Rejected by the Alpha, Claimed by the King

I burst through the greenhouse doors, my lungs burning from the smoke I'd inhaled. The cool night air hit my face, but it did nothing to calm the inferno raging inside me. My cheeks were streaked with ash and tears—not of sadness, but of pure, unadulterated rage.

"Two years," I whispered, my voice breaking as I stared at Makayla. "Two years of work. Gone."

The celebration guests had gathered outside, drawn by the commotion. Xavier stood among them, his arm still wrapped possessively around Makayla's waist. His eyes narrowed as he watched me approach his precious Makayla with fury etched across my face.

"What happened?" someone asked.

"An accident," Makayla said quickly, her voice dripping with false concern. "I was just trying to help her with the flowers, and I accidentally knocked over a lamp. I feel terrible about it."

I stopped directly in front of her, my hands trembling at my sides. "An accident?" My voice was dangerously quiet. "You used accelerant, Makayla. I smelled it."

The crowd murmured in shock.

"That's ridiculous," Makayla protested, her eyes wide with manufactured innocence. "Why would I do something like that? You're overreacting about some plants."

"Some plants?" I repeated, my voice rising. "Those weren't just plants. They were sacred moonflowers—two years of cultivation gone in seconds because of you."

Makayla reached out as if to comfort me, her hand almost touching my arm. "Aria, please—I know you're upset, but maybe we can salvage something from the damage. Let me help you—"

The touch of her skin against mine snapped something inside me. Before I could think, my hand moved of its own accord, connecting with her cheek in a slap that echoed through the stunned silence.

Makayla stumbled backward, her hand flying to her reddened face. "Xavier!" she cried, her voice breaking perfectly on cue.

The sound that emerged from Xavier's throat wasn't human. It was a roar that shook the night air, primal and furious. His eyes flashed with his wolf's rage as he stepped toward me.

"You dare strike my mate?" he snarled.

I felt it then—his Alpha aura exploding outward like a physical wave. Every wolf present except Makayla dropped to their knees, their bodies responding instinctively to the overwhelming dominance. But I remained standing, my wolfless body unable to sense the command to submit.

Xavier's eyes widened in momentary surprise before narrowing dangerously. He advanced toward me with deliberate, menacing steps.

"You dare strike my mate?" he repeated, each word dripping with venom.

I tried to back away, but my body refused to move. Not because of his Alpha aura—but because of the sheer force of my own rage.

"Your mate?" I spat the words at him. "I am your chosen mate, Xavier. Not her."

His laugh was cold and cruel. "A defective, wolfless mate? You're nothing but a convenient political arrangement."

Xavier's hand shot out, gripping me by the throat. He lifted me effortlessly, my feet leaving the ground as he slammed me against the greenhouse's stone foundation.

"Xavier, stop!" someone called out—Lucas, perhaps—but Xavier's growl silenced them.

I gasped for air as his aura pressed down on me like crushing weight. Without a wolf to fight back, my human body was no match for an Alpha's dominance.

"You should be grateful I even agreed to this arrangement," Xavier hissed, his face inches from mine. "A wolfless disgrace like you should consider yourself lucky to be associated with the Matthews name."

With a sudden motion, he threw me to the ground. The impact knocked the breath from my lungs, but before I could recover, his foot connected with my ribs. Pain exploded through my body as he began to beat me systematically—striking my face, my ribs, my back.

Each blow came with a verbal assault. "Defective... worthless... ungrateful..."

I tried to curl into myself, to protect my vital organs, but Xavier grabbed my arm and twisted it behind my back. When I attempted to crawl away, he stepped on my outstretched hand, grinding his heel until I screamed.

Through my swollen eyes, I could see Makayla watching with undisguised satisfaction. She touched her reddened cheek occasionally, whimpering softly whenever Xavier's attention threatened to wander.

"Please," she whispered, loud enough for everyone to hear. "Don't hurt her too badly. She's just confused and angry."

But her eyes told a different story—they gleamed with triumph as she watched me suffer.

Across the courtyard, Beta Lucas stood frozen, his jaw clenched tight. I could see the conflict in his eyes—the desire to intervene warring with his loyalty to his Alpha. In the end, he simply looked away, unable to watch but unwilling to defy Xavier's dominance.

As Xavier's boot connected with my side again, I realized with crystal clarity that no one was coming to save me. I was alone, unprotected, and completely at the mercy of a monster who had never seen me as anything more than a political convenience.

And somewhere deep inside me, something stirred—something that had been dormant for far too long.