Rejected by the Alpha,Claimed by his Beta

ChapterThree

The rough bark of a massive pine tree scraped against Leila’s back as the two guards tossed her like a sack of garbage over the pack boundary line.

She hit the frozen earth hard, the impact knocking what little air she had left from her lungs. She didn't have the strength to catch herself.

The severed mate bond was a living, breathing monster inside her chest, clawing at her heart and crushing her ribs into splintered fragments.

"Don't bother trying to crawl back," one of the guards spat, his eyes glowing faintly in the dark. "Alpha Kane's orders. If you cross the border, we kill you on sight."

They turned their backs and jogged away, leaving her completely alone in the sprawling, dangerous woods.

Leila lay curled in the dirt, her fingers digging weakly into the frost-covered moss. Every beat of her heart sent a fresh wave of blinding agony through her veins.

The pain of the rejection was meant to kill her, and as the cold began to seep into her bones, she fully expected this to be the end.

She closed her eyes, letting the darkness wash over her, ready to finally stop fighting. She was just a worthless omega. She had nothing left to live for.

But death didn't come.

Instead, as the agony reached its absolute peak, the burning sensation in her chest abruptly shifted. The pain stopped destroying her and started feeding something else. Something deep, buried, and ancient.

A sudden, violent gasp tore through Leila’s throat. Her spine arched off the frozen ground.

Deep within her soul, a cage shattered. The wolf she had always believed was weak, the wolf that had never made a sound or shown its face, suddenly roared to life.

It was a terrifying, earth-shaking surge of pure, unfiltered power that practically vibrated through the forest floor.

Heat exploded across her skin. Leila screamed, clawing at the ragged fabric of her dress.

A blinding silver mark materialized directly over her heart. It was radiating a brilliant, unnatural, celestial brightness that pierced through the thick canopy of the trees. The silver light bathed the dark woods in a daylight so intense it cast sharp, stretching shadows across the snow.

Leila squeezed her eyes shut, terrified of her own body. The power surging through her veins was wild, untamed, and felt entirely too large for her fragile bones.

Before she could even try to understand what was happening, a piercing sound shattered the quiet night.

Clang. Clang. Clang.

The massive iron alarm bells of the Blackwood pack rang out, echoing frantically across the territory.

Leila forced her eyes open, her vision swimming in the harsh silver light radiating from her own chest.

She could hear the shouts of the pack warriors in the distance, followed immediately by the sickening sounds of a brutal clash. A group of unknown attackers had breached the territory.

But the sounds of the battle didn't stay near the pack house.

Heavy, rapid footsteps tore through the underbrush. The invaders were completely bypassing the Blackwood guards.

They weren't there to fight Alpha Kane. They were sprinting straight into the woods, drawn like moths to the blinding silver beacon radiating from Leila's broken body.

Panic, cold and sharp, sliced through the strange power humming in her blood. She tried to push herself up, to run, to hide, but her limbs refused to cooperate. She was entirely paralyzed by the celestial energy pinning her to the earth.

The footsteps grew deafeningly loud. Bushes snapped and tree branches broke as massive figures surrounded her in the clearing.

They were towering, cloaked in dark armor, and practically radiating lethal intent. There were at least a dozen of them, forming a tight, inescapable circle around her.

Leila stopped struggling. Her ragged breathing filled the silence. She had survived a lifetime of abuse, only to be rejected by her fated mate, and now she was going to be slaughtered by rogue invaders in the dirt.

She squeezed her eyes shut, turning her face away from the blinding light of her own chest, and braced for the killing blow.

She waited for the pain of a blade.

Instead, she heard the heavy clank of metal hitting the frozen earth.

"Lower your weapons," a deep, commanding voice ordered.

Leila slowly opened her eyes.

The imposing leader of the attackers, a man with striking features and ancient runes carved into his armor, had dropped to his knees right beside her in the mud.

He wasn't raising a sword. He was lowering his head, pressing his forehead respectfully toward the dirt.

All around her, the ruthless invaders followed his lead, dropping to their knees in absolute submission.

"We have finally found you," the leader whispered, his voice thick with overwhelming reverence and relief.

He looked up, his eyes reflecting the brilliant silver light of the mark on her chest. "You are no omega, little one. You are a celestial wolf... and you are our lost princess."