Chapter 3

Ravena's POV

The moment those words left his mouth, the room fell silent. No one moved, not even Garrick.

Lucien was weighing it. Weighing me.

Because in our world, when a high-ranking wolf rejects a bond, the one left behind bears the excruciating pain. Rejection shattered us. I had seen Omegas go mad from it, warriors crumbling, and healers losing their strength. It wasn’t just heartbreak—it was a slow, painful death from the inside out.

Lucien knew that.

And he was thinking about doing it anyway.

Before I could speak, Garrick exploded.

“You ungrateful girl!” he spat, slamming his hand against the side of his wheelchair. “How dare you speak of divorce in this house? Do you have any idea what you’re saying?”

“I know exactly what I am saying,” I answered.

“You will die out there! Once rejected, no pack will take you. You’ll be nothing. You’ll crawl, you’ll beg, and still they won’t let a discarded Luna into their land.”

Astrid stepped forward, her voice softer but filled with fake sympathy. “Do you really understand what rejection means, Ravena? You look strong, but pain like that... it breaks even the hardest wolves.”

I turned my head slowly and looked her straight in the eye. “You’re right. It does break many.”

She waited, expecting me to back down.

Instead, I smiled. “But not me.”

Astrid’s eyes narrowed.

“I was never made to be soft,” I added. “I was made to survive.”

Lucien let out a cold, mocking breath. “You say that now. But when it hits you, you’ll fall like the others.”

“I would rather fall with pride than stay chained here.”

“You think pride will warm you up when you’re alone in the woods, begging for food?” he asked, walking towards me now. “You think it’ll hold you when the pain comes and no one answers your call?”

I held my ground. “I think I would rather suffer in truth than live in your lie.”

“Tell me,” he said slowly, circling around me, “where do you think you’ll go after this? What pack would want a rejected woman who has already worn the Luna crown? No Alpha will touch you. No warrior will dare claim you. You will be poison.”

I swallowed the lump in my throat, not out of fear, but out of anger.

“You talk about me like I’m a burden. But the truth is, you are scared.”

Lucien stopped. “Scared?”

“You know I built this house while you were gone. You know I made your father live when even the healers said he wouldn’t. You know I held this pack together, and now you hate that I can walk away and still stand tall.”

“You think too highly of yourself.”

“No. You just think too little.”

He let out a sharp breath, then shook his head like I was a child who didn’t understand her place.

“I won’t grant the divorce,” he said. “I can’t.”

I raised a brow. “Can’t? Or won’t?”

“I am thinking of your future,” he replied calmly. “Even now, I am trying to protect you.”

That made me laugh. It wasn’t loud, but it was sharp.

“Protect me?” I repeated. “By dragging me through this humiliation? By parading your fated mate through the house we built together? By offering to sleep with both of us and call it balance?”

“I am giving you a child! That’s more than what most would offer.”

“You are giving yourself a legacy. Not giving me a gift.”

Lucien’s eyes stayed on me. He wasn’t budging. He wanted control. He wanted to watch me fold, to see the girl I used to be—the quiet, soft one who waited by the window for him to come home.

But that girl was gone.

My hands tightened at my sides. “Say what you really want, Lucien. You want me gone. You want me erased so you can crown your new Luna. Then do it.”

“I am not erasing you.”

“Then why do you want me to stay?”

“I told you…”

“No! Answer me.”

He just stared at me and said nothing.

I stepped closer, chest to chest now, feeling his heat, his power, his silence.

Then I asked, steady and slowly, “Why do you care where I go? You want me gone, don't you?”

There was a moment of silence. Then I heard an arrogant laugh.

Astrid leaned against Lucien’s shoulder, one hand resting lightly on his arm like she owned it. “Lucien,” she said in a mocking tone, “you’re being far too kind. She should be grateful. Most women in her position would have been kicked out by now.”

Lucien didn’t push her away.

Astrid then turned to me with a sharp smile on her face. “You should stop fighting and learn to behave. Stay quiet. Stay in the pack, and be useful.”

My vision blurred, but it wasn’t from tears. It was rage. Pure, white-hot rage.

“How dare you,” I whispered.

She didn’t stop smiling. “This house isn’t yours anymore.”

“Guards!” I shouted.

Three of them rushed to the doorway, startled by my voice.

I raised my hand and pointed at her. “Remove her from my sight.”

Astrid straightened in disbelief. “What?”

“I said get her out,” I snapped. “Now. I don’t care if she’s a general or the Moon Goddess herself. This is still my home. You don’t come into my house, mock me, and act like some proud little mistress expecting a crown.”

The guards hesitated.

Lucien let out a low growl. "Ravena…”

I didn’t back down. “Get her out.”

Astrid’s face turned red. She looked to Lucien, waiting for him to step in.

And he did.

But not in the way I had expected.

He stepped forward, his eyes filled with rage, and faced one of the guards. Then he raised his hand to strike.

“No!”

I quickly moved and stepped between them, grabbing his wrist in midair. My hand slammed against his, my body holding him back with everything I had.

“Touch him,” I warned through clenched teeth, “and I will make you bleed, Alpha or not.”

“Let go of me!”

But I didn’t step back. “How dare you lay a hand on my people?”

“He disrespected my guest.”

“He was just following my orders,” I fired back. “And you raised a hand to him because you couldn’t handle hearing the truth.”

His jaw locked.

Astrid’s lips parted like she was about to speak, but I didn’t give her the chance.

I turned to the guard, who looked like he was struggling to breathe.

“Leave,” I said softly. “Now.”

He bowed quickly and ran off.

I didn’t give Lucien another glance. I just walked out of the room.

Each step felt like thunder under my feet. I could feel the tension behind me like a knife against my spine, but I didn’t stop until I reached the hallway. The air was cooler there. Calmer.

But I wasn’t calm.

I was shaking, but not from fear. From decision. From the final crack that snapped something inside me completely.

Back in my room, I slammed the door and let the silence swallow me whole. As I sat down at the edge of the bed, my hand rested on the silver pendant around my neck—the same one Lucien gave me when he said he wanted to build a life with me. That memory was dust now. His words were nothing. His loyalty was a joke.

If Lucien wouldn’t grant me justice, then I would find someone who could.

I would go to the king.

Not to fight him over Lucien’s choices—no. The king had been my friend once, back when we were both young and unburdened by titles. I would not settle old scores or accuse him of what had happened between Lucien and Astrid.

But I would ask him for the one thing Lucien refused to give me.

A divorce.

I didn’t care what Lucien had to say.

Damn the consequences!