You Rejected Me. Remember?

Time passed. By the time the sunset, Elijah was exhausted. However, he was elated that he had spent a day of his life trying to improve himself. The only concern that remained was Amelia. He wanted her, but she didn’t want him.

While he took a shower and as he relaxed on his bed, his mind was occupied with her thoughts. He knew Amelia was a witch and wouldn’t cherish the mate bond as much as wolves do. Werewolves took the mate bond as something sacred.

“What are we going to do? I don’t want to lose her,” he sighed as he lay on the bed. “She is my mate. I know second chances exist, but they are extremely rare. Besides, I really like her. She is…. different. She is strong, sassy, and I know she will kick my a*s if I am being stupid ….and I like that. Maybe that is what I need. Perhaps that is why we are mated to a witch who would kick some senses into my brain….” He trailed off. “But I fear that she might reject me and succeed one day,” he complained.

“Maybe we should avoid her for now?” Fenris suggested. He puckered his lips. Perhaps that could be a temporary solution.

Closing his eyes, he wished that he could travel back in time. Travel to the time he was still in high school. When he bullied Monica, calling her a bastard. He regretted every time he pushed her against the lockers and pulled her hair. And there was one specific time he had deliberately embarrassed her in front of all their classmates. He had poured a packet of milk on her head.

She cried that day, yet, she never fought back. Until the day he called her mother a slut. That day she kicked his crotch and escaped before his friends could get her. Elijah winced at the memory. He was wrong. He was utterly wrong to do that. Clara wasn’t a slut. In fact, she was the most patient she-wolf. She silently listened to everyone who unjustly shunned her and now he understood why. She did it for Monica.

It must have been painful for Clara; she undoubtedly had it much worse than him. She was rejected by her mate and Baron, being the jackass he was, used the opportunity to take advantage of her. He wondered what happened after that. If any common sense was left in Baron’s brain, he must have known that he could have been Monica’s father. If not, he was an a*****e and an idiot.

He felt Fenris shift uncomfortably in his head.

Frowning, “what is it, Fenris?” He asked.

“I was wondering about how Clara died….” He mumbled.

“She was found dead one day at the river bank. I heard that she drowned, or something like that. We had just graduated from high school that week and I wasn’t very active in the pack activities so I don’t know much,” he mumbled.

“What if her death wasn’t a natural one?” Fenris responded, making Elijah’s heart race. His eyes widened. Gulping hard, “what do you mean?” He asked his wolf.

“He r***d her. I have a feeling that he was the one who labelled her as a slut to hide it and who knows, maybe he killed her,” Fenris replied.

Elijah sat up. His wolf was right. That was something Baron might do.

“But .. how would we know?” He wondered.

“Philip?” Fenris suggested and Elijah felt his heart plummet. Did he have to face the one he had tried to kill? He was a little surprised to see him alive and well. However, he was now glad that Philip had made it through that ordeal.

“I….”

“Face it, Elijah. You have to,” Fenris urged. Elijah’s chest squeezed, yet he nodded his head.

“I will,” he gulped, clutching onto the sheets. Covering his face with his hands, he sighed.

“I guess there is one more person I have to beg to be pardoned from,” wiping away the beads of sweat, he breathed out.

The next day, he went out and started his usual scheduled work. On the first day, he had deliberately avoided interacting with the wolves, especially if Cade and Philip were nearby. However, today, he was going to try…. It was a crucial step towards being a better person.

He had cleaned the showers when the warriors returned from their training session. Instead of leaving, he searched for Philip. When he saw that he was speaking to Cade, he flinched. It was going to be extremely hard. Ignoring his erratic heart, he stepped closer to them.

“Excuse me,” he timidly said. Philip raised an eyebrow as he faced the young wolf. Elijah had his eyes downcast, yet he felt their gazes burn into him. His heart thumped frantically as he tried to say the words.

“I… I would like to speak with Philip,” he uttered.

Philip nodded his head and stepped aside. When Cade went into the showers, he faced Elijah.

“What?” He studied Elijah’s demeanour.

“I… I am sorry. Can you please forgive me for what I’ve done…. I mean….” He trailed off making Philip chuckle.

“For what? Trying to kill me?” He asked nonchalantly.

Elijah was speechless. Philip’s response made him want to disappear from plain sight. He felt as though being buried alive would be better than facing the consequences of his actions.

“I don’t want to talk about it now. You have done worse things to Monica and she has forgiven you. You teamed up with Baron and tried to kill her wolf before she shifted. Thankfully, her wolf is stronger than that. She is stronger than any of us!” Philip snarled at him.

“Because she is our alpha,” Elijah whispered.

Narrowing his eyes, “so you know,” Philip mumbled.

Timidly nodding his head, “I saw her wolf in the woods. Her striking resemblance with Warg raised questions so I ran back to find out the truth. I managed to trick Baron into drinking were-wine laced with amytal and I …I kind of found out what he did to Clara ….” He gulped. “He…. He…”

“He r***d her,” Philip bluntly stated. “Monica found out and that’s why she ran away from the pack. That, in addition to the fact that Baron tried to force himself on her,” Philip gritted his teeth.

“That a*****e tried to force himself on his own flesh and b***d! I feel like he should be chopped and fed to the wild animals in the woods!” His fists clenched.

Elijah’s eyes went wide with the new piece of information.

“We should have just killed him when we had the chance!” Fenris growled.

He suddenly felt his knees go weak. He had been taking his side the whole time.

“I bet she didn’t poison Baron’s brother,” Fenris mumbled.

Dropping onto his knees, he breathed out. “You mean….she didn’t r…r….run because she had to…. poisoned Baron’s brother?” He stammered.

“That’s some bullshit Baron must have told you,” Philip sneered.

“Oh, God….” He gasped for breath. He had chosen to deny all the allegations the members of the Dark Howl pack put on Baron, however, now, Baron’s wickedness was as clear as daylight.

“And Clara….”

“Monica’s mother. I pity her. She did put an allegation on Baron years ago. She said that he violated her but she failed to bring any proof. But now, I feel that the evidence must have been destroyed. Baron was the alpha and he must have done something,” Philip sadly sighed. “As her beta, I failed her.”

“I have a hunch that her death also might not be a natural one,” trembling, Elijah finally mumbled out. Philip remained silent for a while.

“I won’t be surprised. You are right. Baron has a collection of crazy solvents and poisons.”

Frowning he glanced at Elijah. He closed his eyes.

“Well, at least you aren’t as rotten as he is. You are here trying to redeem yourself. That takes a lot of courage,” Philip uttered and pursed his lips.

“I… should go,” he mumbled right before walking away.

Elijah covered his face, devastated by what he had heard. The little words of praise brought no solace to him. The damage was far worse than that. He had been following Baron who was the worst. The Queen was right when she dissolved the entire pack. He didn’t know how to govern a werewolf community. He was nothing but an a*s.

“Dude?” He heard his wolf call him.

“Fenris …… I was blind,” he cried.

***

Once again, Amelia went to look for Elijah. This time, she was sure she would succeed. The last time, she had not used their full names and ranks. Perhaps that was the reason why the rejection didn’t work.

When she entered the weapons storage facility, Elijah wasn’t in there. So she peeked in through the glass door which she knew was the shower room. The sight of shirtless males made her blush and quickly look away.

“He must be in there,” she mumbled to herself.

She waited by the door until they were done.

“Oh, hey, Amelia, what are you doing here?” A familiar voice caught her attention. Smiling, she turned to face Philip.

“I’m looking for Elijah,” she told him.

“I saw him there. But why are you looking for him?” Philip arched his brows.

“I want to reject him. I don’t want to be forced into a bond and be tied to someone. Especially to someone like him….”

Philip paused for a while. His lips parted and his forehead creased. He glanced at Amelia and then through the glass door of the shower room.

“Are you sure? Mates are a gift…..” he trailed off as he shifted his gaze back to her. She was surprised to hear him say that.

Tilting her head, “I am amazed that you are saying that,” she replied.

Nodding his head in agreement, “I know. But…. It was courageous of him to accept that he was wrong and work to be a better person. Yes, he was a jerk in the past. But he was misinformed. And look at him now. His sincerity had broken the curse. He is deeply remorseful about what had happened. He had even asked me to forgive him,” Philip studied her face.

Her eyes clouded with uncertainty. Her mouth opened and closed. Perhaps she wanted to say something, yet, she didn’t know how to respond to him.

“Maybe you were what he needed. Perhaps, he needed a rude awakening that could open his eyes,” he sighed and paused once again.

“If you still want to reject your soulmate, it is your choice. Perhaps, he would be gifted with another mate who wouldn’t judge him because of his past.”

Philip left Amelia stupefied beside the glass door. The thought of Elijah being mated to someone else didn’t sit right with her. She knew it was the mate bond speaking. Still, she also knew that Philip had a point.

The warriors walked out of the shower room one by one. Yet, Amelia was too lost in her thoughts to care. Every word Philip said was deeply embedded in her heart. Her chest felt constricted. Biting her lower l*p, she glanced into the shower room, which was now empty.

Empty except for one person who was still sitting on the floor leaning against the wall. His head was lowered. Although he wasn’t facing her, she could clearly see how disheartened he looked. Tears streamed down his face and she felt her heart weep for him.

She slowly traced the cold glass of the shower room door. Was she wrong to reject him? She wondered. When she felt her eyes sting, she slowly backed off.

Shaking her head, “I… can’t ….” she gasped and took off. She ran into the packhouse and up the flight of stairs that led her to the room she stayed in. Her heart thudded in her chest as she slammed the door shut and leaned against it. Panting, she closed her eyes.

“Why? Is this my fate?” She wheezed.