Rejected By The Alpha King. # werewolf#romance. # rejected # emotions # fated mate

Chapter 4: On The Run

The map burned in my hands.

_Carter Keep. Home of the Moon Goddess heirs._

I didn’t know where it was. I didn’t know if anyone was still there.

But it was the only thing I had.

The sun was fully up now, and the forest felt less safe in daylight.

Blackwood wolves could track me easier.

_We need to move,_ my wolf whispered.

_Before he sends more._

“Before who sends more?” I whispered back, adjusting the blanket on my shoulder.

_Damian._

The name still hurt.

I followed the map through trees, streams, and over hills. My feet were bleeding again.

The silver dagger was the only thing keeping me company.

By midday, I reached the edge of Blackwood territory.

A river. Wide and fast.

On the other side was neutral land. No pack claimed it.

Rogues lived there.

My heart pounded. _Hunt or be hunted._

I was halfway across the river when I heard it.

Hooves.

Three men on horseback. Not wolves. Humans.

Mercenaries. The kind packs hired to catch runaways.

“Hey!” one shouted. “You! Stop!”

I didn’t. I ran.

Water soaked my dress. The cold hit my bones.

An arrow whistled past my ear.

“Bring her in alive! The King’s paying good!”

So Damian was offering money now.

Anger flared in my chest. Hotter than the river.

My wrist burned. The star crown on my mark flared to life.

_Use it._

Silver light shot from my hand into the water.

The river rose. A wave slammed into the horses. They reared, throwing the men off.

I didn’t wait. I scrambled up the bank on the other side, coughing and shaking.

That was the first time I did magic on purpose.

My legs were jelly. But I ran anyway. Into the neutral woods.

Hours later, I collapsed behind a fallen log.

I was safe. For now.

That’s when I smelled it.

Smoke. And bread.

Someone was cooking nearby.

I crept forward. Through the bushes I saw a small camp.

A fire. A tent. And a girl.

She looked about my age. 18, maybe 19. Dark skin, braided hair, and scars on her arms.

She wasn’t a wolf. I couldn’t smell one. Human.

But she had a sword across her lap. And her eyes... they were sharp.

She looked up before I could move.

“Come out,” she said calmly. “I’ve smelled you for 10 minutes.”

I stepped out, hands raised. The dagger was hidden.

“I’m not here to hurt you.”

The girl studied me. My torn dress. My bleeding feet. My glowing wrist.

“You’re a wolf,” she said. “Running from a pack.”

It wasn’t a question.

I nodded slowly. “My name is Luna.”

She stood. “I’m Zara. And you’re bleeding on my ground.”

She tossed me a cloth and a waterskin.

I caught them, surprised. “You’re not afraid of me?”

Zara laughed. Dry. “Sweetheart, I’m afraid of plenty. But a scared omega isn’t one of them.”

She looked at my wrist. At the mark. Her eyes narrowed.

“That’s a King’s mark.”

I pulled my sleeve down. “Was.”

“Rejected, huh?” Zara sat by the fire. “Happens. Usually means death.”

She looked me up and down. “But you’re still breathing. So what are you?”

I hesitated. Then I pulled out the old book.

Opened it to the page with the nine-tailed wolf.

Zara went still.

“That’s a myth,” she whispered. “The Moon Goddess Wolf. They said the last heir died 200 years ago.”

“Maybe she didn’t,” I said.

Zara was quiet for a long time. Then she poked the fire.

“My family were guardians,” she said finally. “Of Carter Keep. Before it fell.”

My head snapped up. “What?”

“Yeah.” She met my eyes. “I know where it is. And I know how to get there.”

She smirked. “Lucky you found me, huh?”

Tears burned my eyes. Again. But not sad ones.

“Why would you help me?”

Zara shrugged. “Because the world needs more wolves who don’t kneel.”

She tossed me bread. “And because I hate Alpha Kings.”

We ate in silence. The fire crackled.

For the first time since the ceremony, I didn’t feel alone.

“Thank you,” I whispered.

Zara nodded. “Don’t thank me yet. The trip to Carter Keep is 3 weeks. Through rogue territory. Through mountains.”

She looked at my wrist. “And he’ll be looking for you.”

_Let him look,_ my wolf said.

I stood. The bread warmed me. The fire warmed me.

But the anger... that kept me moving.

“Then we leave at dawn,” I said.

Zara grinned. “That’s the spirit, Moon Girl.”

That night I slept for the first time in 24 hours.

No nightmares.

Because for the first time, I had someone watching my back.

And somewhere, miles away in Blackwood Castle...

Damian was getting the report.

_“She’s alive. She has power. And she has help.”_

He crushed the paper in his fist.

Too late, Alpha King.

The omega you rejected was already gone.