Chapter 3:Alpha's Anger

         Damien’s chest burned like fire. He dropped on his knees, clutching the mate mark that refused to let him go. The whole hall froze, watching their Alpha scream in pain.  

He hated it. He hated that everyone saw him weak. The strongest wolf in the region, Alpha Damien of Silver Moon Pack, was kneeling like a broken man because of a human girl.  

A human.  

His wolf snarled inside him. *Reject her. She is not one of us.*  

But the bond pulled hard, like chains wrapping around his heart.  

He forced himself to stand, his body shaking. His eyes searched the hall but Elara was gone. She had run like a coward, leaving him with all the shame.  

“Alpha,” Beta Roland said carefully, his face pale. “The Moon Goddess… she’s binding you. You can’t reject her without a fight.”  

“I don’t want her!” Damien roared, his voice shaking the walls. The chandeliers above rattled. Everyone flinched at the power in his anger. “She is weak! She is human! How can I lead with a mate like that?”  

Murmurs ran through the crowd. Some nodded, agreeing with him. Others looked uneasy.  

Clara stepped forward, her hand on her chest, fake tears in her eyes. “Damien, don’t let the bond chain you. You’re stronger than this. I am the one who has always stood by your side. Choose me, not her.”  

Damien’s fists clenched so hard his knuckles cracked. His wolf growled, restless. He wanted Clara once, but now her voice irritated him. The bond tied him to Elara, no matter how he hated it. He could still feel Elara’s tears in his chest, as if they were his own.  

It made him angrier.  

“She doesn’t belong here,” Damien said. His voice was lower now, but sharper than a blade. “If she stays, she will destroy everything I built.”  

Old Marcellus, the elder, stepped closer with his staff. His eyes were heavy with something Damien didn’t like. “Alpha, you know the rules. You can’t simply reject her. The Moon Goddess gave you this bond. Break it, and you may lose more than you think.”  

“I don’t care,” Damien growled. “I won’t let her be my Luna.”  

But even as he said the words, the mark burned again, harder this time. His knees almost gave way. His wolf howled inside, torn between rage and need.  

“Damien,” Roland said carefully. “The people are watching. If you show weakness—”  

“I am not weak!” Damien snapped, his voice like thunder. The crowd fell silent again. “I will show them I am still their Alpha. That human will learn her place. She will regret ever stepping into my world.”  

---  

Far away, Elara was still crying. She sat under a tree, hugging her knees, her whole body shaking from all the humiliation. Her eyes were swollen, her throat sore. Every word Clara said replayed in her mind.  

“You don’t belong here.”  

“You should never have been born.”  

“You will destroy him.”  

She wanted to believe it wasn’t true. But everything around her proved it was. She was just a human, no claws, no strength, no wolf. What chance did she have in a pack like this?  

Her tears fell faster. “Why, Goddess? Why me?” she whispered.  

She heard footsteps and stiffened. For a second, fear wrapped around her. What if it was Clara again? What if it was Damien? She didn’t want anyone to see her like this.  

But when she looked up, it was Roland, the Beta. He stood there with a sad look in his eyes.  

“Elara,” he said softly. “You should come back. The Alpha is angry.”  

Her heart squeezed. Angry? Of course he was. She didn’t need anyone to tell her that. She already knew Damien hated her. The look in his eyes said it all.  

“I don’t want to go back,” she whispered, shaking her head. “They all hate me. Clara is right. I don’t belong here.”  

Roland sighed, running his hand through his hair. “It’s not that simple. You are the Alpha’s mate. Whether anyone likes it or not, the bond exists. The pack will have to accept you, or suffer the Goddess’s punishment.”  

She laughed bitterly, though it sounded more like a sob. “Accept me? They laughed at me, Roland. They called me a mistake. Even Damien—” her voice cracked— “even he doesn’t want me.”  

Roland didn’t reply. He couldn’t lie to her. He had seen Damien’s rage with his own eyes.  

“Elara,” he said finally, “just… stay strong. The Goddess doesn’t make mistakes. Maybe there’s a reason she chose you.”  

Elara shook her head. “No. This is a curse.”  

Back in the hall, Damien stood tall before his people. His chest still burned, but he hid it under a mask of steel.  

He raised his hand and the hall went silent.  

“Hear me now,” he said. His voice was cold, sharp, unshakable. “The Moon Goddess may have tied me to a human. But I will never allow her weakness to destroy this pack. She will never stand as my Luna unless she proves herself.”  

The people gasped. Clara’s smile froze on her face.  

Damien’s gray eyes turned dark, and his wolf pushed through his voice. “If she cannot survive the trials, I will find another way to break this bond. I would rather burn than bow to fate.”  

The hall erupted into whispers again. Trials? Everyone knew what that meant. No human could survive the Alpha’s trials. They were built for warriors, not mortals.  

Damien’s wolf growled with satisfaction. He would force the bond to bend or break.  

“Elara,” he muttered under his breath, his voice filled with rage and something else he refused to name. “You will regret being chosen by me.”