Marked

CHAPTER 2: Marked

My heart shattered into pieces, every fiber of me breaking at the sudden realization—my life was filth, and I wasn't meant to be happy.

'He hates us. He despises us.' My wolf whispered. I could hear her sharp intake and could feel her pain coursing through me like ice water.

For a second, it felt like I saw something shift in Desmond's eyes, like he had recognized something. Suddenly, his eyes lit up, burning with an intensity that was the complete opposite of what he'd had when I called him mate.

"Hello, mate. I'm so sorry; I was just shocked at the fact that you are my mate." His voice vibrated through the walls of the party, sending everyone gasping and shocked at the sudden turn of events. My wolf stirred uneasily inside me, not comfortable and not trusting his words. There was something about him, this energy he gave off, that made me want to back away.

"No! You can't do this to me, Father! Alpha Philip, you can't allow him to be mates with this wretched, wolfless omega. She can't be Luna!" Lily screamed, scrambling toward Desmond as she grabbed his hands. Her eyes filled with tears, and when they turned toward me, they burned with hatred that I'd never seen to such an extent.

"She's my mate, Lily. I can't reject her now, can I?" He said, looking at her softly. His eyes had this twinkle in them when he stared at her, like he was telling her a secret, and her eyes instantly lit up with understanding.

'This is not good, Aveline. I don't like this... He's planning something. We need to leave here now.' Aries whispered. I could feel the fear in her voice—it was so palpable it made my skin crawl.

Desmond moved slightly, now focused on me, and then he turned to look at the pack members, who were as confused as I was.

"Today, the goddess has blessed me with a mate, and today, I shall honor the words of the goddess. Today, I shall seal her fate—our fate." His voice pierced through the quiet room. No whispers, no words, just suffocating silence.

And with that, he strode toward me.

'Run, Aveline! Run! Don't let him do this!' Aries whispered again, the fear still there. I hadn't seen Aries so scared like this, and the fear was creeping in on me so that it made my heart beat fast.

Before I could complete my words, Desmond pulled me into his arms. His scent bagged my nostrils like fire, and I felt my body caged against his. His scent was so heavy, so thick, so fucking good that I didn't want to leave his hold. His face was so intimately close to mine—this was the first time in two years I had been so close to him, the first time in my life I had been so intimately close to a man who was my mate. I felt Aries hum at his scent, but something was strange. I couldn't feel his wolf's presence, like his wolf didn't want to be close to me, and that was when it hit me—this was a trick.

Before I could think of what to do, his teeth came bearing down on my neck, sharp and fast, digging into my neck and marking me at that moment. I felt a piercing pain ripple through my body as it convulsed for a second. Then quickly, he pushed me off, making my weak body fall to the ground. I heard the entire pack gasp at what had just happened.

Aries wailed loudly, her cries filling my head, and I felt like a volcano that was about to explode.

He claimed me without my consent, without asking, without caring what I wanted. The mark burned on my neck like acid, and I could feel warm blood trickling down my skin.

"What the fuck did you just do to me?" I whispered, my voice shaking as I touched the throbbing wound on my neck.

Desmond looked down at me like I was nothing. Like I was dirt on his shoe.

"I marked you," he said, his voice cold as winter. "But don't think for a second that it means anything."

The pack was staring at us, confused as hell. Some were whispering among themselves. Others looked shocked, their mouths hanging open, while others looked disgusted.

"You see," Desmond continued, his voice getting louder so everyone could hear, "the goddess may have cursed me with this pathetic excuse for a mate, but I'm not stupid."

My heart was pounding so hard I thought it might explode right out of my chest.

"By marking her, I've sealed the bond. Which means..." He smiled, and it was the cruelest thing I'd ever seen. "I can reject her properly. With the full power of the moon goddess behind it."

"No," I whispered, scrambling to get up from the floor. My legs felt like jelly. "No, No, please, you can't—"

"I, Alpha Desmond of the Duskfall Pack, reject you, Aveline, as my mate and Luna."

The words hit me like a physical blow to the chest. The bond that had just formed started ripping apart inside me, tearing through my soul like claws. I screamed, the pain so intense I couldn't breathe, couldn't think, and couldn't do anything but feel like I was being torn in half.

Aries was howling in my head, her cries mixing with mine in a symphony of agony.

"And because you're marked," Desmond said, watching me writhe on the floor like I was entertainment to all of them, "the rejection will hurt ten times worse. You'll feel it for days. Maybe weeks or forever."

Lily was laughing now, clapping her hands like this was the best show she'd ever seen.

"Oh, this is perfect," she giggled. "She looks like she's dying!"

I felt like I was dying. The mark on my neck burned like someone was holding a branding iron to my skin, and the broken bond felt like someone was tearing my soul in half with their bare hands.

"Get her out of here," Desmond said, turning away from me like I was already forgotten, already nothing. "I don't want to see her pathetic face anymore."

Two pack members grabbed my arms and started dragging me toward the door. I couldn't fight them. I could barely think through the waves of pain crashing over me.

"Happy birthday to me," I whispered, blood from the bite still warm and sticky on my neck.

The last thing I heard before they threw me outside like garbage was Lily's voice, sweet as poison and twice as deadly.

"Now, Alpha Desmond, shall we continue MY party?"