The Alpha's Rejected Wolfless Mate

Chapter Eight: The Cold Alpha

The kiss ended as suddenly as it began.

One second, Kael's mouth was on mine — fierce, desperate, like he was trying to brand his soul into mine. The next, he ripped himself away like I had burned him.

His golden eyes were wild. His chest heaved. Then, like a door slamming shut, it all vanished. The cold, ruthless Alpha returned.

"You need to rest," he said. His voice was flat.

"What?" I whispered, my lips still tingling. "Kael, what's wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong. You almost died three days ago. You need to regain your strength." He stepped back, putting deliberate distance between us. "I have duties. Helena will bring your meals."

And then he walked out. He didn't look back.

I stood frozen in his chambers, my heart shattering on his rug.

He had kissed me like I was his entire world.

And then he just left.

'He is fighting the bond,' Lyra snarled in my head. 'I can feel Fenrir. He is howling in Kael's chest, clawing to get back to us. But Kael is chaining him down.'

'Why?' I asked, tears spilling over.

'I don't know. But I don't like it. Fenrir is in pain.'

---

The next two days were torture.

Kael didn't come. Not once.

I was draped in silk and gold but felt like I was back in the cold cellar at Silver Creek.

The silence was suffocating.

I paced until my feet ached. I stared at the forest where I'd first shifted.

I tried to sleep, but the bed smelled like him — pine, rain, and dark spices — and it made my chest ache.

Helena brought my meals. I could barely eat.

On the third day, I snapped.

I grabbed the heavy silver hairbrush from the vanity and hurled it across the room. It shattered against the stone wall.

"Luna!" Helena gasped, rushing in. "What is the matter?"

"The matter?" I laughed, bitter and broken. "He claims me in front of his entire pack. He marks me. He kisses me like I'm the only thing that matters. Then he treats me like a plague! He won't see me! He won't speak to me!"

Helena's face softened with pity. I hated that look.

"Child," she said gently, taking my trembling hands. "Sit. Please."

My legs were weak. I sank onto the edge of the bed.

"Kael is not pushing you away because he doesn't want you. He is pushing you away because he is terrified."

I scoffed. "Terrified? He's the Blood Moon Butcher. He fears nothing."

"He fears losing you," she whispered.

I froze.

"He has lost everyone he has ever loved," she said. "His mother to rogues. His brother to betrayal. His first Luna. Every time he cares, death follows. He believes his love is cursed. Poison."

She brushed her fingertips over the silver mark on my neck. It glowed faintly. "He marked you because he had to protect you. He kissed you because his wolf won for a second. And now he is pulling away because he is terrified that if he lets himself love you, the Moon Goddess will take you to punish him."

'Fenrir says it's true,' Lyra whispered, her fury melting into ache. 'The wolf is in agony. He wants to claim us. But Kael has him locked in the dark. Kael hasn't slept.'

My heart clenched. Anger didn't leave, but it tangled with something devastating. Sympathy.

"He's an i***t," I whispered.

Helena let out a dry laugh. "Yes. The biggest i***t in the pack. But he is our i***t Alpha."

I stood. My legs were steady now.

"Where is he?"

"His study. East wing. But Luna—"

"I'm his mate," I cut in. "He doesn't get to shut me out."

---

I marched down the corridor, bare feet silent on the cold, ancient stone.

The castle was never quiet, but at this hour it was close.

The torches burned low, casting long shadows. The air smelled of damp stone and old magic.

My thin sleeping dress did nothing against the chill, but fury was a better cloak.

Two guards stood outside Kael's study, spears crossed. Their eyes widened when they saw me — barefoot, disheveled, blazing.

"Luna, the Alpha gave orders not to be—" one started.

I grabbed the handle and shoved the heavy oak door. It slammed against the inner wall.

The room was dark, lit only by a low fire in the hearth.

He sat in a leather chair with his back to the door, staring into the flames. A half-empty bottle and a shattered glass sat beside him.

His shirt was open, the scar over his heart exposed. His hair was a mess, like he'd been tearing at it.

He looked haunted.

"Get out, Jax," he growled, voice raw. "I told you I didn't want to be disturbed."

"It's not Jax," I said.

He spun so fast the chair scraped. His golden eyes flared. "Lena. What are you doing here? You should be resting."

"I'm done resting," I said, locking the door behind me. The click was loud. "And I'm done being ignored."

He stood in one fluid movement. Even wrecked, he was towering. "I am not ignoring you. I am running a pack that almost lost its Luna."

"You're drinking alone in the dark and hiding from your own mate," I shot back. "That's not busy. That's cowardly."

His jaw tightened. "Go back to your room. Now."

"Make me," I breathed.

The air plummeted. His wolf flashed in his eyes.

"You called me a coward?" he said, his voice dangerously low, each word a growl. "You think you know anything about what I've done?"

I stepped closer, refusing to cower. "I know you're afraid. You're so afraid that if you love me, I'll die. So you're pushing me away to keep me safe. You're choosing fear over us."

His claws shot out, gouging the desk. "You don't understand. You don't know what I've done. The blood on my hands."

"I don't care about the monster they say you are!" I cried. "I didn't ask for a perfect man! I asked for my mate! I am your Luna! Your equal! You don't get to love me one minute and abandon me the next!"

I slammed my hand onto his bare chest, over his racing heart. It thundered against my palm. The bond exploded.

Inside, our wolves collided and the world fell away.

The study, the fire, Kael's desk — all of it vanished. There was only the bond-space, dark and full of stars and the scent of pine and moonlight.

Fenrir was there, massive, black as midnight, chains made of pure Alpha will wrapped around his muzzle and paws. He was bleeding from where he'd fought them. When he saw us, he let out a howl that shook my soul.

'MINE,' he roared, not with anger, but with relief so raw it hurt. 'You came. I thought he would keep me locked forever. He is hurting. He thinks if he loves you, you will die like the others.'

Lyra, my silver wolf, bigger and brighter than I'd ever seen her, bared her teeth at the chains and snapped them with one bite. 'Then stop letting him,' she snarled, pressing her forehead to his, silver light pouring into his black fur. 'You are Alpha. He is just a man. Fight for us. Claim us properly. Or I will rip his heart out and keep yours.'

Fenrir whined, licking her muzzle, his golden eyes wet. 'I try. Every second I try. Tell our human not to leave. Please. She is the only light we have left.'

Lyra turned her fierce gaze to me: 'You hear that, Lena? His wolf has been screaming for us for two days.'

The vision shattered. I gasped back into the study, my hand still on Kael's chest, both of us breathing hard.

Kael's eyes flashed black for a second, his knees buckling as he felt everything his wolf had just said. The ice in his eyes finally, truly cracked.

"I'm not going anywhere," I whispered, tears streaming. "I survived Silver Creek. I survived your bite. I can survive your past. But if you push me away again, I will leave. And it will kill us both."

His mask shattered. He let out a ragged breath and gripped my waist, yanking me flush against him, forehead crashing to mine.

"I'm sorry," he choked out. "Gods, Lena, I'm so sorry. I can't lose you too."

"Don't apologize," I said, fisting his shirt. "Just don't let go."

He didn't.

He buried his face in my neck, over his mark, breathing me in like a drowning man — until a sharp, urgent knock shattered the moment.

Kael tensed, arms turning to steel around me. The Alpha mask slid back, but there was no coldness. Only deadly focus.

"What?" he barked.

The door opened. Jax stepped inside, face pale, eyes averted.

"Alpha. We found him."

Kael's arm tightened. "Who?"

"The traitor. We caught him in the western woods trying to cross into Silver Creek. Half-dead but alive."

"Where is he?"

"Interrogation room. But Alpha... he's not talking. He says he'll only speak to one person. He's demanding to see the Luna."

Every drop of blood drained from my face. "Me? Why me?"

Jax looked at me, grim.

"Because he claims he knows the secret of the seal on your wolf. And he says he can prove that your mother is still alive."