Chapter 2: Selene, Run!

SELENE

"Oh, I bet you can." My voice dripped with venom, my hands trembling at my sides as I fought to hold myself together.

"Are you also going to throw in the iconic line of 'It's not what it looks like?' Fuck you, Jace. Fuck both of you."

My chest heaved with rage, the betrayal scorching through me like wildfire.

Without another word, I spun on my heel and bolted for the door, my vision blurred with unshed tears.

I wasn't sure if I would wish this was a nightmare, because even if I woke up, I wouldn't look at Jace the same.

I had stayed in his room several times, and he just had to fuck another woman there.

"Selene, please, listen to me!" Jace's voice was desperate as his footsteps thundered behind me. Before I could reach the threshold, his hand caught my wrist, yanking me back.

I wiggled for a few seconds before I finally wrenched free, whirling to face him as I sent a sizzling hot slap to his face.

"What the fuck am I supposed to listen to, Jace?" My voice cracked, raw with pain. "The excuses? The lies? Or should I listen to the way my heart is breaking right now? Because if that's it, I can hear it. I can hear it in my head, so leave me alone."

Tears streamed down my face, but I didn’t care. My body trembled, a storm raging inside me, ready to tear me apart as I caught sight of Elena walking out of the house.

He opened his mouth, struggling for words, but before he could speak, the person I'd rather hear no words from decided it would be nice if she said anything.

"Stop being so dramatic." Elena sneered, lounging against the doorframe like she belonged there, like she hadn’t just ripped my world apart.

Dramatic? Now I'm the one being dramatic?

Wow.

Her lips curled into a smirk as she crossed her arms over her barely covered chest.

"I’m his original-fated mate, anyway." The world tilted as my pulse roared in my ears, my mind fighting to process what I had just heard.

"What?" The word barely left my lips, my breath shallow, unsteady.

I looked at Jace, searching for a lie, for anything that could make this hurt less. Only if he would just say something to dispute the way his mouth opened and snapped back shut, the way his Adam apple rose and went back in, Gosh, she's right.

The truth slammed into me like a freight train, knocking the air from my lungs. My knees threatened to give out, the edges of my vision darkening as betrayal bled into agony. It was hard to believe but this was really happening.

I fought for him. I loved him.

And he had never truly been mine.

"She's right. She's my first fated mate."

"Reject her!" I ordered. I wasn't sure though if I was ordering or pleading but I honestly needed some closure.

"Please. Please and I'll let all this go," I pleaded.

"I can't. She'll die if I do." Jace stated, and I could see the resignation in his eyes.

"So you're picking her over me? You're really saying that I had my hopes up all for a lie?" I yelled and then took a deep breath.

"Fine then, forget about the Alpha position. I'm calling off the wedding." I answered in a firm voice, about to turn away when Jace's voice stopped me.

"You're not going to do that!" He said in a challenging tone and I smiled painfully.

"You'll have to watch me do it." I answered and walked off. All I wanted was to get back to my quarters and bawl my eyes out before announcing that I wouldn't be getting married to Jace anymore.

Tears streamed down my eyes as I walked back, dragging my feet behind me lazily, too tired to even shift into my wolf form when a prickle of unease crawled up my spine, sending my wolf into high alert.

The entire atmosphere had gone eerily silent, too silent.

Something wasn’t right.

I quickened my pace, my breathing uneven as I fought to shake off the overwhelming sense of being watched.

Someone was following me and I knew it. What I couldn't make out was the scent or if the person was a wolf or a rogue.

My heart pounded against my ribs, but I refused to let fear take hold. I was an emotional wreck, my world already shattered beyond recognition, but I was still a warrior.

If anyone thought they could take advantage of me in this state, they were gravely mistaken.

"Who's there?" My voice rang out, firm despite the chaos twisting inside me. My hands clenched at my sides as I scanned my surroundings, my eyes piercing through the darkness.

No response.

Maybe it was nothing. Maybe grief was making me paranoid, playing tricks on my mind.

I let out a shaky breath, forcing my body to relax.

You're just imagining things, Selene.

Then pain; blinding, searing pain ripped through my back.

A choked gasp escaped my lips as my body jerked forward. A sharp, unbearable heat spread through my body, a sensation too foreign, too agonizing. My legs weakened beneath me, and with wide, disbelieving eyes, I turned to face my attacker.

Jace.

For a second, my mind refused to register what was happening. He stood there, his chest rising and falling, his fingers curled tightly around the hilt of the dagger in my flesh.

The metallic scent of my own blood thickened the air as it spilled freely, trickling slowly down my stomach.

Behind him, Elena smirked. Smug. Triumphant. Like this had been their plan all along.

I struggled to breathe, my vision darkening at the edges.

No. This isn’t real. This can’t be real.

My mother's voice echoed in my head, the one she had said when she had been stabbed.

Selene, run.

I had heard those words before. I have seen this before.

The way my mother had collapsed, blood staining her hands. The way my father fought until his last breath. The way their bodies had fallen, lifeless, never to rise again.

And now, it is happening to me.

Jace withdrew the blade, the sickening sound

of steel sliding from the flesh making my stomach grumble. My knees buckled, and I fell to the forest floor, my fingers pressing weakly against the warm, wet stain spreading across my abdomen.

The pain barely registered over the betrayal clawing at my chest.

I lifted my gaze towards him, searching for something, anything that made sense.

"Jace… why?" My voice was barely above a whisper, thick with pain, filled with disbelief.

His expression was cold, void of the warmth I had once thought was meant for me.

"Please, help me." I stretched my hands out as life and death flashed in front of my eyes.

He had stabbed me and the dagger seemed to have wolf's bane in it because, despite Alpha blood, I wasn't healing.

"Being Alpha was the only reason I had a relationship with you," he said smoothly, the words slicing deeper than the blade ever could.

"And I can’t let you take that away."

"So it would be best for me and the whole pack if I lost my mate to unknown people the night before our big day. I'm sorry Selene." He muttered as my head hit the ground and my vision blurred.

"Quick, let's go dump her body in the forest." I heard Jace yell out to Elena as they both hurled me up and began retracting into the forest.

I tried to have control over my body but failed as pain coursed through all parts of my body.

"Dear goddess, please..." I whispered as I drew my last breath heavily, finishing off my plea in my heart while death clasped me in a cold embrace.