Chapter Two: The Rejection

​Aurelia’s POV

​The stone courtyard was completely packed with thousands of wolves from the Blackthorne Pack, and the bright light from the large fire pits illuminated the sea of angry faces as Kael dragged me up the wooden steps of the main stage. The loud chatter died down instantly, and every single person turned their attention toward us, their eyes filled with intense curiosity and judgment while I tried to keep my balance on the rough wooden boards.

​"People of the Blackthorne Pack," Kael announced, his deep voice carrying across the entire square without any effort, and he finally released my arm to stand at the very edge of the platform so everyone could see him clearly. "For three long years, we have waited for an heir to secure our future, but the Moon Goddess has not blessed this union, and we cannot afford to remain weak while our enemies watch our borders."

​A loud murmur rippled through the crowd below, and I could see Evelyn and her friends nodding in agreement, while the elders stood in a straight line right behind us with their arms crossed over their chests.

​"Kael, please do not do this in front of the entire territory," I whispered, stepping closer to his back so the crowd wouldn't hear me, but he did not turn around to look at me, and his shoulders remained stiff and distant. "We can go back inside and talk about this with the elders privately, so you do not have to humiliate me like this."

​"We are past the point of private discussions, Aurelia, and I must do what is best for the survival of this pack, because you know we cannot continue to live with a barren Luna," he muttered over his shoulder, and then he raised his large hand to silence the murmuring crowd again. "Therefore, to ensure our strength and to protect our people, I must make a difficult decision tonight, and I expect everyone to accept it without question."

​He turned around to face me fully, his expression completely blank as if I were a stranger he had never met, and he took a deep breath that made his chest expand under his leather jacket. "I, Alpha Kael Blackthorne, reject you, Aurelia, as my true mate and the Luna of the Blackthorne Pack, and I sever the bond between us forever."

​The moment the last word left his mouth, a sharp, white-hot pain exploded in the center of my chest, and it felt exactly like my heart was being ripped out of my ribs with bare hands. I dropped straight to my knees on the hard wooden floorboards, gasping loudly for breath, and my vision blurred into total darkness as the agonizing sensation tore through my veins and muscles. The pain was so intense that I honestly thought my body would give out right there on the stage, and I pressed both of my foreheads and hands against the wood, trembling violently while the crowd watched my suffering in absolute silence.

​Through the heavy haze of my agony, I heard slow, thudding footsteps approaching me, and when I forced my eyes open through the sweat and tears, Kael was standing right above me, but his face was incredibly pale and his large hands were shaking at his sides. His dark eyes were wide with a strange kind of panic, and I could tell his wolf was howling in pure torment inside his mind, because the bond was breaking just as violently for him too, and something about this entire rejection felt completely wrong and unnatural.

​"Kael, your wolf," I croaked out, clutching my chest as the pain continued to burn through me, "he is screaming, Kael, you know this is a mistake."

​"Be quiet, Aurelia," Elder Thomas interrupted, stepping forward to stand between us, and he gestured toward the side of the stage with a triumphant grin. "The rejection is valid, and it is officially done, so now, welcome your new Luna, the woman who already carries the true heir of the Blackthorne Pack!"

​Selene walked out from the shadows of the back building, wearing a fine silk dress that tightly hugged her stomach, and she deliberately placed her hand over her slight baby bump so every single member of the pack could see her pregnancy. The crowd erupted into incredibly loud cheers, shouting her name and clapping their hands enthusiastically, and the sound echoed painfully in my ears while I remained collapsed on the floor like a piece of garbage.

​"Thank you, everyone, I promise to be the Luna you deserve," Selene said, smiling brightly as she walked past me, intentionally brushing her long skirt against my arm, and she stood right next to Kael, who looked completely frozen in place as he stared down at his own trembling fingers.

​"Are you alright, Kael, you look like you are about to faint," Selene asked, wrapping her arm tightly around his waist and leaning her head against his shoulder, but Kael did not answer her, and his eyes remained fixed on me with a look of deep regret and confusion that he could not hide.

​"He is perfectly fine, Selene, he just did what a real Alpha needs to do for his people," Elder Thomas intervened, patting Kael on the back to snap him out of his trance, and then he looked down at me with absolute disgust. "Aurelia is no longer a part of this pack, so she must leave our lands immediately, and she has exactly ten minutes to pack her things and get out."

​"Wait a moment, Elder Thomas, we cannot just let her walk away like that after everything she has done," Selene said, her sweet tone suddenly turning cold and sharp as she stepped away from Kael to look down at me with a mean smirk. "She spent three whole years taking what belonged to me, and she enjoyed the status and luxury of being a Luna while I had to hide in the background like a common servant."

​"What more do you want from her, Selene, the bond is already broken, and she has absolutely nothing left to her name," Kael asked, his voice rough and strained as he finally looked away from me to stare at his new mate, though his wolf was still growling uncomfortably in his head.

​"She still has her royal blood, Kael, and my personal healers told me that a rejected Luna’s blood holds a specific kind of binding energy that can protect an unborn alpha pup from sickness or miscarriage," Selene stated smoothly, and she reached into her pocket to pull out a sharp silver dagger, holding it out toward Kael with a cold glint in her eyes.

"If she really cares about the future of this pack like she always claimed, she should give us her blood as compensation for the years she stole from me, so I want you to authorize the extraction right now.”