Omega’s Rejection, Luna’s Rise

Brielle’s POV

I lifted my head, defiance blazing in my eyes. The days of cowering before Aziel were over.

Aziel’s voice was a low growl as he struggled to keep his anger in check. “Brielle, don’t push me.”

For as long as I could remember, I had feared Aziel. The slightest frown from him was enough to make me fold, shrink back, and apologize, even when I wasn’t at fault. But that was when I still cared—when his approval meant everything to me.

But now? I felt nothing but a hollow emptiness where that fear once lived.

Kaia, however, wasn’t satisfied with the silence that hung between us. She clung to Aziel, her voice sickly sweet yet dripping with malice. “Aziel, I don’t want her to apologize. I want her to taste her own medicine.”

Aziel’s gaze flickered to me, clearly expecting me to submit, to do as I had always done and yield. But I refused to back down, staring back at him with unyielding resolve.

My defiance only fueled his anger. Aziel’s eyes glowed red, and with a single look, two wolves suddenly emerged from the shadows. They pounced on me, pinning me to the ground. Their grip was ironclad, but I didn’t fight back, not even try. The fight had gone out of me, leaving only resignation.

Kaia sauntered over, her lips curving into a cruel smile. She raised her hand and slapped me, once, twice—until I tasted blood on my lips. But I stayed silent, refusing to give her the satisfaction of seeing me break. I sat there, disheveled and bleeding, but my spirit remained unbowed.

Aziel loomed over me, his voice cold and commanding. “You owe Kaia this. Apologize to her now, and I’ll forget this ever happened.”

A laugh bubbled up from deep within me, bitter and hollow. “You wish!”

Aziel’s eyes narrowed, frustration and disbelief mixing in his gaze. “Brielle, if you just obey me, I can give you everything you want—even the marriage you’ve been begging for. Are you really willing to throw that all away?”

The irony of his words cut deeper than any physical blow. He had denied me everything when I begged for it, but now, when I no longer wanted any part of it, he thought he could control me with empty promises and threats. But it was too late—too late for the promises, too late for the marriage, too late for everything.

Ignoring the pain searing through my face, I met his gaze, my voice icy. “Aziel, I made up my mind to reject you as my mate. I don’t need your fucking marriage anymore!”

Aziel stared at me as if trying to comprehend the words coming out of my mouth. Maybe he couldn’t believe that I, the one who had once loved him so blindly, could actually walk away. Especially when he dangled the one thing I had always dreamed of—his promise of marriage.

A sneer twisted his lips. “What’s this? Don’t you want to fulfill your mother’s dying wish?”

There was a sneer in his tone, a coldness that made my blood boil.

But before I could retort, Kaia jumped in, her eyes alight with malicious glee. “See, Aziel? I told you she was lying. If her mother was really dying, she wouldn’t be acting like this. Can’t you see she’s just manipulating you?”

That was the last straw. My fury exploded. “Shut up, Kaia! You have no right to talk about my mother!”

My continued defiance pushed Aziel over the edge. His face twisted with rage, and he let out a low, dangerous growl. “You’ll regret this, Brielle.”

He pulled out his phone and dialed a number. When his beta, Kaiden Porter, answered, Aziel deliberately put the call on speaker, his gaze locked on mine, ensuring I heard every word. “Kaiden,” Aziel’s voice was laced with cold command, “tell the healers to stop tending to Romina Ellis.”

Aziel watched me intently, expecting me to break, to beg him to reconsider. He was so sure this would be the final blow, that I would crumble at his feet.

But I didn’t flinch. I just stared back, empty and unresponsive, my heart already numb to the pain.

There was a brief pause on the other end before Kaiden’s hesitant voice came through. “Alpha,” he began slowly, “Romina Ellis… she passed away three days ago, on the day of your wedding.”