Semua Bab Lycan King's Cursed and Rejected Mate: Bab 51 - Bab 60

KAELI stood on the raised platform of the council hall, watching the last of the elders, Alphas, and Lycans file out. Laughter and low murmurs drifted back as they disappeared through the arched doors. The Annual Moon Goddess Worshipping Ceremony was only weeks away, and I had just spent two hours drilling security protocols into their skulls.I hated the ceremony.Hated that it fell on the anniversary of my parents’ death. Hated the pageantry, the cost, the forced reverence. But tradition was iron, and this year Ashbourne hosted. Every pack on the continent would send delegates. One mistake and the Ferals, who had vanished as suddenly as they appeared, could return and turn the celebration into slaughter.My grandfather lingered near the front row, deep in hushed conversation with Elder Vale. I waited until the hall emptied, rolling my shoulders to loosen the tension, when two figures approached from the shadows: Alpha Darius and his Beta, Alaric Tanner.“Kael.” My grandfather’s voi

MAYAI stood frozen at what Nanny said, and then a laugh burst out of me. I crossed my arms, shaking my head in disbelief. “Break up with him? You have no right to tell me that. Absolutely none.”“It’s for your own good, Maya,” she flatly said. “You’ll thank me later.”“No.” I shook my head, “Who do you think you are? My mother?”The second the word left my mouth, I wished I could yank it back, but the anger was a living thing now, clawing its way out.“You’re not,” I went on, raising my voice. “I’m turning twenty soon. I’m an adult. I get to decide who I date.”Nanny’s jaw clenched. “You’re still nineteen. You live under my roof, eat my food, and wear the clothes I buy. The least you owe me is to fucking listen to what I say.”The curse word hit like a slap. Nanny never swore. Never.“What I owe you,” I snapped, “is gratitude for raising me. Not blind obedience forever. You’re just… jealous. You hate that I’m finally free from Ashbourne, from the pack laws, from everyone who ever cal

MAYAMy scream shredded the quiet as I bolted upright. Sweat soaked me, and my lungs were burning. My arms flung up to block claws that weren’t even there.For a second, I was still in the forest. Then the guest room slammed into focus. But I wasn’t alone.Xander sat in the recliner across the room, legs crossed, hands resting on the armrests, and his eyes locked on me. For a moment, I just kept on looking at him but he didn’t move. He was just sitting there like it was his statue. And his eyes… they glowed faintly, the exact molten gold of the creature in the dream.“Xander?” My voice came out in a rasp.He didn’t answer. Didn’t even blink or move.The glow sharpened, and for one heartbeat, his face flickered, became the Gravok’s eyeless void.“No!” I scrambled backward until the headboard cracked against my spine. “Stay away from me!” I opened my mouth and screamed againThe door burst open with a bang, and light flooded in.Xander, real Xander, wearing an apron smeared with flour

MAYA“The Dark One?”My eyebrows shot up as I stared at him, and then, I burst out laughing, clutching my sides. “As in the ancient evil who fought the werewolves until the Moon Goddess sent a Moonwhisperer to stop him? That Dark One? You?”Tears streamed down my face from laughing so hard. “Xander, come on! If you wanted to scare me you could’ve just jumped out and yelled boo, but calling yourself the literal Dark One? That’s next-level, I’ll give you that. If you really were him, I’d be dead by now, right?”He watched me, amused as tender smile playing at his lips. “That’s because I love you, Maya. I wasn’t joking the first time I said it. I’ve loved you across many lives.”The laughter now turned into a faint smirk. “Hey… stop creeping me out, will you? I believe you, okay?”He shook his head and his expression became serious. “There’s a connection between us. I know you felt it the second I walked into your classroom. That’s because we’ve been tied together longer than you can ima

MAYAI slammed my back against the door, yanking the knob so hard my wrist burned. “Let me go, Xander! I’ll think about everything, I swear, just open the damn door!”“You won’t think,” he flatly said with a low smirk. “You’re already planning how fast you can run. I see it in your eyes.”I spun and pounded on the wood, screaming until my throat bled. “Help! Somebody! Mr. Dupree! Anybody!”“You’re only hurting yourself,” he murmured behind me. “It won’t do any good.”“Let me out!” Tears poured down my face. “I don’t want any of this! I’m not her! I just want my boring, normal, shitty life back!”He said nothing, just watched while I screamed, kicked, begged, until my legs buckled and I slid down the door, sobbing into my knees.“I’ve suffered enough,” I choked out. “Please. I swear I won’t tell Nanny anything. It’ll be our secret. Just let me go home.”He knelt beside me, close enough to feel his warmth but not touching. “Maya,” he whispered, “someone like you was never meant for norm