Damon
A strange pain woke me from my sleep. I slowly sat up and sucked in a sharp breath, touching my chest while waiting for it to pass. This didn't make sense. Something inside me twisted. Something disgustingly wrong.
I steadied my breathing, waiting for the feeling to pass. It didn't go away.
"What the—"
I threw off the blanket to the floor, annoyed.
It must be that stupid girl.
I didn't feel anything after rejecting her. Or maybe this must have been a delayed effect. It was for this reason I decided not to mark Elena yet that night. I frowned.
The pain could be worse. It's still something I could gloss over, but to think I am feeling this was because of that rotten woman.
Ridiculous.
I had slept off not too long after the festivities last night. My room was dark. I sniffed at the air. Dawn just seemed to barely break through.
I got up from the bed and the pain pulsed.
I gritted my teeth.
I had made the right choice. A choice that was never to be even considered. She was weak. Far weaker than the omegas in the pack. An omega that couldn't even shift. Someone like that could not be my Luna, much less my mate.
I closed my eyes as the pain subsided.
I had been so embarrassed by the brief favours my father would show her even though they barely interacted. And then for her to be my mate… It made me sick to the core. No one in the pack even respected her.
She didn't even change as she grew older. She got even worse, more sickly, more irritating. She was a liability.
Elena was strong. Capable. Everything a Luna should be.
I opened my eyes with a sigh and stretched.
I would need to mark Elena tonight.
I parted the curtains and moved to get dressed.
[-]
I found Beta Marcus waiting for me in the main hall, his expression neutral as always. He joined me on my walk.
"Morning, Alpha."
I grunted, nodding curtly. "Marcus. Any reports?"
"None at the moment. Patrols will be out soon for their regular task again today."
"Hmm…" I stopped in my tracks. Marcus paused to look at me. "Go to 'her' place. Tell her to come to the hall later this afternoon."
Marcus hesitated. "Her... Oh…" Realisation dawned on his face.
I rolled my eyes. "Yes, the girl I rejected yesterday."
Marcus slightly frowned, his brown eyes shifting from mine. "Would she even be able to come to the hall?"
I glared at him, disgusted. While he only had a few years over me, he had been working under my father's care since he was a child. And along with my father, he was the only other wolf who had some semblance of sympathy for her.
"Don't make that stupid face," I hissed at him. He flinched, snapping his eyes back to mine. "As strong as you are, such unnecessary things should not concern you. It's not like you have even helped her on any occasion. So what is this sympathy for?"
His lips pressed tight and he lowered his gaze. "I apologise, Alpha."
I sighed and shook my head. "Just bring her if you must. I will be banishing her from the pack." I noticed a muscle on Marcus' face twitch, but I ignored it. "She is worthless here. And having her remain would be an eyesore."
"Yes. I'll let her know of that promptly."
"Good." I turned away from him. "I'll be in my office."
I walked away, leaving him to his duties. At the very least, banishing her from the pack would relieve me of this pain.
'Well, it shouldn't matter either way since I would be marking Elena tonight.'
I grinned. The pain still faintly pulsed within me, but I was happy.
Elena found me in the office later that morning, causing my mood to greatly improved. And for a while, with her in my presence, the pain reduced a great deal. It was to the extent that I could barely even feel it.
This was one of the best decisions I had ever made.
The moment was soon interrupted by Marcus, much to my annoyance.
"Alpha…" He faltered upon seeing Elena seated on my table.
"Yes?" I answered, looking up from the map I was focused on. "I sensed the patrols going out. Is there another issue?"
He hesitated. "The girl—"
The pain pulse, stronger. I frowned. "I asked you to relay the summons to her. Why are you giving me feedback? I have already told you that if she won't be able to come, drag her here if you have to."
"That is the thing. She is gone!"
I stilled. Surely, I hadn't heard that right.
"What do you mean gone?" Elena voiced my silent question.
"She is not in her hut. I have delegated some of the off-duty patrol wolves to search for her. A lot of her things are… I can't really tell if that was all she had to begin with, but it seems like some of her belongings are gone too."
The pain flared up and I gripped the table, hard. My nails dug into the wood. "What?"
'How dare she?!'
"Didn't… Didn't she seem different last night?" Elena asked weakly, her voice faint as she looked at me with worry.
That was… true.
She did seem different. She even had the guts to smile at me while I rejected her.
Why was I just noticing this?
"How dare her?" I grumbled, glaring at Marcus. "I will not let this disrespect go unpunished. Did she leave because she didn't want to be branded as a rogue wolf? Not that she would even have survived as one!" I yelled, swiping the map down to the floor, along with other objects in reach.
Elena swiftly got off the table.
The pain spiked up and I winced, holding a palm to my head. Now my head was starting to ache.
That rotten witch.
I clenched my jaw, gritting my teeth. My breathing came out hard and I slowly steadied it. The pain subsided too thankfully.
That was it.
Just marking Elena wouldn't be enough. Pain or not, she had to die.
"She has clearly run off somewhere, and for her to even try to leave the pack without my permission? Such insolence." I turned my attention to Marcus. "Find her!"
He nodded quickly. "Yes. We will immediately bring her and—"
I laughed. "Bring who? Kill her." I stopped laughing and straightened to my full height, my eyes heating up as they began to glow. "I want her dead."