The morning sun rose pale over the pack lands, but to Abigail, the world still felt cloaked in darkness. She had not slept. Every time she closed her eyes, she was dragged back to the night before the intoxicating scent of pine and earth, the glowing pull of fate, the way Alpha Steve's eyes had locked with hers and then… turned away.
Her chest still ached with the bond's burn, as though her very soul had been torn in two. She had always known rejection from the pack, but this wound was different. This was deeper, crueler. This was destiny itself showing her the light, only for Steve to snuff it out with cold words.
She dragged herself from the thin blanket she called a bed and slipped into the yard to draw water from the well. The other omegas bustled about, exchanging glances when they saw her hollow eyes. Whispers followed her, but Abigail ignored them. If she broke down, if she let them see her heart shatter, they would feast on her pain.
Still, as she lowered the bucket into the water, her hands shook. Her wolf whimpered softly inside, restless and wounded. Mate, it whispered over and over, unable to let go.
By midday, word had spread. Omegas had sharp tongues, and no matter how quietly Abigail tried to bear her burden, the truth had seeped out: the bond had chosen her. The moment she stepped into the kitchens to deliver trays, hushed voices cut through the air.
"The Alpha's mate? That omega?"
"It's impossible."
"He'll never claim her. Not her."
Abigail lowered her head, clutching the tray tighter, and hurried past them. Each word was another dagger, driving the rejection deeper into her chest.
When she entered the Alpha's hall, Steve was already seated, surrounded by his warriors. He looked every bit the leader tall, commanding, unshakable. But when Abigail's trembling hands placed the tray before him, their eyes met again.
For one brief heartbeat, she thought she saw it the flicker of recognition, the same pull she felt. His wolf screamed at him through the bond, urging him to reach for her. But then, like the night before, his expression hardened.
He dismissed her with a curt nod, not a word, not even a glance that acknowledged what they were.
Her throat tightened. She bowed quickly and left, though every step away was agony.
The silence of his rejection screamed louder than words ever could.
---
That evening, when the work was finally done and she escaped into the quiet of the woods, Abigail collapsed onto the mossy ground. Her fingers curled into the earth as sobs tore free, raw and unrestrained. She had been strong for so long, enduring cruelty, hunger, loneliness but this? This she could not endure.
Her wolf howled within her chest, a cry that echoed in the emptiness of her soul. Why doesn't he want us?
Abigail pressed a hand to her heart, gasping through the pain. She had thought the mate bond was supposed to be salvation a gift from the Moon Goddess, a promise that no one would ever walk alone. But for her, it was just another curse.
Fate had given her a mate, but he had chosen silence over her.
---
Back in the Alpha's quarters, Steve paced restlessly. His wolf clawed at him, furious, aching. He could still smell her, still feel her everywhere the bond humming relentlessly. When he closed his eyes, he saw her standing in the moonlight, fragile yet unbroken.
"Enough," he growled to himself, though the sound was hollow.
His Beta entered quietly. "The pack is already talking, Alpha. They know."
Steve's jaw tightened. He hated it hated the whispers, hated the bond, hated how she had gotten under his skin without even trying.
"She's not Luna material," he said firmly, though the conviction in his voice wavered. "She'll never be."
The Beta hesitated. "But the bond..."
"I'll silence it," Steve snapped, though his wolf growled at the lie. "She means nothing."
But when night fell again and he lay awake, his chest burned with the truth. No matter how much he denied her, no matter how loudly he rejected her in silence, the mate bond refused to let go.
And neither did Abigail's heart.
---
That night, as the moon rose again, two hearts beat in rhythm yet pulled apart by pride and fear. One bore the silence with tears, the other with rage. But both were prisoners to the same truth: no matter how hard they fought, the bond would not break.