Rejected Under the Blood Moon

The Rejection

Darkness swallowed the ballroom.

For several seconds, no one moved.

No one spoke.

The only sounds were Elara's ragged breathing and the distant howling of wolves outside.

Then someone screamed.

The chandeliers flickered once.

Twice.

And every light in the ballroom came back on.

Elara remained on her knees.

Her hands pressed against the marble floor.

Her chest felt as though someone had reached inside her body and ripped her heart apart with their bare hands.

She had heard stories about rejection.

Every wolf had.

Some said it felt like losing a piece of your soul.

Others compared it to being burned alive from the inside.

Elara had always assumed they were exaggerating.

They weren't.

The pain was unbearable.

Her vision blurred.

“Elara.”

Lyra dropped beside her.

“Look at me.”

Elara couldn't.

Her eyes remained fixed on the floor.

She could see shattered pieces of crystal scattered across the marble.

Hundreds of tiny fragments.

Beautiful things destroyed in seconds.

Fitting.

“Elara, please.”

Lyra touched her shoulder.

Elara flinched.

Not because Lyra had hurt her.

Because every nerve in her body felt exposed.

“Don't.”

Lyra immediately pulled her hand away.

“I'm sorry.”

Elara forced herself to breathe.

In.

Out.

Again.

Her chest still burned.

Her throat felt tight.

And somewhere beneath all of that pain, the thing inside her was still awake.

Watching.

Listening.

Angry.

Elara pressed a trembling hand against her stomach.

What was happening to her?

“Elara.”

Kael.

His voice cut through everything.

Her entire body reacted.

The mate bond reached toward him even after he had rejected her.

That hurt worse than anything.

Her instincts still wanted him.

Still recognized him.

Still whispered one word.

Mate.

Elara squeezed her eyes shut.

No.

Not anymore.

She slowly pushed herself upright.

Lyra moved to help.

This time Elara allowed it.

When she finally stood, the entire ballroom remained silent.

Hundreds of people were staring at her.

Some looked shocked.

Some looked uncomfortable.

Others looked fascinated.

And a few—

A few looked pleased.

Elara recognized those faces.

People who had spent years treating her like a joke.

They had just witnessed the wolfless girl finally receive the one thing she'd always wanted.

Only to lose it moments later.

Wonderful.

Absolutely wonderful.

Elara lifted her chin.

If she was going to break, she refused to do it in front of them.

Kael stood several feet away.

His face had gone pale.

Blood continued dripping from his hand where the glass had shattered.

He looked almost as shaken as she felt.

Almost.

His rejection hadn't dropped him to the floor.

So Elara wasn't particularly interested in his pain.

“What happened?” Alpha Darius demanded.

No one answered.

His gaze moved between his son and Elara.

“Kael.”

Kael swallowed.

“I found my mate.”

Murmurs exploded through the room.

Darius's face hardened.

“That was obvious.”

His eyes moved toward Elara.

He didn't even attempt to hide his disappointment.

Elara had expected that.

Darius had never liked her.

He tolerated her because she had been born into Nightfall and because her parents had once been respected members of the pack.

But tolerance was not acceptance.

And Elara Vale was certainly not the Luna he had imagined standing beside his son.

Darius looked back at Kael.

“You rejected her.”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

Kael's jaw tightened.

Elara almost laughed.

Why?

She would love to hear the answer herself.

Kael looked at her.

For one terrible moment, something inside his expression softened.

Regret.

Then it vanished.

“She has no wolf.”

The words landed harder than Elara expected.

Of course.

She should have known.

Darius crossed his arms.

“That has been known for years.”

Kael said nothing.

His father stepped closer.

“If the Moon Goddess chose her, there is a reason.”

A few people gasped.

Elara looked at Darius in surprise.

She had expected him to congratulate his son.

Instead, the Alpha looked furious.

Not because Elara had been rejected.

Because Kael had rejected a mate at all.

Mate bonds were sacred within Nightfall.

Even inconvenient ones.

Kael shook his head.

“I can't make a wolfless woman Luna.”

The thing inside Elara growled again.

She pressed her lips together.

Lyra stepped forward.

“You're an idiot.”

“Lyra.”

“No, Dad.”

She pointed at her brother.

“He's an idiot.”

Kael's eyes darkened.

“Stay out of this.”

“She is my best friend.”

“This doesn't concern you.”

Lyra laughed bitterly.

“You publicly rejected her in front of half the supernatural community. It concerns everybody now.”

“Lyra,” Elara whispered.

Her friend looked at her.

“Please.”

Lyra's anger immediately softened.

Elara couldn't handle a fight.

Not here.

Not with everyone watching.

She needed air.

She needed silence.

She needed to get somewhere private before whatever remained of her dignity completely disappeared.

Elara turned toward the ballroom doors.

“Where are you going?” Kael asked.

She stopped.

Slowly turned.

And looked at him.

For the first time since she'd known Kael Blackthorne, she didn't see the boy who sat outside her bedroom when she cried.

She didn't see the man who protected her when others mocked her.

She didn't see the person she had secretly loved for years.

She saw the future Alpha who had looked at his mate and decided she wasn't good enough.

“That doesn't concern you.”

His face tightened.

“Elara.”

She started walking again.

“Elara, wait.”

She stopped once more.

Anger finally pushed through the heartbreak.

She faced him.

“For what?”

Kael didn't answer.

“For you to explain why I'm not good enough?”

His eyes widened.

“That's not what I—”

“You said I don't have a wolf.”

The ballroom went painfully quiet again.

Elara laughed softly.

There was no humor in it.

“I've known that since I was sixteen, Kael.”

“Elara…”

“Do you think I forgot?”

“That isn't what I meant.”

“Then what did you mean?”

He looked around.

At the crowd.

At his father.

At her.

Elara waited.

Nothing.

Of course.

She nodded.

“That's what I thought.”

Then she walked away.

No one stopped her.

Not this time.

---

The cold night air hit Elara the moment she stepped outside.

She inhaled deeply.

It didn't help.

Her chest still hurt.

She descended the stone steps leading from the pack house and walked toward the forest.

“Elara!”

She ignored Lyra.

“Elara, slow down.”

“No.”

“You're barefoot.”

Elara looked down.

She was.

She hadn't even noticed losing her shoes.

“I don't care.”

“You're going into the woods.”

“I know.”

“At midnight.”

“I know.”

“While emotionally destroyed.”

Elara stopped.

Lyra nearly crashed into her.

“Do you want to keep listing obvious facts?”

“No.”

“Good.”

Lyra stared at her.

Then her face crumpled.

“Oh, El.”

Elara's anger disappeared.

That was worse.

Much worse.

“Don't.”

Lyra's eyes filled with tears.

“Don't look at me like that.”

“Like what?”

“Like you feel sorry for me.”

“I don't feel sorry for you.”

“Yes, you do.”

“I feel like murdering my brother.”

Despite everything, Elara laughed.

One tiny broken sound.

Lyra immediately wrapped her arms around her.

Elara froze.

Then collapsed.

The first sob escaped before she could stop it.

Then another.

Then another.

Soon she couldn't breathe.

Lyra held her tighter.

Elara buried her face against her friend's shoulder.

“Why?”

“I don't know.”

“What did I do?”

“Nothing.”

“Why wasn't I enough?”

“You are enough.”

“He didn't think so.”

“He's wrong.”

“I waited for him.”

Lyra stroked her hair.

“I know.”

“No, you don't understand.”

Elara pulled away.

Tears streamed down her face.

“I waited for this my whole life.”

Her voice broke.

“I thought when I found my mate, everything would finally make sense.”

“Elara…”

“I thought someone would finally look at me and not see what's missing.”

Lyra cried silently.

“I thought my mate wouldn't care.”

Elara wiped angrily at her cheeks.

“That was stupid.”

“No.”

“It was.”

“It wasn't.”

“I loved him.”

Lyra froze.

Elara laughed bitterly.

“There. I said it.”

Her best friend's expression softened.

“How long?”

“Forever.”

“Does he know?”

“No.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

Lyra looked toward the pack house.

“I might kill him.”

“Get in line.”

Another laugh escaped Elara.

This one hurt.

Everything hurt.

She started walking again.

Lyra followed.

For several minutes, neither spoke.

They reached the edge of the forest.

Moonlight filtered between the trees.

The blood moon still hung above them.

Elara looked at it.

A few minutes ago she'd thought it was beautiful.

Now she hated it.

“I'm leaving.”

Lyra stopped.

“What?”

“Nightfall.”

“Elara.”

“I can't stay here.”

“You don't have to decide anything tonight.”

“I already decided.”

“You're hurt.”

“Yes.”

“Which is why you shouldn't make a huge decision right now.”

Elara turned toward her.

“What exactly do you want me to do?”

Lyra opened her mouth.

“Stay here?”

Elara continued.

“Wake up tomorrow and eat breakfast with people who watched your brother reject me?”

“El—”

“Walk through town while everyone whispers?”

“No one who matters—”

“They all matter when I have to live here.”

Lyra fell silent.

Elara looked toward the trees.

“I can't stay.”

“Where will you go?”

“I don't know.”

That was the terrifying part.

Nightfall had been her entire life.

She had been born here.

Raised here.

Her parents were buried here.

Everything she knew existed inside these borders.

Leaving meant walking away from all of it.

But staying meant waking every morning within miles of Kael.

Watching him become Alpha.

Watching him eventually choose another woman.

Watching another woman stand beside him as Luna.

Maybe watching him have children.

Elara couldn't do it.

The mate bond would eventually weaken after rejection.

At least that was what she'd been taught.

But she'd never heal if she forced herself to witness the life she'd dreamed about being lived by someone else.

“I have money saved,” she said.

Lyra stared at her.

“You've been planning to leave?”

“No.”

Elara wiped her face.

“But I've been planning to have options.”

Maeve had taught her that.

Never depend entirely on a pack.

Never depend entirely on a mate.

Never allow someone else to become the only thing standing between you and survival.

At the time Elara thought Maeve was simply being cautious.

Tonight, those lessons felt prophetic.

“I can get a room somewhere.”

“Where?”

“Maybe Hollow Creek.”

Lyra's eyes widened.

“That's witch territory.”

“Exactly.”

“They don't like wolves.”

“Good thing I barely qualify.”

“That isn't funny.”

“A little.”

Lyra sighed.

“Elara, you can't disappear.”

“I'm not disappearing.”

“You're talking about leaving your entire life.”

“I need to.”

Lyra reached for her hand.

“Then I'm coming with you.”

Elara immediately shook her head.

“No.”

“You're not going alone.”

“You have a family here.”

“So do you.”

“Not anymore.”

The words came out before Elara could stop them.

Lyra flinched.

Elara immediately regretted it.

“I didn't mean you.”

“Yes, you did.”

“No.”

Lyra looked toward the pack house.

“You're right.”

“Lyra…”

“My family did this.”

“Your brother did.”

“And my father let everyone stand there watching.”

“He questioned Kael.”

“After he humiliated you.”

Elara squeezed her hand.

“You didn't do anything wrong.”

Lyra looked at her.

“Then let me come.”

“No.”

“Why?”

“Because I need to do this myself.”

Lyra's mouth opened.

Elara continued before she could argue.

“I have spent my entire life waiting for someone to save me.”

Her voice shook.

“My parents died, so I waited for the pack to make me feel like I still belonged.”

She swallowed.

“When my wolf never came, I waited for the Moon Goddess to fix me.”

Another tear escaped.

“And when that didn't happen, I waited for my mate.”

Lyra said nothing.

Elara looked back at the blood moon.

“I can't keep waiting.”

Something changed inside her as she said the words.

Tiny.

Almost impossible to explain.

But real.

“I have to learn how to choose myself.”

Lyra slowly nodded.

Then tears returned to her eyes.

“I hate when you make sense.”

Elara smiled.

“I know.”

“You're still calling me every day.”

“Probably.”

“Not probably.”

“Fine.”

“Every day.”

“Every other day.”

“Elara.”

“Every day.”

“Video calls.”

“You're pushing it.”

Lyra hugged her again.

This time Elara held on just as tightly.

A branch snapped behind them.

Both women turned.

Maeve stood several feet away.

Her long gray-and-black hair moved gently in the wind.

The witch wore the same dark blue dress she'd worn inside the ballroom.

But something about her had changed.

Her face was pale.

Her eyes were worried.

“You shouldn't be out here,” Maeve said.

Lyra frowned.

“Why?”

Maeve's gaze remained on Elara.

“Because something is wrong with the forest.”

Elara's skin prickled.

“What?”

Maeve looked toward the darkness between the trees.

“The wolves.”

Lyra glanced around.

“What about them?”

“They stopped.”

Elara realized she was right.

The forest had gone completely silent.

No howling.

No insects.

No birds.

Nothing.

Maeve walked toward Elara.

“Tell me exactly what happened when Kael recognized you.”

Elara's chest tightened.

“I don't want to talk about him.”

“This isn't about the rejection.”

Something in Maeve's voice made Elara listen.

“What happened?”

Elara hesitated.

“I smelled him.”

“Before he smelled you?”

“I think so.”

Maeve's expression changed.

“Then?”

“He looked at me.”

“And?”

“I felt the bond.”

Maeve stepped closer.

“What else?”

Elara thought back.

“There was...something.”

“What?”

“I don't know.”

“Try.”

Elara closed her eyes.

She remembered the warmth.

The scent.

The happiness.

Then—

Cold.

“That wind.”

Maeve went completely still.

Lyra looked between them.

“What wind?”

“There was a cold breeze inside the ballroom.”

Lyra frowned.

“I didn't feel anything.”

Elara opened her eyes.

“Really?”

“No.”

Maeve whispered something under her breath.

Elara couldn't understand the language.

“What?”

The witch ignored the question.

“Did Kael touch you before rejecting you?”

“No.”

“Did anyone?”

“Lyra.”

“Before that.”

“No.”

“Did you drink anything?”

“Wine earlier.”

“From whose glass?”

“My own.”

“Who poured it?”

Elara thought.

“One of the servers.”

“Male or female?”

“Maeve, what is this?”

“Who poured it?”

“A woman.”

“Describe her.”

Elara stared.

“I don't know. Brown hair. Maybe thirty.”

Maeve cursed.

Elara had never heard her curse before.

That frightened her more than anything else.

“Maeve.”

The witch grabbed Elara's wrist.

Her fingers were ice cold.

“Come with me.”

“Where?”

“My house.”

“I was leaving.”

“You're not going anywhere tonight.”

Elara pulled back.

“I'm not staying here.”

“I didn't ask you to stay in Nightfall.”

Maeve's eyes met hers.

“I said you're coming with me.”

Something about her tone ended the argument.

They walked deeper into the forest.

Maeve's cottage sat near the eastern edge of Nightfall territory, far enough from the main pack house that most wolves avoided it.

Wolves and witches tolerated each other.

They rarely trusted each other.

Maeve had lived among Nightfall for more than twenty-five years.

No one knew exactly why.

As a child, Elara had asked.

Maeve told her she liked the trees.

Elara had never believed her.

Tonight she wondered if there had always been another reason.

The cottage appeared through the woods.

Maeve pushed open the door.

“Inside.”

Lyra entered first.

Elara followed.

Maeve immediately locked the door.

Then another.

Then another.

Elara frowned.

“You have three locks?”

“Four.”

Maeve slid a hidden bolt across the frame.

“That's comforting.”

“Sit.”

“Maeve.”

“Sit, Elara.”

She did.

Lyra sat beside her.

Maeve moved around the room lighting candles.

One.

Two.

Seven.

Twelve.

Each flame turned blue.

Elara stared.

She'd seen Maeve use magic countless times.

Healing spells.

Protection wards.

Small charms.

But she'd never seen blue fire.

Maeve pulled a wooden box from beneath the floorboards.

Her hands trembled.

Elara noticed.

“What's happening?”

Maeve placed the box on the table.

“You told me once that your mother gave you a necklace.”

Elara instinctively touched her chest.

The necklace was always there.

A simple silver chain.

A dark stone pendant.

Almost black.

Her mother had placed it around her neck shortly before she died.

Elara had been four.

She barely remembered the moment.

“Yes.”

“Take it off.”

Elara frowned.

“I never take it off.”

“I know.”

“Why?”

“Please.”

Maeve rarely said please.

Elara unclasped the chain.

The moment the pendant left her skin, every blue candle flame exploded upward.

Lyra screamed.

Elara dropped the necklace.

The pendant struck the table.

A crack appeared across its surface.

Then another.

Then another.

Maeve backed away.

“No.”

The stone shattered.

A pulse of energy swept through the cottage.

Windows rattled.

Books fell from shelves.

Lyra grabbed the table.

“What the hell?”

Elara couldn't move.

Inside the broken stone sat something metallic.

Maeve slowly approached.

Her face had gone completely white.

She reached toward the pendant.

Then stopped.

“Elara.”

“What?”

“Don't touch it.”

Naturally, that made Elara want to touch it immediately.

“What is it?”

Maeve swallowed.

Using a pair of iron tongs, she separated the broken stone.

A small silver symbol appeared.

A circle.

Inside it sat three shapes.

A crescent moon.

A drop of blood.

And a six-pointed star.

Lyra frowned.

“I've never seen that symbol.”

Maeve had.

Elara could tell.

“What is it?”

Maeve didn't answer.

“Maeve.”

The witch closed her eyes.

“For twenty years I prayed I would never have to tell you.”

Elara's heartbeat slowed.

“Tell me what?”

Maeve looked at her.

“Your mother didn't give you that necklace because she wanted you to remember her.”

Elara stared.

“She gave it to you because she wanted to hide you.”

“From who?”

Maeve's eyes filled with fear.

“Everyone.”

Silence filled the cottage.

Lyra whispered, “What does that mean?”

Maeve ignored her.

Her attention remained entirely on Elara.

“That stone wasn't jewelry.”

“What was it?”

“A seal.”

Elara laughed nervously.

“A seal for what?”

Maeve stared into her eyes.

“For you.”

Elara's smile disappeared.

“What?”

“The necklace wasn't protecting you from something outside.”

Maeve's voice dropped.

“It was protecting everyone else from what was inside you.”

The room suddenly felt colder.

Elara stood.

“Stop.”

“Elara.”

“No.”

She backed away.

“You're upset about what happened tonight. You're making this sound more dramatic than it is.”

“I wish I were.”

“What is that symbol?”

Maeve looked at the broken pendant.

“Something that hasn't existed for centuries.”

“You keep answering questions without answering anything.”

Maeve flinched.

Elara's voice rose.

“My mate rejected me three hours after I found out he existed. Every light in the ballroom exploded. Wolves answered me from the forest. You dragged me out here like someone was trying to kill me, and now you're telling me my mother put some magical prison around my neck when I was four.”

Her hands shook.

“I've had enough mysteries tonight.”

Maeve slowly sat.

“You deserve the truth.”

“Yes.”

“All of it?”

Elara stared at her.

“What kind of question is that?”

“The kind I have spent twenty years hoping you'd never ask.”

A heavy knock struck the front door.

All three women froze.

Another knock.

Harder.

Maeve immediately extinguished the candles with a wave of her hand.

Darkness filled the cottage.

Lyra whispered, “Who's there?”

Maeve pressed one finger against her lips.

Another knock.

“Elara.”

Kael.

Her stomach dropped.

“Elara, I know you're in there.”

Maeve's expression hardened.

She whispered, “Do not answer him.”

Kael knocked again.

“Open the door.”

Elara's heartbreak returned full force.

She crossed her arms.

“Go away.”

Silence.

Then—

“We need to talk.”

“No, we don't.”

“Elara.”

“You already said everything you needed to say.”

“I made a mistake.”

Her eyes closed.

Four words.

Four stupid words.

And some weak part of her wanted to open that door.

Wanted him to apologize.

Wanted him to say he'd panicked.

Wanted him to take it back.

Wanted tonight to disappear.

The mate bond stirred.

Go to him.

Elara hated herself for wanting to listen.

Kael's voice softened.

“Please.”

Her hand moved toward the door.

Maeve grabbed her wrist.

“No.”

Elara looked at her.

Maeve shook her head.

Something in her expression stopped Elara.

Fear.

Not concern.

Fear.

Kael knocked again.

“Elara, there's something wrong.”

Maeve whispered, “Yes.”

Elara stared.

Maeve looked toward the door.

“But it isn't with you.”

Outside, Kael suddenly growled.

A deep, violent sound.

Lyra jumped.

“Kael?”

A second growl answered him.

But it didn't come from inside the cottage.

It came from the forest.

Then another.

And another.

Within seconds, dozens of growls surrounded the house.

Maeve rushed toward the window.

She pulled the curtain aside an inch.

“Oh, Goddess.”

Elara stepped beside her.

“What?”

Maeve tried to stop her.

Too late.

Elara looked outside.

Wolves filled the forest.

Dozens.

Maybe hundreds.

Gray.

Black.

Brown.

White.

Some belonged to Nightfall.

Others didn't.

Wild wolves stood among supernatural ones.

Something that should have been impossible.

Every animal faced the cottage.

None attacked.

None moved.

They simply stared.

At her.

Elara stepped away from the window.

“What are they doing?”

Maeve's voice shook.

“Waiting.”

“For what?”

No one answered.

Outside, Kael shouted.

“Elara! Stay inside!”

A massive black wolf appeared between the trees.

Elara had never seen it before.

It was larger than any Alpha wolf she'd encountered.

Almost twice the size of an ordinary werewolf.

The surrounding wolves immediately lowered their bodies.

Not in fear.

In submission.

The black wolf walked toward the cottage.

Kael shifted.

Bones snapped.

Muscle tore.

Seconds later, his massive gray wolf stood between the creature and Maeve's home.

The black wolf barely looked at him.

Its golden eyes remained locked on Elara through the window.

Elara couldn't breathe.

Something inside her responded.

Not fear.

Recognition.

The black wolf stopped.

Then slowly lowered its head.

Every wolf in the forest followed.

Hundreds of wolves bowed.

Lyra whispered, “What the hell is happening?”

Elara looked at Maeve.

The witch had begun crying.

Not frightened tears.

Something else.

Shock.

Disbelief.

Maybe grief.

“Maeve.”

The older woman looked at her.

“What are they doing?”

Maeve whispered the answer.

“They're recognizing you.”

“As what?”

A crack of thunder shook the cottage.

The blood moon above them darkened.

For one impossible second, a shadow crossed its surface.

An eclipse.

Maeve's face went blank.

“No.”

Elara grabbed her shoulders.

“As what?”

Maeve looked directly into her eyes.

And finally answered.

“Their queen.”