CHAPTER 2: The Royal Execution

I stayed on my knees, my fingers bleeding into the expensive rug. Every eye in the room was on me, but I only saw him. The air around Kaelen Thorne practically hummed with power. It was making it hard to breathe, hard to think.

He didn't move for a long time. He just stared at me like I was a bug he’d found in his salad.

"Get up," he said. His voice wasn't kind. It was a command that pulled at my very soul.

I stumbled to my feet, my legs shaking. The spit from the Luna was still wet on my cheek, and my hands were a mess of blood and glass. I didn't care. I took a step toward him, my heart screaming.

"You..." I whispered, my voice cracking. "It’s you."

Kaelen took a step back as if my scent disgusted him. He looked at my cheap, stained dress and then at the Luna, who was still fuming nearby.

"This?" Kaelen asked, his voice echoing through the silent ballroom. He pointed a finger at me, his lip curling. "This is what the Moon Goddess thinks I deserve?"

A few people in the crowd snickered. Alpha Dante stepped forward, bowing his head. "King Kaelen, she’s just an omega. A stray we took in. She’s useless, really."

"I can see that," Kaelen snapped. He looked back at me, and for a second, I thought I saw a spark of something—pain, maybe? But it vanished, replaced by a wall of ice. "Look at you. You’re shivering. You’re bleeding. You can’t even hold a tray without breaking it."

"I... I’m your mate," I said, louder this time. I needed him to acknowledge it. The bond was pulling at me so hard I felt like I was going to explode.

Kaelen laughed. It was a dry, hollow sound.

"Mate?" He stepped into my personal space, towering over me. His scent was calming, but his eyes were looking at me like I was something he wanted to purge out. "Listen to me, little wolf. I am the Alpha, soon to be Alpha King. I lead the strongest packs in Nocturna. I need a Queen who can stand beside me, not a broken toy who crawls on the floor."

My breath seized instantly. No the Moon Goddess can't be wrong. Where did I go wrong?

"But the bond—"

"The bond is a mistake!" he roared. The windows in the hall rattled. People flinched. "I, Kaelen Thorne, Alpha King of the Crimson Moon, reject you, Aurelia Viremont, as my mate and my Queen."

It felt like someone had plunged a frozen blade into my chest and twisted it. I gasped, clutching my heart, my knees hitting the floor again. The rejection bond tore through me, ripping away the warmth I’d felt just moments ago. It was a cold, empty void that left me gasping for air.

"There," Kaelen said, looking down at me with pure indifference. I looked at him, tears stinging my eyes, my heart trembled violently with each breath I took, and my hands shook as I tried to gather my words together. This can't be.

“Please, I just want to be loved. How can you defy the mate bond, something as precious as this?” I looked at him, crying as I clutched my chest, panting hard.

“She wants to be loved,” someone shouted, laughing.

“Go cry somewhere else bitch,” I heard a male voice laughing. I looked around me, my body trembling, barely standing.

Kalen didn't say anything, just looked at me.

"It's done. Dante, get this trash out of my sight before I—"

"Wait!"

The shout came from the back of the room. Silas, a high-ranking warrior from the Silverwood pack, pushed through the crowd. He looked pale, his eyes wide with . He was holding a clear plastic evidence bag. Inside was a jagged hunting knife, the blade covered in dark, dried blood.

"My King, you can't just let her go," Silas said, his voice shaking. "We found this in her locker during a routine sweep an hour ago."

Kaelen frowned, his eyes snapping to the bag. "What is that?"

"The murder weapon," Silas said, stepping closer. He held the bag up for everyone to see. "This is the blade that killed the Beta’s daughter. Little Maya. She was only eight years old, Kaelen. She was gutted in the garden."

The room went deathly silent. Then, a low growl started in the throats of the warriors standing around.

"That’s impossible," I breathed, shaking my head. "I was in the kitchens all night. I don't even know where the gardens are!"

"The scent doesn't lie," Silas said, his voice cold. He opened the bag slightly, and the smell of blood filled the air, and Kaelen’s face went from cold to murderous. The air in the room turned freezing. He stepped toward the bag, sniffing the air, and then his head snapped toward me. His eyes were no longer human; they were glowing a terrifying, predatory gold.

"You?" he whispered.

"No! Kaelen, please, I didn't do it! I’ve never even held a knife like that!" I scrambled backward on the floor, the broken glass cutting into my palms again. "He’s lying! Someone is framing me!"

"The scent is yours, Aurelia," Kaelen said, his voice dropping to a dangerous, low rumble. He walked toward me, and my body was shaking. "I felt the bond. I know your scent. It’s all over this knife."

"I was in the kitchen! Ask the cook! Ask anyone!"

Luna Genevieve stepped forward, a nasty smile on her lips. "Actually, King, I noticed her slipping out toward the gardens around eight. I thought she was slacking off. I didn't realize she was hunting a child."

"Liar!" I screamed, but no one was listening.

Kaelen reached down and grabbed the front of my dress, yanking me up until my toes barely touched the floor. His grip was like iron. He leaned in close, his breath hot against my ear, but his words were ice.

"I thought you were just a weak, pathetic mistake," he hissed. "But you're a monster. You took an innocent life. A child's life."

"Kaelen, look at me," I sobbed, grabbing his wrists, trying to pull his hands away. "Please, look at my eyes. I’m telling the truth!"

He didn't look at my eyes. He looked at the blood on my hands, probably imagining it was the girl’s blood. He shifted his grip, his large hand wrapping around my throat. He squeezed, cutting off my air. I clawed at his arm, my legs kicking uselessly.

"I felt a pull toward you," Kaelen said, his voice loud enough for the entire ballroom to hear. "I felt the Moon trying to tell me you were mine. It sickens me."

He lifted me higher, his arm straight, hoisting me into the air by my neck. I couldn't breathe. Black spots started to dance in my vision. The crowd was cheering now, calling for my head. My own pack members were spitting at my feet.

"I’d rather burn my kingdom to the ground than be mated to a child-killer," Kaelen growled, his face inches from mine. His eyes were pure animal rage. "You want to be a monster? I'll treat you like one."

He turned his head toward the guards standing at the doors.

"Take her to the Sunken Mines," he commanded, his voice booming. "Throw her in the pits. Tell the guards they can do whatever they want with her, as long as she’s dead by sunrise. Make it slow. I want her to feel every bit of pain that child felt."

"Kaelen... please..." I wheezed, my voice barely a whisper.

He didn't say another word. He simply let go.

I hit the floor like a sack of potatoes, gasping for air, my throat screaming in pain. Before I could even clear my head, two massive guards grabbed my arms, dragging me across the marble. My dress hiked up, my skin scraping against the floor, but nobody cared.

I looked back one last time. Kaelen was standing there, turning back to his drink, acting as if I had already ceased to exist.

"I'm innocent!" I screamed as they dragged me through the doors. "Kaelen! I'm innocent!"

One day…I'll make them choke on this moment. I whispered in my head, looking at the faces of every one of them mocking me.

The doors slammed shut, cutting off the light and the music, leaving me in the cold darkness of the hallway