Chapter 1: The Rejection

The great hall fell silent the moment Elena stepped inside. Every wolf in the pack turned to stare at her, but she kept her head high.

Alpha Adrian stood at the center of the room, cold and unreadable. He was her mate, the one fate had chosen for her. But there was no warmth in his eyes.

“Elena,” he said, his voice sharp enough to cut through the silence. “I reject you as my Luna.”

Gasps echoed around the hall. Elena felt the bond inside her chest tear like fragile glass, but she refused to cry in front of them.

“Then I accept your rejection,” she whispered.

Five years later, she would return to this pack with a secret no one expected — a child with the Alpha's eyes.