The Alpha’s Rejected Luna: Crown of Thorns Chapter 10

The Alpha’s Rejected Luna: Crown of Thorns Chapter 10

“Consider it done, Miss Ravenna.”

The healer checked Asher, fumbled with herbs and pulse readings, and then nodded as if convinced by the show and the gold. “Some seasonal weakness and a mild fever. He needs rest. He will be fine.” He left with a small, practiced smile. Money made wolves kind, or at least pliable.

When the healer left, I let out a small, helpless-sounding sob and threw myself into Kael’s arms like I was breaking. “I’m such a useless mother,” I cried, letting my tears fall just the right way. “I can’t do what Sera could do. I’m so sorry i

tried.”

Kael tightened his arms around me, relief spreading across his face. “Forget her. Forget that woman. You are my true

mate now. Asher is the only heir that matters.” He kissed my hair and murmured, “We’ll make her pay.”

I tilted my head, letting a little confusion creep in like a child. “But you looked for her. You were furious when she ran

away with that wolf. Why did you search for her so hard if you love me now?”

Kael’s laugh was low and dangerous. “My pride wouldn’t let me be bested. I wanted to bring her back to teach her a

lesson. I planned to make her serve you forever. Your omega. Isn’t that what you wanted?”

My pulse thudded. “Yes,” I replied, soft and obedient. “Yes, of course. But she’s gone now. Mate me officially, Kael.

Make it final so Asher is never called a mistress’s pup again.”

He inhaled, dark and hard. “I’ll mate you after I find her, after I punish her for what she did. Or after I find her dead.”

His words were a gift. My smile shone so easily it could blind him. “Oh Kael, that sounds perfect.” My mind slid

somewhere cold and final and delicious.

I pictured her face when she realized the world was closing in. I would find her first and finish what he wanted. I

would make sure she never breathed easily again.

That night, while staring at myself in the mirror… memories began to resurface.

I remembered the training grounds, the banners drooping from the rafters. I stood at the edge of the sparring ring. People thought beauty was something you were born with. I learned it was a performance.

Sera walked in like she owned the light. Her hair was a silver tide, her smile honest, the kind that made young wolves forget their own names.

“Moon Goddess, look at her,” I heard one whisper. “She’s like moonlight given form.”

I forced my lips into a practiced smile and said, “She’s talented, sure. But watch. Charm burns out.”

The elders smiled when she passed, the pack master called her gifted She could track a scent across three territories

and make you think it was poetry. It made me taste iron when wolves leaned toward her instead of me

Kael sat on the stone benches then, lanky and bookish, all angles and awkwardness. He used to be the quiet wolf

who read ancient texts.

I liked that he noticed me once, but the Beta’s son was louder and had shoulders that demanded attention. I let Kael

I watched him watch Sera, embarrassed at first, then mesmerized. When she laughed, something in him warmed I
felt the hollow widen.

Then another memory surfaced…

We were in our final year, and the elders announced the moonlight blessing. Sera played the ceremonial howl-not

with her voice, but with a piano the pack had imported for her. It was the kind of sound that flips you over and shows

you your own bones.

When she played, every eye softened, and the music made the hall smaller so only she fit in the center.

I had spent the entire winter practicing my speech. I had worn the white gown I knew made my features deadly. I

rehearsed my walk. But when the elders rose and called Sera’s name for the blessing, my chest closed like a fist.

I walked up to her afterward and the words slid out, poison disguised as civility. “Congratulations. You play like the

moon remembers you.”

She smiled. “Thank you, Ravenna. It means a lot.”

Inside I wanted to spit. I wanted to rip that blessing scroll from her hands.

Then another memory…

I watched him transform like some ridiculous fairy tale. Kael became the Alpha every pack feared.

“He’s different now,” my friend said. “It’s like Sera gave him a spine.”

“I know,” I told her, tasting something sour. “And I know how to get what changes a wolf.”

Seeing Kael rise while she stood at his side like some crown jewel made blood rush behind my eyes. I promised

myself I would trade the world for what she had.

Until they announced the arranged mating between Kael and Sera. I heard the news like a hurricane. My heart did

something traitorous, and then I threw myself into a plan.

“I will be the better version of her she cannot even see,” I told my friend late one night.

“Then do it. Be the shadow he prefers when the moon goes dark.”

That was when I came back into Kael’s life. I had been his first interest, his first infatuation, so it didn’t take long for

him to fall for me again. That was when Asher was born. Yet even then, they branded me the mistress. But now not

anymore

I was soaking in the bath, steam rising, when the phone buzzed against the stone ledge. Kael was in the study, poring

over some report. I smiled, let the water warm me, and answered.

“Hello?” I purred.

The voice on the line was all gravel and teeth. “You owe me!” he spat. “Five wolves. Dead. I was left to bleed for a

week. Do you know what that feels like?”

My skin went cold. “Dead? What bodies are you talking about? Who killed them?”

He swore and the sound made my jaw tighten. “I spent a week in the healer’s den, you bitch. My hands were

shattered. I’m sending proof. You think you can throw us away like carcasses? We did what you paid for. Now we’re

ripped apart.”

Then I heard the click.