Chapter 12: 0012
Jaxen POV
"I, Lorelei Vance of the Silver Fang Pack, reject you, Jaxen Reed, as my mate."
The second those words escaped her lips, an agonizing pain hit within seconds. A sharp crack ripped through my chest so violently I stumbled back.
"What the fuck did you just do?" I demanded.
"I rejected you," she repeated weakly, painfully clutching her own chest. "You said you wished you had done it first, remember? I’m simply granting your wish."
Had she really taken my words to heart?
Of course I had no interest in rejecting her. I had only said that in the heat of the moment. I had almost lost my child, for crying out loud. She should have been wise enough to understand that.
"You stupid fucking woman," I hissed immediately, staggering toward her again. "Do you even understand what happens if a rejection fully goes through between fated mates?"
A bitter smile tugged weakly at her lips.
"Hopefully one of us dies," she whispered.
What was her fucking problem with dying?
I had no intention of letting her die. All I had done was try to break her fully so she had no choice but to desperately accept whatever terms I had given her.
Mistress.
A place in my life.
Something.
Anything.
From the state of her condition, this first rejection was already taking a huge toll on her. Her body trembled uncontrollably. Sweat beaded on her pale forehead. Blood trickled from her nose.
Yet she still refused to break completely.
Well. I would help her.
"Fine then," I said. "I, Jaxen Reed, soon to be alpha of the Silver Fang Pack, accept your rejection."
The second the words left my mouth, the pain intensified so brutally that it felt like my entire soul was being ripped straight out of my body.
Lorelei let out a broken gasp from the floor while my own knees nearly buckled beneath me.
Fuck.
I hadn’t expected it to hurt this badly.
The bond between us snapped violently through my chest like a chain being torn apart link by link.
For a second, I couldn’t breathe.
Neither could she.
Her fingers clawed weakly against the stone floor as another wave hit us both and this time she screamed.
I staggered back into the wall breathing hard while Lorelei curled over herself on the ground, shaking so violently her teeth chattered.
Blood spilled from her mouth.
"Lorelei," I cursed instinctively, taking a step toward her before stopping myself.
No.
This was necessary.
She needed to understand there were consequences for pushing me this far.
When the torment finally ended, all that remained was silence except for our heavy breathing.
But it wasn’t normal silence.
It was absence.
For two years, there had always been this constant awareness of her living quietly in the back of my mind.
Even when I was angry at her.
Even when I didn’t want to think about her.
She had always been there. There was a constant pull and warmth that made me crave her, now, there was nothing.
The emptiness hit harder than I expected, and my chest tightened painfully.
I didn’t want it to go this far.
She had just kept pushing me to my limit over and over again.
If this didn’t finally snap her back to her senses, then I didn’t know what would.
"Alpha..." a guard suddenly spoke from the entrance of the cell as I forced myself upright against the wall.
"What is it?" I growled.
The guard’s nervous eyes darted from Lorelei’s broken form on the floor back to me.
"T-The Alpha, your father, has requested your presence in the great hall. Immediately."
Ah.
Of course.
I already knew exactly what this was about.
Which was why I had come to Lorelei in the first place hoping she would finally agree to apologize so this entire situation could be controlled before it spiraled further.
Now?
Now things were going to become much more difficult.
My jaw tightened as I glanced at her one final time.
She was still curled into herself facing away from me like she couldn’t even stand the sight of me anymore, making something ugly twisted in my chest.
Ignoring it, I turned and walked out of the cell.
The heavy iron door slammed shut behind me as the guard locked it.
Inside the grand hall were my father, Beta Harlan, several council members, Callista with her mother hovering protectively beside her, and Raven, who was already glaring at me the second I walked in.
"I have spoken to Lorelei," I announced immediately. "She’s regretful and has agreed to—"
"Are you okay?"
Callista suddenly cut me off as she hurried toward me despite Elera trying to stop her.
"You’re bleeding," she gasped. "Did that witch do this to you? Did she infect you with her curse?"
"No," I answered quickly, furrowing my brows as my fingers brushed against the blood beneath my nose.
I hadn’t even noticed it.
"I’m fine," I said softer this time, gently rubbing her back when she stumbled into my arms sobbing, which immediately made Raven roll her eyes.
"As you can see, Alpha, this is more than enough reason to have her executed," Harlan spoke, sending a shiver down my spine. "Though she’s my daughter and it breaks my heart that I’m even admitting this, the curse is now spreading beyond our family, and I fear it will affect the entire pack."
No.
I wanted to say it.
But the word got stuck in my throat.
"Ah..." Raven was the one who spoke, shaking her head in disbelief. "This is the twenty-first century, and yet we’re still believing this bullshit?"
"Watch your mouth," my father, Alpha Magnus, warned harshly. "A prophecy from the Seers has never once been false. Remember, it predicted your mother’s death."
"No, it didn’t," Raven snapped immediately, making my fists clench tightly at my sides.
Why did they have to bring that up now?
"Mom was dying, and you let her because of some stupid make-believe prophecy. You killed her. This pack killed her, not some ridiculous fortune cookie."
Her fingers trembled at her sides as she spoke, even while trying to hold herself together.
"And now you’re about to drag another innocent girl into this with no proof. Just baseless accusations."
Her blue eyes shifted directly to Callista during the last part, making her shrink further into my arms.
Even after Raven’s outburst, my father’s expression remained stone cold.
He, along with most of the older generation, believed in the prophecy more than anything.
When he had first been told my mother would die, he tried everything possible to prevent it. He even locked her away for years in a heavily guarded room isolated from any possible harm.
Unfortunately, it still didn’t save her.
In the end, she hanged herself.
Raven had been the one to find her body dangling from the rafters.
I, on the other hand, had been too young back then to fully understand the horror of it.
"That’s enough," Alpha Magnus said, his voice leaving no room for argument. "The prophecy has never been wrong. Lorelei is a danger to this pack, and she will be dealt with accordingly."
"Dealt with how?" I finally found my voice.
My father’s eyes landed on me.
"She attempted to kill your Luna and unborn child. Therefore, she will be executed."
"No."
The word tore out of me before I could stop it.
The entire hall went silent.
Everyone turned to stare at me.
"No?" Harlan’s eyes narrowed dangerously. "You defended her before, and look where that got us. My daughter almost died, Jaxen. Your child almost died."
"I’m not defending her," I said carefully. "I’m asking for a fair trial. It could have been an accident. We need more evidence. Witnesses. Not just... accusations."
Callista immediately stiffened in my arms.
"You don’t believe me?" she whispered softly, pulling back just enough to look up at me while tears streamed down her cheeks. "After everything she’s done, you still don’t believe me?"
"I—"
I froze.
I didn’t know what to say without making it sound like I was choosing sides.
"The decision has already been made, Jaxen," my father interrupted, giving me a stern look before clearing his throat.
"For the attempted murder of future Luna Callista and the future heir of the Silver Fang Pack, Lorelei Vance is hereby sentenced to death."
