Chapter 2 RAINE

48 Hours Earlier.

It was the day of her claiming, and Raine Whitmore had never felt so alive. Her heart pounded as she approached where the priest stood, waiting for her at the head of the altar. Ronan was still absent, probably running late, but Raine was far too excited to let that bother her. Tonight was her mating ceremony, the night her mate would officially claim her in the presence of the Lycan goddess and the entire pack. The moon hung high, full and bright, a silent witness as she stood by the priest, waiting for Ronan Draven, the man the fates had ordained as hers.

A ripple went through the crowd as Ronan shouldered his way past the wolves, he had two people behind him, but Raine only had eyes for her mate. After months by his side, all the whispered promises, lingering touches, he would be her alpha, and she would be bound to him forever.

She sent him a blinding smile, but Ronan's gaze swept past her coldly. He kept his gaze on the priest as he spoke,

"I, Ronan Draven, second alpha son of the Draven pack, reject you, Raine Whitmore as my fated mate."

The entire clearing fell into silence.

For a long miserable second, Raine thought she had imagined it. The words sunk into her, sharp like claws as they tore through her chest. Her wolf whimpered, and she staggered back as if he had physically hit her. She stared up at him with tearful eyes, hoping she had heard wrong.

"What?"

But Ronan stepped forward, towering over her, his dark cold and cruel. A far cry from the Ronan she knew. "I don't want you," he said, his voice sharp as a blade, slicing straight through her. "You're weak, pathetic. An alpha like me would never go for a wolf like you. You are not fit to stand beside me."

A ripple of gasps and murmurs spread through the crowd, members of the pack speaking amongst themselves in low, harsh tones. Someone laughed, the sound sharp and cruel. Raine swirled her head in the direction of the sound and found Selene Voss, standing beside a cloaked man. Selene Voss was Luna to the rival pack. What was she doing here? Raine's eyes blurred and she blinked back tears.

"But –" Her voice cracked as she stumbled forward. "You can't leave me, Ronan... You're my mate..."

Ronan sneered, staring down at her like she was gum under his shoe. "And? You think fate means anything? I'm not some lovesick fool clinging to destiny. I choose my future, and it's not with you."

A loud sob teared out of her throat as her world crumbled. This couldn't be happening, not after everything. She swayed on her feet, losing her balance as she gasped for breath. Her wolf howled inside her, rejected and broken.

"Ronan!" A deep voice cut through the noise and someone pushed their way through. It was Silas Draven, first alpha son of the pack. He stopped and frowned. "What is the meaning of this?"

Ronan lifted his chin. "I'm forging my own path." To the pack, "Raine Whitmore has no place here, she is nothing but a burden."

The words hit Raine like the final blow, and she crumbled to the ground, howling out her despair like a wounded animal. Her alpha had rejected her, she was unwanted, uuloved, cast aside like used rags. Someone in the crowd yelled, "An alpha has rejected her! Exile her!"

Another voice followed, "A rejected wolf is a weakness!"

Another followed, the voices growing louder until it became a chant, their cruel voices driving the knife of her rejection deeper, turning against her in seconds.

"Send her away!"

"She's not one of us anymore!"

"A mate who has been disgraced is a weakness!"

Someone stepped forward and dragged her by her arm, pulling her painfully to her feet. Raine cried out in pain as the bone there shifted. She glanced around for Ronan, desperate for her mate even in the midst of everything.

"No... please." She begged, her voice ragged even as the wolves dragged her away. She stretched her hand out to Ronan, pleading with him to reconsider, to save her this disgrace, but he didn't even spare her a glance. Raine screamed after him, her voice raw and desperate. "Please, you don't have to do this!"

He didn't even look at her. Raine felt her vision blur, as tears burned her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. Not here, not in front of them, not when Selene Voss stood beside her mate, watching her downfall like it was some kind of entertainment. Selene placed an arm on Ronan's, and together, they turned away from her sight, disappearing into the dark night.

Someone shoved her forward. Raine gasped as she felt herself get disconnected from the magic of the pack wards. "Get out! If you step foot on our land again, we'll consider you a trespasser on Draven territory."

Laughter rippled through the pack as she staggered out the pack's borders. These wolves she had grown up with, lived with, fought beside. And now they were turning their backs on her, treating her as though she was nothing. But maybe she was nothing. Maybe that was why Ronan didn't want her anymore. Because she wasn't good enough for me, and she wasn't good enough for the pack.

By the time dawned rolled around, Raine had managed to drag herself to a motel by the side of the road. Somewhere along the line, she had shucked off the heavy mating robes, and was in her inner wear. There was a bar attached to the motel, and the first thing she did as soon as she booked a room, was drag herself down there and get shit faced drunk.

For two days, she let herself wallow in the pitifulness of her situation. And then on the night of the third day, a plan began to take shape in her head. If Ronan didn't want her anymore, she would just have to convince him that he should.

He was her mate. One more night with her, and he would remember just how good they were together. He would take her back, and she'd have her home, and her lover back.

It was a solid plan.

What could possibly go wrong?