Bittersweet Love: The Rejected Luna Has A Son

Araminta’s POV "Luna Araminta, I hereby declare you exiled from Silver Forest Pack." Elder Nicholas declared. "You have failed in the one duty owed to this pack as its Luna: to give our Alpha an heir." I looked past him to my mate, who stood just behind his shoulder. Rowan stared at the ground. Five years. We had been mates for five years, and he couldn't even look at me. A word to defend the woman he supposedly loved. "Is this what you want?" I asked him. His jaw tightened. I even saw how his hand twitched at his side, but then it fell still. Rowan Green, my mate, and I discovered we were fated when I turned eighteen. He had bright green eyes, a chiseled jaw that could cut ice, and messy, brown, curly hair. Every girl in the pack wanted him, so when we discovered we belonged to each other, I actually felt like the happiest girl alive. I thought we would be happy forever, and I would be his cherished Luna, yet now, he is discarding me like trash. "I've waited five years, Araminta. I can't wait anymore. I need a pup." His voice was as cold as ice, and he didn’t even use my nickname. Minnie. That’s what he called me since we were kids. "I understand that," I said, and hated how my voice cracked. "But are you really going to let them exile me? You haven't even rejected me." “That can be easily fixed.” The moment he said those words, my heart stuttered. “I, Alpha Rowan Green, Alpha of Silver Forest Pack, reject you, Araminta Bailey, as my mate and Luna.” The bond tore. I screamed and folded over, clawing at my chest. A fresh bond was agony, but one nurtured for five years was something else entirely. It felt as though someone had reached inside me and ripped out the part that made me whole. “NOOOOO!” Artemis howled in my head, then collapsed into silence. I squeezed my eyes shut to hold back the tears, but it was futile. My body was on fire. Every nerve screamed in protest as our bond broke. "Accept my rejection," Rowan demanded. I shook my head. I wouldn't give him that. Not after the nights he'd held me, not after every promise. If he wanted me gone, he would have to take it from me by force. "You're only hurting yourself," he said, but his voice was already fading, swallowed by the ringing in my ears. Arms hooked under mine, hauling me up. I swung at whoever it was, but my fist barely lifted. My eyes fluttered open one last time, and I saw Rowan's arms around another woman, her face buried in his chest. So that was why. Then the world went black. I had no idea how much time had passed, but the next thing I knew, cold water jolted me awake. I gasped and sputtered. Two guards loomed over me, sneering. "Araminta Bailey," the taller one said, "from this day forward, you are banished from Silver Forest territory. Cross the border, and you will be killed on sight." They hadn't even let me pack a bag. I was a Beta's daughter. I had grown up with these men. "I want to see my father," I said. It was the least they owed me. He couldn't have abandoned me too. The guard smirked as though I'd told a joke. "Beta Bailey says he has no daughter. The Alpha's rejection made you a disgrace to his family. He sent this." A wad of cash hit my chest and fell into my lap. "Should last a couple of months. Now get lost." I swallowed the scream building in my throat. I would not cry in front of them. I forced my legs under me, ignoring how they shook, and walked into the trees without looking back. I will not break where they can see it. When the packhouse lights vanished behind the pines, I called to my wolf. "Artemis, we need to shift. We need a cave before nightfall." Nothing happened. "Artemis?" I tried again, but the shift wouldn’t come. "There are rogues nearby. I can smell them. We can't stay in human form." She took a long time to answer, and when she did, her voice was faint; I almost didn’t hear her. "We can't shift." "We have to! If we don't, we'll die!" "Araminta..." She drew a shaky breath. "We can't shift because we're pregnant." I froze. Pregnant. My hands flew to my stomach. "Why didn't you tell me?" "I didn't know. The pup is still small, but I felt it the moment he rejected us. I… need to protect it.” Her words came slower, each one costing her. "He wanted you gone long before this, Araminta. The heir was only ever his excuse." "Artemis, if Rowan had known—" "He wouldn't have cared." I didn't want to believe her. I couldn't. "Artemis?" "…" "ARTEMIS!” I yelled, but there was no reply. My wolf… was gone.