Chapter 1 Rejected
ZORA
I stood in front of my mate in the pack room, my heart slamming hard against my chest. Everything was moving so fast.
It was the annual mate ceremony, where everyone at the age of eighteen gathered to find their fated mate. It was bustlier, and the hall filled than usual.
At twenty-four and a late bloomer, I attend the ceremony every year in hopes of meeting my mate.
I was prepared for another disappointment when my wolf suddenly purred. My eyes searched the room impatiently until they landed on him. Almost instantly, in the softest of whispers, I muttered, "mate."
But that was impossible, the moon goddess must be playing some kind of joke on me because my new found mate, the man few meters across me is not only the heir to this pack but he was also mated to the daughter of the second most powerful Alpha.
I gulped down as he beckoned for me to come forward. The entire room was silent as people made way for me.
I stood in front of him, head bowed awaiting his response. There is no doubt he is definitely going to reject me after I've waited six years for this day.
From the corner of my eyes, I saw his mate scowling at me in anger. I fixed my gaze on floor, avoiding hers.
Would he accept me and announce me as his true Luna? Especially after the passionate night we had yesterday at the club where I'd given myself to him wholly. We were both drunk, but it was phenomenal!
Besides, she wasn't his true mate to begin with. She was arranged to fill the void of a Lunaless pack. It was what the rumors said. No one actually knew the truth.
But I hoped that would make things easier for him to accept me.
I was selfish, I know, but also desperate. I can't survive another day with my family.
"Look at me!" My mate bellowed.
Slowly, I raised my eyes to meet his, my heart beating fast in excitement. Once I become the Luna, I'd be free from my stepmother and her clutches.
Up close, my mate has the most beautiful green eyes. My wolf purred with satisfaction. This beautiful man was hers.
His gaze hardened as he gave me a once-over, something close to disgust appeared on his face.
I frowned, my excitement dying down almost instantly. Was I missing something?
"You? A disgrace? My mate?" He scoffed and cleared his throat. It was as if he knew my secret.
I swallowed, my heart beating fast for another reason.
"I, Ryker Sébastien Esmond, reject you..." He paused, "What's your name, peasant?"
My heart dropped. He doesn't even remember me? Remember my name?
My heart sank further, I looked at his eyes, waiting for a sign that he was just faking it.
He returned my gaze icily, void of emotion.
"Zora." I answered, my voice breaking. Even though I anticipated the rejection because nothing ever goes my way, it still hurts to hear him talk.
"Full name." He demanded.
"Zora Gwendolyn Hendrix."
"I," he continued, "Ryker Sébastien Esmond, Alpha of Shadow Pack, reject you, Zora Gwendolyn Hendrix, as my mate."
It felt as if a thousand needles pricked my skin, I keeled over in pain, dropping to my knees. My breath came in short, and tears gathered in my eyes. My wolf was screaming in agony.
"Don't keep everyone waiting." He yelled.
I pushed the pain to the back of my mind, blinked back the tears that threatened to fall, and squared my shoulders. I wasn't going to let me see how much he broke me, especially after the sweet promises he whispered in my ears as he took my virginity last night.
"I," I rasped out, and my lips stopped moving.
I cleared my throat and tried again, my voice low as I spoke, "I, Zora Gwendolyn Hendrix, reject you, Ryker Sébastien Esmond, as my mate."
I screamed silently in pain as the bond broke and collapsed to the floor. My breath came in rough and ragged.
"Go back to where you belong, peasant!" Someone kicked me from behind.
"She planned this!" Another suddenly shouted from the crowd, the voice painfully familiar, "She is a witch!"
My entire world stopped, being a witch or being accused as one was a death sentence in the pack.
"No... no... no." I begged, turning around, my eyes searching for who accused me.
My eyes met Ryker's mate. She was grinning knowingly at me. She did this.
"She wanted you, Alpha, and promised to make you hers!" My sister screamed from the crowd. "The mate bond and scent isn't real. It's all an illusion."
"No, no." I shook my head in disbelief. This can't be happening.
"Seize her!" Alpha Ryker ordered.
I got up to my feet and ran, swallowing my pain.
I ran as fast as I could, evading the guards. I got outside and hid behind two walls, breathing fast. I didn't want to believe what just happened. My sister had just betrayed and lied against me.
"Zora Hendrix." Alpha Ryker boomed from the speakers, "Wherever you are, I suggest you surrender yourself. otherwise, your family will pay for your crimes. "
If I surrendered now, I'd be tortured and killed. There was a high chance my family would be killed, too. I couldn't take that risk.
I pushed away from the wall, and without turning back, I left. My family never cared about me anyway.
My sister's betrayal and my mate's rejection burned in my heart, and hot tears streamed down my face.
"There she is." Some guards came into view, pointing at me.
Ryker stood beside them, staring at me.
His eyes held no remorse, no apology. They just stared at me coldly.
He just basically ruined my life. If I hadn't met him yesterday, things would have turned out differently. Maybe.
"Bring her over." He ordered.
The guards ran towards me, time seemed to slow down.
Gathering the last of my strengths, I fell on all fours and willed myself to shift.
It was a risk, especially as my wolf had always been too weak to shift, yet it was the only way I could outrun them.
The guards were closing in on me already.
"Please, please, please." I prayed to the moon goddess, help me shift.
With a snap, my bones broke. My wolf must have sensed my desperation, and for the first time in twenty-four years, I turned.
I leaped into the air and ran because my life depended on it.
The trees passed by in a wicked blur, I was fast, free, broken, hurt.
After what felt like eternity, I stopped and fell to the ground with a thud.
I couldn't hear their footsteps anymore.
I'd done it, I escaped. I didn't know where I was, but it didn't matter.
I was free.
I turned back to human and curled myself on the tiled road, allowing myself to cry.
"Hey." A new female voice joined me.
"Human." My wolf growled with so much ferocity.
I whimpered in response, curling even further on myself.
The girl wrapped my naked body and sat beside me, smiling. As if assuring me everything will be fine.
Staying in the human world is my only way out of this, to forget about my shameful past.
"Where am I?" I asked the human.
"Outskirts of Sun Valley." She replied, a warm smile on her lips, "Idaho."