Adelia's Pov
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I was surprised to see Leah still in my room when I returned from my run. The run had been needed to clear my head but even at that, I could still feel choked and extremely burdened. How could my family do this to me? How could they ask me to reject my mate? My heart was heavy and my wolf was tensed, I could feel her agony.
To be honest, I was confused. I didn't know what to do. My father had just threatened to kill Aiden and knowing who my father was, his words were not to be taken lightly. He would surely do what he had promised. This made me very scared and confused.
"Where have you been?" Leah jumped up from the bed when I walked in. Her face was clouded with worry.
But I ignored her question because I was in no mood to talk. I didn't even know why she was still here. It was late in the night and she should be at her house. The sight of her in my room was pissing me off. I didn't want to talk to anyone.
I walked past her, heading to my closet where I pulled out my nightwear.
"I'm talking to you, Adelia." She walked to where I was and held my hand.
I pulled it away. Hurt flashed on her face but it soon left and pity was what replaced it. It angered me all the more. I didn't need anyone's pity. I just needed a solution.
"I heard what happened, Addy." Leah grabbed my hand again, holding me tightly so that I struggle to release myself.
"What did you hear?" I finally pulled my hand away and she sighed.
"The Luna was in your room earlier. She wanted to talk to you but she saw me instead and she told me what happened."
"So she wanna talk now." I couldn't help but scoff. She was all quiet back then and wouldn't even look at me. But now she wanted to talk. I didn't want her talking to me. The only conversation I wanted to have was a reverse of my father's statement. He should take it back.
"You can't blame her, Addy."
"And what is that supposed to mean? Why shouldn't I blame her?" I snapped at Leah. What was she saying? Who was I to blame if not my family?
"You know they want the best for you. In fact, I feel the moon goddess has finally decided to show you some mercy. Aiden must have been a mistake. You have Rio now. He's the new alpha and boy, he's hot as hell. He's everything you need."
"Stop!" I yelled at her, placing both of my palms on my ears. "Stop spitting trash. What's your problem?"
"No, what's your problem?" Leah stood in my face, her eyes flashing as she stared at me. "I'm only stating the truth and you know it. Aiden is no good. You should be thankful there's someone else."
"I thought you of all people should understand me better but . . ." I shook my head. I was disappointed. I couldn't believe she was saying this to me. I had always known she wasn't a fan of Aiden but I never knew she would go as far as this.
"I do understand you, Addy but. . .just as you feel for Aiden, you'll feel the same way for Rio."
"How?" I barked at her, leaning forward so I was staring her right in her face. "I got marked, Leah," I whispered. "In case you forgot. Now tell me," I folded my arms. "how will you feel if I asked you to reject Derrick? I'm sure you will find your second chance mate too so you don't have to worry. Just reject him too. Let us both reject our mates!"
"At least my mate isn't. . ." She trailed off and my eyes twitched with anger.
"Say it, I dare you." I was ready to tear her off if she said the word.
It was a good thing she had enough sense to keep her mouth shut because I really would have attacked her if she said the word. I was sick and tired of everyone speaking ill of Aiden. They didn't even know him.
"Just get out!" I walked past her, hitting her by the shoulder and walking to the bathroom. I didn't want her in my room when I was out.
"So what you gonna do now?" She blurted out, stopping me in my track. "Your father is gonna kill him. I know you don't want him dead. Rejecting him is better than having him killed. If you go on like this, then he'll be declared a rogue and killed before your eyes."
My heart squeezed in pain as the reality of what she said dawned on me. She was right and I knew it. My grip on my night dress got tighter as I fumed in anger and pain. I didn't like feeling helpless.
"I understand how you feel, Addy, but there is no other way. Your father has made up his mind and he has the approval of your family. Your hands are tied now."
"Just shut up, Leah. Shut the fuck up! Don't tell me you understand how I feel when you don't. None of you understands how I feel. If you did, y'all wouldn't treat me this way."
"That's not — "
"Get out!" I cut her off. I was tired of listening to her nonsense.
"Addy!"
"Get the fuck out, Leah!" I yelled at her and her eyes narrowed.
"Adelia, you don't get to talk to me this way!"
"Of course I do. If you don't get out now, I'm gonna throw you out."
"Is this what I get for waiting behind for you? I could have left."
"I didn't ask you to stay."
"I wanted to make sure you were fine."
"And you're making me feel worst. Just go. Go, Leah. Leave." I walked to the door and pulled it open.
Leah watched me, hurt registering on her face as she stared at me. Then she let out a sigh.
"Alright. I'll go. I'll just return tomorrow when you're much calmer." She walked to the door.
"Please, don't." I shook my head."What?"
"I mean it." I held her gaze so she would see how serious I was about this. I didn't want her coming back. I knew what she would say when she returns and I didn't want to hear it.
Leah stood by the door for a moment before shaking her head and walking away. I shut the door after her.
Now that I was alone and all by myself, I allowed myself to break down again. Slowly, I slid down the door and dropped to the floor, burying my face into my palms.
This was all Rio's fault. If he hadn't shown his cursed face to my father and opened that useless mouth of his, none of this would have happened. Couldn't he find a mate among his wolves? Why me? I didn't even feel any form of connection. No mate bond whatsoever. No tingles shooting through my arms and travelling around my body like they did when I was with Aiden. There was nothing. Absolutely nothing to tell me he was the one. Was he lying? Did he just make this up to get my father to sign a peace treaty with his pack? Why then did I feel nothing?All I wanted was Aiden and him alone. He was the one my wolf longed for.
My heart shattered as I thought of my misfortune.
"What are we to do now?" I asked my wolf.
I could mind link my wolf internally because my wolf had a mind of her own even when she mostly agreed with me. But I didn't think she agreed with me this time. It was like she knew what I had decided to do and was warning me against it. But what was I to do? I didn't want Aiden to die because of me.
"Please, don't be mad at me." I pleaded with her.
I just hope this book is worth your time. Please, drop a comment and let me know what you think.
Aiden's Pov • • • • • • • • • • I was lying on my bed when I heard a knock on the front door. My heart skipped as I wondered who it was. I knew it couldn't be my friends since they had just left after spending some time consoling me. They had heard about Jared's action just like everyone else since the news about Jared attacking me had spread like wildfire in the pack and was now on everyone's lips. My heart began to pound in my chest as the thought of Jared returning to probably finish what he started filled my head. I was yet to recover from the beating that had been meted out on me: I could barely walk without limping and my face was still bruised.My mother had told me I had been out for a full day and had only gained consciousness this morning. She had also told me how my friends had rushed down here some minutes after Jared left but I was unconscious and couldn't talk to them so they had to leave. It was that bad! But I was not angry, especially when I had received all thi
Aiden's Pov My eyes narrowed in pain at her words and I could feel my heart breaking into a thousand pieces. I don't think I had ever felt this much pain before. Even when I had been unable to shift into my wolf during the shapeshifting ceremony, I didn't feel this much pain. "So what Jared said is true. You're gonna reject me like everyone else?" My voice was low and croaky. I could not even recognise my own voice. It sounded strange to my ears. Adelia shut her eyes again, a tear slithering down her cheek. It made me wonder why she was doing this when it was clear she did not want it herself. "Why are you saying these things to hurt me when you don't even want this? Why are you bringing rejection up? Who is Rio and why are you calling him your mate?" "I want this, Aiden." Adelia wiped her eyes. "I want this. I wanna reject you because it is the right thing to do." "How? How is it the right thing to do? This won't do any of us any good! Why are we even having this conversation?"
Adelia's Pov That day was the worst day of my life. I had never felt this shattered before. It was so bad that I felt like dying. The pain still felt new, despite it being an hour since I returned from Aiden's house. It was obvious I was yet to recover from this heartbreaking experience. As I lay on my bed, staring at the white ceiling of my room, a tear rolled out of my eyes and down the side of my face. I chuckled, surprised that I still had tears in my eyes. I had done nothing but cry my eyes out since I returned yet I didn't feel any better. My silky blouse was drenched with my tears and my eyes were swollen red. Just who would have imagined that rejecting one's mate would be this painful? Jared had said it would not hurt that bad and my father had nodded in agreement, but here I was, feeling pain so great, it felt like I was dying. To be honest, I wanted to die. That was all I could think of. I wanted to get this heart-wrenching pain to leave for it was too much for me to be
Aiden's Pov I was blank, just like a stone. No matter what my friends or mother did, they couldn't get a reaction from me. It was like I had wandered away from the real world that I found it difficult to interact with it anymore. To be honest, nothing made sense to me anymore. I had always known I was useless but it hadn't really dawned on me, nor had it sank into my subconscious. But Adelia's rejection had sent that reality down to me. Being rejected was the worst feeling ever and I felt completely useless. There was suddenly no will to live anymore. Adelia had been my source of strength and she had given me hope, a hope for a better life but now that she was gone, I felt broken. It had been a week since the rejection yet I hadn't recovered, I couldn't recover. I could not even mind link her anymore since the connection had been broken. It was so disheartening. Within the week, I had tried to see her again. I had made my visitation to the packhouse more frequent, hoping that I
Adelia's Pov It was a beautiful morning and the sun was out, casting its rays on everything, creating a colourful iridescence. It was so beautiful and it made me chuckle softly as I thought about how nature held a perfect irony to the way I was feeling. My entire world was dark and gloomy, unlike this beautiful morning. I chuckled harder at this perfect contrast. "Are you okay?" Leah asked me, the morning breeze blowing some strands of her wild brown hair to her face. It was still a surprise how she was here with me even after our argument that particular night. She had not shown up at my house for days and I had already concluded that our friendship was finally over but surprisingly, she was here to bid me farewell, just as most of the pack members did. I was finally leaving my pack, my homeland, and I was going with Rio to his own pack. It was funny. It was funny because I and Aiden used to tease each other in the past, saying 'the last will be a slave to the blood moon pack'.
Adelia's Pov I didn't want him holding me but I was too weak to push him away. I was exhausted, tired of all that was happening in my life. "I'll miss you." He smiled into my face, reaching out to wipe my tears but I turned my face to the side. "Are you still angry at me?" "I hope you will let Aiden be, now that I've done all that you guys asked me to," I said and he frowned, his eyes twitching a bit. "Fine. But stop thinking of that dumbass. He isn't worth it. You have someone better now. Think about him." My brother pointed to Rio who was smiling brightly with his beta and some other gammas from his pack. They had come to take me away to their pack like the prisoner I was. "You won't tell me what to do," I spoke calmly but strongly. Jared groaned at that but he said nothing. "I've kept my own side of the promise. You guys should make sure to keep yours. I'm going with Rio now. It is your duty, Jared, to ensure that Aiden is safe." "Aw, come on, Addy. Of course, we will ke
Jared's Pov I was beyond excited. To be honest, I was thrilled and that was because everything was going just the way I wanted it to. I wanted that freak out of our lives for good and Adelia's rejection of him was not enough. I wanted him dead. So when my father asked me to go get him, I was beyond thrilled. Even when I had wanted to execute that order instantly, I had to wait for Adelia to leave, for I knew how much of trouble she could be especially when it involved that freak. I couldn't even bring myself to say his name. That was how much I hated him. One would ask why I hated him this much when we had been close friends growing up. Well, the truth was I had never really liked Aiden. I was always threatened by him. With Aiden, I was like a shadow, unseen. He was always in the limelight, always the best in everything and this made the pack members compare him to me. I was the Alpha's son, the one who would rule the pack after my father so I was supposed to be the best. I wa
"I'm sorry." He said finally but he still did not look sorry at all. Instead, he looked angry and his apology felt like an insult instead. My anger was beginning to get the better of me but I had to refrain from doing anything. Aiden was acting differently which was strange so it was only wise I didn't push things further. I would show him who the boss was when we got to the packhouse. "Follow me!" I turned around to leave. I could not wait to melt out some punishment on this prick but that would be after my father had handed him over to me. I could not wait to teach him a lesson. I was going to make him suffer, I was going to make him beg and plead, I was going to make him crawl and wish for death. But no, I would not give it to him yet, I would make sure he dies a slow and painful death. I would make sure to knock that silly smile off his face. But to my surprise, Aiden didn't follow me as I ordered, instead, he asked me a stupid question. "Where to?" "You don't get to ask m