SERA'S POV
"Hard for me?" The words came out like venom. "You think watching you celebrate is hard?"
Three hundred wolves stared at me. I didn't care anymore.
I walked closer to the stage, my voice getting louder with each step. "Darius, you broke our mate bond six years ago because I wasn't good enough. Now you send me flowers and love letters, begging for another chance."
Gasps filled the room. Darius's face turned bright red.
"That's private—" he started.
I cut him off, turning to his brother. "Matthias, you pretended to love me while running experiments on my blood. You used me like a science project. Now you write me apologies, claiming you've changed."
Matthias's cruel smirk disappeared. His face went pale.
Wolves whispered to each other, shocked. Good. Let them know the truth.
"And Lucian," I looked at the enemy Alpha sitting in the visiting section. He stood up slowly, his dark eyes locked on mine. "You trained me, armed me, made me trust you—all so you could turn me into a weapon against this pack. When I refused to betray them, you rejected me. Now you show up at my house, promising you'll leave everything for me."
"Sera, don't do this," Lucian warned, his voice deadly quiet.
"Why?" I challenged. "Afraid everyone will know the truth?"
The room erupted. Wolves talked over each other. Some looked at me with pity. Others with respect.
Elder Raymond banged his wooden staff on the floor. "SILENCE! Miss Nightwillow, explain yourself immediately!"
I turned to face the council of elders. Five ancient wolves who'd watched me suffer for years and done nothing.
My hands stopped shaking. My voice came out clear and strong.
"I'm entering the Mating Hunt."
The hall exploded with noise.
The Mating Hunt was sacred. Once a year, unmated wolves gathered in the Wildwood forest for one week. Everyone wore masks to hide their identities. You found your mate through scent alone. No names. No politics. No lies.
Just fate.
"Absolutely not," Darius jumped off the stage, landing in front of me. "You can't enter the Hunt. You have pending bond claims."
"He's right," Elder Raymond said. "You cannot participate in the Mating Hunt while three Alphas have filed petitions for second-chance matings."
I knew they'd say that. I'd prepared for this.
"Then I'll remove the pending claims," I said calmly.
Darius's eyes widened. "Sera, wait—"
"No more waiting." I stepped back so everyone could see me clearly. So they could all witness what happened next.
I took a deep breath and spoke the ancient words that would change everything.
"I, Sera Nightwillow, reject Darius Blackthorn as my mate."
Power exploded from my chest. The rejection bond snapped like a breaking rope.
Darius screamed and dropped to his knees. His hands clawed at his chest.
But I wasn't done.
"I reject Matthias Blackthorn as my mate."
Another snap. Another burst of energy.
Matthias collapsed near the stage, howling in pain.
The room shook. Glasses fell off tables and shattered.
"I reject Lucian Ashenfang as my mate."
The third rejection was the strongest. Maybe because Lucian and I had been the closest to actually loving each other.
The windows exploded. Glass rained down like sharp snow.
Lucian fell to his knees across the room, his face twisted in agony.
"All bonds are severed by my will and word," I finished, my voice ringing with power I didn't know I had. "You have no claim on me. Not now. Not ever."
The magical backlash hit me like a punch to the stomach.
My Omega nature screamed. My wolf howled in pain. Every instinct told me this was wrong, that I needed a mate, that I was going to die alone.
But I gritted my teeth and stayed standing.
Three Alphas writhed on the floor, their wolves crying out as the mate bonds shattered completely.
The crowd was silent now. Shocked.
Some wolves looked horrified. Others looked impressed.
I didn't care what any of them thought.
I turned and walked toward the exit, my head high even though each step felt like walking through fire.
My chest burned. My rejection scars—three marks on my collarbone, one from each Alpha—glowed bright gold through my dress.
"Sera, wait!" Darius choked out behind me. "Please!"
I didn't look back.
"You're making a mistake!" Matthias shouted, his voice hoarse with pain.
I kept walking.
"Sera!" Lucian's voice cracked. "Don't do this!"
I pushed through the doors and stepped into the night.
The cool air hit my face. I gulped it down, trying to breathe through the pain crushing my chest.
My feet carried me toward the forest. Away from the pack house. Away from the staring wolves and broken Alphas and shattered glass.
I needed to be alone. Needed to fall apart where no one could see.
The trees closed around me like protective arms. I walked deeper into the darkness until I couldn't hear the chaos behind me anymore.
Then I found a small clearing and finally let myself stop.
My legs gave out.
I collapsed onto the forest floor, curling into a ball.
And I broke.
Sobs tore out of my throat—loud, ugly, painful sounds I'd been holding back for years. My whole body shook with them.
The triple rejection hurt worse than anything I'd ever felt. My Omega blood screamed for a bond. Any bond. My wolf whimpered inside me, feeling lost and abandoned.
"I had to," I whispered through my tears. "I had to be free."
But freedom felt like dying.
My chest ached where the bonds used to be. Empty spaces that throbbed with pain. The rejection scars on my collarbone burned like someone had pressed hot metal against my skin.
I pressed my hands over them, trying to make the pain stop.
It didn't work.
More tears came. I cried for the girl I used to be—the one who believed in true love and happily ever after. I cried for the six years I'd wasted hoping things would get better. I cried for the loneliness that stretched ahead of me.
What if I never found a real mate? What if the Mating Hunt was just another disappointment?
What if I was meant to be alone forever?
"Stop it," I told myself angrily, wiping my face. "You're stronger than this."
But I didn't feel strong. I felt broken and scared and so, so tired.
My wolf stirred weakly. *We did the right thing.*
"Then why does it hurt so much?" I asked her.
*Because we loved them. Even though they didn't deserve it, we loved them. And letting go of love always hurts.*
She was right. Part of me had still hoped. Still believed that maybe one of them would change. That maybe I could be enough.
But I wasn't enough. Not for them.
And I needed to accept that.
I took a shaky breath and sat up, leaning against a tree trunk.
The forest was quiet around me. Peaceful. No judging eyes. No whispered gossip. Just me and the night and the truth.
I was alone.
But for the first time in six years, I was free.
The rejection scars on my collarbone had stopped glowing. They were just marks now—three small symbols that would always remind me of what I survived.
Proof that I was stronger than what tried to break me.
I closed my eyes and let the last of my tears fall.
Tomorrow, I'd register for the Mating Hunt. I'd put on a mask and search for a mate who would choose me. Really choose me.
Tonight, I'd let myself grieve.
For the girl I used to be.
For the love that never was.
For the future I'd imagined that would never come true.
The moon rose higher above the trees, casting silver light through the leaves.
Somewhere in the distance, an owl hooted.
Life went on. The world kept turning.
And I was still here. Still breathing. Still fighting.
That had to count for something.
I wiped my face one last time and stood up on shaky legs.
My wolf was quiet now. Resting. Healing.
We both needed time to recover from what we'd just done.
But we'd done it. We'd broken free.
And three days from now, we'd enter the Mating Hunt with our heads held high.
No more being used. No more being second choice.
This time, I'd find someone who wanted me for me.
Or I'd be alone.
And honestly? Alone was starting to sound pretty good.
I took one last look at the moon, then started walking back toward the edge of pack territory.
I had three days to prepare.
Three days to heal.
Three days until everything changed.
I just hoped I was ready for whatever came next.