong.
The rustle of leaves behind me made me freeze. My wolf stirred, ears pricking, warning me.
A low growl slid through the shadows. Then another.
Rogues.
Shapes emerged from the darkness—four, five, maybe more. Their eyes glowed yellow, their teeth bared, saliva dripping. My heart slammed against my ribs.
I stumbled back, my pulse a frantic drum. I wasn't trained like Daniel. I couldn't fight them all. Not like this.
The lead rogue snarled, lunging forward—
And then the forest shook with a roar so powerful it silenced everything.
The rogues froze, their ears flattening. My own wolf whimpered, instinctively bowing to the overwhelming presence that filled the night.
From the shadows, he emerged.
Tall. Terrifying. Power radiating from every step. His aura was heavier than the Alpha's, darker than anything I'd ever felt. His eyes burned like molten gold in the moonlight, pinning me where I stood.
The rogues scattered instantly, fleeing into the trees, whining as they vanished.
But he didn't chase them. His gaze never left me.
My breath caught. Every instinct screamed to kneel, to submit. My wolf trembled violently inside me.
The stories whispered about him flooded back all at once. The ruthless ruler, the king above all alphas. A man of blood and shadows.
The Alpha King.
And he was staring straight at me.