Chapter 35

Chapter 35

Orion felt the ground spinning beneath his feet. The sickening pain of the severed bond had vanished as quickly as it came, leaving a black void where his soul should have felt whole. His pain had transformed into burning shame, for he had knelt before the woman he rejected, and she had just stripped him of his dignity in front of his two best warriors.

He forced himself to his feet. Every muscle felt rigid, but the Alpha's fury was far stronger than physical pain. He glared at Alena, who now looked much taller and more menacing under the fading silver light.

"Lena, Markus," Orion commanded, his voice hoarse but firm, immediately putting his mask of authority back on. "Secure Draven's dogs. They will be interrogated. Do not touch this woman."

Lena, his loyal Beta, looked torn. Her eyes darted from the battered Orion to Alena, who stood rigid like an ice sculpture. "Alpha, she..."

"Do it," Orion cut her off, unwilling to hear protest or questions. He touched the wound on his shoulder; the blood felt cold. "She is coming with me. Now."

Orion turned without waiting for an answer. It was a test; if Alena refused or tried to flee, he would treat her as an enemy. However, deep down, Orion knew the power he had felt tonight was not a force any pack could contain.

As he strode toward the forest path, he heard quiet, measured footsteps behind him. Alena was following. Not out of fear, but because she chose to.

The short journey back to the Pack House felt like an eternity. The air was thick with tension, not just because of Alena’s presence, but because Orion could feel the stares of the patrolling warriors. They had heard about the anomaly at the border, and now they saw their Alpha return, accompanied by a ghost from the past who radiated an aura of danger.

Upon reaching the Pack House, Orion ignored all glances and headed straight for his study on the second floor. This was the room his father had built—dark oak walls, adorned with territory maps, and a large marble-topped desk. The place where he became Alpha. The place where he felt strongest.

He entered, lit the oil lamp, and leaned his hands on the marble desk, struggling to control his breathing. The wound on his shoulder needed immediate attention, but it would have to wait. The door opened behind him, and Alena walked in, accompanied by Lena, who looked like a hesitant guard.

"Leave us, Lena," Orion instructed. He sensed Lena's hesitation, the worry of a Beta who could smell danger. "I said, leave us."

Lena nodded reluctantly and closed the door behind her, leaving the two of them alone in the room that suddenly felt too small. The silence was palpable, thick with eight years of rejection, grief, and now, unnatural power.

Orion spun around, facing Alena. Her hood was now down, revealing her familiar but hardened facial features. Her eyes, once soft and hopeful, were now sharp and cold, like the eyes of a predator just waking from a long slumber.

"You have grown strong," Orion began, his tone flat, an observation rather than a compliment. "That power... it is not that of an ordinary wolf. What did you do out there?"

Alena stepped closer to the desk, resting her hand on the marble surface. Her touch felt like ice. "I survived. That is what a rejected wolf does. What did you expect, Orion? That I would crawl back, dying and weak, begging for your pity?"

The words struck Orion like a slap, reminding him of that day—the deadly full moon night when he, a young Alpha broken by his father's death, spoke the most painful words of rejection.

"You know why I did it," Orion hissed.

"You were a constant reminder of what I lost. The elders said..."

"The elders?" Alena laughed, a dry, humorless sound that sent a chill down Orion's spine. "The elders told you that blaming an innocent girl would heal your wounds? You are the Alpha, Orion. You chose to believe I bore a curse, and you cast me out."

Suddenly, the air between them tightened again. It wasn't the destructive bond-shock from the border, but a subtle, painful throb in Orion's chest. It was the residue of the bond Alena had ripped, like a snapped rope whose ends were still vibrating in the air.

Alena felt it too. Her eyes narrowed slightly, and she took a step back, as if even the smallest ethereal contact with him was repulsive.

"Never come near me again, Alpha," Alena warned, her voice dropping to a dangerous level. "That bond is dead. And I will ensure it stays dead, no matter how many times the universe tries to mend it."

Orion ignored her warning. "You saved my patrol. Why?"

"Not for you," Alena answered immediately.

"This territory, this valley, was once my home. If Draven takes it, he will become too powerful. I did not come here to serve you. I came to ensure stability on the northern border, because I do not wish for the trouble to spread south."

"Then go south!" Orion roared, finally letting a hint of his anger surface. He pointed to the door. "You've done your duty. Get out of my territory, Alena. Now!"

Alena did not move. She stared at him, and her silver eyes glinted with deep mockery.

"You are not in a position to command me, Orion," she retorted. "I am no longer bound by your pack laws, or even the laws of nature. You saw what I did at the border. If you try to force me out, I will leave. But I will make sure this border is a bloody spectacle that Draven will see from the North."

The threat was clear: She could be an unbeatable ally, or a devastating enemy. And Orion knew, if they fought, he wouldn't win. The power radiating from Alena in this moment far surpassed anything he had ever witnessed.

Orion dropped into his leather chair with a heavy sigh. He picked up a clean sheet of parchment from the desk. "You were rejected, Alena. It is the law. I rejected you in front of the pack and the Moon Goddess."

Alena walked up to the desk, leaned in slightly, and stared straight into his eyes. The proximity triggered the painful throb in their chests again, but this time, Alena did not flinch.

"Law? Moon Goddess?" Alena sneered.

"You think eight years in exile, wandering the wilderness and finding a power older than the memory of Alphas, taught me nothing? Your rejection is a law made by fearful wolves, Orion. I am no longer bound by your laws. I am my own law."

She flicked her finger toward the parchment Orion held, which was supposed to be the symbol of Alpha law and order. Just before Alena's finger touched the paper, a thin silver flash radiated from her hand.

The parchment did not burn. Nor was it torn by wind. Instead, the parchment, still held by Orion, suddenly turned gray and brittle, as if it had aged a thousand years. As Orion gasped in surprise, the parchment crumbled into fine dust, falling onto the desk.

"This is your rejection," Alena said coldly, looking at the dust on the desk.

"A torn piece of paper. It means nothing to me."

Orion stared at his now-empty hands, then at Alena's face. He understood. Alena had returned, not to regain her place as Luna, but to destroy the notion that she ever needed it. She was the Echo returned, and the echo was far stronger than the original sound.

"Fine," Orion said, his voice low and dangerous. He had to play by her new rules, the rules of power. "You can stay.

Under my supervision. You will be... a weapon in my arsenal. Nothing more. You will reside in the secluded cabin deep within the territory, and you will not interact with anyone besides those I permit."

"Deal," Alena said, her eyes flashing with a thin sliver of triumph. She had gotten what she wanted—permission to remain at the border. "But make no mistake, Alpha. I am a weapon that can turn on its wielder at any time."

She turned, stepping toward the door. Just as her hand reached the knob, Orion spoke again.

"Why did the bond return?" he asked, forcing himself to reveal his vulnerability, desperate for an answer. "You were rejected, I rejected you. Then why tonight... why did I feel a bond stronger than ever before?"

Alena paused. She did not turn around, only leaned against the oak door. A long, cold silence hung between them.

"You tore the gentle bond, Orion," Alena whispered, her voice barely audible, yet carrying a devastating weight.

"The second bond... that wasn't fate. That was Blood. Ancient Blood. And the Blood bond never cares for the silly laws of Alphas. It only cares for power."

She opened the door, and before stepping out, she turned her head slightly, revealing her cold profile.

"And to your question about why it returned," she added, her eyes momentarily igniting with silver light.

"Perhaps you never truly rejected me. You simply tore the wrong piece of paper."

The door closed with a soft click, leaving Orion alone in his dark study, staring at the parchment dust on the desk. He had cast her out eight years ago. Tonight, he let her in, and now, he had to live with the woman who had proven that his rejection was merely a piece of paper that could be ripped into dust.