Axel's eyes, usually cold and detached, fractured with a sudden, jagged intensity. He looked at his father, who was glaring at the Zeta for standing in his way, and for a split second, the only thing Axel could think of was how to rip his father apart. He felt a jolt of pure shock at the thought; he couldn't believe he was actually picturing his father's demise.
It must be the bond, he told himself, his pulse throbbing with a protective heat he could not control.
He fought to suppress the instinct, but his father's aggressive pheromones kept agitating him, sparking a territorial fire in his gut that demanded he shield the girl on the stone.
"I said," Axel's voice dropped to a lethal edge, "calm down, Father."
Vexton snapped his focus back to his son, his expression murderous. "Why are you standing there like a statue, Axel? Reject this pathetic, worthless bitch already!" Vexton snarled, his lip curling in disgust. "Don't tell me you're actually considering accepting this mockery of a mate bond. I will not allow it."
Axel exhaled slowly, trying to find a pocket of air in the suffocating tension.
"Father, can we not do this after the ceremony? We're delaying the other Dormants' awakening."
"I don't care about the Awakening!" Vexton roared. "Reject this evil girl this instant. The rest of the ceremony can wait until this stain is wiped clean."
"Father—"
"Enough, Axel!" Vexton's voice echoed like thunder. "Reject her now or lose your place as the future Alpha," he declared, his voice cold and final. "Choose, Axel. Your pack and your birthright, or this curse."
Axel's jaw tightened. "Seriously, Father?"
Vexton's eyes narrowed. "I'm dead serious, son. Now choose."
"Why is he hesitating?" someone shouted from the crowd. "He cannot be considering her!"
Axel's indecision seemed to ignite the pack's fury. A chant rose, loud and relentless—a rhythmic pounding of hatred that matched Nevaeh's fading heartbeat.
"Reject her!"
"We will not accept her as the future Luna!"
"Reject the cursed one!"
"She'll kill us all!"
"What's wrong with Axel?" Ash muttered, his brow furrowed. "I thought he hated her as much as we do."
Ember Brooks looked over the angry crowd with a sense of triumph. "Does it even matter?" she asked, her voice silky and cold. "She will never be accepted by the pack. Whether he hates her or not, he cannot keep her."
"I guess you are right," Ash said, a predatory grin spreading across his face. He joined the chant, laughing under his breath as he shouted along with the others.
"Enough!"
The word cracked through the night like a whip. Thunder roared overhead, a sudden and violent response from a sky that had been clear moments before. Lightning split the clouds—a blinding flash of white that struck the edge of the clearing. The ground shuddered, and the air filled with the sharp smell of ozone.
Silence fell at once. Pack members shrank back, suddenly reminded of the power Zeta Aurora held. Her kindness often made it easy to forget she was a force of nature in her own right.
Nevaeh exhaled shakily as the Alpha's crushing pressure lifted from her chest. She tried to push herself up, but her legs buckled beneath her. She was too exhausted to stand.
A hand caught her. Aurora stepped in without hesitation, moving with a blur of grace as she steadied Nevaeh. The girl clutched the Zeta's sleeve, her breath hitching as she leaned fully into the older woman's strength.
"Alpha," Aurora said, her voice like tempered steel, "there is a reason for everything. The Moon Goddess does not bind without purpose. Pushing Axel to reject Nevaeh is defying Her will."
"To hell with that will!" Vexton snapped. "This is a mistake. How could the Goddess pair my only son with that?" He swept a trembling finger toward Nevaeh. "Do you want her to kill him too? Like she killed her parents? Like she killed Willow?"
"My granddaughter's death was an accident." Aurora held his gaze without flinching, her voice devoid of the bitterness Vexton expected.
Nevaeh felt a fresh sob rise in her throat. She had spent years carrying the weight of Willow's death; she knew the Zeta didn't hold it against her, but hearing Aurora defend her so publicly was a mercy she hadn't realized she needed.
"And the Goddess does not make mistakes," Aurora continued, her eyes flashing with warning. "Do not do or say something you will regret."
"I will regret nothing," Vexton said coldly. "The only one worthy of my son is an Umbra wolf like himself. Maybe someone like Ember Brooks. Not a worthless curse." His eyes flicked back to Nevaeh, who struggled for breath in Aurora's arms.
Ash leaned toward his sister again, a predatory grin tugging at his mouth. "All hail the future Luna," he whispered.
Ember's lips curved faintly, her eyes never leaving Axel's face. "Do not get ahead of yourself."
"Come on," Ash murmured. "The Alpha wants you. It's something to be proud of."
"Shut up," Ember murmured, though she was smiling softly.
"Father," Axel said at last, his voice heavy, "do I not have a say in who I mate with?"
"Of course you have a say," Vexton replied, his tone deceptively smooth. "As long as it is not Nevaeh Reed. I am not ready to lose my only son to her cursed fate. Now reject her. Do not make me keep repeating myself."
Nevaeh lifted her gaze to Axel. The weight of the entire pack's hatred pressed against her like a physical force, a wall of malice she could never climb. She looked at the boy she had loved from afar and sighed.
He can't choose me, she thought, the realization hollow and bitter. He'll never choose me.
"Just do it," she managed to gasp, the words tasting like copper in her mouth. She didn't even understand why Axel was wasting time when it was obvious he would eventually reject her—before or after the ceremony. All she wanted was for it to be over.
"See?" the Alpha sneered, his lip curling. "She even has enough sense to know she does not deserve you. Now do it."
Axel's expression tightened, his fists clenching, his eyes cold as he fixed them on Nevaeh.
"Nevaeh Reed," Axel's voice boomed, "you are a curse upon the Vicious Fangs—a harbinger of death and worthless. Someone like you has no place at my side, let alone as Luna of this pack."
The crowd stirred with a low ripple of cruel laughter.
The words hit Nevaeh like a physical blow to her stomach. Though she had long known Axel had never liked her, he had never joined the others in calling her names. Hearing it from him now cut deeper than she could bear. She tried to speak, but her throat was dry.
"I, Axel Vexton, heir to the Vicious Fangs, reject you as my mate and my equal," he declared.
Vexton burst out laughing, sharp and triumphant. "Now that's more like it!" he exclaimed, chest swelling with predatory pride. He turned to Nevaeh, sneering, eyes gleaming with malice. "Now accept the rejection."
Aurora shook her head slowly, her voice low and grave. "You will regret this, Vexton."
The Alpha froze. It was the first time Aurora had spoken his name without his title since he had ascended. Shock flashed across his face, quickly swallowed by a fresh wave of anger.
"What are you waiting for?" he barked at Nevaeh. "Accept it!"
Nevaeh tried to stand on her own, her muscles screaming in protest. Aurora's grip tightened on her arm.
"It is alright," Nevaeh whispered hoarsely, her voice barely a thread. "I can stand."
Reluctantly, Aurora loosened her hold but stayed close. Nevaeh straightened on trembling legs, wiping tears from her face with the back of her hand, smearing blood across her cheek, and lifting her head. She locked her gaze onto Axel's.
"I, Nevaeh Reed, accept your rejection, Axel Vexton."