Rejected by My Alpha Mate: Amanda's Revenge

I returned to my quarters with my head held higher than it had been in years. The conversation with Elder Willow and my confrontation with Marcus had awakened something in me—a spark of the woman I used to be, the Luna I was meant to become.

'We're done being invisible,' Grace whispered inside me, her presence stronger with each passing hour.

I pushed open my door and froze. Crude red letters were smeared across the weathered wood:

OMEGA BLOOD ISN'T FIT FOR AN ALPHA

My fingers traced the still-wet paint, noting the distinctive flourish on the final letter—Amanda's signature touch, the same one I'd seen on pack documents she'd signed. She hadn't even bothered to disguise her handwriting.

'She wants us to know it was her,' Grace growled. 'She's getting bolder.'

I grabbed a rag from my small washbasin and began scrubbing at the letters, but the red paint—or was it blood?—had already begun to set into the porous wood. The message would remain visible for days, a constant reminder of my place in the pack hierarchy.

As I scrubbed, tears of frustration threatened to spill, but I blinked them back. I refused to give Amanda the satisfaction, even if she wasn't here to witness my reaction.

'My blood saved his life,' I whispered, the memory of that day still vivid—Marcus, pale and dying from the rogue attack, my wrist slashed open as I fed him my rare healing blood, drop by precious drop. 'My blood is the only reason she has an Alpha to fawn over.'

A soft knock interrupted my thoughts. I tensed, fearing Amanda had returned to witness the fruits of her cruelty, but the scent that drifted through the crack was familiar and welcome.

'Liam,' I breathed, opening the door just enough to see the young Delta warrior's concerned face.

'I saw what she did,' he said quietly, glancing down the hallway to ensure we weren't observed. 'Can I come in?'

I hesitated—an unmated male in an unmated female's quarters would spark gossip, even if that female was the pack's lowest omega—but nodded and stepped aside.

Liam entered quickly, his tall frame making my small room seem even more cramped. He was one of the few pack members who still treated me with respect, remembering the days when I'd stood proudly at Marcus's side.

'This has gone too far,' he said, gesturing to the defaced door. 'The whole pack is talking about what happened at the feast yesterday. And now this...'

'It doesn't matter,' I said, though we both knew it was a lie.

Liam's eyes flashed with anger. 'It does matter. You're his mate, Rebecca. His true mate. What he's doing—what he's allowing Amanda to do—it goes against everything sacred to our kind.'

I sank onto my bed, suddenly exhausted. 'What can I do? He's the Alpha.'

Liam knelt before me, his voice dropping to a whisper. 'You can leave.'

The words hung in the air between us, dangerous and liberating.

'Leave?' I repeated, the concept both terrifying and exhilarating.

He nodded, reaching into his jacket to pull out folded papers. 'Maps,' he explained, spreading them on the bed beside me. 'Patrol schedules. Safe routes through the territory borders.'

I stared at him in shock. 'You've been planning this?'

'Someone needs to look out for you,' he said simply. 'When the time comes—if the time comes—I can create a distraction. Give you a head start before they realize you're gone.'

My fingers trembled as I touched the maps, tracing the escape routes he'd marked in red ink. 'I'd be a rogue,' I whispered.

'Better a rogue than a prisoner,' Liam replied, his eyes serious. 'Think about it.'

Before I could respond, the pack mind-link flared to life, and Amanda's voice filled my head.

'Attention all pack members! I invite you to join me in the main hall for a special ceremony this evening.'

Images flooded through the link—Amanda standing in the ceremonial circle, draped in a familiar silver-embroidered cloak. My mother's cloak. The one she'd worn as Luna of our birth pack, the one she'd given me before I left to join Marcus. The cloak I'd carefully preserved for my own marking ceremony.

'How did she get that?' I gasped aloud, my heart racing with fresh betrayal.

Through the link, Amanda's eyes found mine specifically, her mental voice dripping with mock sympathy.

'Oh, Rebecca, is that pathetic cloak envy I'm sensing? Don't worry, darling. Some of us were born to wear the Luna's mantle... and some were born to clean it.'

Laughter rippled through the pack mind-link as Amanda twirled, showcasing my mother's precious heirloom like a trophy.

I slammed my mental shields down, cutting off the connection, but not before catching Marcus's proud approval radiating through the link.

'We're leaving,' I said to Liam, my decision crystallizing in that moment. 'Tonight.'