Chapter Three
934 Words
Kieran’s POV
“I want a divorce.”
Nia said it calmly. The same way she used to say s**t when she was done fighting and just figured I was the asshole. My arm dropped. I’d been holding Liora tight, like she was proof I won. Kai tugged my cloak again, small fingers pulling, confused, but I barely felt it. The kid had no idea what was going on.
Divorce.
The word just sat there between us. Done. Like that was it. The compound went quiet with torches crackling, some kids laughing far off, wind rustling the trees, but it all felt miles away. Liora sucked in a breath next to me. Garrick let go of Nia’s wrist like he wanted no part in this mess anymore.
I looked at her. Pale as hell. Tear tracks dried on her cheeks. Skin so thin in the moonlight I could see the veins under it. But her eyes… those damn eyes were the same. Steady. Burning. Like they always were when she wouldn’t back down. Like she was daring me to try.
For the first time in years I wondered if I’d actually f****d up. Really f****d up.
I’d spent so long telling myself the moonroot was necessary. She couldn’t shift. Couldn’t give me kids. Couldn’t stand next to me when I took the pack from my brother. I’d killed him for this. For the title. Weakness wasn’t part of the deal. Liora and Kai were what I needed—ambition, looks, a kid who had my eyes, my blood. Nia was just… there. Useful for a while. To look good, keep the pack running smooth. Until she wasn’t.
But seeing her now—shaking on her feet, still not bowing, still looking at me like I was the one who was wrong—something cracked inside. A little break.
My wolf woke up.
First time in two years.
A low growl rolled through my head, rough, and pissed off. Like he’d been waiting to chew me out.
Don’t do it again.
She is your mate. Don’t f**k this up—or lose it all.
I flinched. He’d never forgiven me. Back when I rejected her he’d fought like hell, clawing my skull from the inside, screaming in my head until I thought I’d lose it. When the bond finally broke he went quiet. Dead quiet. I told myself it was worth it. Power costs. Alphas don’t get to feel things. They take what they need.
But now he was back. And he was angry.
The memory slammed into me. Didn’t ask for it. Just hit.
Two years ago. Late summer. Sun coming through the council hall windows, making dust float like gold specks. Annoying, the way it got in my eyes. Nia sat at the long table, quill moving over harvest records. Always working. Always fixing s**t. Even without a wolf she made people listen. Made them respect her. Made me look good.
I’d come to end it.
My boots sounded too loud on the flagstones. Heart slamming in my chest. She was my mate. I’d known it the second her scent hit me—sweet, like rain on grass or something. But she couldn’t shift. Pack law made her adopted daughter—second class, like some charity case. I was heir. Elders kept pushing alliances, strong pups, and real power. I wanted more than a Luna who stayed human, who couldn’t run with me. I wanted control. The throne. Liora was already pregnant. She was the smart choice. She got it.
I stopped at her table. Throat tight. Words stuck.
“Nia. We need to talk.”
She looked up. Quill stopped. Eyes clear, kind, and trusting. For a second I almost backed out. Almost said forget it.
Then she spoke first.
“I, Nia, reject you, Kieran, as my fated mate.”
Quiet. Clean. No shake in her voice. No tears. Like she’d planned it too.
Pain ripped through me. Bond snapping like a rope cut. My wolf howled, thrashed, and fought to hold on. Clawed at me inside.
“What—?”
She stood. Rolled the parchments. Met my eyes one last time.
“You heard me.”
Then she walked out. Back straight. Steps even. Like it was nothing. Like I was nothing. Like rejecting me was just another item on her list.
I stood there. Stunned. Humiliated. My wolf screamed until it went quiet. Forever.
The worst part? She rejected me first. Me. The future Alpha. Like I wasn’t good enough. Like I was the weak one.
I told myself I won. Freedom. Liora. The kid. The throne.
But it never stopped hurting. Never stopped nagging at me in the quiet moments.
Now
I blinked as the memory faded. Nia’s eyes were the same—cool, distant, unbreakable. Same look that had gutted me back then.
Doubt disappeared. Anger took over. Hot. Familiar.
She thought she could walk away again?
Not this time.
I straightened. Alpha mask on.
“Don’t regret this, Nia.” My voice came out colder than I meant. “You will not get what you want so easily.”
I looked at Garrick. “Take her back to her chambers. Prepare her. She isn’t going anywhere.”
Garrick nodded. Took her arm. She didn’t fight. But her silence screamed louder than any words.
I watched them go. Liora’s hand slipped into mine. Kai clung to my leg.
Certainty settled in my chest, heavy, cold.
I would not regret this.
She would learn her place.
My wolf’s warning?
I shoved it down. Deep. Where it belonged.
- Writer
