Chapter 3

(Mallory's POV)

"Good evening, Alpha, Luna. We saw Sonia arrive and summon Ace. What's the matter?" Ace's father, Beta Andrew, asked.

My father looked at his Beta and sighed.

"Mallory accused Ace of sleeping with her in her room. Is that true, Ace?" My father queried, and Ace's parents gasped.

"What? Ace, tell me it's not true?" His mother, Lady Fiona, asked him.

Ace looked away from his parents, his fist clenched as he looked at me.

"Say something, Ace, and know that you cannot lie to Alpha Bruce. Did you touch Mallory? You know that she's a useless she-wolf. She has no wolf, no scent, and seems like an ordinary human. How can you mate with a curse like her?" Ace's father queried him, and my fists clenched.

"I am not a curse!" I screamed aloud, hating it whenever they called me that.

"Shut up, Mallory! But you killed your mother! Because of you, Ex-Luna Comfort died on the hospital bed. What else do you want to do—ruin our pack and my son's life?" Beta Andrew queried me, glaring at me.

"I did not kill my mother. I did not ask to be born without a wolf or to be different from others. I never asked for any of it. I did not ask Ace to come into my room and slept with me. I am not the one who created myself—I am the result of what my father gave my mother!" I screamed and cried. Beta Andrew wanted to attack me on the ground where I knelt, but my father stopped him.

"That's enough, Andrew. It's not Mallory's fault that she was born differently. But what I want to know tonight is if Ace is the man who mated with my first daughter?" My father demanded, his voice cold. The large hall fell silent as all eyes shifted to look at Ace.

Ace lowered his gaze and replied, "Yes, Alpha Bruce."

"What?" Everyone in the hall gasped, including the guards who respected Ace. They looked at him with disappointment.

I felt sorry for Ace because of me, he was going to get banished or lose his future position as our next leader.

"Why, Ace?" His mother asked him tearfully. "Among all the beautiful she-wolves in our pack, why would you choose to sleep with Mallory? Why?" She sobbed, rushing to grab Ace by his shirt.

"Why, Ace? Why would you do this? I thought you loved me?" Sonia sobbed, clutching her mother's arm for support as tears poured out of her eyes.

Ace lowered his head and confessed, "Mallory is my true mate, and I cannot resist her. Forgive me, Alpha Bruce. But if you want me to reject her, I will do it. Please forgive me. I cannot fight the mating bond between us. Please..."

Ace dropped to his knees before my father, who stood there silently, looking at us.

"Ace..." My father hissed, his voice filled with anger and disappointment. "You disappointed me. Why didn't you reject Mallory when you found out that she was your true mate? How can you be attracted to her when she has no scent or wolf?" My father queried Ace, and everyone looked at him to answer.

Ace lowered his head and replied, "I blame the Moon Goddess, Alpha Bruce. Mallory is beautiful in my eyes, and she smells like jasmine. I don't know why others cannot perceive her scent, but she has a lovely scent, and I can smell her."

"Shut up!" My father thundered, his cold voice booming in the grand foyer. "I see that you are beginning to lose yourself because of Mallory. I will overlook your sins for tonight because you have shown your worth—you can lead this pack well, and you have never been defeated in any battle before. But you must reject Mallory as your mate. I shall not have you become mated with my first daughter. Mallory shall be expelled from this pack. Failure to do so, then you will be expelled with her too. I cannot risk putting all my pack members' lives in danger by giving them a weak Luna," My father concluded, and tears welled in my eyes.

"No, Father. You cannot force me to reject my mate. It's already my 18th birthday. I cannot reject Ace!" I cried, as I loved and wanted him, too.

"Shut up, before I cut off your tongue! You better get ready to accept Ace's rejection unless you want me to do what I ought to do after you killed my mate!" My father accused me, and I looked at him with tears in my eyes.

"I didn't kill Mom. The Moon Goddess knows that I am innocent. Someone else killed Mom so that she wouldn't rule them as your Luna—not me. How could I do such a thing?" I asked my father, but he marched up to me and grabbed my long blonde hair.

"One more word from you, and I will snap your head off your neck. Go on, Ace." My father let go of me and looked away. He hated to look at my face because I resembled my mother. Dad believes I was the one who killed his beloved mate.

"Please don't do this, Ace," I tried to mind-link him not to reject me, but I knew he had the entire pack to protect and look after.

"Ace..." I cried, not wanting him to reject me. He closed his eyes and said those hurtful rejecting words.

"I'm sorry, Mallory. I, Ace Lennox, the Beta's son of the Bright Moon Pack, reject you, Mallory Adonis, as my mate," Ace said, and my heart burned from the pain of his rejection.

"Accept his rejection, Mallory," My father forced me, and I knew he was not joking about killing me.

With tears in my eyes, I shut them and accepted, "I, Mallory Adonis, accept your rejection, Ace."

As I said those painful words, I passed out.