The night the Moon Goddess marked me as his… was the same night he destroyed me.
The entire Mooncrest Pack stood beneath the full moon, silver light pouring through the towering pines. Torches crackled in a wide circle around the ceremonial clearing. The air smelled of pine sap, smoke, and anticipation.
And fear.
My fear.
I stood barefoot on the cool earth, dressed in white, my fingers trembling as the High Elder lifted her staff to the sky.
"Tonight," she declared, voice echoing across the clearing, "our Alpha claims his fated mate."
A murmur rippled through the gathered wolves.
Across from me stood Alpha Draven Blackthorn.
Tall. Unyielding. Cloaked in black leather, dark hair brushing his collar. His jaw was sharp enough to cut. His eyes—those storm-grey eyes—locked onto mine.
The mate bond flared inside my chest.
Warm. Bright. Undeniable.
My wolf whimpered in recognition.
Mine.
I swallowed, heart pounding so hard I thought the entire pack could hear it. I had known since childhood that the bond between us simmered differently. That every time he stepped into a room, my lungs forgot how to work.
Tonight was supposed to be sacred.
Beautiful.
Instead, something in his gaze felt… wrong.
Cold.
The Elder gestured. "Step forward, Alpha."
Draven moved closer. The crowd fell silent. Even the forest seemed to hold its breath.
He stopped just inches from me.
I could feel the heat of his body. The power rolling off him. The connection snapping tighter with every heartbeat.
He inhaled slowly.
Then his lip curled.
"This is a mistake."
The words hit like a slap.
A confused whisper swept through the crowd.
I blinked. "A–Alpha?"
His eyes hardened. "She cannot be my Luna."
The mate bond twisted painfully inside me.
The Elder frowned. "Alpha, the Moon Goddess does not err."
Draven's voice rang out, clear and merciless.
"She is weak."
The clearing erupted in stunned gasps.
My ears rang. Weak?
I trained every dawn. I studied pack law. I volunteered in the healer's den. I had done everything a future Luna should.
My wolf shrank inside me.
Draven took another step back—as if distance alone could sever destiny.
"I reject you, Aria Vale," he said, each word deliberate. "As my mate. As my Luna. As my equal."
The bond didn't shatter.
It burned.
White-hot agony tore through my chest, forcing a strangled cry from my throat. I dropped to my knees, fingers digging into the dirt as the connection snapped like a stretched wire.
Around us, wolves averted their gazes.
No one moved to help me.
No one dared.
Tears blurred my vision, but I refused to beg. Refused to scream. If he wanted to humiliate me, I would not give him the satisfaction of watching me break completely.
I lifted my head.
"Then I accept," I whispered, my voice hoarse but steady. "Your rejection."
A flicker crossed his face—hesitation? Regret?
Gone in a blink.
The Elder lowered her staff slowly, shock evident in her aged eyes. "The bond is severed."
It felt like dying.
Like half of my soul had been carved out and left bleeding under the moon.
Draven turned away first.
That hurt the most.
The pack parted for him, their powerful Alpha striding back toward the packhouse without a backward glance.
I remained kneeling in the dirt long after the torches burned low.
The Moon Goddess had chosen him for me.
And he had chosen pride instead.
I left before dawn.
No farewell. No dramatic goodbye.
Just a small satchel slung over my shoulder and the ashes of my bond still smoldering inside my chest.
As I crossed the pack border, pain pulsed once more through my ribs.
But beneath it—
Something else flickered.
Not weakness.
Not emptiness.
Power.
Faint. Silver. Waiting.
I did not look back at Mooncrest.
If Alpha Draven Blackthorn believed I was too weak to stand beside him…
He would one day learn exactly how wrong he was.
And when that day came—
I would not be the girl kneeling in the dirt.
I would be the woman he begged for.