After My Alpha Rejected Me, My Wolf Unleashed Fury

I woke with a gasp, my body already knowing what my mind refused to accept. The moon was coming—not just any moon, but the full moon that had tormented me for seven years. My fingers clutched the silk sheets, twisting them as the first wave of pain rolled through me like molten silver in my veins.

My wolf, Aurora, whimpered inside me. *It hurts, Celeste. Let me out. Please.*

I bit my lip until I tasted blood, trying to muffle the scream building in my throat. Beside me, the bed was empty. Dominic hadn't returned last night—again. The Alpha of the Crescent Moon Pack had more important matters than comforting his mate through her monthly agony.

"Just breathe," I whispered to myself, sliding from the bed. My legs trembled as another spasm gripped me, sending me to my knees on the cold hardwood floor. The pain was earlier this time, more intense. Aurora clawed at my insides, desperate for freedom.

I pressed my forehead against the floor, focusing on the cool sensation against my burning skin. Seven years. Seven years I had suppressed my true nature—my Silver Wolf—to be with my fated mate. To be his Luna. To belong.

When the spasm passed, I dragged myself to my feet. Dawn was still an hour away. The pack house would be quiet. I needed air, space to breathe without curious eyes watching the Luna's weakness.

I pulled on a simple dress, not bothering with shoes. The wooden floors of the Alpha's wing gave way to stone corridors as I made my way toward the training pavilion. There, the open-air structure would give me sky and breeze—small comforts against the storm raging inside me.

*He's there,* Aurora suddenly growled, her awareness sharper than mine.

"Who?" I whispered, though deep down, I already knew.

I heard them before I saw them—the low murmur of Dominic's voice, a feminine giggle in response. My steps slowed as I approached the pavilion's entrance. Something primal urged me forward even as my heart begged me to turn away.

I peered around a stone column, and the world stopped.

Dominic—my Alpha, my mate, the man I had sacrificed my very nature for—had Scarlett Rivers pressed against the training post. His hands gripped her thighs, hiking up her dress as she wrapped her legs around his waist. Their bodies moved together in a rhythm I recognized all too well.

"You're mine," he growled against her neck, in the spot where my mark should have been sacred. "Say it."

"Yours, Alpha," she moaned, her fingers digging into his shoulders. "Only yours."

Something shattered inside me—not just my heart, but something deeper, more fundamental. Aurora howled in anguish, the sound echoing only in my mind but so powerful I staggered backward.

*BETRAYER!* she screamed, her pain merging with mine until I couldn't tell where her agony ended and mine began.

I stumbled away from the column, my vision blurring. The pain in my abdomen suddenly sharpened, different from the usual full