Rejected Heart: Unbound And Unbroken

Isla’s POV The room was quiet. Too quiet for a wedding day. I stood before the cracked mirror, struggling with the zipper of my dress. My hands were shaking, but I managed to pull it up all the way. The gown was simple, just like everything else in my life. No pearls. No laces. No help from anyone. I should have had a maid or even one of the pack girls to help me dress. But the house had been empty since dawn. It was cruel how they left me alone like this, especially today. But then again, why would they care? I shook the thoughts from my mind and reached for the tiny pot of lipstick sitting on the windowpane. It was half-used and dry around the edges. Still, I applied a soft stroke over my lips, pressing them together as my heart thudded in my chest. I was getting married today. The most eligible and sought-after man in the entire land was waiting for me at the altar. Cassian Thornfield. Alpha Cassian. I whispered his name like a spell, as though it would protect me from the emptiness creeping inside. He was the only one who ever looked at me like I was human. Like I wasn’t the daughter of a traitor. Like I wasn’t cursed. Today, he would make me his. And maybe then, they would all stop calling me the usurper’s daughter. A smile touched my lips as I smoothed the front of my dress and turned to leave the room. But the door didn’t open. I blinked and tried again, gripping the old handle with both hands this time. I twisted and pulled, but it wouldn’t budge. Confused, I stepped back. This door never locked. I had left it slightly open earlier when I went outside to get the ribbon for my hair. I never touched the lock. No one else was supposed to be around. Unless... Someone had locked me in. My chest tightened. I pounded on the door with my fists. "Hello? Is someone out there?" I called, my voice rising. Silence. The sound of my heartbeat filled the room. I ran to the corner where an old toolbox was kept. I dipped my hand into the toolbox and began to look for a pin, or anything tiny enough to break through the lock and get me out of the room. My fingers fumbled with the latches until I found the right piece, thin enough to fit into the lock. I dropped to my knees and set to work. This was supposed to be the day my life changed. The day everything finally became worth it. And now, I was trapped like a prisoner. I didn’t have time to panic. I forced myself to breathe, to focus, and finally, the lock gave way. I pushed the door open. The knob swung out with such force that the broken lock clattered to the ground. There was no time to figure out who did it. I picked up the hem of my dress and ran. The ceremony had already started. I was supposed to be there. I was supposed to walk into the pack hall and meet Cassian. The guests would be confused. His family would be waiting. What if they thought I ran away? What if they thought I wasn’t good enough? I rounded the final corner and reached the hall doors. Voices murmured beyond them. Laughter. Music. The scent of crushed flowers and burning incense curled under the wood. I pushed the doors open. Cassian was there. But he wasn’t alone. He stood beneath the moonlit altar in his silver ceremonial robe, his hands clasped with someone else's. A woman in a red velvet gown. My eyes nearly tore out. Celine, my cousin! I blinked once, then again. I thought I was hallucinating. The smell of roses and freshly-cooked food filled my nose, but all I could feel was something inside me tearing apart. "What is going on here?" I screamed. The hall fell into silence. Then I heard the voice that haunted my dreams. Uncle Jamie stood up from his seat at the front. His voice was calm, as if this betrayal was perfectly natural. "This is the will of the elders," he said to me. "Cassian was never meant to marry someone like you." I shook my head. My legs barely carried me as I stepped forward. "No. No, this—this-this is wrong. There must be a mistake. Cassian and I..." "We all know what your father tried to do," one of the council elders snapped, rising to his feet. "Your blood is cursed. Your father was a traitor. He tried to seize the throne from his elder brother." The words hit like knives. I had heard them all my life. The whispers. The insults. The sidelong glances. Usurper’s daughter. Shame of the Moon Dragon Pack. But Cassian had promised me that none of that mattered. He had kissed me in the dark, under the silver trees. He had whispered my name like a vow. He had taken me into his arms, into his bed. We had bonded. He had marked me. “Cassian,” I breathed, stepping closer. “I’m sorry if they said things to you. But you and I belong to each other. You know we do. You marked me. You said you loved me.” His eyes met mine, but I saw none of the love I remembered. Only fury. Disgust. "I, Cassian Thornfield of the Living Moon Pack," he said, his voice sharp and loud enough to echo across the room, "hereby reject you, Isla Ravenswood of the Moon Dragons Pack." A sound ripped through my chest. I stumbled back as the mate bond snapped inside me like a rope set aflame. It burned once, then vanished. Gone. The pack hall erupted with noise. Some gasped. Some whispered. Some laughed. Just then, my uncle turned to the elders. "This disgrace cannot stay among us any longer." He said victoriously. "She must leave the pack lands. Tonight." Everything inside me broke. I don’t remember how I got outside. The lights blurred. My body moved on its own. And then I was in the forest. The cold air stung my arms. My dress caught on twigs and thorns. My feet ached as I walked with no direction, only a hollow pit where my heart used to be. Cassian had chosen her. After everything. He had thrown me away like I was nothing. A branch cracked behind me. I turned. Shapes moved in the dark. Low growls filled the silence. Wolves. I ran. But they were faster. They have been trained by Uncle Jamie to kill and maim. One of them lunged at me, claws raking across my shoulder. I cried out, falling to the ground. Then I saw it. The cliff. The edge loomed just ahead, a drop into a raging river far below. I tried to crawl back, but two of the wolves stepped forward. They shifted, revealing masked men with dark cloaks. "You shouldn’t have come back," one of them said. "Who sent you?" I gasped, blood running down my arm. The taller one crouched in front of me. "Jamie Ravenswood. Your dear uncle." My breath stopped. The truth settled like frost over my skin. He had locked the door. He had planned this. Cassian's rejection of me wasn’t the end. This was. "You’re a threat, "the man said. "He needs to clean up the bloodline. No loose ends." I couldn’t cry. I couldn’t even scream. I stared at the river below, heart pounding. But I wasn’t going to die without a fight. I looked at them and spat the words through clenched teeth. "I swear… if I survive this, I will return. I will take everything you stole from me." The shorter one stepped forward and raised his arm and struck me across the face. I stumbled backwards and fell off the cliff.