The morning light pierced through a mist to fall upon the Silverpine compound in a silvery glow. A mysterious calm had befallen the land, the kind that precedes grandness. Wolves moved among the trees, low and stealthy in voice, curious or somber in eye.
Today was not a day to be celebrated. It was a day of reckoning.
Word had spread in a flash: the Alpha would be attending the Ceremony of Rejection at sundown.
The ritual that was only performed so rarely was symbolic — a ritual severing of a mate bond before it had a chance to set and harden. It was an old custom, a final rejection before the bond had set and was indelible. Most wolves never witness one in a lifetime. And now the pack would witness their new Alpha reject the mate chosen for him.
Mia perched on the edge of her bed, fists clenched in her lap, her skin chilled through to the core in spite of the clothing layered upon her. Ember paced before her, red curls in disarray, flushed face twisted in anger.
You don't have to go," Ember said tightly. "You can go immediately. No one can force you to be there and be embarrassed."
Mia swallowed hard. "If I flee away from here, they will tell me that I never had the strength to be Luna. That I failed."
"You're not a failure," Ember snapped. "You're the only one doing anything with honor here."
Mia had already made up her mind, though.
I have to confront him. If he is going to reject me, I have to see it. Hear it. So that it never haunts me with what ifs.
Ember knelt beside her. "I'll be there. You won't be alone."
Mia nodded but inwardly realized — in that very moment, she would be alone.
As the sun dipped towards the trees, the pack gathered in the Sacred Circle — an open area bordered with carved stones, set aside only for the most important rituals.
Mia stood on one side, wearing a simple white cloak. The wind tousled her hair as she glanced over the circle to Lucas.
His face was stone-like.
His broad frame was clad in the ritualistic black of an Alpha — embroidered with silvery wolves that shone in the light of the sinking sun.His jaw clenched hard, his arms crossed over his back.
Elder Garran held his staff between them.
"Tonight," he said in his deep voice, "we enact an old ritual — to uphold the will of the pack and the freedom of our wolves. When a relationship has grown incompatible with command, it must be severed before becoming law."
Mia's heart thudded in her ears. Lucas met her eye.
There was something in there — regret, pain, maybe even love. But nothing came from his mouth.
Elder Garran addressed Lucas. "You, Lucas Greywind, Alpha of the pack of Silverpine, do you renounce the mate bond the moon has placed upon you and relinquish claim to Mia Thompson to be your Luna?"
The silence between them was like a knife.
Lucas opened his mouth and waited.
His wolf raged within him, barking, scratching, in revolt.
And he sensed them — the elders' eyes, the pack leaders' eyes, the crowd's eyes, waiting to see him falter.
"I," he began
Mia's breath caught.
"I renounce the bond," Lucas spoke in a low and raspy voice. "For the pack's benefit."
The words hit her in the face. White-hot agony scorched her chest. Her wolf yelped and flinched away, the connection tearing apart like fabric ripped from seams. A burst of agony flared in her head. She stumbled but didn't collapse.
She would not grant them the satisfaction
Elder Garran addressed her. "And you, Mia Thompson, do you relinquish the claim to the bond and accept the Alpha's rejection?"
Mia looked at Lucas. His expression had turned expressionless. The mask had come up.
But she saw it — the glimmer of pain beneath.
She lifted her chin.
I do.
The words tasted like ash.
A gust of wind swept through the glade and scattered whispers and leaves in all directions. The ritual was finished. The link was broken.
For Mia knew well — the pain would not go away so easily
Later, with the stars shining overhead, Lucas stood alone at the edge of the woods. The darkness was motionless, but his wolf was not. It seethed inside him, battered and furious. He felt the echo of the bond still within him, weak but real — a wound that would not heal.
He had fulfilled what was expected of him. What was needed!
So why had he felt he had torn his soul in two?
A gentle voice in his back said, "You made the choice."
He turned to find Ember standing there, arms folded, defiance in her eyes.
I did what needed to be done
"No," she said and took a step forward. "You did what they told you to do. But don't worry — Mia's stronger than you think. She'll come through this."
Lucas grimaced
"I hope you can too," Ember stated and left.
Lucas stared into the dark woods, but he only saw the look on Mia's face when he had spoken those words to her.
And the emptiness that follows!