The Rejected Mate's Revenge

Chapter One

The snow is blood red.

Like the moon half hidden in the clouds. Werewolves howl in the distance and I don't know whether it's towards the river or the trees. I don't know whether it's friend or foe. All I know is that my feet pick up pace, just as the wind grows sharper.

My breath comes out in sharp bursts and I feel a sharp pain at my side. Absentmindedly, I press a palm to it and raise it up. Blood. I'm bleeding.

"You shouldn't be here."

I jerk to a stop at the sight of the faceless person in front of me. I can't tell whether it's a man or woman. The ringing in my ears makes it hard to tell the difference. "Who are you?"

I see the smile on its face. Sadistic, almost pitying. "Run."

And I wake up.

I'm drenched in sweat and my breath comes out in hurdles like I was actually running. The dream again. Comes like clockwork every other day. You'd think I would be better accustomed to recognizing it as a dream. But everytime it comes, it's like I'm living it in real life. The fear, the adrenaline, the sticky feeling of blood on my body. I press a hand to my stomach just in case.

Sunlight streams in through the wispy curtains, the reminder that I've officially left Dreamland. Not like real life is any better, but I'm weirdly excited for today.

My eighteenth birthday.

The day I meet my mate.

I swing my legs over the bed, dropping to my knees to grab the box under my bed. The small container is big enough to hold with two hands and small enough to hide under the floorboards. I don't trust any of the others to respect my privacy.

Settling on the floor, I pry the box open. The locket glints back at me, the polished gold almost iridescent in the sunlight. Inside is a picture of my mother, her dark as night hair and her gleaming green eyes. The only thing I have of the woman I never met. Days like this, birthdays, makes me remember her the most. I make it a promise to myself not to think about her too much, but today seems to important to ignore her mark on my life.

"I'm nervous." I say out loud, the thoughts becoming true. "I don't know what I'll do when I finally meet him. I don't know if I'll love him like dad loved you. Maybe not."

My dad had loved my mom too much. Too much so that when she left it broke him and it spilled out into hate for me. I shut the locket and stuff it and the box back under the boards, taking extra care not to rattle it around too much.

The attic bedroom was basically crumbling, I feared any sudden movements will send it to rumble. I pushed the creaky window open, allowing some of the morning breeze to come in. The room always smelt like mold and age, no matter how many fresh flowers I stuck in the bottle by the bed.

I know I should be grateful. Living in the lack house was a privilege not many people could boast about. The sacrifice my dad had made when he lost his life during a rogue attack might actually be worth it. I wash my face with the bucket of water by the corner, and slip into my clothes. I don't put too much effort into my looks, no one ever notices anyway.

Downstairs, the house is bustling with activity. Warriors laugh loudly over breakfast, their voices mixing into a never ending stream of barks and guffaws. High ranked wolves barked orders at the Omegas scuttling around. One of them propped a tray into my hands and pushes me towards the kitchen.

"Watch it, rat." A pair of glaring eyes met mine as I bumped into her. The beta's daughter, Onyx, shoulder checked me as she passed. She didn't know my name, but I knew hers. So did everyone in the house. Aspiring warrior, skilled with her fists and her infamous knives. She'd once broken an Omega's jaw for looking at her too long.

I murmured something unintelligent and scurried away. I was meant to be seen, and not heard. If I could do away with not being seen too, that would be preferred. You never knew when wolves' tempers could shift abruptly.

The smell of frying meat and freshly baked bread gretted my nose as I walked into the kitchen. My stomach rumbled in response.

"Aira." Daya called me from across the room. Daya was the only one who bothered about me. She had a scar on her cheek and a steely attitude. Now, she drops a plate filled with food in front of me and orders me to sit. "Eat."

"Thanks, Daya." I start shovelling food into my mouth and almost groan in ecstasy.

Daya grunts in affirmation and goes back to flipping bacon. "What are you doing today?"

I swallow a bite of hot bread. It goes down like sharp rocks when I remember what today is. "Nothing much."

Daya pauses, wipes her hands on her apron and turns to face me. She studies me for a long minute, her eyes softening at the edges. "You look too much like your father."

My father was a different case of distant parent. The only times he remembered I existed was when he mistakenly overhead me crying out of neglect. I didn't know what to say in response to that. I had inherited thick brown hair and brows from my father but I was pretty certain that was about it.

"But your spirit," Daya says. "That's all your mum's."

Her face doesn't tell me if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

She sticks a hand in her pockets and produces a striped candle. I don't know where the tiny cake comes from, but the pair of them bring tears to my eyes.

"Happy birthday, kid." She says, and c***s her head, motioning for me to blow out the candle. "Make a wish."

I've never been the one to believe in wishes. Or shooting stars. Or fables of the moon goddess. Even as a little girl. But this time, the thoght is welcome. I might need a little extra magic to get through today. Even if my belief isn't strong. Screwing my eyes shut, I try to conjure the face of my mate in my mind. Someone strong, kind, capable. Someone who might make my life a little bit easier. Someone who I might love.

"There."

Daya gives a weary sigh. "Don't lose your spark, kid. Now eat up and go join the rest."

I stuff the bread, taking time to eat the cake. I've never celebrated my birthday before, usually all the days just blend into each other, mirroring themselves. "Thank you Daya."

Daya scoffs, but when she turns away I can see the slight smile on her face. "Go on."

I make my way outside, to the training grounds behind the house. The sun was high in the sky, beating down my brow as I lugged along a bag of spears. All around me, they sparred, parried and trained. It was the one time of day hierarchy didn't matter. On the field, strength was everything. Status came second.

I made sure to stay away from the archers. Their targets were against the forest, and I'd been pricy to running into those woods to fetch their stray arrows one time too many.

"Get out of the way." A boy hollers, then throws an axe at a tree. He whoops when it makes contact, and high fives another guy.

They're all arranged in groups, twos and threes, all laughing and sparring. I've been here all my life and I'm fairly certain no one knows my name I thrive at being invicible, being the one no one notices. Maybe today, of all days, I'll finally be noticed by someone. My mate.

Moon goddess, you know you owe me one.

Suddenly the air in the grounds seems to thin, the atmosphere growing cold. Everyone grows quiet, the buzzing of conversation dimming to a still. I look up to see what's caused the weirdness and my brows fly up.

Xavier Storm.

He strode into the field like thunder incarnate—six foot four, jet black hair and eyes the color of blue lightning. He was a tall stone wall of confidence and detachment, he exuded untouchable energy. It was hard not to stop whatever it was we were doing and watch.

I had watched him from afar my whole life. The pack's youngest Alpha in over a century. Dominant. Ruthless. Unapproachable. There had been stories, she heard, about how he took on warriors from another pack single handedly. Rumors swirled that he'd soon mate with Kaylea from the Crescent moon pack, a she would of pure blood lineage.

I held my breath as he walks past, a whiff of sandalwood and pine assaulting my nose. My stomach clenched and it was like a rope tugged onto my heart and wouldn't let go. The scent got stronger, until it hit me like a crashing wave.

Rain. Pine. Fresh snow.

I gasped and clutched my chest, my knees wobbling. As I looked up, my eyes clashed with Xavier Storm's. I was certain no one had ever met his gaze and lived, because they were thundering, looked like they'd tear you inside out.

And my wolf whispered, and I heard it loud and clear, as I held his blue gaze.

Mate.

For a moment, time stopped. Like everyone else wasn't there, and we were the only two remaining in existence. His pupils dilated, a storm raging behind his eyes. He felt it too. I could see it, even feel it. I could almost taste his disbelief and shock.

But before I could move, before I could even breathe—

"No." His expression changed. It wasn't awe, like I was feeling. It was disgust, pure unadulterated disgust. The kind that I saw on people's faces when they caught sight of me in a corner. "No." His voice was low, but it cut into me, as sharp as a blade.

"Alpha—" I stepped forward anyway, on wobbly knees.

He was in front of me in a blur, towering over me with rage in his gaze. His grip wrapped around my wrist, not all together hurtful, but just enough that I squirmed. "You?" I could hear the vile in his voice.

I could hear the question like he'd spoken it out loud. You're my mate? "I—"

"You're an omega." His jaw clenched, as his eyes turned impossibly dark. "A nobody. The goddess made a mistake."

Pain bloomed in my chest, making it uncomfortable for me to breath. I could feel his repulsion, the strength of his denial and it tasted like copper in my mouth. I hated it. I hated this feeling. My eyes fell to the ground as I couldn't bear to look at him again. "I didn't ask for this. But— it happened anyway."

"I would rather die." He snarled back, flinging my arm away. As if he couldn't bare to touch me any longer. He was beautiful, and his anger only accentuated it further. My wolf howled in anguish. "I would rather die than claim you."

"I reject you, Aira Blackwood."