4|Curse

As expected, I was the one standing still on the ground as no one came to get me. I would spend this year alone again. Of course, with the more intense bullying from my sister-in-law and her best friend. The committee asked us to return to our families.

Dad and Mom looked at me with sympathy on their faces. I could only be a daughter that brings them ashamed. I was raised by Beta. Unfortunately, my fate was worse than an Omega, the lowest class in the werewolf pack.

Most of the Omegas in our pack had found their mates. Not all of them met their destined mates who came from the Goddess. Some chose their own ones and completed the mating and marking rituals.

I could not choose my own mate as Lou would not let me do that. She hoped that we would meet our destined one. She had been waiting this long, so she did not want to give up yet.

“You will find him. He’s somewhere out there looking for a chance to meet you,” Mom said as she hugged me tightly. I held myself back from crying. “Let us eat. There’s a lot of your favorite food served tonight.”

Dad patted my shoulder while Garrett smiled at me to strengthen me. Tyra who was walking beside him smirked mockingly at me.

‘No more doubt. You are cursed,’ she spoke via mind link.

I immediately closed the link between her and me. Seeing her eyes turning silver, I could tell that she was trying to talk to me again. She pursed her lips as she could not continue her insults.

She was the two-faced coward I had avoided the most. She was always acted sweet in front of my family. But when they did not see her, she showed her true colors. I did not know why the Goddess paired my brother with this evil woman.

“Cora, are you okay?” asked Alpha Maddox, standing up to greet us.

Luna Aspen stood by his side, looked at me cautiously. The look she always gave me whenever Maddox and I interacted. She glanced at Tyra, and her eyes turned silver. I didn't know what she discussed with my sister-in-law, but I didn't care.

“She’ll be fine,” Garrett said, elbowing Maddox. He pushed him away before I could answer his question. “Come on, let’s join them. Tonight’s discussion must be solemnly serious.”

The Alphas and Betas and their mates would congratulate the she-wolves that would go with their mates to the new pack. For the she-wolves who become mates of the he-wolves from our pack, we would welcome them at a special event the next day.

Mom was right. They served so much good food on the table. I forgot the problems I was facing for a moment and enjoyed all the food voraciously. Dad even asked me to race to see who could eat more which I could easily win.

I tried to talk to Lou, but she ignored me. She felt worthless because she did not have a mate. I knew I could not comfort her with words, so I gave her some alone time.

People around us started whispering as the Alphas and Betas entered the specific room gathered with King Edmund. It was the King’s appearance for the first time after he could not leave the palace for the last three years. The Queen’s condition deteriorated several times so that the King did not dare to leave her side.

It was not the first time I had seen the King in person, so I could recognize him right away. The one I had never seen was the Queen. According to Dad and Mom, she was a gorgeous woman, kind, and liked by everyone. Therefore when she fell ill, everyone mourned for her and prayed for her speedy recovery.

“The news about the Queen is nothing compared to the cruel attitude of one of the participants earlier,” said the person sitting at the table to our right.

“Yes, that’s right. He had the heart to come here only to reject his mate. It was the first time that had happened. Why didn’t he reject her after the event?” whispered another with concern.

“The girl immediately went home with her parents as she could not bear the shame of being rejected in front of so many people,” another told us what happened to that girl.

“I want to cry over my situation of going home without a mate, but it’s better this way. I haven’t found him just to be humiliated in front of so many people,” muttered a young woman I remember standing with me after all the men walked past us.

“An Alpha daughter was rejected. What about me, I’m only an Omega?” another complained.

“Hey, King Edmund ordered us to treat everyone well. The rank is just a tool to help us find the right positions and jobs in our pack. All ranks receive the same honors and credits,” one of the men comforted.

“Daughter of an Alpha or not, Alpha Devon will still reject whoever his mate is,” said the one sitting at the table to my left. “I saw him coming with a woman. They seemed intimate. I was sure he came only to reject the mate destined for him. Because he already found the one he wanted.”

“The woman who came with him earlier? Didn’t that woman already had a mate?” said another, confusing. The question caught the attention of everyone who heard it, including my parents and me. “What? Have you not known yet? Rory Martin is Alpha Axel’s mate.”

“How do you know? Alpha Axel who was rumored to be missing after the attack on his pack? That Alpha Axel?” asked the other in disbelief. Things around us started to get chaotic.

That fact provoked new questions about the attacks that the Scarlett Sky Pack suffered. Could Alpha Devon be involved, too? If true, the fight for a woman’s hand was not a strong reason. Then, why did he have Alpha Axel’s mate by his side?

I closed my bedroom door after Garrett left. I looked at my suitcase. Well, it was official. I needed to attend the annual event next year. But I had to admit that I was so grateful I was not the one who got rejected in public. I could not stand the humiliation.

I still was mateless. However, I could sleep at night and wake up with a fresh mind and body in the morning. Lou asked me to let her run, so I allowed her. I even let her take control and stay behind my mind.

“Look who is coming,” a woman was mind-linked mockingly. I opened my eyes and saw Tyra’s wolf blocking Lou. Like Tyra, like her wolf. I smelled another scent.

“Maddox should have expelled you from this pack,” our luna said. She walked gracefully on her four feet. “You are a disgrace. How could a Beta’s daughter be cursed to be mateless? Twenty-three, and you haven’t found your mate. Do you know that when you reach twenty-five, the King will force you to be a slave in His castle?”

I did not really care what would happen to me in the future. But if I could be anywhere, the castle sounded a better place than here. The place where Tyra and this woman stayed was hell. We were from the same pack. We were grew up here. Unfortunately, they hated me.

“You should leave before I talk to Maddox. A curse like you could bring disaster to this pack. And I would not let that happen.” She sent out her luna aura, but only Tyra showed her neck. A sign of respect for our leader, but I stood still.

“You may be a Luna. But I am a Beta’s daughter, and you were just a commoner before Maddox found out you were mates. You can’t order me, only Alpha can.” I bowed, then left them behind.

Curse, curse, curse! It was all they knew about me. I did my best for this pack. Why was being mateless bothering them that much? If they were so happy with their mates, they would be in their bedroom making love with they so called fated one, not here mocking me.

‘They hate you because we were close with Maddox. Everyone once thought that we were mates. Who knows that Moon Goddess has another plan for us?’ Lou said, trying to soothe me. ‘You lost your best friend, and so did I.’

She was slowing down when we almost reached the river. In the afternoon, the river’s surface would change its color to royal blue. That was why our ancestors decided to use it for our pack’s name. And something hit me.