Chapter 3

_Anya’s POV_

For a few seconds, no one spoke. The night was quiet except for the sound of everyone breathing. I could see the shock on their faces. The Alpha, the Luna, Talia and my parents were all staring at me as if they were seeing me for the first time.

I wished the ground would open and swallow me.

The Alpha was the first to speak. His voice was cold and firm. “Leon, tell me what is going on.”

Leon did not look away from me. His face was pale but his eyes were hard as if he was forcing himself to feel nothing.

“She is my mate,” he said finally.

Talia gasped loudly. “No. That is not possible. That cannot be true.”

My father looked at me with disbelief. “This must be some kind of trick,” he said. “There is no way she can be the future Luna.”

The Luna looked at me from head to toe, her eyes full of judgment. “She is weak. She was raised as a servant. She has no manners, no education and no status. How can she stand beside the future Alpha?”

Each word felt like a knife.

The Alpha looked at my father. “Beta Taylor, even if the mate bond is real, I will never accept Anya as my daughter-in-law. She is not fit to become the future Luna of the Silvercrest Pack.”

My heart felt like it stopped.

My father nodded immediately. “Yes, Alpha. I understand. I also do not think she is suitable. She has always been a problem.”

That was what I was to them....a problem.

Then Leon spoke again and his voice sounded like stone. “I will reject her....I will reject her right now.”

I looked at him so fast that the world spun. For a moment, I thought I saw something in his eyes. Something like pain. But it disappeared so quickly that I was not sure if I had imagined it.

The Alpha nodded. “Do it. It is better to end this now before the pack finds out.”

Talia stood beside Leon. She was holding his arm tightly as if she was afraid he would disappear.

Leon stepped forward until he was standing right in front of me. I could feel the bond between us pulling, like an invisible thread tying my heart to his. It hurt just to stand near him.

He looked down at me and for a moment neither of us spoke.

Then he said in a loud and clear voice so everyone could hear:

“I, Leon Maxwell, future Alpha of the Silvercrest Pack, reject Anya Taylor as my fated mate. From this moment on, she means nothing to me and I claim no bond with her.”

The words hit me like a physical blow. It felt as if something inside my chest tore apart. A sharp pain spread through my body so suddenly that I could not even breathe. I fell to my knees and clutched my chest, trying to stop the pain, but it only grew stronger.

It felt like my heart was breaking from the inside.

A cry escaped my mouth before I could stop it. My whole body shook and I bent forward, gasping for air. The pain was not just in my chest. It was everywhere, in my bones, in my head, in my heart. It was as if something precious had been ripped away from me before I even had the chance to hold it.

Through the pain, I looked up at Leon.

He was standing very still. His face looked calm but his hands were clenched into fists at his sides. For a moment, I thought he looked like he was in pain too, but he quickly turned his face away from me.

I understood then. Even if the bond hurt him, he had still chosen to reject me.

I forced myself to speak even though my voice was shaking and tears were running down my face.

“I… Anya Taylor… accept your rejection,” I whispered.

The moment I said those words, the pain became even worse. It was so strong that I collapsed completely onto the ground. I curled into myself, holding my chest, trying not to scream.

No one came to help me. No one said anything kind.

After a few moments, the pain slowly became dull like a deep wound that would never fully heal.

Talia let out a small laugh of relief. “Now that this problem is solved, we should go back. The guests are waiting.”

The Alpha nodded. “Yes. Tonight is still an important night. The engagement ceremony will continue.”

As if nothing had happened...as if my life had not just been destroyed.

They all turned and started walking back toward the ceremony. Leon walked with them but just before he disappeared into the trees, he stopped for one second and looked back at me.

Our eyes met.

There was something in his eyes. Something that looked like regret. But he said nothing and then he turned away and left with Talia.

I stayed on the ground for a long time after they left. My body still hurt and my heart felt empty. The forest was quiet around me and for the first time in my life, I truly felt alone.

After some time, I forced myself to stand up. My legs were weak but I knew I could not stay there forever. So I started walking home slowly.

By the time I reached the house, I was so tired that I could barely think. My mind felt empty. I went to my small room, lay down on the bed and fell asleep almost immediately because my body and heart were too tired to stay awake.

That night, I had a strange dream.

In my dream, I could not move. It felt like I was half asleep and half awake. I felt something sharp on my neck, like something was pricking me. I tried to move but my body felt heavy.

Then I saw a shadow in my room. A tall black shadow moving quietly near my bed. I tried to see the face but everything was blurry like fog.

I felt another small prick on my neck and then I heard a voice. It was very low and quiet.

“The job has been done.”

I wanted to ask what they meant but I could not speak. Everything went dark again and I fell into deep sleep.

When I woke up the next morning, my head was hurting badly. For a few seconds, I did not remember anything but then everything came back at once.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I wanted to cry again but I told myself I had to be strong. Crying would not change anything.

When I sat up, I felt something strange on the right side of my neck. It felt sore...like a small injury. I went to the mirror and looked closely.

There was a small red mark on my neck. It looked like a needle mark or an insect bite.

“What is this?” I murmured.

I touched it gently and it hurt a little. Maybe it was just a mosquito bite, I thought. I did not think too much about it.

Then suddenly, there was a loud knock on my door.

“Wake up, lazy girl!” Talia’s voice shouted from outside. “Have you seen the time? I am still waiting for my breakfast!”

I quickly wiped my face, changed my clothes and went to the kitchen.

I prepared breakfast as fast as I could and brought the food to the dining table. Talia was already sitting there. My parents were there too but they did not look at me or speak to me. It was as if I did not exist.

I placed the food on the table quietly.

Talia started eating while I went back to the kitchen to wash the dishes. I was standing at the sink when I suddenly heard loud coughing from the dining room.

Then my mother’s voice said, “Talia? What is wrong?”

I walked out of the kitchen quickly and saw Talia coughing badly. My mother gave her a glass of water but Talia’s hand shook and the glass fell from her hand and broke on the floor.

Then, Talia fell to the ground. Her lips were turning purple.

My father rushed to her. “Talia! Talia!”

My mother was panicking. “She is not breathing properly! We need to take her to the hospital now!”

They picked her up and rushed out of the house. I tried to follow them.

“I will come too,” I said.

But my father turned and shouted, “No! Stay here! Do not touch anything!”

Then they left.

I stood in the empty house, not understanding what had just happened. I was worried about Talia even after everything, because she was still my sister.

Many hours passed and there was no news. I started to feel nervous. What had happened to Talia? Was she going to be okay?

Then suddenly, the front door burst open.

I jumped in shock.

Leon walked into the house with two guards behind him. His face was dark with anger.

I walked toward him slowly. “Leon? What are you doing here? What is happening?”

He did not answer. He walked straight up to me and grabbed my arm very hard. His grip was painful.

“Leon, you are hurting me,” I said. “Let me go.”

He looked at me with so much anger that I felt scared.

“Why did you do it?” he asked coldly. “What would you gain from this?”

“I do not understand. What are you talking about?”

“Oh, stop pretending,” he said angrily. “You poisoned Talia because you were jealous that I chose her instead of you. I did not expect you to be so cruel. You are disgusting.”

I felt like the world stopped again. “No, I did not do anything. Why would I poison my own sister? I am innocent.”

“Just shut up. I do not want to hear your lies.”

“I am not lying. Please believe me. I did not poison her.”

But Leon did not listen. He looked at the guards and said, “Take her away.”

The guards grabbed my arms.

“Leon, please,” I cried. “I did not do this. Please believe me.”

But he did not even look at me again.

As the guards dragged me out of the house, I felt terrified and confused. I did not understand what was happening. I did not understand why they were accusing me of something I did not do.