REJECTED BY THE ALPHA BILLIONAIRE

Chapter 12 – Blood Moon Rising

The chilling howls grew louder, echoing across the Blackwood estate as the rogues closed in. My heart pounded with each step Damian took down the hallway, his presence filling the air like a storm about to break.

I struggled to keep up with his long strides. “Why are there so many?” I asked, my voice unsteady. “Rogues don’t attack in packs this big.”

“They don’t,” he said grimly. “Which means someone sent them.”

A shiver ran down my spine. Rogues weren’t mindless wanderers when they moved in numbers this large—they were weapons. Which begged the question: Who would dare wage war on Damian Blackwood’s pack?

We reached the grand staircase. Warriors rushed past us, already stripping clothes as they shifted into wolves. Growls rumbled through the mansion, vibrating in my bones.

Damian barked orders like a commander born for battle. “Secure the eastern wing. Protect the children and elders. Nobody breaches the packhouse!”

The authority in his tone made every warrior snap to attention. Even me. Goddess, I hated that part of me still wanted to obey him.

He turned suddenly, gripping my wrist before I could slip away. The heat of his touch seared me. “You stay with me.”

“I can fight,” I protested, lifting my chin. “I’m not some helpless pup.”

His jaw clenched, eyes narrowing. “This isn’t about whether you can fight. It’s about keeping you alive.”

“Alive for what?” I shot back, my anger boiling. “So you can reject me twice? So you can remind me that I’ll never be enough for you?”

For a heartbeat, his expression softened, something unreadable flickering in his dark eyes. But then it was gone, replaced with cold steel. “This isn’t the time, Aria.”

The front doors burst open before I could retort. A gust of night air swept in, carrying the stench of blood and unwashed fur. Rogues poured through the darkness like shadows given flesh, their snarls echoing through the night.

Damian shoved me behind him, his growl reverberating so deep it shook the walls. His wolf was close to the surface, his aura thick and dangerous.

I should’ve been terrified. Instead, my body betrayed me again. The sight of him—powerful, unyielding, every inch the Alpha—lit a fire inside me I couldn’t extinguish.

The first rogue lunged. Damian met him midair, shifting in a blink of silver fur and snapping jaws. His massive black wolf tore through the attacker with lethal precision. Blood splattered the marble floor.

The room exploded into chaos. Warriors shifted and clashed with rogues, claws and teeth flashing under the moonlight. The air was thick with the scent of iron, fur, and death.

Instinct screamed at me to shift, to fight alongside them. But Damian’s words echoed in my head: Stay with me.

Another rogue broke through the line and came straight for me. My breath hitched, fear locking my muscles—until my wolf surged forward, roaring inside me. My bones cracked, skin stretched, and in seconds, I was no longer Aria the rejected mate. I was Aria the wolf.

My snowy-white fur gleamed under the moonlight as I lunged, colliding with the rogue mid-strike. My teeth sank into his shoulder, hot blood flooding my mouth. He yelped and thrashed, but I held on until he went limp.

The taste of victory was sharp, intoxicating. I stood over the fallen rogue, panting, my wolf snarling for more.

Across the battlefield, Damian’s massive black wolf whipped his head toward me. His eyes—glowing gold—locked on mine.

Something passed between us in that instant. Recognition. Connection. The mate bond, alive and burning even after his rejection. My wolf howled, aching for him.

But before I could make sense of it, a new scent filled the air—stronger, darker, laced with magic.

From the shadows stepped a tall figure cloaked in black, his eyes glowing crimson. He didn’t shift. He didn’t need to. His power rolled across the battlefield like a wave, making even Damian’s warriors falter.

“Blackwood,” the stranger called, his voice deep and mocking. “You’ve grown careless. Leaving your borders so weak.”

Damian shifted back into human form, blood streaking his chest but his stance unbroken. “Who are you?” he demanded.

The figure smiled coldly. “Consider me a messenger. The beginning of your downfall.”

And then his gaze slid to me. His lips curved into something wicked. “Ah… so this is the precious mate you threw away. What a shame. Power like hers deserves better.”

My blood froze. How did he know who I was?

Damian’s growl shook the earth itself. “Stay away from her.”

The figure chuckled, raising a hand wreathed in black fire. “Or what? You’ve already rejected her. Which means she’s free to choose another mate. Perhaps… me.”

My wolf snarled violently inside me, rejecting the very idea. But worse than my fear was the way Damian’s entire body tensed, his fury blazing hotter than I’d ever seen.

He might have rejected me, but in that moment, his rage was primal, possessive, lethal.

The figure’s eyes glowed brighter as the rogues regrouped behind him. “The Blood Moon is rising, Blackwood. And when it does, she’ll be mine.”

With a flash of dark power, he and his rogues vanished into the night, leaving only blood and silence behind.

I shifted back, collapsing to my knees, trembling from head to toe. Damian was at my side in an instant, gripping my shoulders.

“Aria,” he said, his voice hoarse, urgent. “Listen to me. Whatever happens, don’t believe a word he says. You’re mine. Do you understand? Mine.”

My heart stuttered, my breath shallow. The Alpha who rejected me was now claiming me?

Before I could answer, another howl split the night—low, haunting, and filled with promise.

The Blood Moon was coming. And with it, a battle neither of us was ready for.

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🔥 Cliffhanger Ending: A mysterious dark figure threatens to take Aria during the coming Blood Moon, and Damian—despite his rejection—claims she is still his.