Chapter 5
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Anger brews in the pit of my stomach, simmering until it feels ready to explode.
I feel like a wolf–so dejected, replaced, and heartbroken. If this were Clara, I would be standing up for her. I would be the first person to put myself out there to make sure my friend wasn’t getting hurt. And here I am, cowering.
I take a deep breath. I stand up and begin to clap alongside the pack. Some people’s eyes widen, but I keep my glare on Bren.
I stand there, clapping slowly. Everyone around me is gradually sitting back down, but I stay standing, letting the noise of my claps echo through the clearing long after everyone else has stopped. It practically sounds like little bombs going off with how quiet it’s gotten. Almost as if the owls and crickets themselves have decided to go silent.
Bren’s eyes are narrowed at me. His alpha aura begins to radiate as his displeasure grows. I can’t be bothered to look at Emery.
God, I don’t give a s**t about Emery. If she wants to be with someone who isn’t meant for her, kudos to her. She’s never once done anything hurtful toward me, but what kind of sadistic
b***h takes a place as Luna when they haven’t even found their mate yet?
I finally finish clapping, grabbing someone’s glass from the table. I’m not sure what’s in it, but
it’s red and smells like wine. Raising it quickly, I say, “To the strength of the pack.”
I chug it down before dropping the glass haphazardly and taking my seat. My eyes never waver from Bren. Even from the very back, I can see his jaw clenching and unclenching, like he’s trying to figure out what to do.
Jake stands up beside his Alpha, taking his position at the microphone. Bren and my staring
contest creates a tension in the air that could be cut with a butter knife. “To the strength of
the pack, Jake toasts with his own glass.
Everyone raises their glasses. Jake clears his throat. “Dismissed.”
I stay grounded in my seat as everyone around me begins to leave. Clara stays by my side, the corner of her lips raised in a smirk.
She knows very well that I’ve pissed off the Alpha.
But what more could he possibly do?
Jake and Emery try to console Bren. The anger pulsing off him is so strong, I could almost see waves of red. With a few words of encouragement, Bren takes a few deep breaths. Just as the
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last of our pack is out of earshot, he begins to stalk toward me, despite Emery trying to hold him back. He brushes her off, practically stomping his way.
“What the f**k was that?” Bren seethes.
“f**k you,” I spit back. My wolf practically faints in my head. She seriously cannot believe I dropped the F–bomb on the Alpha.
“How f*****g dare you disrespect your Alpha.” Bren’s eyes turn black, his breathing getting heavier. “You’re going to regret ever stepping foot here. You f*****g hear me, Mia?”
His fists are clenched at his sides; I can tell he’s trying to prevent his wolf from coming out, but the tips of his canines are slightly sharper than they were before. When he says my name,
it’s laced with venom.
I slowly stand up in front of him, letting my own anger give me the courage to get up in his face. Clara backs me up, but Bren doesn’t even seem to notice. She might as well be a pesky fly to him.
I look him dead in the eyes. “You’re going to regret rejecting me, Bren. You’re not as strong as
you think you are.”
I don’t want to piss him off too much, or his wolf is going to come out and bite my head off. Bren’s wolf is not something I want to cross. He’s huge, aggressive, and temperamental. I
quickly turn on my heels, holding my head up as I grab Clara’s arm and drag her alongside me.
I hold my composure enough to walk calmly out of the clearing, but my heart is racing a
million miles a minute. It’s only once we’re out of sight and hearing range that I turn toward a
bush and puke my guts out. Clara rubs my back soothingly.
“You’re badass, Mia,” Clara reassures me.
“Don’t you f*****g forget it.”
I wipe the back of my hand across my mouth.
The anger is basically gone from my body alongside the vomit. Now I’m just tired and drained.
I feel the reality hit me that Bren is going to be mated with Emery all because of what?
Because of the standard in our pack that physical strength is the only strength?
What about mental? Emotional?
I glance down at my wrist, where I’m supposed to have my ceremonial mark. The pack mark that I’ve been wishing for my whole life. Relief floods me as I realize I don’t have to be here. My wolf begins to panic in my head. The thought of going rogue jolts her out of her depressed
trance.
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“I have to leave,” I say to Clara, just above a whisper.
She starts shaking her head. “No. You need to stay. You need to be around for when Bren comes to his senses.”
“No, Clara,” I rub my face. “He’s publicly humiliated me in front of the entire pack. They’re only ever going to look at me like… some sort of pup.”
“What if you leave and people think that’s weak?” she counters. “Mia, we need you! You’re the true Luna, not Emery.”
My breath goes shaky as I stare out into the forest. I can’t stay here and watch my mate get on with another werewolf. The only person I have is Clara. My parents aren’t even here.
They’re gone.
I turn to Clara, her frustration suddenly turning into sadness. Her bottom lip starts to quiver. She knows what I’m thinking. She knows she can’t change my mind.
“Mia.” Her eyes start to water. “You can’t really go.”
I take a deep breath. The shame is pushing me down into the ground. I doubt I’ll be able to overcome this if I don’t put some distance between us. It’s almost too much to bear being surrounded by people who either won’t respect me or will pity me. I’ll never be Mia again. Just ‘Alpha Bren’s rejected mate.‘
“I have to, Clara.” I begin to pull her toward my house. “I need a fresh start.”
Clara doesn’t say anything as we walk back to my house. She even helps me pack a small backpack with essentials before walking me toward the edge of the forest. I’ll miss the flatlands here. We’re not so north, after all. I’ll miss the river and the beautiful clearings. A change could be exactly what I need.
By the time I’m standing on the edge of the forest, the moon is shining brightly. It took much longer to pack my essentials than I thought.
Suddenly, I feel Clara’s arms wrap around me in a close embrace. She sniffles against my shoulder, and I realize how much it’s going to hurt not waking up next to her every day when our alarms go off. How I’ll miss our weekends together, our gossip about the members of our
pack. How I’ll miss running with her through the woods and swimming in the river.
“Take this.” She quickly takes off her necklace.
It’s a pendant I got her on her eighteenth birthday. Something small but everlasting to
showcase how much we care for one another.
I gently place it in my backpack so as not to break it once I shift, smiling sadly and keeping
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my composure so I don’t start crying.
“I’ll call you when I’m safe, okay?”
Clara nods. “Okay. Take care of yourself, Mia. I know how strong you are.”
I give her another quick hug before turning around. I turn my back on the pack I’ve called home my whole life. The pack where my mate is currently residing. I pull the straps of my backpack, looking up at the full moon to give me light into the dark forest.
I feel the wolf inside me stir nervously, mixed emotions running through her, realizing that we’ll
no longer be strength in numbers but must be strong alone. There’s only one place I think we
can go. I let her take over my body, landing on four feet instead of two.
Taking my backpack into my mouth, I start running into the forest.
