Chapter 3 - The Mate He Rejected

The moment I saw Kael Nightshade standing there, every ounce of pain I had buried exploded back to life. The rejection. The humiliation. The laughter. The way he had looked at me as if I were nothing. I took an instinctive step backward. The Dragon Wolf immediately shifted with me. Protective. Watching him. Watching my mate. No. Not anymore. Kael's gaze remained fixed on me. His jaw tightened. For several seconds, neither of us spoke. Snow swirled between us. Then I found my voice. 

"What are you doing here?" His eyes narrowed."I should be asking you the same question."  I laughed bitterly. The sound surprised even me. "You rejected me." The words came out sharp. Painful. Raw. "You don't get to question where I go." Something flashed across his face. Guilt. Gone almost instantly. "Tanya" "No." I cut him off. "You don't get to say my name like that." The Dragon Wolf released a low growl. Kael didn't flinch. His eyes briefly moved to the creature. Then back to me. "What is that thing?" I folded my arms. "I don't know." His gaze sharpened. "It knelt before you." "I noticed." "Dragon Wolves have been extinct for centuries." "Apparently not." 

The tension between us thickened. I hated how aware I was of him. Even after everything. The mate bond felt broken. Yet somehow... Not completely. A strange pull remained. Small. Persistent. As though something invisible still connected us. Kael seemed to feel it too. His expression darkened. "You should leave." I blinked. "What?" "This place isn't safe." Anger surged through me. "You suddenly care about my safety?" His jaw tightened. "I didn't say that." I laughed again. This time there was no humor in it. "Right." "You only publicly destroyed my life." "Tanya." "Leave." His eyes flashed. "No." The simple answer shocked me. For a second, neither of us moved. Then he stepped closer. My heart betrayed me. It sped up instantly. 

I Hated him. I Hated Myself. The Dragon Wolf growled louder. Kael ignored it. "What happened at the arena?" I stared at him. "You were there." "The markings." My stomach tightened. The silver symbols. I hadn't stopped thinking about them. Neither had he. "I don't know what they were." Kael studied me carefully. As though trying to determine whether I was lying. Then something strange happened. His eyes dropped to my wrist. His entire body went still. 

"Tanya." His voice changed. "What?" "Your wrist." I frowned. Slowly looking down. A faint silver glow pulsed beneath my skin. The same markings from the arena. My breath caught. "What is that?" Kael stared. His wolf suddenly roared inside his head. The reaction was so violent that he physically staggered. His vision blurred. Shadowfang snarled. Not at Tanya. At the markings. Kael's pulse accelerated. The wolf sounded almost excited. Terrified. Respectful. All at once. Impossible emotions. "You rejected the wrong mate." The voice echoed again. Louder this time. Kael clenched his fists, silencing the wolf. Nothing about Tanya made sense anymore. Nothing. The girl he rejected as a weak Omega was standing in the Northern Border beside a Dragon Wolf. And ancient symbols kept appearing on her skin. 

Something was wrong. And for the first time, Kael began wondering if he had made the biggest mistake of his life. I hated the way he was looking at me as though seeing me for the first time. Where was that attention before? Where was it when I stood before the kingdom? Anger tightened my chest. "Stop staring." His gaze lifted. The connection between us crackled instantly. "You should come back." I nearly laughed. "Back?" "The kingdom." The audacity. I took a step forward. "Let me understand this." My voice shook from rage. "You reject me." His face hardened. "Tanya," "You humiliate me." His silence spoke volumes. "You let them laugh." A flicker of regret appeared. Gone almost immediately. But I saw it. "You watched me break." The words came out quieter. More painful. 

For the first time, Kael looked away just for a second but it was enough because suddenly I knew. He regretted it. Maybe not all of it but some part of him regretted what happened. The realization should have satisfied me instead it hurt even more because it was too late. A distant howl interrupted us. Both our heads snapped toward the trees. The Dragon Wolf instantly became alert. Its golden eyes narrowed. The beast moved closer to me. Kael noticed. His body tensed. The forest had changed. The silence felt wrong. Heavy. Watching. Then voices drifted through the snow. Faint. But unmistakable. Men. Armed men. Kael immediately moved. Pulling me behind him. I froze. The action happened so naturally. So instinctively. Then realization hit. He had protected me. Without hesitation, his expression darkened as he seemed to realize it too. The moment stretched. Awkward.

Then more voices echoed. Kael's focus shifted.  He motioned for silence. I obeyed. Several figures emerged between the trees. Royal hunters. At least a dozen. Armed. Armored. Tracking. They weren't looking for Kael. They were looking for me.The hunters stopped. Unaware we could hear them. One of them spoke. "Spread out." Another nodded. "The High Priest wants her alive." My breath caught. Alive? Kael frowned. The hunters continued. "We aren't allowed to hurt her." "Not unless absolutely necessary." A third hunter lowered his voice. "Do you know why she's so important?" The others exchanged nervous looks. One finally answered. "No." The hunter swallowed. "But the priest seemed terrified." 

A chill raced down my spine. Kael's eyes narrowed. Terrified. The same word again. Another hunter shook his head. "It doesn't matter." He gripped his weapon tighter. "The priest says everything depends on it." Kael slowly turned toward me. For the first time since entering the forest, genuine concern appeared in his eyes. Not because he thought I was dangerous. Because he realized someone else thought I was important. Very important. 

The realization changed something. I saw it happen. Right there. The pieces finally began connecting. The markings. The Dragon Wolf. The hunters. The High Priest. Whatever was happening, it wasn't random and Kael knew it.  A branch snapped. One of the hunters spun. His eyes widened. "She's there!" Everything exploded into motion. The hunters charged. The Dragon Wolf roared. The sound shook the forest. Snow crashed from the trees. Several hunters stumbled. Others raised weapons. The beast launched forward. Chaos erupted. Kael shifted instantly. No hesitation. One second he stood beside me. The next a massive black wolf tore through the battlefield. Shadowfang. Enormous. Terrifying. Beautiful. The hunters never stood a chance. Yet none of them attacked me. 

Every strike aimed to capture. The realization sent fear racing through me. Why? Why was I so important? A hunter lunged. Shadowfang intercepted him. The man's weapon shattered. Another attacked. The Dragon Wolf slammed him into a tree. The battle became a blur. Growls. Screams. Blood. Snow. For the first time since rejecting me, Kael chose a side. Mine. A realization that terrified me far more than the hunters because some part of me still wanted him to. And that was dangerous. Very dangerous. 

Minutes later, the battle ended. The surviving hunters lay scattered across the snow. Broken. Defeated. One remained alive. Barely. Blood stained the snow around him. The hunter stared directly at me. Pure terror. "The High Priest was right!" The shout echoed through the clearing. Another wounded hunter coughed. His face pale. "It really is her!" My pulse thundered.

I stepped forward. "Who?" Neither answered immediately. The dying hunter struggled for breath. Fear filled his eyes. Not fear of dying. Fear of me. "Who am I?" I demanded. The hunter stared. Then whispered the words that shattered everything. "The lost daughter..." His voice broke. "...of the Moon Goddess." The world stopped. The wind stopped. Even my heartbeat seemed to stop. No. That was impossible. Completely impossible. I opened my mouth. No words came out. The hunter's eyes rolled back. His body went still. Silence swallowed the forest. I slowly turned toward Kael, toward the Dragon Wolf, toward the impossible truth hanging in the air.  And suddenly I realized something far more terrifying. The silver markings on my wrist were glowing again brighter than ever.