THE REJECTED MATE - 005

ELENA'S POV

After that night, everything changed.

Caden started watching me.

Not in a creepy way. Not the way men watch women they want. Different. Confused. Like he was trying to solve a puzzle and couldn't find the pieces.

I felt his eyes everywhere. At breakfast when I served. In the halls when I walked past. At dinner when I cleared plates. Always watching. Always thinking.

I kept my head down. Kept moving. Kept being invisible.

But invisible was harder now.

Three days after the celebration, I was organizing Serena's closet when I heard voices in the next room.

Caden and Serena. Arguing.

"She's just an assistant," Serena said. "Why do you keep asking about her?"

"I'm not asking about her."

"You asked where she's from. You asked how long she's worked here. You asked if she had family. That's asking."

Silence. Then Caden's voice. Calm. Careful.

"Something about her. I can't explain it."

"Try."

Another silence.

"I don't know. She feels... familiar. Like someone I knew a long time ago."

"Someone you knew? Or someone you want to know?"

"Serena, stop."

"No. You stop. She's my assistant. Mine. If you have questions, you ask me. You don't watch her like some lost puppy."

"I'm not—"

"You are. Everyone sees it. The servants talk. Mira asked me if something was going on. My own staff thinks my husband is chasing the help."

Footsteps. Door slamming.

I stayed frozen in the closet. Heart pounding.

He asked about me. He said I felt familiar.

The bond was reaching him. Even through the blockers. Even through the magic. He felt something and didn't understand it.

That was dangerous.

But maybe useful too.

After that conversation, Serena changed.

She'd always been cold. Now she was cruel.

Longer hours. Earlier mornings. Tasks designed to fail. She found reasons to yell about everything. The way I folded clothes. The way I walked. The way I breathed.

"You're slow today. Do it again."

"This dress is wrinkled. Are you blind?"

"Don't look at me like that. You're nothing. Remember that."

I took it all. Smiled. Nodded. Apologized.

Inside, I counted. Every insult. Every cruelty. More fuel for the fire.

But she wasn't done.

One afternoon, she called me to her room. I thought it was another task. Another complaint.

Instead, she was holding something.

My grandmother's herbs.

"Found these in your room." She held up the small pouch. "What are they?"

My heart stopped. I kept my face calm.

"Medicine. For headaches."

"Smells strange." She sniffed it. Made a face. "Smells like something else. Something I can't place."

"Just herbs. From my old pack. I've always taken them."

She stared at me. Long. Hard.

"I don't believe you."

I said nothing.

"I think you're hiding something. I think you came here for a reason. And I think my husband's sudden interest in you proves it."

"Luna, I swear—"

"Don't." She stepped closer. "I don't know what you want. But you won't get it. He's mine. This pack is mine. And you're nothing. Less than nothing."

She dropped the herbs on the floor. Crushed them under her foot.

"Clean that up. Then pack your things. You're done."

Relief flooded through me. Fired? I could leave. Escape. Regroup.

Then the door opened.

Caden walked in.

He looked at Serena. At me. At the crushed herbs on the floor.

"What's happening?"

Serena smiled. Sweet. Fake. "Firing your little friend. She's not working out."

"Why?"

"She's lazy. Incompetent. I've had enough."

Caden looked at me. I kept my eyes down. Said nothing.

"Elena?" His voice. Soft. Asking. "Is this true?"

I didn't answer. Couldn't. Anything I said would make it worse.

"She's not answering." Serena's voice turned sharp. "See? Disrespectful. Get out. Now."

I turned to leave.

"Wait."

Caden's voice. Not loud. But something in it made me stop.

He walked toward me. Slow. Close enough to see the tension in his jaw.

"Look at me."

I looked up.

His eyes searched mine. Looking for something. Finding something.

"You've done nothing wrong, have you?"

I didn't answer.

"She's worked hard for two months." He said it to Serena, not me. "Everyone says so. Mira says she's the best assistant you've had."

"Since when do you talk to servants about my staff?"

"Since my wife started treating them badly."

Serena's face went red. "How dare you—"

"How many assistants have you had in two years? Five? Six? All of them quit. All of them said you were impossible. But Elena stayed. She worked harder than anyone. And now you're firing her for no reason."

"I have reasons."

"What reasons? Tell me one."

Serena opened her mouth. Closed it.

"That's what I thought." Caden turned back to me. "You're not fired. Go back to work."

I nodded. Started to leave.

But Serena wasn't done.

She grabbed my arm. Hard. Spun me around.

"You listen to me—"

Her hand came up. Fast. Slapped me across the face.

The sound echoed in the room. Sharp. Loud.

My cheek burned. I didn't move. Didn't react.

But Caden did.

He moved so fast I barely saw it. One moment he was three steps away. The next, his hand was around Serena's wrist. Tight.

"Don't touch her again."

His voice was low. Dangerous. The kind of voice Alphas used before they killed.

Serena stared at him. Shocked. Scared.

"I'm your Luna," she whispered.

"Then act like it."

He held her wrist for one more second. Then let go.

Serena stumbled back. Rubbed her wrist. Looked at me with pure hatred.

Caden turned to me. His face softer now.

"Are you okay?"

I touched my cheek. Nodded.

"Go. Rest. You're done for today."

I left. Walked down the hall. Down the stairs. To my room.

Closed the door. Sat on the bed.

My cheek still burned. But that wasn't what made my hands shake.

He defended me. He grabbed his own Luna's wrist for me. He looked at me with something in his eyes that I couldn't name.

Why?

Because of the bond? Because he felt something he didn't understand? Or because he was just a good Alpha who didn't like seeing staff abused?

I didn't know. Couldn't know.

But I knew one thing.

Serena would never forgive this. She'd make me pay. In ways I couldn't predict.

And Caden... Caden was getting closer. Asking questions. Feeling things.

The plan was slipping.

I touched my face. The face that wasn't mine.

Lily would have cried by now. Run. Hidden.

But Lily was dead.

Elena stayed.

Elena fought.

Elena finished what she started.

No matter who got hurt.

Even if that someone was me.