Her Rejection

Chapter Two:

"W-What?" What did he mean by having a fiancée? She was his mate!

Laurel moved closer to him, but he took a step back.

"What grudge do you hold against my father?" Laurel asked. She then stressed, clenching her fists, "I'm not my father."

"Yes, but you are his daughter." Stefan hesitated. "I'm sorry." He then turned and walked away.

Laurel felt her feet root to the ground. Her heart was beating rapidly in her chest, threatening to explode into a thousand pieces.

Did her mate just reject her? Why didn't he want her? Was it because of her father? Her eyes filled with tears.

Stefan frowned as he walked away. How could his mate be the daughter of his enemy, the one he came here to seek revenge for?

He looked away from her green eyes, which were already shaking in fear.

He regretted scaring her, but he had a duty to his pack and an oath to his dead parents. Her kingdom will fall to ruin, and he'd be the cause of it.

Laurel watched his retreating figure, a lump growing in her throat. Her father had wronged too many people that it was impossible to count. He had wronged her as well. She woke up to beatings and painful words every day.

Sometimes she was forced to slave around. Her pack saw her as nothing and only wanted to draw blood from her. They showed no love to the child of the Luna they claimed to love.

But she would endure all those if she could find love someday.

Yet, her mate? He didn't want her.

Lena, however, couldn't seem to read the room. She tugged at Laurel's sleeve. "Your father is becoming impatient, Princess."

She turned to leave, but Laurel grabbed her by the arm, glaring. "I told you to drop that 'Princess', didn't I, Lena?" Her eyes were red from pain.

Lena shook under her gaze, looking down. "Oh, Prin— Laurel. I'm v-very sorry."

Laurel's eyes glistened with unshed tears. She pushed Lena aside and slowly walked to her father, sobbing.

'I'm sorry, Elma. My bad luck cost us our mate.' She wiped her eyes and stood beside her father. Her wolf whimpered but stayed mute. Laurel could feel the heaviness she felt, but she was glad Elma's hatred wasn't directed at her but at her father.

The man nudged her. "Why the long look? Smile!"

She did nothing.

Her father glared at her and faced her. "Do not make me hit you again. I said, smile," he said with a strained voice.

Alpha Denzel walked towards them, and she forced a smile to her face. She had to look happy, like her life was blissful.

Her dance was about to start, and she'd be auctioned. Would her mate bear to see that?

She couldn't do it, whether or not her mate was accepting her, but she didn't deem herself so useless to be auctioned to a man. She'd escape the moment she was out of here; she was sure of that.

"Today marks the eighteenth birthday of my beautiful daughter, Princess Laurel," her father said, holding her hand with a smile. "Let's be entertained!"

Everyone cheered at his speech, not getting the obvious misogyny in his words. The lights went out, and the stage was lit.

Laurel walked to the back stage, standing behind the curtains. She exhaled. The world should just end, instead of this.

Those words were her prayer yet they were left unanswered. The slow passing of time was merciless.

Nothing would be saving her.

Stefan chugged down another glass of alcohol, trying to numb his feelings. He found his mate, but he can't be with her. Was that too much for his wolf to understand? She was their enemy's daughter.

He heard the speech her father gave and twisted his face in contempt. She was to dance to entertain the guests. On her birthday? Wasn't she a princess?

'Cade. Start the operation.' He mind linked to a man standing two feet away, and immediately the light was switched off. The man nodded, looking at him.

'Would you pull this off? Destroying your mate's pack on her eighteenth birthday?' His wolf, Kai, scolded him, but Stefan swallowed it down.

He wasn't turning back now. He hadn't come to hurt her; he came to avenge his parents. And it seemed he was doing her a favor; she didn't look very pleased to be dancing for the guests.

Laurel wore a fake smile as the curtains began to open, but they stopped midway, stopping at her thighs. Was this a mechanical error?

She looked up at the people drawing the curtains above, and that's when blood dripped on her forehead.

Her body trembled. "B-Blo...od....W-What?" There were arrows sticking out of their chests, and they soon collapsed to the floor.

Soon, she began hearing screams, and the light above her flickered off. She ran out of the stage and towards her father, she saw nothing and crashed into a food tray.

"Princess!" Lena's scream echoed through the dark.

Laurel immediately turned, reaching her hands out in attempt to feel something— anything.

"Lena? Lena!! Father!" She called. What was happening? There was chaos everywhere— growls and unsheathing swords. Someone fell beside her and she shrieked when the body brushed against her, falling to the ground.

A sword was thrusted in someone on the ground, the sharp ring of metal piercing through the flesh echoing. Laurel cried as she crawled away from there, trying to reach Lena.

She heard footsteps walking towards her. "Who are you? Please don't kill her. Please don't kill me."

"Princess…" There it was again, Lena's voice. Laurel ran towards the direction. She didn't wish to lose her only friend so abruptly, just like how she lost her mother.

"Please… Please don't kill me… No!"

Laurel fell to the ground when someone hit her back, a hiss escaping her lips as her knees scraped against the floor. There was a tearing sound, her dress no doubt ripped from the impact. Slowly, her eyes were starting to get used to the dark. Laurel thought she caught sight of a tall silhouette of a man.

She forced herself to get up, to keep fighting, to defend Lena, but her body lost its will. Amidst the dire cries, she heard the snapping of the cable.

Laurel's head instinctively swerved up, just in time to see the chandelier crashing down towards her.