Chapter 2 Rejected

Daria's POV

I woke up screaming.

My body convulsed as another wave of pain tore through me. The bond, cracked and bleeding inside my chest, throbbed with an agony that had no end. Every breath felt like swallowing glass.

"Daria, please. You need to drink something." Mira's voice was gentle but desperate.

My best friend sat beside my bed in my small cottage, her hand gripping mine tightly. She had been here since they carried me home from the training yard. Holding me through the worst of it. Holding me while I screamed. While I sobbed. While I coughed up blood until there was nothing left but dry heaves.

I turned my head away from the cup of water she held out. "I can't."

"You will die if you don't."

"Then I die." The words came out emotionless.

"Don't say that." Her voice cracked. "Don't you dare say that."

But what was the point? The Moon Goddess had given me a mate, only to have him reject me in front of the entire pack. The bond wasn't fully severed-it couldn't be, not between an Alpha and his true mate. The bloodline connection ran too deep. But it was cracked, shattered, and bleeding. Like something beautiful that had been smashed and poorly glued back together.

"Why does she hate me?" I whispered.

"Who?"

"The Moon Goddess." Tears slid down my temples into my hair. "What did I do to deserve this?"

Mira didn't answer. She just squeezed my hand tighter and looked away, her own eyes glistening.

I didn't eat or sleep, just lay there staring at the ceiling of my tiny cottage, struggling to remember what hope felt like.

That night, the full moon rose.

I felt it before I saw it-a sharp pull in my chest. My wolf stirred for the first time since the rejection, raising her head with sudden alertness.

Suddenly, my door burst open with a loud crash and splinters of wood scattered around the room. I screamed, scrambling back against the headboard, my heart slamming against my ribs.

Lucius was standing in the doorway.

But this wasn't the cold, controlled Alpha from the training yard. He was breathing heavily, and his eyes glowed with a bright, inhuman red in the darkness. Beads of sweat dripped down his face, and his hands were clenched into shaky fists at his sides.

"Mine." The word came out as a growl, barely human.

"Alpha, what... what are you doing here?" My voice shook.

The moment he stepped inside, the air around him felt wrong, charged with something wild and desperate. This was what they whispered about in the pack. The madness that took him during the full moon. The curse that made him dangerous.

I had heard the rumours. Everyone had. The Alpha who lost control when the moon was full, who became more beast than man. Pack members locked their doors on those nights, stayed inside, and prayed they wouldn't cross his path.

And now he was here. In my cottage. Looking at me like I was prey.

"Stay back." I pressed myself harder against the wall. "Please, stay back."

He didn't listen. He was on me in seconds, moving faster than should be possible. His rough hands gripped my arms and pinned me down. His face pressed against my neck as he inhaled deeply, a guttural sound rumbling from his chest.

"You are mine," he growled again.

"You rejected me." My voice shook with terror and confusion. "You don't want me."

"Mine." He pushed me down onto the bed, and before I could fully understand what was happening, his mouth crashed against mine.

I tried to fight. Tried to push him away. But the bond betrayed me. The moment his lips touched mine, a rush of heat flooded through me, overwhelming and terrible. My body responded even as my mind screamed no.

It was wrong. He had destroyed me, humiliated me, left me bleeding in the dirt.

But my body didn't care. My wolf didn't care. They only knew that our mate was here, touching us, wanting us.

As his hands tore at my nightgown, I felt the cool air against my bare skin.

"Don't." The word came out broken. "Please don't."

He didn't stop. Whatever controlled him during the full moon had taken over completely. His eyes stayed that unnatural red and his movements were desperate.

That night, he took my virginity.

It hurt. Not just physically, although the tearing pain was there. It was something deeper, something that shattered my soul all over again as he claimed my body without my permission, driven by a curse I didn't understand.

I eventually stopped fighting and just lay there, tears streaming down my face, while my wolf whispered "mate" like a broken prayer.

When it was over, he collapsed beside me, his breathing ragged and harsh. The red in his eyes slowly faded, replaced by gold.

For one moment, I thought I saw regret or maybe confusion flicker across his face.

But then he was gone. He vanished into the night without a word, leaving me alone in my destroyed cottage with bloodstains on my sheets.

I lay there for hours, staring at nothing. My body throbbed with pain, but the hurt in my heart was far worse.

Yet my wolf kept whispering. "He came to us, Daria. He wanted us."

Maybe it meant something. Maybe, deep down, beneath the rejection and the cruelty, he wanted me after all. Maybe this was his way of showing it, as twisted as it was.

I clung to that hope like a lifeline. Because without it, I had nothing left.

The next morning, a knock came at my broken door.

I dragged myself out of bed, wrapping a blanket around my torn nightgown. A servant stood outside, his face carefully blank, his eyes averted.

"Alpha Lucius permits you to reside in the mansion," he said flatly. Not an invitation. Not an apology. Just a statement of fact.

He turned and walked away before I could respond.

I stood there, frozen, my hand still gripping the doorframe.

He was giving me permission to live in his home?

My wolf perked up, hopeful. "See? He wants us there. It means something."

Maybe she was right. Maybe this was his way of making amends. Maybe once I was in the mansion, we could talk. Maybe I could make him see that we were meant to be together.

I packed my things in a daze, fitting everything into a small bag-clothes, a few books, and my mother's necklace.

As the sun was setting, I arrived at the mansion. The building was tall and imposing, with stone walls and iron gates.

A young maid greeted me at the entrance. But then she grabbed my arm before I could step inside, her fingers digging in hard enough to bruise.

"Don't unpack," she whispered, her eyes wide with terror. "Please. Just don't."

"What?"

"You are the fourth omega he's brought here this year." Her voice dropped even lower, barely audible. "The others? They all disappeared after the next full moon."

"Disappeared?" My blood ran cold.

"No one knows where." She glanced over her shoulder desperately. "Some say he kills them when the curse takes him. Others say he just throws them out when he's done. Either way..." She met my eyes. "They are never seen again."