Rejected by the Alpha, Claimed by his Brother

Chapter 8: The Chosen Bond

Silence swallowed the temple. Nobody spoke for the longest of times.

The silver light hanging above Ella shimmered like liquid moonlight, bathing the sacred hall in an eerie glow. It wasn't harsh or blinding. It was soft, almost gentle, yet it was impossible to ignore. Ella stared at it, completely bewildered.

"What... is this?" Her voice barely above a whisper.

She wasn't asking anyone in particular, she genuinely didn't know. The warmth she'd felt moments ago was still there, pulsing steadily beneath her skin.

Around her, the whispers began again.

"Has anyone ever seen that before?"

"No..."

"It isn't part of the ceremony."

"Then why is it happening?"

The High Elder tightened his grip on the silver staff he was holding, his face had gone pale even the oldest members of the council looked uneasy.

Alpha Rowan remained perfectly still, but inside, his wolf paced restlessly, it wanted him to move and go to her. He ignored the instinct, his wolf had never behaved like this before but something about Ella was disturbing it and Rowan needed to know why.

"Elder?" one of the younger priests asked quietly. "What does it mean?"

The old man didn't answer immediately, his eyes never left the silver light. "I... don't know."

The admission sent another wave of murmurs through the crowd, If the High Elder didn't know... Then whatever was happening had never happened in living memory.

Ella wished the floor would open beneath her, she hated being the center of attention especially now.

The light flickered once then, suddenly as it had appeared, it disappeared. The candles around the temple burst lit back again. The room returned normally to how it was, people were staring and whispering.

Ella let out a shaky breath. "Is... is it over?"

No one answered her, they continued the whispers.

Nora was the first to break the silence. "I knew it."

She folded her arms, looking more pleased than frightened. "Look at her, she's cursed."

Several people glanced at her. "What else could explain that?" She pointed toward Ella.

"First the dead warrior then the silver fur, now this."

She shook her head dramatically.

"Everything strange leads back to her." A few voices quietly agreed.

Ella's stomach sank, it was happening again no matter what occurred... She would always be blamed.

"Enough." Rowan's voice echoed through the temple. They stopped whispering instantly.

He stepped down from the raised platform where he was standing, the crowd parted into two to let him pass.

He stopped a few feet in front of Ella and stared directly into her eyes.

She lowered her gaze. "I'm sorry." She didn't know when those words escaped from her mouth. "I didn't mean to interrupt the ceremony."

"You think you caused that?" Rowan asked, his gaze still focused on her. She nodded weakly. "I always cause problems."

Something flickered across Rowan's face, he didn't look as angry as Ella had expected but he looked really curious.

"You don't even know what happened." He said, curiosity written all over his face.

"Neither does anyone else."

She looked up slowly, her gray eyes met his blue eyes. For a brief moment, the noise around them disappeared.

"Ella." His voice was quieter now. "When the light appeared, how did you feel?" She hesitated before speaking. "I... It felt..." She searched for the right words to say, "warmth."

Like..." She placed a hand over her chest. "Like something inside me was trying to wake up."

Several elders exchanged uneasy looks, the oldest elder closed his eyes.

"No..." He whispered the word to himself. "It can't be."

Before Rowan could question him, another elder stepped forward. "The ceremony isn't finished."

Everyone turned. "There are still unmated wolves waiting."

The High Elder nodded slowly. "He is correct."

He raised his staff again. "The Moon Goddess has not completed Her blessing."

The atmosphere remained tense, nobody smiled anymore, even those that had already found their mates watched Ella with uncertain expressions.

Rowan returned to his place at the front of the temple, his eyes didn't leave Ella's face.

The High Elder lifted both hands toward the moon. "Those who remain... Step into the circle."

Only a handful of wolves were left, Ella realized she was one of them.

Her pulse quickened, she almost stayed where she was but then she remembered Rowan's order. Slowly, she stepped back into the circle, the other unmated wolves avoided standing close to her.

The elder closed his eyes and began chanting in the ancient language, the words flowed through the temple.

One by one, faint silver threads appeared in the air, it was as thin as a spider silk and beautiful in its way.

It was invisible to human eyes, but every wolf could see them, they drifted between destined mates.

One thread connected a young warrior to a healer's daughter, another stretched across the temple to a shy girl standing near the entrance. Gasps and joyful cries followed each new bond.

Ella watched in quiet amazement, the Moon Goddess really was weaving destinies before their eyes.

Then... One final silver thread appeared, the brightest of them all. It floated above the crowd and across the entire temple. Slowly... It began to move towards Ella, her eyes widened.

"No..." She instinctively stepped back, the thread followed her with each step she took back.

Shock spread through the temple, the silver thread touched her wrist wrapping gently around like moonlight taking shape.

The other end stretched through the crowd, every head turned to follow it, it continued moving. It crossed past the warriors that stood nearby, it passed the elders and drifted straight to the front of the temple until it stopped at Alpha Rowan.

The thread shimmered between them. For one endless heartbeat, the entire world seemed to stand still then the High Elder whispered the words no one expected to hear.

"The Moon Goddess has chosen a mate." The Elder swallowed, "Alpha Rowan and Ella are destined to be mated together."