The Alpha Who Let Me Go

The words tasted bitter on my tongue, but as soon as they left my mouth, I felt a strange sense of relief. The bond between us snapped, leaving behind an emptiness that was both painful and liberating.

Lucian flinched, his eyes widening for the first time since I’d walked into the room. “Amelia—”

“Save it,” I said, cutting him off. “You don’t get to humiliate me and then act like you care.”

I turned on my heel, my heart pounding as I walked out of the office. The pack house felt colder than ever, the silence pressing in around me like a vice. But I didn’t stop. I kept walking, my head held high even as tears streamed down my face.

By the time I reached the front door, a small crowd had gathered, drawn by the sound of raised voices. They looked at me with a mixture of curiosity and pity, but I didn’t care. Let them stare. Let them gossip.

I paused at the threshold, turning back to look at them one last time. “For anyone wondering,” I said, my voice loud and clear, “the engagement is off. I’m no longer bound to this pack or to your Alpha.”

…..

By morning, everyone in the pack knew. The whispers started before the sun even rose, spreading like wildfire through every corner of the territory. By the time I stepped outside my temporary quarters—a modest cabin on the pack's outskirts—eyes were already following me.

They didn’t even bother pretending to look away. The stares burned into my back as I walked toward the training grounds, where I usually went to clear my mind. I could hear the low hum of murmured conversations, fragments of cruel speculation reaching my ears.

“Did you hear? She rejected him. Can you imagine rejecting an Alpha?”

“She didn’t reject him. He probably pushed her to it. Who would want her as a Luna, anyway?”

“I heard she walked in on him and Serena. Bet she couldn’t handle the competition.”

The words stung, but I kept my head high and my steps steady. Let them talk. If they thought I was going to crumble under their judgment, they were in for a rude awakening.

When I reached the training grounds, I found an empty corner and started stretching. The tension in my body was unbearable, coiling tighter with every passing second. I needed to hit something—anything—to release the frustration bubbling inside me.

I was midway through a set of punches on the dummy when I heard someone clear their throat behind me.

“Amelia.”

I froze at the sound of her voice. Serena.