The Beta's Blood: Rewritten

Chapter One

Ace’s voice trembled, a fragile whisper on the winter air. “Please… no.” The words barely escaped her lips as she clung to her best friend Emily, their arms bound together like lifelines in a storm. Tears tracked down Ace’s face, glistening in the cold. The world had gone unnaturally still. Each heartbeat thundered in Ace’s ears, a desperate reminder that she was still alive, even as her heart began to die.

Jameson’s gaze found hers across the clearing. Eyes heavy with regret, the kind that carved through the soul. She saw herself reflected there. The fracture, the unraveling, the ruin. “I’m so sorry, Ace,” he whispered, but his apology was lost to the wind, swallowed by the icy weight of Alpha Kaine’s presence.

“Get on with it, Jameson,” Alpha Kaine barked at his son, his tone slicing through the silence like a blade. Ace’s father stood nearby, stoic and merciless, as if carved from stone. Forced to bear witness to the heart wrenching breaking of a sacred bond. “I… I, Jameson of the Red Forest Pack...”

“Say it correctly, boy!” Kaine’s roar shook the earth. “Or I’ll kill the girl where she stands!” The snow trembled beneath Ace’s feet. Her father’s wolf surged forward, protective and instinctive, but he wrestled it back, trembling with the effort.

Jameson swallowed hard, voice cracking as he obeyed. “I, Jameson Leason, future Alpha of the Red Forest Pack, reject you, Ace Harbor, as my mate… and as my future Luna.”

The words struck her like lightning. Pain ripped through her chest, wild and consuming, a fire that devoured from the inside out. Her knees gave way, and the world tilted. The snow bit into her skin as she fell, the cold and the agony indistinguishable. She bit down on her lip until she tasted blood, metallic and real, the only proof that she wasn’t dreaming. The scream clawing at her throat, never made it out.

Her father was beside her in an instant, his hands gentle but resolute as he lifted her from the ground. Emily’s soft cries filled the silence, as she looked on, aching with empathy and helplessness. “Accept it, Ace,” her father said quietly, his voice breaking beneath its sternness. “End it.”

Her lips parted, trembling. “I… Ace Harbor… accept your rejection.” The words burned like ash on her tongue. She couldn’t look at Jameson; she couldn’t bear to see the anguish in his face that mirrored her own. The snow beneath her was stained crimson from her lip, from her loss, from the death of everything she’d dreamed.

“Don’t look back, Ace,” her father murmured as he guided her away. “It will only make it worse.” Her voice was a thread, fragile and lost. “It’s going to be okay… right?” But even as she said it, she knew the lie. The hollow ache inside her said otherwise.

The pack house loomed ahead. Cold stone, familiar halls that now felt foreign. When her mother opened her arms, Ace fell into them, trembling like a child.

“You are so strong, sweet girl. You’ll get through this,” her mother whispered again and again, stroking her hair. But Ace felt nothing but emptiness. Her soul stripped bare. Why would the Goddess be so cruel?

Only days ago, life had been simple. Training. Laughter. Late nights with friends. Stolen moments with Felix, the Beta’s son, whose easy smile had once been enough to make her blush.

Now, her heart was a battlefield. The mate bond, had become a weapon. Exhausted, she drifted into sleep in her mother’s arms, a fragile ember fading in the dark.

The next morning came without mercy. “Get up, Ace.” Her father’s voice was firm outside the door. “Be ready for breakfast. Training at 0600.”

“Yes, Sir,” she whispered, her voice hollow. The shower was brisk, almost punishing. She braided her hair to one side, tugged on her training clothes, and straightened her spine before stepping out.

Her father waited for her in the hall. “Ace,” he said sharply. “Keep your distance from Jameson.” “Yes, Sir.” The name alone was a blade twisting in her chest. “Our Alpha is cruel, but our pack is strong. Stay out of his sight. Blend in and stay close to your brother.” She nodded and stepped into the crisp morning air, the world feeling sharper, crueler than before.

“Hey, Ace.” Emily’s voice was soft, uncertain. Ace turned, clutching her breakfast tray like armor. “Please don’t hate me,” Emily pleaded. “I never wanted this.” Ace hesitated, then took her friend’s hand, her gaze still fixed on the ground. “I don’t,” she said quietly. “I could never hate you. I just… can’t talk about it. Not yet.”

“I understand,” Emily murmured. “Just... come to me when you can.” Ace nodded then crossed the hall to where her older brother, Aaron, waved her over.

“Ace!” he called, his voice a burst of warmth in a world gone gray. She tried to smile, settling beside him. Around them, the others gave her space. Silent and respectful, their pity wrapped in restraint.

She pushed her food around her tray, pretending to eat. The hum of the pack filled the room, alive and indifferent. For Ace, the world had ended but somehow, morning still came.