Reborn to Reject: My Fated Alpha is Obsessed With Me

 The wind howled like a thousand scorned souls, sharp and frigid as a shard of ice, tearing through Elaine's tattered dress and straight into the hollow cavity where her wolf core should have been. Beneath her, the jagged rocks of the Howling Peaks jutted out like the bared teeth of a beast, cloaked in a thick layer of snow that glinted pale and cruel under the dim, blood-red moon. Her bare feet scraped against the icy edge of the cliff, every tremor threatening to send her plummeting into the endless black void below. The only thing keeping her upright was the iron grip on her upper arm, fingers digging so deep into her flesh that they would leave bruises, if she lived long enough for them to form. She didn't need to look up to know who held her. She knew the scent of him better than she knew her own—cedar and smoke, the warm, honeyed undertones she'd once thought meant safety, meant love. For two years, she'd clung to that scent like a lifeline. For two years, she'd given Brian everything: her trust, her loyalty, the rare, sacred Lunar Goddess bloodline that had run through her veins for generations, a gift so rare that even the Alpha King himself had once sought an audience with the wolf who bore it. And now, he was going to kill her with it. "Aw, look at her," a high, syrupy voice crooned from beside him, sweet as poisoned candy. Lena stepped into her line of sight, her perfectly curled blonde hair catching the moonlight, her pink lips twisted into a sneer that didn't match the innocent, wide-eyed look she'd worn for the past year as Elaine's "beloved stepsister." She twirled a lock of hair around her finger, her gaze raking over Elaine's broken, bleeding body with unmasked contempt. "She looks like a kicked puppy. It's almost sad. Almost." Elaine's throat burned, raw and torn from hours of screaming, of begging. Her voice came out as little more than a ragged whisper, every word scraping against her inflamed vocal cords like sandpaper. "Why?" It was the only question she had left. The only thing that mattered, as the last dregs of her power seeped out of her, as her wolf core lay shattered and useless in her chest, drained dry by the very man she'd thought was her forever. She'd been so stupid. So blind. So love-blind, as the rest of the pack had mocked her behind her back, for two whole years. Brian laughed, a cold, harsh sound that cut through the howling wind, and tightened his grip on her arm until Elaine whimpered, white-hot pain shooting up her shoulder. He leaned down, his face inches from hers, and for the first time, she saw the man he'd been hiding all along. No warm smile. No gentle eyes. Just a cold, greedy emptiness, a hunger that she'd spent two years feeding, and still it had never been enough. "Why?" he repeated, his voice dripping with mockery. "You really never figured it out, did you? You stupid, naive little thing. You really thought a Beta like me would ever want a worthless, weak little she-wolf from the forgotten side branches of the pack? I wanted the bloodline. The Lunar Goddess power that you threw at my feet like a lovesick fool, every single time I asked." He shook her, hard, and Elaine's head lolled to the side, her vision blurring at the edges. The cold was seeping into her bones now, freezing her from the inside out. She could barely feel her fingers, her toes. She could barely feel anything, except the sharp, searing pain of betrayal, cutting deeper than any wound ever could. "Your mother was a fool too," Lena chimed in, stepping closer, her heel digging into Elaine's bare ankle, hard enough to break the skin. Elaine flinched, and Lena smiled, sharp and triumphant. "She thought my father loved her? He just wanted access to the bloodline, same as Brian. When she refused to hand it over, well… that cliffside accident wasn't really an accident, was it? And your father? Poor thing, he was so heartbroken he didn't even notice we were poisoning his tea, slow and steady, until his heart gave out." The world tilted. Elaine's breath caught in her throat, a ragged, choking sound. Her parents. She'd grieved them for years, blamed herself for not being there, for not being strong enough to save them. And all this time… it had been them. Lena. Her father. Brian. They'd killed her parents. They'd taken everything from her. Her family. Her home. Her power. Her life. "You…" Elaine's body shook, not from the cold, but from a white-hot, searing rage that burned through her even as her strength faded. "You killed them. You killed my parents." "Of course we did," Brian said, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "They were in the way. And then you were just so easy. So desperate for someone to love you, so eager to give away the one thing that made you worth anything. You really thought I cared about you? That I'd ever marry you? You're nothing. A nobody. A waste of space." He leaned in closer, his breath hot against her ear, his voice dropping to a venomous whisper. "And that little ceremony you were planning? The one where you were going to give me the last of your bloodline power, as a mating gift? We didn't even need to wait for that. We drained the last of it from you an hour ago. Your wolf core is broken. Your power is gone. You're useless to us now." Elaine's eyes went wide. The mating ceremony. Her 18th birthday. The coming of age ceremony, where she'd planned to stand in front of the entire pack, to confess her love to Brian, to accept his mating proposal, to give him the last of her power as a symbol of her devotion. That was the day her life had fallen apart. That was the day the nightmare had started. And now, here she was, not even a year later, broken, powerless, about to die at the hands of the two people she'd trusted most in the world. "Please," she whispered, the last of her pride crumbling away, tears freezing on her cheeks as they fell. "Please don't do this. I won't tell anyone. I'll leave the pack. I'll never bother you again. Just let me live." Lena laughed, high and cruel, and reached out, tangling her fingers in Elaine's matted hair, yanking her head back hard enough that Elaine cried out. "Let you live? Why would we do that? So you can run to the Alpha King? So you can tattle on us? No. We can't have that. The only way this stays a secret is if you're dead at the bottom of this cliff. And besides… I've wanted to see you broken for years. You always thought you were so much better than me, with your stupid bloodline, your stupid little crush. Look at you now. Pathetic." She let go of Elaine's hair, and nodded at Brian. A cold, terrible dread settled in Elaine's stomach. "Goodbye, Elaine," Brian said, his voice empty of any emotion at all. "It was fun while it lasted." And then he let go. For a split second, she hung in the air, weightless, the wind screaming in her ears. Then gravity took hold, and she fell. Down. Down. Down into the endless black void, the jagged rocks rushing up to meet her, the last thing she heard the sound of Brian and Lena's laughter, echoing off the cliff face, fading as the world went dark. She was going to die. Alone. Betrayed. Broken. She'd wasted her entire life loving the wrong people. She'd thrown away her power, her family's legacy, her future, for a man who'd never cared about her at all. She'd let Lena walk all over her, let her steal everything, right under her nose. She'd been weak. Stupid. Naive. And now she was going to pay for it with her life. I'm sorry, Mom. Dad. I'm sorry I let you down. I'm sorry I didn't see the truth sooner. If I get a second chance… I'll make them pay. I'll make every single person who ever hurt me, who ever laughed at me, who ever betrayed me, burn for what they've done. I'll never be weak again. I'll never be love-blind again. I'll take back everything that's mine. The darkness closed in. And then, just as the rocks were about to tear her apart, she heard it. A roar. A deafening, earth-shattering roar, so loud it split the sky, so powerful it made the very mountains tremble. It was a roar of pure, unadulterated rage. Of grief. Of a pain so deep it could level the world. She didn't understand. She was dying. She was hallucinating. But then, through the darkness, she saw him. A wolf. A massive, pitch-black wolf, his fur like liquid night, his eyes blazing bright, burning scarlet, brighter than the blood moon above. He was the biggest wolf she'd ever seen, the most powerful, his very presence making the air crackle with raw, unfiltered Alpha power. Power so strong it made her broken wolf core tremble, even in death. She knew who he was. Every wolf in the pack knew who he was. Alphard. The Alpha King. The supreme ruler of the entire Black Moon Pack. The oldest, most powerful Alpha to walk the earth in three hundred years. The man who'd sat on the throne, cold and unapproachable, at every pack gathering, his gaze never lingering on anyone, his face never showing any emotion, a man so untouchable that even the highest-ranking Alphas in the pack dared not speak to him unless spoken to first. She'd never dared to even look at him for too long. She'd always thought he was too far above her, too powerful, too important to notice a worthless little she-wolf from the side branches of the pack. But now, he was here. And he was furious. Through the fading darkness, she watched as he launched himself at the cliff top, as Brian and Lena's laughter turned to screams of terror. She watched as he tore through the pack warriors who'd stood guard, as he ripped apart anyone who stood in his way, his claws bared, his teeth stained red with blood. She watched as he razed everything in his path, as the cliff top burned, as the entire traitor clan fell to his wrath. He was doing it for her. He was avenging her. Why? She didn't have time to wonder. The darkness was pulling her under, her vision fading fast. But the last thing she saw, before everything went black forever, was him. He'd jumped off the cliff. He'd shifted back into his human form, his tall, broad frame cutting through the air as he fell, his scarlet eyes locked on hers, his face twisted with a grief so raw it made her chest ache. He reached for her, his strong hands wrapping around her broken, lifeless body, pulling her tight against his chest, his chin resting on the top of her head. She could hear his heart, beating wildly against his chest, even as hers stopped. She could hear his voice, deep and broken, whispering against her hair, words that would echo in her soul even in death. "Elaine. My Elaine. I'm so sorry I didn't protect you. I'm so sorry I waited too long. I've loved you since the day you were born. Since the first time I heard your laugh. You were always mine. Only mine." His hand cupped her cheek, his thumb brushing away the frozen tears on her face. His voice cracked, raw and broken, as he pressed a kiss to her cold forehead. "I won't let you be alone. I'll burn the world that hurt you. And then I'll come find you. Wait for me, my love. Wait for me." The world went black. And then, suddenly, there was light. Warm, golden, bright light, flooding her senses, chasing away the cold, the darkness, the pain. Elaine's eyes flew open. She gasped, a deep, ragged breath, her chest heaving, her heart slamming against her ribs so hard she thought it would burst out of her chest. For a split second, she was back on that cliff, falling, dying, the wind screaming in her ears. But then her senses caught up, and she realized she wasn't falling anymore. She was standing. Her feet were on solid ground, warm and carpeted, not icy rock. Her body didn't hurt. Her arm wasn't bruised. Her ankle wasn't bleeding. Her chest didn't ache with the pain of a shattered wolf core. She could feel it, strong and steady, thrumming with power in her chest, whole and complete, just like it had been before Brian had drained it dry. She lifted her hands, staring at them. They were smooth, unblemished, warm. No scrapes. No bruises. No blood. She flexed her fingers, feeling the strength in them, the life. She brought a hand up to her chest, pressing it against her heart, feeling it beat, fast and alive. She was alive. How? She'd died. She'd fallen off the cliff. She'd felt her heart stop. She'd heard Alphard's voice, felt his arms around her. She'd been dead. So why was she here? Where was here? She looked around, her eyes wide, her breath still coming in shaky gasps. She was in the grand ballroom of the Black Moon Pack's main palace. The ceiling soared high above her, lined with glittering crystal chandeliers that cast warm, golden light over every corner of the room. The walls were lined with dark oak paneling, hung with ancient tapestries depicting the pack's history. The floor was covered in thick, plush black carpet, muffling the sound of the chatter and laughter around her. There were hundreds of wolves here, all dressed in their finest formal wear, their voices mixing with the soft, melodic sound of the live band playing in the corner. The air smelled like champagne, and sweet pastries, and the mixed scents of dozens of wolves, all happy, all celebratory. And then she saw it. The banner hanging above the grand staircase, written in elegant silver script: HAPPY 18TH BIRTHDAY & COMING OF AGE CEREMONY, ELAINE. No. No, it couldn't be. Her 18th birthday. The coming of age ceremony. The day she'd confessed her love to Brian. The day her entire life had fallen apart. The day the nightmare had started. She'd died almost a year after that day. She'd been 19 when Brian and Lena had pushed her off that cliff. But now… she was back. She was back on her 18th birthday. At the coming of age ceremony. The very start of it all. She was reborn. A hysterical laugh bubbled up in her throat, half-mad, half-disbelieving, tears stinging at the corners of her eyes. She clapped a hand over her mouth to muffle it, her legs shaking so bad she thought she might collapse. It was real. It wasn't a dream. It wasn't a hallucination. She was back. She had a second chance. The words she'd whispered as she fell, the promise she'd made to herself, echoed in her head. If I get a second chance… I'll make them pay. I'll make every single person who ever hurt me burn. I'll never be weak again. I'll never be love-blind again. I'll take back everything that's mine. Her hand dropped from her mouth, her fingers curling into tight fists at her sides. The hysterical laughter faded, replaced by a cold, steely resolve that settled in her chest, heavy and unshakable. The tears in her eyes dried, replaced by a sharp, icy fire. She wasn't that naive, love-blind little girl anymore. She was the woman who'd been betrayed. Who'd been broken. Who'd died with a heart full of rage and regret. And now she was back, and she knew exactly how the story ended. She knew every secret. Every lie. Every dirty trick Brian and Lena had up their sleeves. And this time, she wasn't going to let them win. This time, she was going to ruin them. "Elaine? Hey, earth to Elaine?" A high, sweet voice pulled her out of her thoughts, and Elaine's entire body went rigid. She knew that voice. She'd heard it in her nightmares, every single night since she'd died. She'd heard it laughing as she fell off that cliff. Slowly, she turned. Lena was standing there, looking exactly like she had on this day, two years ago in her past life. Her blonde hair was curled perfectly, falling in loose waves over her shoulders, her dress a soft pink that made her look innocent and sweet, her big blue eyes wide with fake concern. She reached out, putting a hand on Elaine's arm, and Elaine had to fight every instinct in her body not to flinch away, not to grab her wrist and snap it in half right there. Not yet. She couldn't do it yet. She needed to play this right. She needed to make them hurt, just like they'd hurt her. But she needed to do it slow. To make them watch as everything they'd ever wanted slipped through their fingers, just like she had. "Are you okay?" Lena asked, tilting her head to the side, her voice full of fake sympathy. "You look like you've seen a ghost. Are you nervous? It's okay, everyone gets nervous before they confess. Especially to someone as perfect as Brian." There it was. The push. The same push she'd given her in her past life. The push that had sent her walking across this very ballroom, to stand in front of Brian, to confess her love in front of the entire pack, to make a fool of herself, to start the chain of events that had led to her death. In her past life, she'd smiled at Lena, grateful for the support, for the encouragement. She'd thought Lena was on her side, that she was her best friend, her sister. She'd squeezed her hand, and said "You're right. I can do this." And then she'd walked to her doom. Not this time. Elaine looked down at Lena's hand on her arm, her gaze cold and empty, and Lena blinked, a flicker of confusion crossing her face. She'd never seen Elaine look at her like this before. Never cold. Never sharp. Never like she saw right through her. Elaine lifted her hand, slowly peeling Lena's fingers off her arm, one by one. Her touch was ice cold, her voice flat, devoid of any of the warmth Lena was used to. "I'm fine," she said, her voice steady, unshakable. No nervousness. No hesitation. Just cold, calm resolve. Lena blinked again, her fake smile faltering for just a split second. She recovered quickly, though, plastering that sweet, innocent look back on her face, laughing softly. "Okay, good. I was worried. You've been standing here staring into space for, like, five minutes. Come on, everyone's waiting. Brian's over by the punch table, and he keeps looking over here. He's totally waiting for you. This is your moment, Elaine! You've been talking about this for months!" Months. She had been. In her past life, she'd spent months pining after Brian, gushing to Lena about him, planning her confession, dreaming about their mating ceremony, their future together. All of it had been a lie. All of it had been a trap. And Lena had been right there, egging her on, every step of the way. Elaine's gaze flicked past Lena, to the other side of the ballroom. And there he was. Brian. He was leaning against the edge of the punch table, a glass of champagne in his hand, surrounded by a group of his Beta friends, all laughing and joking. He was wearing a sharp black suit, his brown hair styled perfectly, his warm brown eyes scanning the room, until they landed on her. When they did, he smiled, that warm, charming smile that had fooled her for two years, and lifted his glass in a small toast. In her past life, that smile had made her heart flutter. It had made her weak in the knees. It had made her brave enough to walk across that room, to confess her love to him in front of everyone. Now, that smile made her stomach turn. All she could see was the cold, greedy man he really was. The man who'd drained her bloodline dry. The man who'd pushed her off a cliff. The man who'd killed her parents. Her fingers curled tighter into fists at her sides, her nails digging into her palms, hard enough to draw blood. The pain grounded her, kept her steady, kept the red-hot rage from boiling over. Not yet. Wait for the right moment. Make it hurt. "See?" Lena said, nudging her arm, grinning. "He's totally into you! Come on, what are you waiting for? Go over there! Tell him how you feel! This is going to be the best night of your life!" The best night of her life. In her past life, she'd thought it would be. It had turned out to be the worst. The start of a year of hell, that had ended with her broken and dead at the bottom of a cliff. Not this time. This time, it would be the best night of her life. But not for the reason Lena thought. This time, it would be the night she took back her power. The night she broke the trap before it could even close. The night she started her revenge. Elaine turned back to Lena, a small, cold smile tugging at the corner of her lips. It was a smile that didn't reach her eyes, a smile that made Lena's own grin falter, a flicker of unease crossing her face. "You're right, Lena," Elaine said, her voice calm, smooth. "Everyone is waiting. And I shouldn't keep them waiting any longer." Lena's face lit up, relieved, like she'd thought Elaine was going to back out. "Yes! That's the spirit! Come on, I'll walk with you-" "No," Elaine said, cutting her off. Her smile didn't fade, but her eyes were sharp, icy, like shards of glass. "I'll go alone. You stay here. Watch." Lena blinked, confused, but nodded quickly, stepping back. "Okay! Good luck! You've got this!" Elaine didn't answer. She just turned, her gaze locking on Brian, who was still watching her, that charming smile still on his face. She took a deep breath, squared her shoulders, and started walking. The room seemed to fade away around her. The chatter, the music, the laughter, all of it went quiet. All she could hear was the sound of her own heartbeat, steady and strong in her chest. All she could see was Brian, waiting for her, just like he had in her past life. All around her, she could feel the eyes of the pack turning to watch her. She heard the whispers start, the quiet snickers, the amused murmurs. "There she goes. The little side branch she-wolf, going to throw herself at Brian again." "God, she's so desperate. Can't she take a hint? He's way out of her league." "Poor thing. She's going to make a fool of herself in front of the entire pack. Again." "She really thinks a Beta like Brian would ever mate with her? She's nothing. No power, no status, just a stupid little crush." In her past life, those whispers had made her shrink in on herself, had made her doubt herself, had made her want to run and hide. She'd heard them, but she'd ignored them, because she'd thought Brian loved her. She'd thought they were wrong. Now, those whispers didn't hurt her. They just made her smile colder. Because she knew what they didn't. She knew who Brian really was. She knew what he was capable of. She knew that by the end of the night, they'd be laughing at him, not at her. She kept walking, her steps steady, unwavering, until she was standing right in front of him. Brian pushed himself off the punch table, setting his champagne glass down, that warm, charming smile still on his face. He looked down at her, his brown eyes soft, just like he had in her past life, right before she'd confessed. "Elaine," he said, his voice warm, smooth. "You look beautiful tonight. Happy birthday." In her past life, those words had made her blush, had made her stammer out a thank you, had made her heart race. Now, they just made her want to spit in his face. She didn't. She just stood there, her back straight, her head held high, her gaze cold and unflinching as she looked up at him. She didn't blush. She didn't stammer. She didn't look away. The group of Beta boys around him went quiet, all of them watching, grinning, waiting for the show. Waiting for her to confess, for her to throw herself at him, for her to make a fool of herself, just like she always did. Brian's smile widened, like he was waiting for her to speak, waiting for the confession he'd known was coming for months. But Elaine didn't confess. She just looked at him, for a long, heavy, silent moment, the entire room seeming to hold its breath. And then she spoke, her voice clear, loud enough that everyone within ten feet could hear her, cold and sharp as a blade. "Save it, Brian." The smile froze on Brian's face. The group of Beta boys around him went dead silent, their grins dropping, their eyes wide with shock. The whispers around them stopped, dead in their tracks. No one had expected that. No one had expected Elaine, the quiet, naive, love-blind little she-wolf, to speak to Brian like that. To look at him like that. Brian blinked, clearly confused, that charming smile faltering for just a split second. He laughed, a nervous, awkward sound, leaning in a little closer, like he thought he'd misheard her. "Sorry?" he said, his voice still warm, still trying to keep up that charming act. "What did you say, Elaine?" Elaine didn't lean in. She didn't back down. She just lifted her chin, her voice even louder this time, loud enough that even the people on the other side of the ballroom could hear her, every single word crystal clear. "I said, save it. I don't want your compliments. I don't want your attention. And I don't want you." The entire ballroom went dead silent. The music stopped. The chatter stopped. The laughter stopped. Every single eye in the room turned to them, wide with shock, with disbelief. No one could believe what they were hearing. Elaine Voss, the girl who'd been pining after Brian Hale for months, the girl who'd followed him around like a lost puppy, the girl who'd made a fool of herself over him time and time again, was rejecting him. Publicly. In front of the entire pack. Brian's face went red, a mix of shock and embarrassment and anger, his charming mask slipping completely. He stared down at her, his mouth open, like he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Elaine," he said, his voice tight, his eyes darting around the room, at all the people staring, at all the whispers starting up again, this time about him. "What are you doing? What's wrong with you?" "What's wrong with me?" Elaine repeated, a cold, sharp laugh escaping her lips. She took a step closer, her gaze never leaving his, her voice dripping with contempt. "No, Brian. What's wrong with you? Do you really think I'm that stupid? That I don't see what you're doing? That I don't know why you've been leading me on for months?" His face paled, just a little. A flicker of panic crossed his eyes, gone so fast anyone else would have missed it. But Elaine didn't miss it. She'd seen that look before. The look he'd had right before he'd pushed her off the cliff, when she'd realized the truth. "I don't know what you're talking about," he said, his voice tight, trying to keep up the act, trying to look confused, innocent. "Elaine, you're upset. Let's talk about this somewhere private-" "No," Elaine said, cutting him off. She took another step forward, so close she was almost chest to chest with him, her voice low, venomous, only for him to hear. "We're going to talk about this here. In front of everyone. Because you wanted the entire pack to watch me make a fool of myself tonight, didn't you? You and Lena. You wanted to watch me confess my love to you, so you could turn me down, so you could laugh about it with your friends later. So you could keep leading me on, keep getting what you want from me." His eyes went wide, real panic now, clear as day. He knew. He knew she'd figured it out. He just didn't know how. "Elaine, stop," he said, his voice sharp, quiet, a warning. "You're making a mistake. You don't know what you're saying." "Oh, I know exactly what I'm saying," Elaine said, her voice rising again, loud enough for everyone to hear. She stepped back, putting space between them, so the entire pack could see her, could see him. "I'm saying that Brian Hale has been leading me on for months, pretending to care about me, just so he can get his hands on my Lunar Goddess bloodline. I'm saying that he doesn't care about me at all. That he thinks I'm a stupid, naive little girl he can manipulate for his own gain. And I'm saying that I'm done with it. I'm done with him." The room erupted. Gasps. Shouts. Whispers, loud and frantic, bouncing off the walls. Everyone was staring, everyone was talking, everyone was shocked. The Lunar Goddess bloodline was a legend. Most of the pack had only ever heard rumors about it, had never known who bore it. And now Elaine was standing in front of the entire pack, saying that Brian had been using her for it. Brian's face was bright red, humiliated, furious. He stepped forward, his hand reaching for her arm, his voice a snarl, all pretense of charm gone. "Elaine, shut up. You're lying. You're making a fool of yourself-" Before he could touch her, Elaine moved. Fast. She'd spent her entire life thinking she was weak, that she was powerless. But her wolf core was whole now. Her Lunar Goddess bloodline was intact, thrumming with power she'd never even tapped into in her past life. She was stronger than he was. Faster than he was. And she was furious. She lifted her leg, and kicked him. Hard. Square in the chest, with all the strength she had, all the rage, all the pain of two years of betrayal, all the grief of her own death. Brian's eyes went wide. He didn't have time to react. The kick sent him flying backwards, crashing into the punch table, the glass bowls and bottles shattering everywhere, champagne and punch soaking his suit, dripping onto the carpet. He landed hard on his back, the breath whooshing out of him, staring up at her in stunned disbelief. The entire ballroom went dead silent again. No one moved. No one breathed. Everyone was staring at Elaine, who was still standing there, her chest heaving, her gaze cold and sharp, staring down at the man she'd just kicked across the room. The quiet, naive little she-wolf had just attacked a Beta in front of the entire pack. She'd just rejected him, humiliated him, knocked him on his ass, in front of everyone. And then, slowly, a sound started. A snicker. Then a laugh. Then a roar of laughter, echoing through the ballroom, from every corner of the room. The pack was laughing. Not at Elaine. At Brian. At the man who'd just been kicked across the room by the girl he'd been leading on for months. At the man who'd just been publicly humiliated, exposed for the manipulative liar he was. Brian scrambled to his feet, his face bright red with rage and humiliation, his suit soaked through, glass shards sticking to his jacket. He stared at Elaine, his eyes blazing with fury, his hands curled into fists. "You crazy bitch," he snarled, his voice loud enough for everyone to hear. "You have no idea what you just did. You're going to regret this." Elaine just smiled, a cold, sharp smile, and lifted her chin. "Regret it?" she said, her voice clear, steady. "The only thing I regret is wasting two years of my life on a worthless, greedy Beta like you. You're not worth my time. You're not worth my attention. And you're certainly not worth my love. So stay away from me, Brian. If you so much as look at me again, I won't just kick you into a punch table. I'll break every bone in your body. Do I make myself clear?" Her voice was cold, unshakable, full of a power no one had ever heard from her before. The laughter died down. The room went quiet again. Everyone could feel it. The power rolling off her. The strength. The resolve. This wasn't the same Elaine they'd known. This was someone new. Someone strong. Someone not to be messed with. Brian stared at her, his mouth open, like he couldn't believe what he was hearing. He looked around the room, at all the people staring, all the people laughing at him, and his face twisted with rage. But he knew he couldn't do anything. Not here. Not in front of the entire pack. Not when everyone had just watched him get his ass handed to him by a she-wolf everyone had thought was weak. He snarled, spun on his heel, and stormed out of the ballroom, his friends scrambling to follow him, their heads down, embarrassed. Elaine watched him go, her chest heaving, her hands still shaking, not with fear, but with adrenaline, with triumph. She'd done it. She'd rejected him. She'd humiliated him. She'd broken the trap before it could even close. She'd changed the story. And it felt good. It felt better than anything she'd ever felt in her life. The whispers started up again, louder this time, excited, shocked, amazed. Everyone was talking about her, about what she'd just done. No one was laughing at her anymore. They were looking at her with awe, with respect, with shock. And then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Lena. She was standing by the staircase, her face white as a sheet, her eyes wide with terror, staring at Elaine like she'd just seen a ghost. She looked like she was about to be sick. She'd watched the entire thing. She'd watched Elaine reject Brian, humiliate him, expose him. She'd watched her plan fall apart before it had even started. Elaine locked eyes with her. She smiled. A cold, sharp smile, a promise. You're next, Lena. Lena flinched, like she'd been slapped, and turned, scrambling away into the crowd, disappearing from sight. Elaine's smile faded. She took a deep breath, letting the adrenaline fade, letting the cold, steady settle back over her. She'd done the first part. She'd rejected Brian. She'd humiliated him. She'd stopped the worst of the damage before it could happen. But that wasn't enough. She'd promised herself she'd make them pay. She'd promised she'd take back everything that was hers. She'd promised she'd never be weak again. And to do that, she needed more than just to reject Brian. She needed power. She needed protection. She needed someone who could help her burn down everything that had ever hurt her. Someone who'd already done it once, in her past life. Someone who'd loved her since the day she was born. Someone who'd razed the world to avenge her. Someone who'd died to follow her into the dark. Alphard. The Alpha King. Slowly, Elaine turned her head, her gaze lifting, to the raised dais at the end of the ballroom. To the throne that sat there, high above the rest of the room. And he was there. He'd been there the entire time. Alphard sat on his throne, his tall, broad frame relaxed, but every inch of him radiating raw, unfiltered Alpha power, power so strong it made the air crackle. He was wearing a black suit, tailored perfectly to his body, his black hair falling in loose waves over his forehead, his face sharp, angular, handsome beyond belief. His eyes were scarlet, bright and burning, just like they'd been when she'd seen him on the cliff, and they were locked on her. He'd watched the entire thing. Every second of it. He'd watched her reject Brian. He'd watched her kick him across the room. He'd watched her stand there, strong and unbroken, in front of the entire pack. And he hadn't looked away. Not once. In her past life, she'd never dared to look at him for too long. She'd never dared to even think about speaking to him. He was the Alpha King. Untouchable. Unapproachable. Far above her. But now, she knew the truth. She knew he'd loved her for three hundred years. She knew he'd burned the world down to avenge her. She knew he'd died to follow her. He was the only person in this entire pack who'd ever truly cared about her. The only person who'd ever protected her. The only person who could help her get her revenge. And this time, she wasn't going to be afraid of him. This time, she was going to walk right up to him. The room went quiet again. Everyone saw where she was looking. Everyone saw her staring up at the Alpha King. Everyone held their breath, wondering what she was going to do. Elaine took a deep breath. She squared her shoulders. And she started walking. Not towards the door. Not towards the crowd. Towards the dais. Towards the throne. Towards Alphard. The crowd parted for her, like the sea, every wolf stepping back, their heads bowed, not daring to meet her eyes, not daring to get in her way. They could feel it. The power rolling off her. The resolve. The unshakable will. No one dared to stop her. She walked up the marble steps of the dais, one by one, her steps steady, unwavering. Her heart was slamming against her ribs, but not with fear. With something else. Something warm. Something bright. Something that had been there, deep in her soul, since the moment she'd heard his voice on that cliff. She kept walking, until she was standing right in front of the throne. Right in front of him. Alphard hadn't moved. He was still sitting there, his scarlet eyes locked on hers, his face unreadable, his expression cold, just like it always was. But there was something in his eyes. Something deep. Something burning. Something that no one else had ever seen. Something that was only for her. The entire pack was watching. No one breathed. No one moved. Everyone was waiting. Wondering what she was going to say. Wondering what the Alpha King was going to do. No one had ever dared to approach him like this. No one had ever dared to stand in front of his throne, uninvited, unannounced. Elaine looked up at him, her gaze steady, unflinching, her voice clear, loud enough that only he could hear it, but every wolf in the room was straining to listen. She'd made her first move. She'd rejected the man who'd destroyed her past life. Now, she was going to make her second. She was going to ask the man who'd loved her through death, to marry her. And as she opened her mouth to speak, the entire world held its breath.