Rejected the Alpha, Now I'm the Most Beloved Luna

Richard was busy dealing with reports, calmly scribbling "Rejected" across a request form.

His mood today wasn't terrible, but definitely not great either. At least, not until Belen suddenly barged into the Bloodmoon Pack. That's when everything went downhill.

Byron showed up just in time with a few deltas to block the hot-headed alpha. They dragged Belen in front of Richard, who set his pen down and raised a questioning brow. Annoyance flickered in his eyes.

"You do know I could kill you right now, don't you?" Richard's voice cooled noticeably. "You're lucky you didn't shift-and that you ran into Byron first, Morgan. Start talking, and this better be good."

"Alpha Richard!" Belen dropped into a submissive posture, hiding the fact he was an alpha too. "There's something I really need to tell you... I'm at my limit. It's about my sister, Mara."

Belen looked wrecked-clearly hadn't slept all night. He knew Richard was secretly hitting Silverfang Pack, but calling him out would be suicide. That was the price Belen paid for trying to play games with Richard before. He hated it, but resistance was useless.

Still, he had a plan. Maybe he could finally get Richard to back off, and better yet, fix the mess Mara had gotten into.

"You've got a minute," Richard said coolly, resting his chin on his hands. "After that, get out."

Belen nervously licked his lips and took the plunge. "Alpha Richard... I'm really sorry, but that night-Mara's the girl you slept with."

"Keep going," Richard said, expression unreadable, gaze locked on him.

His tone was pure ice. Belen could feel the pressure of dominance coming off him in waves. This alpha was way out of his league.

Belen's teeth chattered slightly. Alpha or not, he was terrified. After a few seconds, he managed to steady his voice.

"Mara's had a thing for you for a long time. But she's always felt like she wasn't good enough... she was scared. The other night, she knew I'd spiked your drink and was worried about what might happen, so she went to your hotel. She ended up being pulled into your room... you thought she was the cure."

"Afterward, she was a mess. She confessed everything to me and swore she'd try to forget about you. She doesn't want to bother you, but her feelings haven't gone anywhere. She's been so out of it lately, not eating, not sleeping... last night she fell down the stairs and hit her head. I took her to the hospital, and that's when I found out about what happened between her and you."

His voice cracked like he actually believed the story himself. Richard didn't say a word, just kept staring at him. Belen started to doubt himself, voice trailing off as he rushed through the ending.

"Alpha Richard, I'm only asking you to go see her... that's all."

"Go home," Richard finally said, tone distant. "As for your sister, I'll pay her a visit."

Belen's eyes went wide with surprise, thrilled he got a yes. Richard always kept his word. He bowed with exaggerated respect before quietly slipping away.

Byron narrowed his eyes, watching him leave.

"Byron," Richard said, frowning, "look into the hospital he mentioned. I don't buy his story completely."

Byron gave a nod and quickly placed a call. However, thanks to Belen's warnings to the hospital, they kept the truth under wraps. The info Byron got? Pretty much matched what Belen had just said.

Richard still wasn't fully convinced-he didn't trust Belen, not really. But he shoved the doubts aside and headed for the hospital anyway. He had to know for sure. What if Belen was telling the truth and it really was Mara he'd slept with?

When Richard got there, he saw Mara sitting up in bed, looking out the window with a moody expression. It all lined up with what Belen said. Richard took a breath, straightened his expression, and walked over, trying to sound civil. "Hi, Miss Morgan."

Mara was wrapped in bandages, and when she heard the familiar voice, she turned her head quickly, eyes lighting up. Seeing that handsome face of his, she froze for a second, greeting him with a flirty little grin. "Alpha Richard? Wow, I didn't think you'd actually come!"

"Yeah," Richard answered calmly, moving to sit beside her bed.

"You really came to see me." Mara was practically dizzy with excitement. Any guilt about her little lie was long gone.

He caught the sharp scent of disinfectant in the air, and something bitter from her meds. Nothing he could put his finger on.

Looking at her bandaged head, he asked, sounding thoughtful, "How are you feeling now?"

Mara was thrilled, but she made sure to keep up the act, gazing at him with wide, fragile eyes like some poor helpless girl. "Thank you for checking on me, Alpha Richard. I'm doing much better. Just knowing you're here makes me feel a whole lot better. I didn't want my brother to tell you, but... he did anyway."

"It's fine. I wasn't that busy today," Richard replied.

"That's good. Just-please don't get the wrong idea about that night... I-I shouldn't have gone to the hotel..."

She was just about to nudge him into saying those magic words-make her his mate. She thought she saw him hesitate, like she almost had him. Then his phone rang. She stared at it, annoyed like someone had stolen her spotlight.

Richard didn't notice the look she gave. He walked toward the door and answered the call-it was from his father.

"Richard, where are you? Benjamin's getting worse..."

Richard's face tightened. His voice dropped. "I'll be there immediately."

Benjamin was his brother. Everyone knew Richard wore the alpha title now, but not many realized how capable Benjamin was too. He'd been attacked by rogues while traveling abroad. Took them down easily-but a virus got into his system.

The healers in the Bloodmoon Pack were out of answers. Nothing worked. Benjamin was wasting away, bleeding out slowly. Richard could only tell the healers to make him as comfortable as possible.

He left the hospital in a rush, didn't even say goodbye. Mara stared after him, fists slamming into the mattress, yelling in pure frustration. "Seriously? Now of all times?!"

She was sure that if she'd just had one more minute, Richard would've said yes. She could've become his mate-it was that close!

Meanwhile, Richard had already made it back to the Bloodmoon Pack. His father and Byron were there waiting, and Miles, the healer treating Benjamin, came rushing out of the medical room.

Miles looked stressed. "Benjamin's stable for now, but the virus he caught...it's not something we've seen before. We've asked everyone we can, no one knows how to fight it. Alpha Richard, there's only one shot-find that healer I mentioned. Vinnie Richie. But he's vanished. No one has a clue where he is."

Richard had known Miles for years and trusted him completely. If even he was saying this was the only option... there really was no other way. He turned to Byron. "How bad is it?"

Richard had already told Byron to find Vinnie as soon as possible. Byron gave a helpless shake of his head-he'd made tons of calls today, but no luck. "I've been trying everything, but Richie vanished two decades ago. No one knows where the guy went. But I do have a lead on one of his students-some mysterious she-wolf. Rumor has it, she's been spotted somewhere around our territory."

"The werewolves she treated only saw her with a veil on," Byron added quickly, like he was afraid of missing an important detail. "She made everyone sign some kind of confidentiality pact. No one's allowed to share anything about her."

Richard's face went sharp, like a storm was brewing just under the surface. His eyes turned icy, and his voice lost all warmth.

"Whatever it takes. I need her. Find her."

The entire Bloodmoon Pack received his orders. Everyone moved out. All for one goal: track down the healer.

Meanwhile, Perry was still lying in bed. She slowly opened her eyes and lazily got dressed.

Sitting in front of the mirror, she carefully put on her makeup. But her mind wandered-everything that had happened recently just wouldn't leave her alone. She sighed.

"Maybe it's time to ditch this place and head back to the countryside. Just live peacefully with Grandpa again," she thought, her fingers halfway through brushing her hair.

She was completely over how Francis constantly messed with her head. The quiet life started to feel more appealing than ever.

Just then, her phone buzzed. The noise snapped her out of it. She frowned and checked the screen-it was a call from Dylan.

Dylan Kent had grown up with her in the countryside. Always looked out for her, always listened. He was one of the few people she trusted completely. He became a talented healer, but when he invited her to join the hospital with him, she turned him down.

"Hey," Dylan greeted her, then paused, sounding a little hesitant. "Perry, it's about Benjamin Scott-the Bloodmoon Pack alpha's younger brother. He's caught some kind of weird virus. They're trying to find Vinnie Richie's student... That's you."

Perry's brows furrowed. She bit her lip, thinking hard. She'd heard about Richard's brother before but didn't know it had gotten this bad. "How bad is he right now?"

"It's pretty serious. The pack's losing it," Dylan replied, clearly worried. "They've asked a bunch of folks for help-even me-but I'm not strong enough to cure him. Honestly, I don't think he has much time left, Perry. What are you thinking?"

Perry stared at her reflection-her blue eyes searched for an answer in the glass. Finally, she made up her mind. One life was still a life. "Dylan, send me all his test results. I need to check everything first."

"That's all I've got," Dylan said, sending over an email not long after.

Perry opened the data and started going through it. Page after page of reports made her frown deeply. Even when noon came and went, she stayed focused, reviewing the material while nibbling on her dinner in her room.

She only realized it was nighttime when she stood up to stretch and glanced out the window-pitch black outside. Rubbing her temples, she headed to the door, planning to get some fresh air.

But before she could even step out, two strange deltas grabbed her at the threshold. A black car waited just outside-one of them shot her with a tranquilizer.

Before she passed out, she managed to whisper, "Who are you?"

"We're taking you where you need to be," one of the deltas responded coldly, tossing her into the car.

Perry bit down, still fuming but unable to fight back. As everything went dark, only one thought ran through her mind-

"Who the hell sent them? Francis? Tom? Some desperate patient? Tch, either way... I'm not helping anyone."

The black vehicle sped off into the night.