Rejected by My Pack, Crowned by the Empire Chapter 09

Rejected by My Pack, Crowned by the Empire Chapter 09

I only offered a faint smile.

“There’s no need for that.”

Those short words drained the color from every one of their faces instantly.

“What’s done is done. I am content with my life as it stands, so please refrain from intruding on it.”

My mother staggered unsteadily and lunged forward, desperate to pull me into an embrace.

My father and Zayne stepped forward too.

Just then, a figure moved in front of me.

It was my adoptive father.

My adoptive mother stepped up beside him, shielding me behind her.

My birth father frowned.

“This is an internal family affair. What authority do you have to step in our way?”

My adoptive father’s presence was imposing.

“If you truly intended to make amends, you had your opportunity ten years ago and you

squandered it completely.”

“Had we known you would value her so little and mistreat her, we never would have allowed Evelyn

to leave our household to come live with you.”

My adoptive mother’s pent-up anger finally erupted.

“Evelyn is a princess of the Lycan Empire. We raised her and treasured her as our most precious

treasure for all these years, not so we could send her back for you to abuse and degrade.”

Her voice rose with every word.

“Do you have any notion of what condition she was in on the day we came to retrieve her?”

“Her body was covered in scar tissue from severe burns, and her palms were covered in raw, painful blisters. Did you ever take notice? Did you ever truly care about her suffering?””

Each biting accusation crashed down on them one after another.

My birth parents turned deathly pale. Zayne and Damon bowed their heads in shame, unable to

utter a single word.

The truth was they truly had no clue. That entire day they had only concerned themselves with fussing over Serena, never once taking a genuine look at me.

Moments later, the guards blocked them from coming any closer.

Damon fought against the guards, desperate to break through the barrier.

But in the end, all he could do was watch helplessly as I climbed into the carriage and never looked

back.

Later that day, my official mating ceremony proceeded without interruption.

Under the Moon Goddess’s witness, my adoptive father walked me step by step across the hall and placed my hand in my mate’s.

He had waited patiently for me in this very place for an entire decade, ever since my birth parents came to take me away from this household.

My adoptive mother sat among the onlookers, weeping so bitterly that her makeup streaked and smudged across her cheeks.

In that moment, I knew I was truly happy.

For many long years afterward, my birth parents, Zayne and Damon still refused to let go of their

desire to make amends.

They came back again and again, begging for a chance to make things right.

But I never gave in.

Certain wounds cannot be erased merely by an apology, and some missed opportunities are fated never to be repeated.

Eventually, my birth parents and brother bought a house in the capital where I lived. They dared not intrude on my life directly, content only to observe me quietly from afar.

Damon cut ties with his mother and moved out on his own. Word spread throughout the community

that he remained unmarried for the rest of his life.

Even so, none of these events held any relevance to my life any longer.

As the sun sank below the horizon, my own true happiness was only just taking root.