Public Humiliation
2297 Words
For a moment, there was only silence. No one moved. No one breathed. The entire Ashfang Pack stood frozen beneath theblood-red moon, staring at the impossible scene unfolding before them. Thalira felt as if the ground had disappeared beneath her feet. The words echoed in her mind again and again. *"Ireject Thalira Ashmoon as my mate."* A sharp pain exploded through her chest. She gasped. Her knees nerly buckled. The mate bond that had filled her with warmth only moments ago now feels like a knife being driven straight into her heart. The crowd erupted. "What?" "He rejected her?" "Alpha Damon rejected his fated mate?" "I've never seen that happen before." The whispers spread like wildfire. I was just shocked. Others looked delighted. Thalira lowered her head as heat flooded her face. Humiliation burned hotter than the pain in her chest. Of course it had to be her. The wolvess girl. The disappointment. The one person even fate couldn't love. She forced herself to look up. "Why?" The single word came out barely above a whisper. Damon's expressionion remained cold. His dark eyes showed no trace ofregret. No hesitation. No guilt. Nothing. As if rejecting her was the easiest decision he had ever made. "You want to know why?" he asked. The crowd fell silent again. Every eye shifted between them. Thalira swallowed hard. Part of her wanted to run. To disappear ininto the forest and never come back. But another part demanded an answer. She deserved at least that much. Damon crossed his arms. "Because the future Luna of Ashfang cannot be weak." Tthe words struck harder than any physical blow. A few pack members nodded in agreement. Others exchanged uneasy looks. Damon continued. "A Luna should strengthen her pack." His voice rang across the gathering. "A Luna should possess power." More nodes. More whispers. "Luna should have a wolf." The final statement hit like a hammer. Laughter broke out from somewhere in the crowd. Then annother. And another. Thalira's cheeks burned. She recognized some of the voices. People she had grown up with. People she had trusted. People who had watched her sufer for years. Not one of them defended her. Not one. "Enough." The voicee belonged to Mara. Her bestfriend pushed through the crowd and stood beside Thalira. Her eyes blazed with anger. "You can't do this." Damon raised an eyebrow. "I already did." "She's your mate." "And?" Mara stared at him in disbelief. "The Moon Goddess chose her." Damon's jaw tightened. "Then perhaps the Moon Goddess made a mistake." Gasps swept through the crowd. Even among werewolves, speaking against the Moon Goddess was dangerous. Yet Damon looked completely unbothered. The confidence of a future Alpha radiated from him. No one challenged him. None giveed. Mara stepped forward. "You're a coward." The crowd collectively inhaled. Insulting the future Alpha was practically suicide. For the first time, anger flashed in Damon's eyes. "Choose your next words carefully." "I don't need to." Mara forointed at Thalira. "She's worth ten people like you." The silence became suffocating. Thalira's heart ached. Not because of Damon's rejection. Not anymore. Because Mara was the only person willing to stand beside her. The only one. Damon laughed. Thesound was cruel. "Then perhaps you shold become her mate." Several people laughed. Mara's face reddened with fury. Bbefore she could reply, another wave of pain ripped through Thalira's body. A cry escaped her lips. Her chest felt as though it was being torn apart from the insidee. She stumbled. Mara caught her before she hit the ground. "Thalira!" The pain worsened. Every breath gownme a struggle. Dark spots danced across her vision. Something was wrong. Very wrong. She had heard stories about rejected mates. Most survived. Some suffered for weeks. But this— This felt different. This felt deadly. The crowd begins backing away. Not out of concern. Out of discomfort. No one wanted to witness her suffering. No one wanted to help. Even the pack healer remains motionless. Watching. Waiting. Doingnothing. Thalira's heart broke all over again. These people were her pack. Her family. Yet they looked at her as though she were nothing. A burden finally being discarded. She lifted her gazand toward Damon. For one foolish second, she hoped. Hoped he would stop this. Hoped he would accomplishe what he was doing. Hoped he would show some mercy. Instead, he turned away. As if she no longer existed. The last piece of her shattered. Mara cursed under her breath. "Don't look at him." Tears blurred Thalira's vision. "Idon't understand." "You don't need to understand." Mara's voiceice softened. "He's an idiot." A weak laugh escaped Thalira. Then noteher wave of agony hit. This one stronger. More violent. Her entire body convulsed. The crowd gasped. A few worried looks finally appeared. Even Damon paused. For the first time, uncertainty flickered across his face. Something wasn't normal. Then it happened.A strange silver light flashed beneath Thalira's skin. Gone in an instantt. But not before ifreal people saw it. The crowd erupted into confusionion. "What was that?" “Did yousee it?” "Silver?" "No wolf has silver energy." Thalira stared at her trembling hands. Her heart pounded. She had seen it too. A faint glow. Like moonlight trapped beneath her skin. Impossible. She didn't have powers. She didn't have a wolf. She never had. Had she? The thought barely formed before another sharp pain tore trough her chest. This time shecollapsed comcompletely. The ground rushed up to meet her. Voices became distant. Blurred. Muffled. Mara was shouting. People were panicking. Someone finally called for the healer. Too barks. Far too late. As darkness crept into the edges of her vision, Thalira heard something unexpectted. The voice. Deep. Male. Dangerously calm. "Interesting." Thevoice didn't belong to anyone in the pack. She struggled to lift her headd. Standing beyond the crowd, hiddenden among the shadows of the trees, was a stranger. Suchl. Broad-shouldered. Dressed entirely in black. Moonlight glinted off silver eyes that seemed almost inhuman. The stranger waswatching her. Not with pity. Not with disgust. Not even with curiosity. He looked at her as though he had finally found something he had been searching for. Something precious. Something impossible. And then the stranger spoke words that made her blood run cold. "Aafter eighteen years..." Thereis silver eyes locked onto hers. "...I've finally found you, Thalira Ashmoon."hiddenden among the shadows of the trees, was a stranger. Suchl. Broad-shouldered. Dressed entirely in black. Moonlight glinted off silver eyes that seemed almost inhuman. The stranger waswatching her. Not with pity. Not with disgust. Not even with curiosity. He looked at her as though he had finally found something he had been searching for. Something precious. Something impossible. And then the stranger spoke words that made her blood run cold. "Aafter eighteen years..." Thereis silver eyes locked onto hers. "...I've finally found you, Thalira Ashmoon."hiddenden among the shadows of the trees, was a stranger. Suchl. Broad-shouldered. Dressed entirely in black. Moonlight glinted off silver eyes that seemed almost inhuman. The stranger waswatching her. Not with pity. Not with disgust. Not even with curiosity. He looked at her as though he had finally found something he had been searching for. Something precious. Something impossible. And then the stranger spoke words that made her blood run cold. "Aafter eighteen years..." Thereis silver eyes locked onto hers. "...I've finally found you, Thalira Ashmoon."
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