Chapter 4

I walked barefoot out the main gates of the Silvermoon pack territory.

A rusted-out pickup truck waited for me.

A relic from my old life. The door didn't just creak; it screamed in protest as I pulled it open.

Now, it was my only way out.

As I opened the door, I saw them. A pack of reporters, already waiting.

"Elena! Over here!"

"What does it feel like to be rejected by Alpha Aiden?"

"Do you have anything to say to Lady Cora?"

Camera flashes blinded me.

I knew Cora had arranged this whole spectacle.

I ignored their questions and started the engine.

The pain in my soul and body made me dizzy.

My hands trembled on the steering wheel.

"We're live from Silvermoon territory," a reporter chirped into her camera, "witnessing the fall of a queen. This is rock bottom for the once-revered Luna Elena."

The truck slowly pulled away from the territory.

In the rearview mirror, I could see them still filming.

My arm was still bleeding, staining the steering wheel red.

My phone started buzzing nonstop. Social media notifications flooded the screen:

"SHOCKING! Former Silvermoon Luna Kicked to the Curb!"

"LIVE FEED: The Most Tragic Rejected Mate Ever!"

"EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: You Won't BELIEVE What Wreck She Drove Away In!"

I turned off my phone and focused on the road.

It started to rain, pattering against the windshield. The wipers were broken. I could barely see.

Suddenly, a black, armored SUV pulled in front of me, blocking my path.

I slammed on the brakes. The truck skidded in the rain, nearly hitting the guardrail.

The SUV door opened.

A tall figure emerged.

Even through the rain and my own pain, I could feel the raw power rolling off him in waves.

Kael.

The Alpha of the Blackmoon Pack, the most powerful pack in North America.

He walked to my window and tapped on the glass.

I rolled it down. Rain lashed my face.

"Elena," his voice was deep and magnetic. "We need to talk."

"I have nothing to talk about," I said, looking straight ahead. "Move."

"Where are you going?" he didn't move. "You're a rogue without protection, and you're bleeding. Are you trying to attract every predator for ten miles?"

I glanced down at my bleeding arm. "That's none of your business."

"You're right, it's not," Kael nodded. "But I have a proposition for you."

"What proposition?"

"Join the Blackmoon Pack," he said, his gaze cutting straight through me. "Become my Chief Strategist."

I stared at him. "Why?"

"Because you are worth far more than the Silvermoon Pack could ever comprehend," Kael said. "I need talent like yours."

I held his gaze for a long moment. "You know my situation. I'm a rejected mate. A rogue."

"I know," Kael's voice was calm. "But those labels don't define your abilities."

The rain was coming down harder now, soaking both of us.

"Get in my car," Kael said, gesturing to his SUV. "Let's at least get that wound taken care of."

————

Aiden's POV

I stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, replaying the image of Elena slicing her own arm with that silver blade, not even flinching.

For a moment, a tremor went through my very soul.

No. That shouldn’t happen.

My phone screen was lit up with news alerts.

Every headline was about Elena's exile.

"Aiden, what are you looking at?" Cora came over, a triumphant smile still on her face.

I clicked on a video link.

The screen showed Elena, barefoot, walking toward that rusty red pickup.

Her left arm was bleeding, a stark red stain on her white clothes.

Reporters swarmed her, their flashes going off like lightning.

But she never once looked back.

"Look at her, so pathetic," Cora said with a sneer. "She got what she deserved."

I stared at the pickup on the screen.

That truck... I'd seen it somewhere before.

"Cora," I said suddenly. "Three years ago, when I was injured on the border... who saved me?"

Cora paused. "It was me, of course. I risked my life, ran onto the battlefield, and pulled you out."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure," she said, her voice full of self-righteousness. "You'd lost too much blood. You were unconscious. I'm the one who drove you to the hospital."

I tried to piece together the memories of that day.

The ambush by the Bloodclaw pack. A fierce battle. Then, darkness.

When I woke up, Cora was by my bedside, her eyes red and swollen. She said she had saved me.

From that day on, I believed I owed her my life.

"What car were you driving?" I asked.

"What?" Cora looked flustered. "I... I don't remember. It was an emergency..."

"I remember now," I said suddenly.

I remembered that night. In my hazy consciousness, I’d heard the sound of an engine.

Not the low roar of a luxury car, but the rough, rattling noise of an old engine.

Just like the sound of the pickup truck in the video.

I bolted from the office and ran straight for the medical records archive.

"Aiden, where are you going?" Cora shouted after me.

I found my medical file from three years ago and scanned every detail.

Time of admission: 3:17 AM.

Admitted by: Unidentified female. Subject presented with deep claw marks across her left shoulder. Wounds appear defensive, consistent with shielding another from an attack.

Claw marks.

I suddenly remembered.

One night, in our past life, I'd walked in on Elena after her shower and saw three faint scars on her left shoulder.

I asked her where they came from.

She just smiled and said it was an old accident.

"Did you find what you were looking for?" Cora asked, breathless from running after me.

I stared at her face. "Cora, tell me the truth. What really happened three years ago?"

"I already told you..."

“You lied,” I whispered, the word like poison on my tongue. Then, my voice erupted into a roar. “IT WAS ELENA. It was Elena who saved me, not you!”