3|| The Bond Is Gone

3|| The Bond Is Gone

“Dahlia—” Elias began, but I held my hand up to stop him.

I didn’t need to hear his excuses anymore. I understood everything now. His silence had spoken louder than any words ever could.

What Elias just did wasn’t just cheating, it was so much more. Elias didn’t just break me emotionally, he shattered me completely. The last person in the world that I thought loved me unconditionally. So much that the Moon goddess destined us to be together. That person betrayed me. So this was it. I truly had no one.

I was just sixteen when I found out Elias was my mate. At the time, I was certain he would reject me. Despite being the Alpha’s daughter, I was still wolfless. No one wanted a mate who couldn’t even access their wolf. They were as good as useless. But instead of rejecting me, as I had thought he would, Elias was happy when he discovered I was his mate.

I could still remember the bright smile on his face as he said “You are now mine. I can’t wait to mark you when you’re of age. We’ll be together, just you and I.”

But it was all so ironic now.

Everything was as clear as daylight. How could it not be, when I was standing here, staring at the same man who had said those words, the same man who was now sleeping with another woman and not just any woman, my best friend.

The two people who I had thought were my everything had betrayed me.

“I- is it true?” I tried to mutter but my voice got stuck in my throat, refusing to be let out for the fear of his response. I took in a shaky breath and wiped my tears before forcing myself to finish my sentence. “Is it true that you want to reject me? I- I don't care if you cheat on me or not but you can't reject me. You know what would happen if you do, Elias. You know what will happen to me!”

I am a weak omega. I can’t bear the weight of rejection. It would ruin me. If Elias rejects me, it would mean I would never have the chance to connect with my wolf again, and I would remain trapped in my wolfless state forever.

“Of course not, I won't reject you, Dahlia,” Elias said, his voice desperate as he took a step closer to me. “You are my mate and I can't reject you. T-this was a mistake, I could never dream of rejecting you”

“What do you mean you can't reject her? You promised me, Elias. How could you go back on your word?” Marielle yelled, jumping up from the bed and walking toward Elias, her trembling finger pointed at him.

“Stop it, Marielle. I said shut your mouth! I won’t reject my mate for you.”

“What? Now you’re going back on your word after you slept with me? That wasn’t what you were saying minutes ago.”

“W-when did I say that? I have never said I would reject Dahlia! Stop lying.”

“Y-you…”

As I watched them yell at each other, their voices blurred and I fell into a daze.

How utterly humiliating. Watching everything crumble before me really puts things into perspective. I really am an idiot.

Was this really the people I had treasured most in the world? The shameless and promiscuous. Yelling at each other right in front of my face.

A dry laugh escaped my lips again as I wiped my tears. What had I ever done wrong to deserve this? In just one day, my life had turned upside down.

My father ruthlessly sold me, my sister gave him the idea, and my mate cheated on me with my best friend.

Wow Dahlia, you really have it bad.

“You have to reject Dahlia because I’m pregnant. I’m two months pregnant with your child, Elias.” My thoughts snapped back to the present as Marielle’s words hit me like a hammer.

“W-what?” Elias asked, his eyes widening in shock “You are what?”

“You heard me,” Marielle sneered, a smug smile on her lips. “I’m pregnant with your child. I had planned to surprise you later today, but I guess I didn’t expect you to act like this. That’s why you shouldn’t trust men. But then again, what did I expect from a man who betrayed his mate?”

“That’s impossible. How can you be pregnant? I’ve always been careful with protection,” Elias stammered, clearly shaken.

“Well, maybe I don’t know, Elias,” she retorted coldly. “But I don’t care about the details. What matters is that you reject her. I won’t raise my child without a father. If you don’t reject her, then I will terminate this pregnancy.” Her finger jabbed toward me, her eyes filled with disdain.

My eyes flickered to Elias, watching his reaction, but as I expected, he seemed frozen in place, hesitant and unable to say anything.

Male wolves can’t reject their pups. They formed a deep attachment to them, so Elias was faced with a difficult choice: his mate or his child. And deep down, I already knew the answer to that decision.

For a moment, Elias's eyes seemed lost, as though he was struggling to make a decision. Then, the next second, his gaze hardened, his expression resolute as he turned to me.

This shameless bastard, he even had the audacity to look righteous.

“Dahlia… I–” A mocking smile spread across my face, and I cut him off mid-sentence before he could finish.

“No need, Elias. I’ll save you the trouble. I, Dahlia Knight, daughter of the Moonfang pack, reject Elias Lockhart as my mate.” The moment those words left my mouth, I bit down hard on my bottom lip to stop the blood threatening to spill as the pain consumed me entirely.

I staggered back, and before Elias could reach for me, I stepped away, forcing myself to steady on my feet.

“Don’t touch me!” I spat out, through gritted teeth. “You disgust me.”

My hand instinctively pressed against my head as I fought the dizziness. Something within me shattered the moment I spoke those words, and I knew, without a doubt, that it was the last fragile thread of connection I had to my wolf.

My lips trembled as I tried to hold back the tears, but they flowed anyway despite my attempts to remain strong.

When I finally opened my eyes, I saw Elias and Marielle staring at me, their expressions worlds apart. Elias’s face was etched with worry, but Marielle’s held nothing but smug satisfaction, her lips curling into a disdainful smirk as if she had already won.

“Dahlia, are you okay?” Elias asked, his voice tinged with concern, but I merely scoffed.

“Say it back… the words to break the bond,” I demanded, standing tall as I locked eyes with him.

He hesitated briefly before finally speaking. “I, Elias, reject you, Dahlia, as my mate.”

I drew in a shaky breath as the bond that had tied us as mates snapped, leaving an empty, hollow ache in its place.

Elias opened his mouth to say something, but Marielle was quicker, her voice laced with mockery as she wrapped her arms around him possessively.

“I hope you understand, Dahlia. Elias and I love each other, so please don’t create a scene or bother us, okay?”

“Don’t worry,” I replied, my voice eerily calm despite the storm raging in my heart. “I wish you both a happy life. You won’t ever see me again.”

I turned around to walk off but stopped and turned back around. “You both deserve each other, I mean that in every sense of the word.” Without another word, I turned and walked out of the room, refusing to look back.

When I entered the car, the tears finally came spilling—hot and uncontrollable. I didn’t know how long I cried for, but I didn’t stop until my eyes were swollen and I couldn’t cry anymore.

I started the engine and sped off into the night, my grip tightening around the steering wheel. When I finally arrived at my destination, I got out and walked into the packhouse, ignoring the stares and whispers of the maids around me.

As soon as I opened the door and stepped inside, the sound of laughter greeted me. I stood there for a while, watching as my father, the Alpha of the Moonfang pack, and my sister chatted happily, their faces filled with joy.

“You are such a smart daughter, you easily solved the debt issue for me. What would I do without you?” My father said, his eyes sparkling with affection, a look he had never shown me.

“Of course, father, I simply did what I could for our pack. Dahlia should finally do something useful for once. Once this debt is cleared up, don’t forget your promise to buy me my pink Lamborghini,” Coralie replied, laughing.

“You're right. I will buy everything you want, my dear daughter, but what if she refuses to go to the palace? The king won't take kindly to that, and she might even try to escape. It could ruin our plan.”

Coralie’s eyes narrowed, and she opened her mouth to respond, but before she could, I stepped forward from the door, my heart aching with every step as I spoke.

“You don't have to worry about that, Father. I've already thought it through. I'll go to the palace and serve the king but only on one condition.”