Chapter four: Not So Wolf-less

Iris’s Point of View

They dragged me out of the dungeon and led me to a room inside the pack house. Of course, they gave me new clothes to change into when the King arrived.

I don’t think I have had such good clothing since I was a kid. There were dresses, pants, shirts, skirts, everything you can imagine. There was even some makeup for me to wear. I don’t know how to use it, but it’s here. The sad thing is that I’m only given this because I’m about to be sold. That is how I see it, at least. I’m giving my virginity. In fact, nobody has ever touched me. Not even my ex-mate.

I remember that day clearly. I had the greatest surprise of all.

***

I went to the lake to watch the full moon come high in the sky. I realized I didn’t have a wolf, which meant I would be alone forever. That was until I heard her in my head, my wolf. That realization made me cry as I looked at the moon and thanked the Moon Goddess.

That was when I felt him behind me, my mate. I already knew who he was. Don’t ask me how, but I have known since my 14^th birthday.

When you meet your mate, it is supposed to be a happy moment, but I knew he wasn’t coming here to accept me, and my wolf only confirmed my suspicions as she whimpered in my head. Great, I just got my wolf, and she is being rejected because her human is supposed to be cursed.

“I’m so sorry you have to go through this. You should have a better human,” I apologized to my wolf, Athena, a glorious counterpart for a human like me.

“Don’t talk like that, Iris. You have endured a lot. It is this pack that doesn’t deserve forgiveness,” Minerva said and growled as we both heard our mate approaching.

“You came here to reject me, right?2 I said before he had the chance to open his mouth.

I could see the confusion in his eyes. He probably thought I could not recognize him as my mate, but I have known it for a long time. Now, with my new senses, I can confirm my suspicions. He smells like pine trees and rain—two things that comfort me.

Then something happened. I could hear someone else.

“Mark my words, Alec. If you reject her, I won’t forgive you.” It was a deep, animalistic voice, and it seemed furious.

“Who is that?” I asked myself.

“That is Alec’s wolf, Mars.” Minerva informed me.

Wait a second… How does she know?

“We are special, Iris. You just have to wait,” she muttered with pride.

It was weird to have someone inside your head. But I couldn’t understand what she meant; only time would tell.

“I know your wolf, Mars, doesn’t want to reject me, but I refuse to be with someone who has known I’m his mate and decided to be with my sister,” I continued. “I’m sorry, Athena, I have to reject him.”

I was surprised when I heard her growl. I assumed that she would be pissed at me or at least sad. Wolves always want their mates, and to reject the gift given by the Moon Goddess was something that they didn’t forget easily.

“I don’t want Alec as a mate. I want Mars. It is such a pity that he is paired with such scum.” She growled.

Even though she didn’t want Alec, her nature was to want her mate. I was sad for Alec’s wolf. He had to bear the pain of rejection because his human didn’t respect the bond. I was surprised she didn’t stop me. In fact, she asked me to rest for a while after the rejection.

I was okay with it. She needed to heal.

“How do you know his name?” He asked. I didn’t know how Minerva knew, but I wasn't going to tell him.

“It doesn’t matter. I, Iris Sommers, daughter of Maxwell and Aurora Sommers, Beta of the Blue Lake Pack, reject you, Alec Diamond, future Alpha, as my mate and the future Luna.”

And just like that, the bond broke. The worst pain I have ever felt engulfed me, but I was not going to show it.

I could feel my heart and soul breaking in two. However, I held my head high while he crumbled at my feet.

“I, Alec Diamond, accept your rejection, Iris Sommers, as my m- m- mate and L- L- Luna.” He responded.

I could see the pain in his eyes as the bond broke; I felt Minerva retreat to the back of my mind. She needed her rest.

I could see how his eyes filled with curiosity, but I wouldn’t answer anything for him. For one, I didn’t have the answers, and secondly, he didn’t deserve to know I had a wolf.

“I am not going to answer any questions that you may have. I have known that you are my mate for two years now. I knew you would reject me, so I saved you the drama. Leave me alone from now on.” With that, I just left him.

I went to the woods, almost reaching the border. I had to release all the pain that I was experiencing. When I knew I was all alone, I started to cry as I looked at the sky.

Why does the Moon Goddess hate us so much? I just wanted a mate who would love and cherish me. Instead, I got a dickhead who preferred to be with my sister.

With my worst enemy.

From that day on, I tried to avoid him and my sister. I wanted to have a peaceful life in the pack until Minerva could come out. As soon as we can shift, I will talk to Silvana and escape this place together.

That is a promise.

***

As I thought back to that moment, I couldn’t help but feel hopeless. I would never fulfill that promise. I was being sold like an object, and I couldn’t do anything. If I tried to escape, my friend would be in danger.

I had to think of a way to leave the King once I was out of the territory. Or maybe I should talk to him to convince him to take Silvana with us. That way, I could plan my escape with her when we were in the King’s territory. I have a few days to come up with a plan. I can’t fail her.

***

Two days later…

Today is the day that the King will arrive. I had to make myself presentable. Thankfully, since I gained my wolf, I have been able to heal faster. Not as fast as the other wolves, but I suppose it is because I haven’t had first shift.

Sometimes, I doubted that I had a wolf. It had been two years since she last spoke to me. The only thing that reminded me that she was there was my healing. Still, if you look closely at me, you can see the faint bruises left all over my arms. As I walked to the pack house, I could hear everybody’s whispers.

They were all the same.

For them, I was a whore who was selling herself for power. Yeah, right, like I wanted all of this. They could not be more wrong.

I would gladly let them be the King’s breeder if they wanted my position so badly.

When I reached the pack house, I could see my sister at the entrance. A huge smile was plastered on her face. She got what she wanted. She finally got rid of me in the worst way possible. I tried to ignore her, but she had other plans.

“So, you decided to come,” she said to me with a smug expression.

Breathe, Iris. You are doing this for Silvana; don’t forget that.

“I didn’t have a choice, remember?” I replied angrily. I wanted to wipe that damn smile from her face. Use her black hair as a mop to clean the floor.

I still could not get it. We are sisters, and yet she treats me like her worst enemy.

I would understand if I had been bad to her, but when I was a kid, I admired my older sister. I wanted to be like her, and then I realized how rotten she was on the inside.

“I know, that is what makes all of this so much fun.” She replied, but before I could give her a piece of my mind, Alec arrived.

The bond is broken now, but I can say that he is very handsome. He is at least 6ft. tall, making him a lot taller than me, since I’m only 5.3 ft tall. His wavy brown hair is buzzed on the sides, giving him a bad boy look that many of our pack females love. That makes Stephanie crazy; she is the jealous type and can beat the crap out of any she-wolf that comes near him. He has green eyes that remind me of the forest, and his body. Well, we trained a lot, so almost everyone was extremely fit. But Alec had the body of a God.

For the two years that I knew that we were mated, I would find myself drooling for him. I couldn’t feel the betrayal pains, but I think that had to do with me not having a wolf at that moment. Nevertheless, I could sense a little bit of his smell, and boy, did it drive me crazy.

That was until the rejection. At that moment, that uncontrollable attraction stopped. Now I can tell he is handsome, but seeing him with my sister didn’t hurt much. My heart didn’t ache anymore.

Again, the pain isn’t physical, but it is the betrayal of the bond, the fact that I knew I could never be happy, that actually hurts.

“He has arrived, everyone. Prepare yourself to receive our majesty,” Alec said in a whisper, and I could feel my heart stop.

This was it. I had to face my buyer. I started to retreat slowly, trying to make myself unnoticeable until I was as far away as possible, until one of the guards approached me to tell me that I had to stand next to my sister.

Fucking great.

I could feel my irritation growing as I turned around when I heard the deepest voice I had ever heard.

“Alpha Alec, I came here just for the breeder. I won’t be staying.” As I turned around, I could feel my gaze drifting without my consent as it connected with the most beautiful blue orbs I had ever seen.

I could get lost just in those eyes.

The man who spoke looked at me, and I could see that he was paralyzed, and his nostrils flared. That’s when I heard Minerva say,

“Mate.”

What?