The Cursed Alpha's Fate: Read Chapters 1-5

Climbing a mountain was no easy feat but dragging a frightened deer with me made the exercise more daunting. The sun beat down on me and my stomach rumbled but I gritted my teeth and continued to climb up the mountain of miracles. The ‘priestesses’ leading me up the mountain paused at intervals to give me withering glares that seemed to reproach me, reminding me that I could not be lazy if I wanted a child. Until I had a child, there would be no reprieve for me.

“Goddess, please,” I muttered to myself, “please, just one child – one baby – please –“

After five years of being mated to an Alpha without birthing an heir or even getting pregnant once, people no longer spoke behind my back; they called me barren to my face. The only way I could save myself and my marriage was to get pregnant as soon as possible.

My legs ached as I climbed, my hands were injured from pulling on the rope attached to the deer. The sun roasted my skin and my vision turned white every ten minutes but I continued up the mountain. I had tried everything I could in the last five years and it was starting to feel as if I was running out of options.

After the gruelling feat of climbing, we reached the top of the mountain and as I had been instructed beforehand, I took out a knife and slaughtered the deer, muttering the strange words the priestesses had taught me. The top of the mountain was stained with blood from others that had performed sacrifices before me.

As I slaughtered the deer and muttered the strange words, my wolf paced in discomfort while tears gathered in my eyes. Guilt ate at me. What I was doing was sacrilegious to the goddess but desperation pushed me to this point.

When I was done with the ritual, I had to drink the blood of the lifeless deer in front of me. I went on my knees with tears in my eyes and put my lips on the dead animal, my stomach revolting and my heart squeezing. The tears fell.

“You may leave now. We will remain here to pray for you for the next fourteen days,” the priestesses said and I nodded. “What are you waiting for? Leave immediately!” I staggered at the harsh shout and proceeded to stumble down the mountain.

Going down the mountain should have been easier but it was not. My stomach turned and my legs ached. I paused once to throw up and even after getting to the foot of the mountain, I had to make a long trek to where I parked.

The sun was setting when I entered my car. Upon checking my phone, I met zero missed calls. Although I had been gone all day, my mate did not bother checking up on me. He knew where I went, had rolled his eyes when I told him I was visiting the mountain of miracles but said nothing to me.

He spoke to me less and less with each passing day and sometimes I caught him staring at me in disgust. It hurt my heart but what could I do? It only fueled my desperation. Everything around me was falling apart because I could not conceive. If only I could get pregnant, things would be better. My mate would look at me with love once again, my pack mates would respect me again and my mother-in-law would not turn up her nose every time she saw me.

It was a long drive back home and when I got back, it was almost midnight. The lights were turned off and I heard my mate snoring inside. I could not even doze off on nights when he returned home late from work.

I brushed my teeth as thoroughly as I could and washed my body of all the grime and sweat clinging to me. Then I dressed in the lingerie I bought a few months ago but never got to try out.

“Jackson,” I whispered my mate’s name, biting my lips as he flinched but continued to snore. I didn’t want to disturb his sleep but the priestess told me it would be tonight. I had to conceive tonight. “Jackson – baby –“ I tapped his shoulder. “I am back.”

After five minutes of shaking my mate, he finally opened his eyes. The look of loathing I saw in his eyes before he blinked made me flinch.

“I thought you would live in the mountains with them for a while,” he mumbled as he rubbed his eyes. “What do you want?”

“No – I just – Do you want to –“ I gestured at my body in case he missed the sexy black lingerie I put on just for him.

“No matter how many times I hit, nothing changes. I am tired.” He put a pillow over his face which muffled his remaining words. “I am not interested.”

“But Jackson, this is different! I know it! We can make a baby tonight!” I grabbed his hand and he shook off my grip.

“You’ve said that more times than I can count, Chantelle,” he hissed, pulling the pillow from his face. “You are infertile. There will be no making a baby with you so leave me the hell alone to sleep.”

“But –“ I fought back tears. “This time it’s real – and even if – even if – do you not want to – at least for – for fun?” He looked at me with such cruel eyes that I shrunk away. Then he chuckled, the sound harsh enough to tighten my chest.

“For fun?” He snorted as he sat up. “Has sex with you ever been fun? All you know how to do is moan like a dying dog.”

“Jackson!” My throat tightened as I exclaimed.

Although I felt my mate pull away from me in the past few months, I never dreamt I would hear such mean words from him. My mate was one person who promised– swore an oath to me – to be by my side forever, to support and love me.

In the first years of our mating, we had explored each other everywhere in this house, from the bedroom to the kitchen. We had sex in his office, in the car, in the woods, and at his parents’ place sometimes. He wanted me all the time and with him, I learnt to enjoy the thrill of getting frisky in unexpected places. I hadn’t imagined – even in my worst nightmare – that he would ever call me uninteresting in bed.

“I have to get up early to work tomorrow which is something you can’t understand since all you know how to do is chase after doctors and fake priestesses.” He lay back down and closed his eyes.

“But I am doing this for us!” I exclaimed. “Do you not want a child?”

“You are the defective product I picked up so I don’t blame you for asking me stupid questions.” He snorted. “Asking an Alpha if he does not want children,” he muttered as he shook his head. “Go to sleep, Chantelle. Don’t annoy me any further than you already do.”

Despite the insults, I begged him. I knew he didn’t desire me anymore but I was the one getting cursed at every time I stepped out of my house. I was the one his mother rained insults on, the barren one. I needed a child more than he did. He could choose another woman the way he chose me but I could not bear to lose the man I loved so I begged.

He looked down at me as if engaging in intimacies with me was the worst chore in the world and then he put a pillow over my face. My breath hitched and I feared for a second that he was about to suffocate me but he only blocked out my face.

I heard some rustling for a few minutes but did not move the pillow to avoid angering him. Then he moved my panties to the side and I breathed out a sigh of relief that turned into a scream as his manhood pierced me without any preparation.

“Jack –“ He pressed down on the pillow and I froze.

“Don’t move. You wanted this so unless you want me to change my mind, you better stay still.” I remained frozen as he pumped in and out of me without rhythm.

It hurt worse than it did the night I lost my virginity. There were no sweet words, no coaxing, no soft touch, just the movement of his hips and the sobs I tried to stop. It was over in a few minutes as he pumped his seed into me.

“Nothing different from pumping my seed on the bathroom floor,” he muttered as he collapsed beside me.

I stayed still in shock and anguish even after he fell asleep and went back to snoring. It was like a bucket of ice water had been dumped on me. My blood was frozen. My lower body hurt. The pillow remained over my face as I tried to process what just happened. He may have torn something but it did not hurt as much as the realization that came over me did.

My mate hated me.

I got out of bed after an hour of disbelief, hissing in pain as I went to the bathroom to clean up his seed mixed with my blood. When I climbed back into bed, I stared at my mate’s face and laughed to myself, my chest tight, my head spinning and my gaze going in and out of focus.

I woke up to my phone ringing the next morning and the bed cold beside me.

“Hello?” I croaked into the phone, rubbing my eyes with my fingers.

“Did I wake you?” A snide voice made me sit up in alert. The sleep vanished from my eyes and I steeled my heart against the onslaught of insults about to come.

“N – No – I was awake,” I stuttered, getting out of bed like a guilty child.

“Oh ho, you think you can lie to me?” My mate’s mother snorted. “This is why you do not have a child. What responsible woman sleeps till nine in the morning?” She exclaimed and I winced, pulling the phone from my ear.

“Mum –“ I tried to explain but she cut me off.

“No. No! Let me finish! I heard you visited another fraudster yesterday so tell me, are you pregnant yet?” My throat tightened. I wanted to hide under the bed from the shame that washed over me. “Have you received a magical baby now?” She mocked. My throat dried up and my chest constricted.

“Mum –“ I started again but she cut me off with a growl that stunned me into silence.

“You’ve been mated to my son for over five years yet there is nothing to show for it.” Familiar words poured from her mouth. I hardened my heart but it was useless. Her words pierced deep into my heart.

“Mum, we – we are trying,” I explained but she snorted, the sound derisive and scornful.

“Mum? Mum!? Who is your mother? A barren woman like you can never come from me.”

“Mum!” I exclaimed, my mouth dropping open.

“Shut up! I said I am not your mother!” She exclaimed. “I knew from the minute he picked you that he was making a mistake but he refused to listen now look at the shame and disgrace you have brought to our family! Even his younger sister who has been mated less than a year is already expecting a child!” She yelled at me. I pictured her red and angry face through the tears gathered in my eyes. “Do you have a rock for a womb? You are nothing but bad luck! If you can’t give him an heir then leave him alone!”

“You –“ I bit my lip.

“Yes, I said it! Leave my son alone! Leave my family alone! You are unlucky so do us a favour and leave him!” She ended the call with that and for a long time after, I held the phone to my ear and replayed her words in my head.

Leave Jackson.

It would not be the first time she asked me to leave him. Even before we mated, Luna Martha never liked me but I loved Jackson.

When I heard the word ‘perfect,’ my mind always went to him. With his sandy blonde hair and blue eyes, his broad shoulders and his tall, lean build, he was a hard man to dislike. His looks coupled with his easy-going personality made him even more perfect. He smiled a lot and was genuinely kind. I loved Jackson before I understood what love meant so when he turned twenty-two and still hadn’t found his mate, I jumped for joy when he chose me.

Despite how much backlash he got from his mother for choosing me, he defended me. He loved me and I loved him. I considered myself lucky to be loved by a man like him. Even when people started to comment on my flat stomach, he stood by me but ever since a few months ago, things changed. I could not even say what happened. I just felt him pulling away from me.

The thought of life without Jackson filled me with a sort of fear that I could not explain. I gave up everything to be with him. I chose him over my dream college and dedicated myself to being the perfect Luna for him. If I lost Jackson –

I knew I was losing him and I knew the only thing amiss in our relationship was a child so I tried harder to conceive. Still, the goddess never looked my way once. The doctors said everything was fine. We were a normal couple so why couldn’t we have kids?

While I tried to get started with my day despite the harsh words that woke me and the building pain below my navel, my phone rang again. ‘Janet’ flashed on my screen and I sighed.

“Hello?” I swallowed thickly as my best friend’s voice filled my ear. Janet was my best friend and Jackson’s younger sister. We were inseparable as children but our relationship had become strained in the past few months.

“I hope you don’t feel bad,” she said when I couldn’t return her greeting. “Mum just called and I know she said some hurtful words but she doesn’t mean them,” she said and I let out a hoarse laugh.

“Look, we have all been patient enough. I am your friend so I want what’s best for you, okay? Try to conceive as soon as possible if you care about your marriage.” I listened to the dial tone as she ended the call.

‘How long?’ I muttered to myself as my eyes stung. ‘How long will it take?’ I touched my flat belly and gritted my teeth as a sob threatened to break out. I closed my eyes to hold back the tears gathering then my stomach turned and I rushed to the bathroom to throw up.

My back touched the cold tile of the bathroom wall and I let the tears fall. Burying my head between my knees, I screamed until I became breathless. I screamed until my throat felt too raw for me to continue, until my jaw hurt. My mind flashed to the previous night and my skin crawled. I felt cheap, dirty and disgusting.

My stomach lurched again and I leaned over the toilet as I retched, alone in the big house, alone and afraid of the future.

Pain ripped my insides and tears dripped out the corners of my eyes. I clenched and unclenched my fists, trying to be strong but the pain intensified and I ended up bawling like a baby.

The world seemed to be closing in on me. My hands and legs shook as I pushed myself to my feet. I washed my face and looked back at the ghost-like creature staring back at me with tired red eyes.

Another sharp pain pierced my stomach and I gasped. A wave of dizziness swept through me and I decided then that I had to go to the hospital. The hospital was a nightmare for me. I hated the hospital but as a sharp pain tore at my insides, I knew I had to go so I called my mate.

I called him the first time, the second and then the third. I called him as I panted for breath. I must have called him too many times because when I dialled him again, his line had been turned off.

I drove myself to the hospital.

One hand on the wheel and the other cradling my stomach, I drove myself to the hospital, hoping and praying not to crash the car.

“The gynaecologist is not – ” the receptionist said as soon as I walked in. “Hey – Luna – Are you okay?” She rushed out of her seat. It was a silly question to ask but I opened my mouth in a gasp.

“Any doctor –“ I could not complete my sentence as the ground rushed up to meet me.

I opened my eyes in a sterile white room and the first splash of colour I saw was a mop of sandy blonde hair.

“Jackson –“ I croaked, my throat burning as I did.

“Luna, you are awake.” The owner of the mop of sandy blonde hair similar to my mate’s gave me an awkward smile. The woman beside him mirrored his smile. “I am Doctor Fabian. We have met before, if you remember,” he said.

“My mate?” I looked around the room that was empty save for the doctor and nurse giving me awkward smiles.

“We’ve contacted the Alpha. He will be here as soon as he can,” the doctor assured me. “We contacted him a few hours ago so he should be here soon,” he added.

“How long was I out?” I asked.

“About four hours now. You seem to be suffering from both fatigue and food poisoning. May I ask what you have eaten in the past twenty-four hours? Can you remember? Has there been any change in your diet?” I avoided his gaze and swallowed.

Heat crept up my neck as I thought back to the previous day. My hands curled at my side as if to squash my mortification. How could I tell a doctor the shenanigans I engaged in yesterday? How would he look at me if he knew I drank the blood of an animal I killed myself? That may not even be the cause of my food poisoning considering the concoctions I had been taking for the past week.

“I’ve just been taking this and that,” I muttered in a small voice.

“I need you to be a bit more specific, please,” the doctor insisted so with a small voice and gritted teeth, I confessed all the mindless things I had done in the past week.

I chanced a glance at the doctor when I finished speaking and met an expressionless face but the nurse was not as skilled as he was in maintaining a blank face. Her lips were rounded and her eyes conveyed incredulity that made me redden further.

After my confession, the doctor placed me on watch for the next forty-eight hours. Since I did not know what went into the concoctions I had taken, there was a chance some of the substances were dangerous so I had to be monitored.

The next day, I was free to leave the hospital. Although I was grateful to be well again, I felt dread pool in my guts as I got into my car. The last forty-eight hours passed with relative peace. No one called to check on me but no one called to insult me either. I didn’t have to deal with the mocking or sympathetic looks of the pack members nor did I have to deal with the disgust in my mate’s eyes.

I drove myself back home in a hospital gown, a grim smile on my lips and a tightness in my chest. Going back to the real world filled me with anxiety. I didn’t know what to say to Jackson anymore. Should I confront him about abandoning me in the hospital? Should I say nothing to him? How long would I have to deal with his building hatred?

‘Leave him,’ a voice whispered to me and I pressed my lips together.

What would life without my mate be like? I could not think of who I was outside of Jackson’s Luna. If I broke our flimsy mate bond, I would no longer be the Luna of Blood Moon pack. Who then would I be?

I sat in my car for over twenty minutes after I pulled up at our home. My entire body felt too heavy to exit the car. A place which used to fill me with so much pride and joy now filled me with dread and anxiety as I stared at it.

Pushing my tired legs, I got out of the car and dragged myself to the house. The closer I got to the door, the faster my heart beat. I put in my keys to open the front door but met it unlocked. Why was Jackson home so early? My heart raced faster.

Pushing the door open like a criminal breaking in, I entered my home with shaky hands and feet, my breath hitching.

As an omega, I did not have the sharpest senses but I perceived an overwhelmingly foul odour as soon as I opened the door to the house. It took all of my willpower to drag myself up the stairs to our room and the closer I got to the room, the faster my heart beat and the harder it got to breathe.

My chest constricted when the obscene sounds floated into my ears. The door to my room – the room I shared with my mate – was slightly ajar and the sound and scent assailing my senses meant only one thing but I found it impossible to believe. I did not want to believe.

I peeked into the room before pushing the door ajar and stepping inside. My blood boiled. My hands were clenched at my side. My teeth gnashed hard against each other but when I opened my mouth, I could only make a small sound.

“Oh,” I muttered, the sound getting lost in the loud moans coming from my sister.

She noticed me first. Her eyes caught mine and the side of her lips rose in a smirk before she scrunched up her face and let out a loud moan. It sounded like a drowning dog.

“Yes – Ahh – yes – just like that – just like that, Jackie!” She moaned, wrapping her legs around my mate’s waist. My mate groaned, moving his hips faster as he pumped into my sister and my senses returned.

“What is this?” I found my voice and I shouted, feeling a rush of blood in my head. Tears blurred my vision but I blinked furiously.

“Ah – Argh!” Irene exclaimed, pushing Jackson away and scrambling for the covers as if she had just noticed my presence. My mate turned, caught my gaze and pursed his lips.

“Can you wait outside?” He said with a sigh as if I was the one defiling our marriage bed. He covered Irene like she was the most precious gift in the world while I remained motionless at the entrance.

“Chantelle!” He snapped when my legs refused to move and they unglued themselves from the ground. I ran from the room, stumbling my way down the stairs with blurred vision.

He was cheating on me.

It was something I never considered but it made sense. He already checked out of our relationship. I was the fool who kept striving to make things better. He found someone else already – my stepsister even!

Janet’s words from two days ago resounded in my head and I almost laughed through the tears pouring down my face and soaking my hospital gown. She knew about this. She knew her brother was cheating on me with my stepsister that’s why she warned me to conceive fast; before she did.

Who else knew?

I felt like a fool. All the signs were there. He stopped touching me and started looking at me like a piece of dog crap underneath his shoes but I refused to see the signs. I focused all my attention on building a family with him while he screwed my sister in our home, on our marriage bed which I excitedly picked out all those years ago.

“Such a fool,” I whispered, rocking myself back and forth in my seat. “Such a fool, Chantelle. Such a fool!”

“Chantelle, we need to talk.” My mate came down the stairs with my sister clad in his shirt.

“How long?” The words spilt from my lips.

“Do you really want to know?” He asked.

“You fucking bastard! How long have you been screwing my sister!” I screamed and the little bitch huddled into his side.

“Don’t – Don’t yell, Channy. Don’t scare the baby,” she mumbled, tears in her eyes as she cradled her stomach. I noticed the tiny bump and my heart sank to the ground.

“W – What?” I whispered, my jaw slackening.

“We are having a baby,” Irene said with a grin, wrapping her hand around Jackson’s waist and leaning against him. They looked like a picture-perfect couple. My jaw hurt from how hard I ground my teeth.

“Rena, can you give us a minute?” Jackson asked, stroking her hair. I watched everything with wide eyes and a sharp pain in my chest.

A part of me refused to believe all this was happening. It was almost impossible for me to come to terms with. This was my mate of five years, a man I loved with every fibre of my being, a man I believed would love me forever – he was holding another woman, expecting a child with another woman!

“I – but – but I don’t want to.” Irene stomped her foot, pouting. Her eyes filled with tears and my mate leaned down to kiss her lips. Right in my presence.

“It will only take a short time, I promise. Please, baby,” he pleaded and I blinked, once and then again, disbelief, anger and anguish warring inside me. Irene gave me a secret smile before she pouted again and then stormed up the stairs.

“Jackson, what is this? What is happening? What –“ My mind was a mess.

Irene was pregnant for Jackson? I tried touching my belly but my hands had grown weak. My whole body had become weak. I slumped into my seat and closed my eyes tightly.

It was all over. The one thing I was running away from without even admitting to myself that I was running from it had finally happened. My mate chose another woman. Our relationship – everything I had dedicated myself to for the last five years was all for nought. It was all over.

Tears gathered in my eyes but they did not fall. My hands shook so I clenched them into fists. A sob started in my throat. Everything I had gone through in the past few months flashed through my mind. The visits to the doctors, the tests, the visits to the temple, the donations, the concoctions, the deer’s blood, everything played in my head one after the other. Despite all I did, despite how I prayed and cried and hoped, everything was in vain. My tears were in vain. Everything.

“We could have – We could have adopted a baby,” I choked out, my eyes tightly shut and my fists clenched beside me.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Jackson said, his tone soft, reminding me of the man he once was – the man I fell in love with. “I’m sorry to inform you like this,” he said.

The worst part was how sorry he sounded. I heard the remorse in his voice and felt his sorrow pouring into me through our flimsy mate bond.

“Of all the women in the world – all the women you could have cheated on me with – why her?” I opened my eyes and he flinched. “Why would you betray me like this?”

“Is that what you are concerned about right now?” He asked avoiding my gaze.

“I am concerned about a lot of things,” I admitted. “I have a lot of questions but answer this. Why her?”

Although I called Irene my sister, she was, in actuality, my stepsister. My mother died when I was eight and a few months later, my father brought in another woman. The woman came with Irene.

A year older than me, I realized early that Irene was in competition with me. She never tried to hide it. If I had something, she wanted it. My father’s attention? It had to be hers. My dolls? Also hers. My room? Hers. Even the toys my mother bought me before she passed ended up in her possession. She had an unspoken rivalry with me and no matter how I tried to ignore her, she always found a way to insert herself into my life. Janet and I used to joke about Irene having an eye disease that made her go after everything she saw me with. There was nothing funny about her actions now.

“It just – It just happened,” Jackson said, raking a hand through his hair. “It’s not like I planned it. She was there and –“ He trailed off and I pursed my lips.

Did I feel better that he had not purposely pursued her? Knowing Irene, she must have gone after him to hurt me but it changed nothing. My mate cheated on me. There was no worse betrayal than this.

“We swore to each other – we swore to each other and you betray me like this?” I scrubbed my palms down my face. Anger and frustration burned inside me. Anguish, fear and wrath hit me from different angles.

“I am sorry. You don’t deserve any of this but – it happened,” Jackson said with pity in his voice. The anger in my guts flared.

“I don’t deserve any of this but you put me through all this! How long, huh? How long have you been screwing that bitch?”

“Channy –“ I shoved his shoulder as he moved closer to me.

“No, I’ve become Chantelle to you!” I hated how the tears I kept at bay spilt down my cheeks, slowly, then in a cascade with each passing second. “I did everything! Everything for you! I almost ruined my life trying to be everything you wanted and this is how you repay me?” I poked his shoulder. “Everything, Jackson, I gave up everything because I loved you. I love you!”

“I love you – I loved you – I don’t know anymore, Channy. You gotta understand, I am almost thirty. I need a child to succeed me –“ He grabbed my hand as I tried poking his shoulder again.

I didn’t mean to. It had never occurred to me to hit my mate but in that moment, my palm connected with his cheek and he lost it.

“Did I not try my best? Why would you – why would you –“ I buried my face in my palms as I burst into loud sobs. I was so preoccupied with my emotions that I did not notice the air turn frigid.

“Did you just hit me?” I heard a low growl that made me raise my head. I met the eyes of an Alpha that had me shrinking back.

“I – “ I flinched as his hand wrapped around my neck.

“How dare you hit me?” He growled, his eyes still blazing the red of his wolf. My wolf gnashed her teeth as he squeezed. “How dare you disrespect me?”

“Jackson,” I choked out, clawing at his hand.

“Did I make you barren? For five years, I kept a man beside me yet you have the audacity to complain? What did you do for me? You could not even perform the most basic function of a woman and you want to bitch?” He put his face closer to mine and growled, his breath on my face and his anger blazing. “Your only duty as my Luna was to give me pups but for five years you failed yet you want to talk to me about trying your best?”

“Jackson, I am your mate,” I reminded him, drawing blood from his hand wrapped around my neck as I clawed at him.

“Not anymore,” he answered. “I cannot continue to keep an empty woman beside me out of pity.” His hand fell from my neck and I massaged the reddened area. “It took Irene one day to do what you could not in five years. If you are so curious, she’s three months pregnant,” he spat. “I put up with a lot for you. I respected you even if you are not worthy of respect.” He stood and glared down at me. “Irene is pregnant with my child so she is the only person worthy of standing beside me, not a board like you. We will break this curse called a mate bond tomorrow.”

He left me with those parting words. He left me to join Irene. Left alone in the living room, I bawled my eyes out. I tried to come up with a plan, tried to think of what to do but nothing came to mind.

Irene was pregnant. Three months pregnant. I thought back to when I noticed him pulling away from me, when I became desperate to have a child to get his attention back on me. At that time, I should have known something was wrong. I should have known but I chose to be blind, desperately looking for a means to conceive for a man who was done with me already. I laughed through my tears, the sound broken and wretched.

I picked up my phone, feeling my world caving in on itself. Scrolling through my contacts, I looked for a name to click on, a friend to share this crushing burden with. My hands stopped over Janet’s and my sobs grew louder.

She knew.

Janet knew what was happening while I called her crying all the time.

The realization that I had no one in my corner made me sob harder. I bawled my eyes out for goddess knew how long but then I picked myself up.

I was a crier but I did not cry for long. I would not cry for long. Not for a man who made it clear my tears were worth nothing.

I packed my things.

When I started decorating this house, I decorated it as my home. I never dreamt I would leave my home, especially not like this.

Pausing for a minute, I took a final look around the room I shared with my mate for the last five years. This room had been my safe space, a place filled with laughter and warmth. Now, it was a place I could not call mine anymore. I could not even take a proper look at the bed I once shared with my mate as it was now stamped with infidelity.

I loaded everything I owned into two suitcases, making sure not to leave anything behind. This space was for Irene now and I could not bear the thought of her using my things or even throwing them out in scorn.

As I zipped up the second suitcase, the bedroom door opened and I stiffened.

“Are you upset?” I raised my head to see Irene smirking down at me. Ignoring her, I went back to closing my suitcase but she refused to be ignored. “How does it feel to lose to me?” She asked but I continued to ignore her.

“You know,” she continued, “I have always hated you. You’ve always had an easy life. I've had to work hard for everything I have while you got handed everything.” I didn’t know what she was talking about and I couldn’t be bothered to learn. It wasn’t news that Irene was envious of me but asides from envious, she seemed to be delusional as well.

When I finished packing up my things, I rolled my suitcase with me but the vixen blocked my path.

“You still do not know your place,” she sneered. “You cannot ignore me anymore. I will be your Luna soon!” She hissed in my face.

“Irene,” I called her name in a warning tone.

“There you go acting all high and mighty again!” She stomped her foot. “I orchestrated all this. You lost your mate because of me! It’s time to get off your high horse and realize that you are beneath me!”

“Is that what you want?” I asked and she shrugged.

“It’s one of the many things I want.”

“Would you like me to congratulate you?”

“W - What?” She flinched as I glared at her.

My eyes were swollen and heavy from all the tears I shed. My heart was bleeding. Nothing felt right and it was partly because of this woman; a nasty person who had a habit of snatching up my things so she could relish a sickening sense of victory. I didn’t know why she always competed with me but I did not care then as anguish ripped into my heart.

“You won. Would you like me to congratulate you?” I repeated and she pursed her lips.

When she stole my dolls, I let her go. When she manipulated my friends into ditching me for her, I let them go. Even when she started to fight for my father’s attention, I let her be. She was eager to break me down and trample on me so she could laugh but I was not going to let her see how much she hurt me this time; would not let her know she had shattered every last piece of me. I did not want to give her that satisfaction.

“You –“ She started but the sound of approaching footsteps made her pause.

“What did you say to her?” Jackson demanded, coming to stand beside Irene as he glared at me.

“Jackie, I tried making her understand our situation but she refused to speak to me. She doesn’t acknowledge me as your Luna and your baby doesn’t like that.”

Although she used her usual falsetto that made her sound like a naïve and innocent child, I knew she was mocking me as she emphasized the word ‘baby.’ Irene had a talent for pretending. No matter what she did, no one ever suspected her of having ill intentions.

“Just let her leave. There’s no need for you to explain anything to her. You did nothing wrong,” Jackson responded and I gritted my teeth.

“B – But where would she go? You can’t go back home, sister, and you are not the Luna anymore so you need my approval to stay in the pack house. Isn’t it best you stay with Jackie and I?” I choked at those words. “Think of it. The house is big and lonely so I need someone to keep me company when Jackie is at work.” She widened her eyes, blinking innocently as she twirled a strand of hair.

“I am still the Luna of this pack.” Those were the only words I could muster.

Seeing my mate standing beside another woman cut my already bruised heart and knowing that he was standing with her against me made everything so much worse.

Rather than torturing myself by watching these two, I brushed past them but Irene rushed to block my path. I skidded to a halt as she blocked me but to my utter amazement, she screamed and tumbled to the ground.

Jackson caught her right before she hit the floor, picking her up bridal style. Then he turned to me with eyes that showed his wolf was at the forefront.

“I didn’t do anything!” I exclaimed before he could speak, my senses screaming danger, but then Irene pointed a shaky finger at me.

“Sister – Sister Channy, why did you push me? Do you – Do you hate me that much?” Her clear eyes filled with tears in the blink of an eye. “Are you angry because – because of the baby?” She touched her stomach. “I did it for you!” She suddenly exclaimed. “I did it for you. I thought – I thought you would be happy for me. Isn’t it better for your sister to birth the next heir than for another woman to snatch up the position? I feared you would resent me but this – do you also resent my baby? Are you trying to hurt my baby?!”

I never wanted to cuss as much as I did then. It was the worst script she ever acted out but Jackson was eating it up.

Did what for me? Ruined my mating? My life? There were so many things I wanted to scream at her but the fire burning in Jackson’s eyes held my tongue.

“You – You –“ His nostrils flared as his eyes darkened. “You are really a curse,” he spat out. “After everything – I put up with you – so long –“ Anger distorted his words. The angrier he got, the harder it became for him to put sentences together. “Everything I endured – and you – you want to harm my child –“ He strode forward and laid Irene on the bed. Our bed.

I wanted to laugh, cry and scream all at once. Life was unfair. Life had always been unfair to me but never to this extent. I was losing everything in the blink of an eye and as if it was not enough, I had to watch the man I loved hold another woman and accuse me of trying to harm their child.

“Chantelle –“ He turned to me again but Irene tugged at his sleeve. He bent over as she whispered into his ears. It was such an intimate sight to behold that I felt fresh tears cloud my gaze. “You are right,” he said, nodding as he straightened and glared at me. “Come here.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the house.

“Where are you taking me?” I struggled against his grip, trying to resist as he pulled me but I was not strong enough to resist a full-fledged alpha. “Where are you taking me?” I exclaimed as he flung me into the car.

“Stay!” He growled, making me flinch.

“Jackson –“ I called, my heart beating from my throat as he got into the driver’s seat.

“That’s Alpha Jackson to you,” he snarled, pulling out of the driveway with a screech of tires. He drove like a madman, his eyes glazing over as he mind linked someone while I chanted prayers to the goddess to save us from his rough driving.

We arrived at the pack house in no time. Jackson dragged me out of his car and into the lobby of the pack house. People passing by stopped to stare and in the blink of an eye, the place began to fill up. Two elders arrived in less than five minutes and I finally understood what was happening.

“Luna Chantelle,” the oldest of the two elders addressed me as he walked over. “The Alpha has asked to sever his bond with you. Do you agree to this?” I swallowed thickly through a tight throat, feeling my heart constrict.

He was breaking our bond.

More people trooped out. The excitement in the air was palpable. I dared not look into anyone’s face, fearing to see the excitement I felt in the air mirrored in their eyes. Although I could not pretend to be a perfect person, I had tried in my own way to be a good Luna to these wolves. I went above and beyond to serve them and make the pack a home for each of these wolves. Yet it seemed they had all been waiting for my downfall.

“I agree,” I answered the elder.

A part of me wanted to disagree. My wolf whimpered in frustration. Although Jackson was not her predestined mate, we had come to love him. I loved this man with every fibre of my being but love was not enough. I was not enough.

There was no reason for me to disagree, no reason to drag things out. I could no longer hold on to a man who had long since let go of me – of us.

“Luna Chantelle, you have failed as a Luna to the wolves of Blood Moon. For this reason, I shall relieve you of your bond to the Alpha and the pack.” A woman ran forward with a knife as soon as the elder turned. As if on cue, she handed it to him and I stretched out my palm. He made a slight cut on my palm and repeated the action on Jackson.

“You may proceed with the rejection, Alpha.” The elder took a step back as Jackson turned to me with his eyes still blazing with fury.

“I, Jackson Knight of Blood Moon, renounce you, Chantelle Park, as my mate and Luna. I renounce the bond we shared and the oaths we pledged.” A fire started in my guts, licking up to my chest and then burning my throat.

“I – I accept the renouncement.” My wolf howled. My chin trembled and my vision blurred. I clenched my fists at my sides, my nails digging into the cut in my palm.

“We stand as your witnesses. It is done.” The elder declared and I heaved a sigh of relief.

I did not know what to expect from annulling a bond but despite the weight of despair crushing me, I felt a lick of relief.

For the last few months, I had carried an invisible burden while walking on eggshells around my mate and pack but now – now it felt like the boulder crushing my chest had lifted.

The elders dispersed. Jackson left me behind without a second glance. The crowd thinned out and I was left alone in the lobby of the pack house.

For a brief and crazy second, I considered getting on my knees, grabbing my mate’s legs and begging him to forgive me, to love me as he once did but I reminded myself he was no longer my mate. He renounced the last five years.

I don’t know if I cried but my legs carried me away from the pack house. There was nothing on my mind as my legs moved. I went about without thought or direction, my feet controlling my entire being.

My wolf howled multiple times. I stopped to stare at the moon as she climbed. Numbness spread through me as I walked and I had a fleeting thought of walking forever. Walking away the pain and anguish suffocating me.

I wandered until my legs ached and my stomach growled. Then I stopped underneath a streetlight.

Where would I go? I had become homeless in the blink of an eye. I could not stay in the pack house now. There was nothing on me – no phone, no money, and no plan.

To stop the emotions about to drown me, I continued to walk and my feet carried me to the first place I ever called home. My father and his wife were out of town at the moment so there would be no one in the house. I let myself in using the spare key always kept underneath a potted plant at the entrance then I dragged myself up to my old room, wondering what Irene would have turned it into.

Pushing the door open, I took a step in and then I froze. It was a scene I had seen earlier in the day; Irene naked on my bed but this time – this time it was not with Jackson.