It was the moon ceremony in the Therondia pack, a yearly event where the packs gather to witness the young werewolves shift into their wolf forms under the moonlight for the first time.
The moon ceremony symbolizes their acceptance into the pack as fully-fledged members. Alpha's from other packs were also invited to strengthen their bond with the Therondia pack, so there were many Alpha's present, and since Esme despised crowds, she stayed in a secluded corner, watching the drama unfold without drawing any kind of attention to herself.
The only reason why tonight was important for Esme was because this would be Finnian's first shift. He had requested her presence here since he wouldn't want her to miss out on his transformation, and Esme was willing to keep to her promise.
In fact, she anticipated it.
The altar where the younglings stood was meticulously bedded with flowers, torches, and shimmering stones. After Dahmer's long, boring speech about acceptance, guidance and honor, the new members began to shift. Their bodies rippled and transformed, furs sprouting and muscles elongating as they took in their wolf form.
Esme's breath caught in her throat as she observed Finnian, and he was a magical sight to behold. His wolf was majestic, with furs that matched the color of snow. To think he was the youngest shifter among all of them was truly an honor to the Montague family, and his aura was impressive for someone who was only thirteen.
A whisper of laughter reached Esmeray's ears, and she turned her head sharply to see Dahmer standing beside her, his gaze pinned on his brother as he whispered. "Are you feeling left out?" He taunted, his voice low and mocking. "Maybe if you try hard enough, you'll sprout some fur and get the hell out of my pack. My brother is the true Montague, and you are nothing."
Esme didn't dare to retort his harsh remark concerning her lineage. Her response would only get her into trouble, so she did the only thing she grew up learning to do in order to survive, and that is to tolerate Dahmer and his mother's behavior till she gets out of here.
'Bullsh— Nonsense!' she frowned and crossed her arm, failing once again to curse at them, even in her thoughts.
After faking smiles to anyone who happened to spot them together, Esme's smile froze in place when a tall, fine man approached her from the crowd. His hair was brown, short but thick, with eyes that reminded one of a precious jewel known as Emeralds, and a face that seemed to have been carved by the gods itself.
It was Alpha Rhyne. Alpha of the Greenwood pack.
Esme was just about to greet him when he snatched her wrist in a swift motion, and she yelped due to his unexpected action. His grip on her wrist was almost painful, and even Dahmer had not seen that reaction coming either. It made him frown, cause the last thing he wanted was for Esme to create a ruckus during the moon ceremony.
However, Esme felt a strange sense of something stir within her. It was an inexplicable feeling, and she wasn't able to pinpoint what that desired feeling in her meant till she looked into his green eyes.
It couldn't be... could it??
"You're... my mate?" Esme's pupils dilated from shame as the question slipped from her mouth, and her heart thrummed. The way he was staring at her was intense, like he was peeking into her already dead soul, but the fact that she had finally found her mate made her eyes sparkle for the first time after her father's death.
Dahmer's expression was blank, and half of the crowd was staring at Esme, unable to believe that someone as weak as her was mated to an Alpha. Whispers circulated, but that was the least of Esme's problem, cause if Alpha Rhyne was her mate, then she would finally be able to—
"No." Alpha Rhyne's next words snapped Esme from her illusion, and the look in his green eyes shifted quickly into one of pure disdain. The turn off was so unexpected that it made Esme's heart pound relentlessly, and she knew what was coming when he released her wrist.
"You...cannot be my mate." He dropped coldly, and there was instant silence in the altar. "This bond between you and I shall not exist, Lady Esme. I, Alpha Rhyne of the Greenwood pack, reject you as my mate." He announced, pointing a finger directly at her, and something inside of Esme shattered into broken pieces.
She couldn't tell what it was, but it was so painful that it managed to wipe out the silent plea she wanted to utter. Her eyes expressed her disbelief, and Alpha Rhyne backed away as though she were a plague.
"I refuse to accept Esmeray as my mate cause I have a lover back in my pack house who is already expecting my heir." He declared coldly. "To top it off, you bear the Montague family name, but lack any of its strength. As an Alpha, I need a stronger mate to bear the title of becoming my Luna, a powerful Luna who can handle a pack, not someone weak like you."
He turned his head away in disgust.
Although a few people expected it would come to this, no one knew he'd go as far as stating that he had a lover to his own destined mate. Esme remained silent after listening to his rejection and the reason behind it, and it felt like the world around her had crumbled to the ground within a mere second.
She refused to reveal how deeply hurt she felt and answered understandably. "I accept your rejection." The moment she said it, something inside of her snapped, and her eyes were filled to the brim with tears. Everyone seemed surprised at her easy acceptance, because they knew, to some length, that finding her mate was her only chance of leaving the Therondia pack.
Finnian, who had shifted back to his human form, also felt the subtle smile on his lips falter when his big sister got rejected in the presence of everyone.
Esme sank to her knees when she felt it would no longer be healthy for her to keep standing. Her tears flowed freely without a single sob, and she didn't bother stealing a glance at Dahmer who would be rejoicing at her rejection. A mate bond was supposed to be an everlasting union between two people; an unbreakable connection, but her own mate had shattered that bond without a moment's hesitation.
Rising to her feet, Esme's eyes were filled with tears, but she refused to let them fall. She turned her back on Alpha Rhyne and retreated to the shadows where there'd be no one to hurt her. Entering the moon-lit garden, she found a secluded spot and sank to the ground, hugging her knees.
As the howls of the pack filled the night air, Esme hugged herself tighter and silently let her tears drop. She barely had time to recover when someone grabbed her arm and forcefully pulled her to her feet, eliciting a gasp out of her.
She was about to scream at the figure to leave her alone when her own voice caught in her throat upon recognizing him. It was the rogue from the south, a scary looking man with a thick mustache that surrounds his features, and worst of all, an Alpha.
Esme's spine trembled when his grip on her arm tightened, and as if timed, Dahmer showed up as well. He had this pleased look on his face as he noticed the rogued Alpha was accessing Esme's body with an interested look in his eyes, and that made her heart pound in fear.
W-what is going on?
"Like what you see, Alpha Irish?" Dahmer didn't hesitate to add, "I told you already that her mate won't even want a woman like her. Just as I've promised, you can have her as your breeder if you fulfill my needs by giving me the 40,000 men I demanded for." he dived straight into business, and Esme was at loss when she heard her brother — no, Dahmer had already signed her up for sales.