I barely contained the urge to crush the bastard’s throat between my fingers. Instead, I turned back to Meredith. She was now standing tall despite everything.
The entire room expected me to turn away. To ignore her like the rest. They were fools.
I saw what they refused to see. The force curled beneath her skin. The rage simmering in her veins.
She wasn’t weak. She was caged.
And if there was one thing I knew, it was that caged creatures were the most dangerous. So I made my decision. And I burned the entire ballroom down with my next words.
“Then I will take her.”
Silence.
Absolute, stunned silence.
Meredith’s breath caught. Marc blinked, his smirk dropping. “What?”
I barely spared him a glance. “You rejected her,” I said simply. “She belonged to no one, which means she belongs to me now.”
A gasp rippled through the crowd.
I stepped closer to Meredith, watching her body go rigid. I expected fear, but I got fire. Her violet eyes blazed with defiance.
“I am not some object to be passed around,” she suddenly spoke, meeting my gaze head-on.
The room went still.
Interesting.
For the first time in years, I felt the corner of my mouth twitch in amusement. ‘Oh, little wolf, you have no idea what you are.’
But I didn’t say that. I reached forward-slow enough for her to jerk away if she wanted, but she didn’t move.
Good.
I took the shredded remains of her veil from the floor. Gently, I lifted it, covering her face once more, shielding her from their stares. Then I spoke.
“Tomorrow, I will take you. In two days, you will be my wife,” I stated, leaving no room for negotiation.
Another shockwave rolled through the room. Marc’s expression twisted with disbelief. “You’re joking.”
I turned my gaze back to him, my power rolling off me in waves. “Do I look like I joke?”
Marc paled, stepping back. The message was clear. I was claiming Meredith, and no one would stop me.
A gasp rippled through the crowd. No one moved. No one breathed.
Then, the next second, the room exploded with murmurs, gasps, and hushed arguments.
I expected it. Welcomed it, even.
Werewolves had their precious hierarchy, their obsession with bloodlines and ranks. A Beta rejecting his mate was unfortunate. But an Alpha claiming a wolfless, cursed woman?
Unacceptable.
I let the noise build for a few moments, letting the weight of my words settle like a boulder on their chests.
Just as the whispers exploded into chaos, another voice cut through the tension.
“Draven.”
I turned my head slightly as my childhood friend, Wanda Fellowes, stepped forward. Her red gown shimmered under the chandeliers, her green eyes sharp as they met mine with barely concealed outrage. Unlike the others, she did not cower.
Wanda had always carried herself with control, always calculated in her words. But tonight was no different.
“Are you certain about this?” Her voice was low, careful. Not a challenge, just a question.
I held her gaze. “You disapprove?”
“I question the wisdom of this choice.” Her attention flickered to Meredith, who stood beside me, silent but tense.
“This woman is cursed. She has no wolf, and she has no strength. Her pheromones are wild and unnatural. And look at her-” She gestured toward Meredith with an exaggerated sigh. “She carries a scar that will forever stain her face. Is that the Luna you want standing beside you? Is that the Queen you want to present to our people? You need a Luna who will elevate you, not-“
Not weaken me. That’s what she wanted to say.
I cut her off, my eyes fixed on her. “And you believe she weakens me?”
There was a brief hesitation. Then, quietly, she replied, “I believe you should be careful.”
We stared at each other for a moment. Wanda was not my enemy. But she would never understand this.
I gave her a slight nod-acknowledgement, but not agreement. She exhaled softly and stepped back. “I hope you know what you’re doing.”
So do I, Wanda.
Before I could speak again, another voice cut through the air.
“Draven.”
I already knew who it was. I turned to see Randall Oatrun, my father.
He moved through the crowd like a man still accustomed to power, every step measured, every glance sharp. When our eyes met, I saw no anger. Only disappointment.
“What are you doing?” His voice was smooth, unreadable.
I rolled my shoulders. “Claiming my wife.”
His gaze flicked to Meredith, then back to me. “You could have chosen any woman here. Any strong, capable female worthy of a King’s side.”
And yet, I had chosen the most dangerous option.
He exhaled slowly, his tone edged with finality. “Draven, this is your last chance. You must leave this Ball with a wife. I gave you that ultimatum. And I expect you to make a choice worthy of our bloodline.”
I smiled. “Then you should be pleased, Father. I have chosen.”
My father’s jaw ticked. He had expected me to bend. I never had before, and I would not start now.
I turned to Meredith. She was angry. Confused. Furious.
She didn’t want me. That was fine because the moment I looked at her tonight, the moment my wolf had recognized something within her-
She was already mine.
Meredith.
I couldn’t feel my body.
Not when I walked out of the ballroom, flanked by my family like a prisoner.
Not when the murmurs of wolves trailed behind me, thick with shock, disgust, and morbid curiosity.
And certainly not when my father’s grip tightened around my arm-hard enough to bruise, tight enough to snap it in half if he wanted. But he didn’t.
He hadn’t stepped in when I was bullied, humiliated, and mocked. But the moment Draven Oatrun claimed me as his, then-only then-did he finally cross the room and take my hand.
Not as a joke. Not as a mistake. But as his future wife.
And now, as we left the Lunar Ball before the party was even over, his silence was deafening because, for the first time tonight, I hadn’t just embarrassed myself. I had embarrassed him and my entire pack.
Not only had I become the centre of attention, but I had drawn the eyes of important pack leaders, elders, and even the future Alpha King. And my father had had enough of me.
I was numb, trapped somewhere between humiliation and anger, then fear and regret because this wasn’t over. At least not until I’ve gotten a beating.
The drive back to our family estate was suffocating and almost impossible to bear.
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