Chapter 3: Mine
1338 Words
Elena POV
Silence consumed the forest.
The silver light connecting my hand to Kael slowly faded, but the shock remained on every face. Adrian stood frozen. Sophia’s eyes widened with disbelief, and even the warriors behind the future Alpha looked terrified.
My heart pounded violently.
What had just happened?
The warmth from Kael’s hand still lingered against my skin, soothing the pain Adrian’s rejection had left behind. My wolf had become strangely calm, as if simply standing beside him was enough to quiet the wounds inside her.
Kael’s voice broke the silence.
“She belongs to me.”
Adrian finally found his voice.
“No.”
The word echoed through the clearing. Rain continued to pour between them as Kael slowly turned his head toward him.
“No?”
Adrian stepped forward despite the fear written across his face.
“Elena is a member of my pack.”
A dangerous smile appeared on Kael’s lips.
“Was.”
The correction struck me deeply because it was true. The moment Adrian rejected me, I no longer belonged to Silver Moon Pack. I was no longer the orphan they tolerated or the omega they pitied.
Sophia crossed her arms.
“You can’t possibly want her. She’s an omega.”
Several Lycans growled immediately. Kael’s silver eyes slowly turned toward Sophia, and the pressure surrounding him became almost unbearable.
“I suggest you choose your words carefully.”
Sophia took a step backward.
Adrian clenched his fists.
“The Moon Goddess chose Elena for me.”
Kael looked almost amused.
“And you rejected her.”
Adrian remained silent.
The Lycan King took another step, his eyes never leaving the future Alpha.
“You stood before your pack and shattered her bond. You humiliated her.”
Adrian’s jaw tightened.
“You know nothing about our customs.”
Kael’s eyes darkened.
“And you know nothing about mates.”
My chest tightened.
Part of me wanted Adrian to explain himself. Part of me wanted him to apologize and tell me he had made a mistake. But another part of me remembered the laughter, the humiliation, and the pain.
Adrian looked directly at me.
“Elena, come home.”
The words hurt more than they should have.
Home.
What home?
The pack that had watched me suffer?
The people who had done nothing while my mate rejected me?
Sophia stepped forward.
“You’ve embarrassed everyone enough. Just come back.”
I stared at her.
For years, she had treated me as if I were worthless. Now she wanted me to return.
Why?
Kael spoke quietly beside me.
“You don’t have to answer them.”
His words surprised me. He wasn’t forcing me to stay. He wasn’t demanding anything.
Adrian noticed.
His eyes narrowed.
“Why are you standing so close to him?”
I almost laughed.
He had rejected me.
He had chosen another woman.
And now he looked angry.
“Because he didn’t reject me.”
The words escaped before I could stop them.
Adrian flinched.
For the first time that night, I saw genuine pain in his eyes.
Sophia grabbed his arm.
“Adrian.”
He ignored her.
“Elena, you don’t understand what he is.”
Kael’s expression became unreadable.
“And what am I?”
“A monster.”
The entire forest fell silent.
The Lycans growled, and several warriors took threatening steps forward. Kael raised one hand, immediately silencing them.
He never looked away from Adrian.
“I have been called worse.”
My wolf suddenly stirred.
Not with fear.
With curiosity.
The closer I stood to Kael, the calmer she became. The broken pieces left by Adrian’s rejection slowly felt less painful.
Kael glanced at me.
He seemed to understand exactly what I was feeling.
“The mate bond is healing you.”
I blinked.
“What?”
“Your previous bond damaged your wolf.”
Adrian’s face changed instantly.
“She’s hurt?”
Kael looked directly at him.
“Your rejection nearly killed her wolf.”
The color drained from Adrian’s face.
“No.”
My breathing stopped.
Nearly killed?
Was that why the pain had felt unbearable?
My wolf whimpered softly inside me.
Adrian took a step toward me.
“I didn’t know.”
Kael’s voice became ice.
“You should have.”
Thunder rolled above us.
One of the Lycan warriors suddenly approached.
“My King.”
Kael turned.
“What is it?”
The warrior looked directly at me.
“The scent.”
Kael frowned.
“What scent?”
“The ancient scent.”
Several warriors exchanged uneasy looks.
“The moon blood.”
My heart began to race.
They were talking about me.
Kael slowly looked at me, his expression changing.
“Elena, who were your parents?”
The question caught me off guard.
“I don’t know.”
Adrian frowned.
“She was found outside our territory as a child.”
Kael became very still.
“Outside?”
I nodded.
“The former Luna found me near the eastern river.”
One of the warriors suddenly gasped.
“The eastern river?”
Another whispered,
“It can’t be.”
Fear slowly spread through me.
“What?”
Kael stared at me.
“How old were you?”
“Three.”
The Lycan King looked toward the moon. His expression had changed completely, as if he had remembered something terrible.
Sophia scoffed.
“She’s an orphan. Why does it matter?”
Kael’s silver eyes snapped toward her.
“You should pray it doesn’t.”
A cold wind swept through the forest.
My wolf suddenly began trembling. Not with fear, but with recognition.
Pain shot through my wrist.
I gasped.
A silver symbol slowly appeared on my skin, glowing brightly against the darkness.
Everyone saw it.
Adrian’s eyes widened.
Sophia stepped backward.
The Lycan warriors immediately lowered their heads.
My heart nearly stopped.
“What is happening?”
The symbol burned brighter.
Pain shot through my arm.
I cried out.
Kael appeared beside me instantly. The moment he touched my wrist, his expression changed.
Shock.
Real shock.
His voice became barely a whisper.
“Impossible.”
I looked at him.
“What is it?”
He stared at the mark.
“The royal mark.”
Adrian frowned.
“What royal mark?”
No one answered him.
One of the warriors finally spoke.
“My King… she is one of us.”
My mind went blank.
One of them?
“No.”
I shook my head.
“I’m a werewolf.”
Kael looked directly into my eyes.
“No, Elena.”
The silver mark continued glowing.
Rain fell around us.
The entire forest seemed to hold its breath.
“You were never a member of Silver Moon Pack.”
Adrian stared at me.
Sophia looked terrified.
My heart pounded.
“What are you saying?”
Kael stepped closer, his voice softer than before.
“When you were three years old, a Lycan princess disappeared during a war.”
The world tilted beneath my feet.
“No.”
“The child carried the royal bloodline.”
I couldn’t breathe.
Adrian looked stunned.
“You can’t mean—”
Kael’s voice became quiet.
“I spent five centuries searching for my mate.”
His fingers gently touched the glowing mark.
“But it seems I was also searching for my princess.”
The forest erupted with gasps.
My knees weakened.
Princess?
None of this made sense.
I looked at Adrian.
At Sophia.
At the Lycans kneeling before me.
At Kael.
The man who had called me his mate.
The man who had waited centuries.
Suddenly, a horn echoed through the forest.
Every Lycan warrior stood.
One rushed toward Kael.
“My King!”
Kael turned sharply.
“What happened?”
The warrior’s face had gone pale.
“The southern border has fallen.”
Kael’s expression darkened.
“Who attacked?”
The warrior looked directly at me.
“The Shadow Pack.”
My blood ran cold.
“And they are searching for the lost princess.”
- Writer
