Chapter 1

900words2026-02-26 05:58

At the Blackwood Pack's annual assembly, I stepped forward and asked Jacob, my fated mate, to finally complete our bonding ceremony and make me his official Luna.
He accused me of coveting his future Alpha title, of only wanting to be his Luna for status.
Then, in front of the entire pack, he rejected me in the most humiliating way possible.

He immediately turned to comfort his childhood friend, Olivia, whose wolf was supposedly "unstable" by her jealousy.
I grabbed his hand, begging him not to make it final. . I fell down the stone steps of the meeting hall.
The searing pain of a broken mate bond mixed with the impact of the fall.
My legs broken. My skull cracked.
I spent a month in the ICU at the pack's medical center before I finally woke up.
This time, I didn't cry or scream.

I used my mind-link to contact my mother, who had married into an overseas pack years ago.
"Mom, about your offer for me to come back and inherit the Alpha title of the New Moon Pack... I accept."
After checking myself out of the hospital, I took a cab to the Blackwood Pack's corporate headquarters.
Standing beneath the building where I had worked for nine years, I felt like a complete stranger.

In just one month, my identity had been wiped clean from the pack's system.
The pack warriors at the entrance blocked my way.
I tried calling Jacob, but he never answered.
Instead, a video call came through from Olivia.
On the screen, she wore a smug smile wrapped in fake pity.
"Emily, I can't believe you're out of the hospital already. Jacob is worried about my safety, so no exiled members are allowed inside headquarters right now. But don't worry, I'll tell the guards to let you in."
The heavy doors clicked open on her command.
I stood frozen for a moment before slowly walking inside.
The door to Jacob's office was ajar.
I pushed it open to find Olivia lounging on the sofa in a sexy silk robe, a faint smile on her lips.
Jacob stood beside her, shirtless.
The air was thick with the tangled scent of them, heavy with intimacy.
I glanced at them once, then looked away, placing a file on his desk without a word.
It was my official application to leave the Blackwood Pack.
Jacob's brow furrowed, annoyed at being ignored. He stepped in front of me, trying to explain.
"Olivia just got back from her pack. You know our families are old allies. The Elders want the alliance strengthened. Besides, she's more qualified to be the Luna than you are."
"It's not just that, is it?" Olivia interrupted, flashing a new, intricate tattoo on her wrist.
"Didn't you know, Emily? Jacob and I are having our bonding ceremony."
Jacob had a matching mark on his own wrist.
He didn't explain further. He just watched me with a calm expression.
I looked up at him and gave a small nod.
"Okay."
I didn't question him.
I didn't have a meltdown. I just pointed to the file on his desk.
"My application to leave the pack is submitted. I've already handed over all my duties as the Luna-in-waiting."
Jacob was clearly stunned by my composure, his eyes widening slightly.
I turned and walked away, ignoring the shocked stares from the two of them behind me.
The pain in my legs was a sharp, nagging reminder of the assembly.
I could still see it perfectly: Jacob shoving me down the stairs so he could run after a jealous Olivia.
Whatever love I had for him had died during that month in the ICU, as I battled the soul-crushing agony of his rejection.
Jacob caught up to me in the hallway.
He wrapped his arms around me from behind, burying his face in my neck, nuzzling me gently.
It was an instinctive gesture, meant to soothe a mate.
"Olivia and I grew up together. She knows we're fated mates, so it's normal for her to be jealous. Don't worry about the bonding ceremony, the alliance between the Blackwood and Sterling packs is essential..."
"I don't care."
I cut him off, pulling myself out of his embrace.
We had been together for nine years.
We had been far more intimate than this.
But now, his touch made my sick.
Jacob's face darkened. He stood there stubbornly, staring at me as if trying to read me.
"You're really leaving?"
"You're childhood friends, and the alliance is what the elders want. I won't interfere."
"And don't worry, I'm not jealous. I'm not throwing a tantrum."
Jacob opened his mouth to say something else.
But Olivia's voice drifted from the office.
"Jacob, where did you put my lace underwear? You know, the black set..."
Her eyes met mine, and she feigned innocence.
"Oh, sorry. I didn't know you were still here. Jacob and I are just so used to each other, I sometimes forget you're his 'fated mate'."
I gave a noncommittal grunt and left that place for good.
The next morning, my mom called the second she heard I was out of the hospital.
"Honey, how are you feeling? I'm getting old, I just want you back here with me. All those years you spent trailing after Jacob, with no official title as Luna, getting laughed at by his family and their elders."