CHAPTER FIVE

NEILLA'S POV

I stared at him, the intensity of my gaze boring holes into his back as he followed closely behind Venn, the strange woman with eyes capable of digging into the soul of anyone she had in her grip.

It infuriated me the more that there was no protest coming from him at the position of her hands on his body. Soon they arrived the altar.

I cast another furtive glance at the processions in the center of the crowd of werewolves who'd gathered to watch in silent anticipation. The Oracle continued the ritual rounds around the couple, the lone chime of the bell in his grasp resounding in slow succession.

The first chime seemed to increase the pace of my troubled heart. It rose ever so slowly and by the seventh time the chime sounded, echoing throughout the deafening silence, my poor heart slammed ceaselessly against my ribcage. Even though I had renounced Rylan as my mate, he hadn't accepted not rejected it.

He said nothing in response even when the rejection had sawed through his insides and pain flashed in his eyes.

My wolf howled softly within me and I settled a hand against my chest to ease the ache in there. We were one. She is me as much as I am her. Once again, out eyes riveted back, misty as we took in the image.

One that would be stuck in our head forever.

That could have been me, I thought as I once more seared my burning gaze into the woman by Rylan's side.

Us. My wolf reminded. "That could have been us. He thinks us some sort of weakling and it's all because of you." With that, she retreated into the back of my mind and went a step further to block our communication line.

Her accusatory words aggravated me, no doubt. Still, I managed to draw an evasive face, pretending for all who cared like I wasn't affected by the sight of my mate -my goddess given mate- about to be bound to some other person.

That could have been us receiving the blessings of the goddess. That could have been us basking under the glow of the blue lit moon, the silent murmurings of the Oracle, who by now has taken on the form of the goddess, descending over us.

If it wasn't the stupid law surrounding this goddess-forsaken process, I should be on my way home. The law forbids any werewolf, old or young, from keeping indoors instead of witnessing the goddess bless royal mates. They deemed it punishable, only I didn't know what punishment awaited whoever broke that law.

I was too chicken to find out so I stayed put.

However, irrespective of the threats, people often wanted to attend this event. It was a once-in-four-years occurrence. The sight of the blue moon and it's effect afterwards was enough to send the people running out of their houses to witness nature in it's true ethereal beauty.

There were rumours of the people also being fortunate to partake of the blessings that descended upon the couple involved.

So why was I here feeling like the goddess pulled an unfair one on me?

As I stared at Rylan, I wondered if it was still possible for him to have unrestricted access to my thoughts as before.

Unrestricted because I still couldn't find it in me to keep him away from my privacy. I wanted myself bared to him in all pathetic honesty. Look where it dumped me, watching the procession happen from within the curious crowd.

After a while, I turned to look beside me. Matteo's hooded glare was hooked onto my 'supposed' mate and his intended Luna. I looked away, turning back to the altar.

He was my best friend whom I grew up together with, running throughout the woods, scaring humans who dared to venture into the wild for the search of the unknown. Point of correction; He. I wanted nothing to do with frightening people whose lifespans were so feeble and smelled like death everytime they were within range.

All that was before I discovered the scent tha lulled me in for life. For no longer than a century, that is. We'd chosen this very blue moon cycle for a particular reason and it seemed he was willing to throw it away.

Time seemed to slow down to a halt as Rylan looked up from his bleeding palm, looking through the crowd with urgency. Those opal green eyes darting nervously throughout the crowd like he was searching for someone.

I became hopeful. Hopeful that he'd realize he was not doing the right thing, stop the ceremony midway and come for me. After he'd encircle me, he'd reject my rejection and claim me in front of the crowd.

All of my wistful thinking wasn't to be because as soon as his hypnotic eyes rested on me, he stopped. The worry that was etched on his face disappeared immediately as he spotted me.

Relief? It didn't seem so.

Quicker than he froze, he looked away to join his bleeding gash with his 'lady'. Moisture formed around my eyes, temporarily blurring my view. I blinked a couple times in order to focus even as the dull ache in my chest intensified. What could be more painful than the view before me? Not even when I discovered the truth of my existence. Not even when Mana Sylveon revealed to me, on one stormy night, that I wasn't her daughter.

"No daughter of mine would let a man treat her like trash for acceptance and it's a good thing that you're not mine!"

She had spat the unwelcome news out to me, a look of disgust marring her face for a fleeting second before she recoiled in shock at what she'd said. And for the first time that night since I'd come to know her, I'd never experienced anything like it.

And it was all because of him. All because of the man who was now unashamedly getting tied to someone who wasn't me. It was obvious to only me that he was accepting to do all of that with his tail tucked in. He was as unfit to be Alpha just as I was.

A tanned hand curled itself around my shoulder, offering nothing but comfort for the unease I felt, succor to my anguish. Thankfully, the hand steered me away from the shame, leading me towards the exit. As soon as I stepped out, fresh breeze whipped against my face and hair, causing me to wheeze loudly like one being pulled out from drowning. I doubled over, tears once again blurring my view of the grass that had taken on a yellow glow due to the moon's illumination.

My wolf made her presence known again. "We're being tossed to the side because you have refused to stand your ground. I wonder why the goddess' so called good intentions for me was to pair me with a spineless, pathetic human. You couldn't even avert your eyes to spare us this humiliation. We do not match. If anything, you only seem to draw me back."

With those words slapped against my face, she took off again, severing our communication line. She blocked me out once more.

Her words stung. Badly. I wanted to say something to counter her words. I couldn't because as they sunk in, everything turned out to be true. She was great at assessing situations and character, great at guessing the end result of an action before the first move. She wasn't a beast for no reason after all.

And she was not wrong. I, indeed, was a spineless human.