REJECTED BY THE PACK, DESIRED BY THE KING

The Shatt

k didn't smell like a celebration. To

Selene had doused herself in. Elara stood in the shadows near the kitchen arched doorway, her hands tucked into the o

grown up with, now looking at her like she was a bug under a boot. "She actually th

et the Moon Goddess be kind, she prayed. Just

e, r

ey scraped against the grit. Above her stood Selene, radiant in a gown of shimmering si

, her golden hair brushing Elara's ear. "Tonight, when Kaelen is announced as the future Alpha, I'm goi

e," Elara whispered, her voice crac

glass. "The Goddess doesn't was

ythmic, primal thrum that vibrated in Elara'

into the cent

t, and his hazel eyes glowed with the approaching lunar peak. He was the son of the Alpha, the str

lice of silver-tipped blood. "The moon reaches

ra could hear the frantic th

it hap

r veins, a golden heat that raced toward the center of the room. At the same moment, Kaelen stiffened. Hi

nd was visible for a split second, shimmering in t

meone wh

t?" anoth

a hammer blow to Elara's soul. She stood up, her brea

sandalwood-his scent-wrapped around her like a caress.

d into a mask of pure,

carrying to the furthest corn

ile froze.

e any idea what you look like right now, Elara? You smell like gr

ut to touch his arm. "Kaelen, it's p

she were a leper. The sound of

g up at the rafters where the Elders sat, "refuse to accept this tether! I reject

AC

as inside Elara's skull. It sounde

heart. Elara screamed, a raw, guttural sound that tore her throat. She collapsed, her forehead

could survive. It was the death of the

ed out, blood trickling from h

s back on her, his cape swirling. He walked straight

ced, grabbing Selene by the waist and pulling her into a posse

re that a girl was dying on the floor. The

embling hand toward her step-mot

oked down at Elara with cold, black eyes. "You hea

s ago, grabbed her by the hair and shoulders. They dragged her

s still on pack territory by the time the sun touches the trees,

uled Elara to the massive o

water soaking into her thin tunic instantly. The heav

o violently her teeth rattled. She was alone

the place where the "Old Monsters"

gold eyes fixed on her. They weren't the eyes of a wol