chapter Two: Left to Death

Lena’s POV

“Tonight....” he started. My heart was still holding onto the hope that he would stop, that he would look at me and take everything back.

“I need someone strong that could rule beside me as my Luna,” he continued, his voice steady, almost calm. “Not someone weak. Not someone who couldn’t command....”

His words slowed, and then his gaze shifted. Not at me. Past me. I felt it before I turned. The entire room seemed to follow his eyes, and slowly, like I didn’t want to see it but couldn’t stop myself, I turned my head.

She was sitting just a few steps away from his chair. I hadn’t noticed her before. How did I not notice her?

She sat straight, like she belonged there more than anyone else. Her dress was deep red, rich and fitted, nothing like mine. It clung to her figure perfectly, the fabric catching the light in a way that made her impossible to ignore.

Her hair was dark, smooth, falling over her shoulders like it had been styled for this exact moment. And her eyes.... They were confident like she already knew how this night would end.

My chest tightened. I had heard about her. Rumors, whispers, things the omegas would say when they thought no one important was listening.

The Alpha’s first love. The one he never forgot. The one who left. Or maybe the one he lost. No one knew the full story.

And I never believed it. Not when he told me I was his mate. Not when he said I was the one.

But now.... Now she was here. And she was sitting where a Luna should sit.

Ryan took a step back, closer to her, like the space between them had always belonged to him.

“This,” he said, his voice carrying across the room, “is someone who understands what it means to stand beside me.”

The girl didn’t smile, but her lips curved slightly, just enough to show she wasn’t surprised.

She stood slowly and gracefully. Every movement controlled.

My fingers tightened around my dress. “Ryan....” I whispered, but my voice felt too small in the room.

He didn’t look at me. He looked at her. “From tonight,” he continued, “she will stand as my Luna.”

The words echoed. For a second, I thought I heard it wrong. But then the room reacted. Low murmurs. Some people nodded. Some looked at me.

I couldn’t breathe.

“You said....” I started, my voice shaking now. “You said I was your mate.”

Still, he didn’t look at me. “She is my chosen Luna,” he said.

Chosen. Not fated.

Something inside me cracked. “You told me....” I took a step forward, my legs unsteady. “You told me I was the only one.”

That made him pause. He turned back to me and the warmth from earlier? Gone. Completely gone.

“And as for this weak and wolfless woman....” he said.

The words felt like they didn’t belong to me. Like he was talking about someone else.

He paused. Just long enough for the silence to settle. Then he continued.

“I reject her as my mate.”

Everything became blurred. The moment he said it, it felt like something snapped inside me. Not loudly. Not painfully at first. Just.... gone. Like a thread had been cut.

“No....” I shook my head quickly, stepping back. “No, you can’t do this.”

My voice came out louder than I expected, shaking through the room.

“You promised me,” I said, the words rushing out now. “You promised me to stay beside me even when you are on your deathbed. You said I am your only mate. You said you wouldn’t accept another mate…”

“That’s only if your wolf had answered you tonight,” he replied calmly like that explained everything. Like that made it right.

My chest rose and fell quickly. “No,” I said, shaking my head harder now. “No, that’s not true.”

My eyes moved to the girl behind him, then back to him. “You wouldn’t have,” I said, my voice breaking. “You already have your mate.”

The realization hit me fully now. “This is your plan,” I continued. “This is what you expected.”

The room was completely silent again. “Why would you do this to me?” I asked.

That question came out softer. It showed how broken i am.

Ryan didn’t answer. He didn’t even try. He just looked at me like I was something he had already decided to leave behind.

That hurt more than anything he had said.

I took another step forward, even though my body felt weak. “You could have told me,” I whispered. “You didn’t have to do it like this. Not in front of everyone....”

He showed no regret, he stayed silent instead.

“Say something,” I said, my voice trembling. “Anything. Tell me I mean something to you. Tell me this isn’t how it ends.”

His jaw tightened slightly. For a moment, I thought I saw something in his eyes. But it disappeared too quickly.

“You’re making this harder than it needs to be,” he said.

The words felt cold and sharp.

“Harder?” I repeated. “You just rejected me in front of the entire pack and you think I’m the one making it harder?”

“You knew what this night meant,” he replied.

“I knew it was the night I become your Luna,” I said. “That’s what you told me. That’s what you made me believe.”

“And that belief was based on something you couldn’t give me,” he said.

“My wolf doesn’t define everything!” I said, my voice rising. “I’m still me. I’m still the person you chose. The person you said you loved…”

“Love is not enough,” he cut in.

That silence that followed felt heavier than before.

I swallowed hard. “It was enough for me,” I whispered.

He didn’t respond.

Behind him, the new Luna moved. I didn’t notice her walking until she was right in front of me. She bent slightly, lowering herself just enough to meet my eyes. Her face was calm and gentle. But her words weren’t.

“You should’ve known,” she whispered, her voice soft enough that only I could hear, “you are nothing but a mere wolfless girl.”

My chest tightened. “You can’t survive this,” she continued. “And I feel pity for you.”

Pity. That word stung more than anything.

I stared at her, unable to speak.

She straightened again like nothing happened, stepping back to Ryan’s side. Like she belonged there. Like I never did.

My hands trembled as i looked at Ryan again, hoping—still hoping—for something. Hoping for him to stop this, for him to say it was enough, for him to take it all back.

But he didn’t. He turned away from me completely like I wasn’t there anymore.

“Guards,” he said.

My breath caught. Two men stepped forward immediately from the side of the hall. They were strong, silent and ready.

Ryan didn’t look back at me as he spoke again. “A rejected mate can’t stay alive,” he said.

The words didn’t feel real at first. Then they did. And they broke something deeper inside me.

“Take her out of the pack and kill her.”