Page 15 of Rejected by My Shadow Alpha (Mate to the Fallen #1)

Ruby

Liora's breathing was shallow but steady beside me, her small body curled under the faded quilt. I lay on my side, watching the slow rise and fall of her chest, willing it to continue. Each breath felt like a battle won.

My eyelids burned from sleeplessness, and my heart was raw from fear.

I had never felt this helpless, not even the night I ran from my engagement party.

Back then, I had my instincts, my wolf, and my will, but now I was just a mother on the edge, praying to the Moon Goddess and every deity that help would come.

The network is mobilizing. If he's out there, they'll find him. Hold on, Moonleaf. Word will reach you soon.

I clung to those words like a lifeline. He had always been kind, steady, and quietly supportive in a way that anchored me when I felt adrift. I didn't know who he really was, but in the depths of this nightmare, he'd been a constant whisper of hope.

A knock rattled the door.

I stiffened, instinctively wrapping an arm around Liora.

Nia was out back, tending to her herbs. Could it be a rogue in need of treatment?

Another emergency? Goddess, I didn't have the strength for it.

My body ached. My soul was frayed at every edge.

I didn't want to move, but the knock came again, firmer this time.

Reluctantly, I pulled myself up from Liora's side, brushing a strand of damp hair from her forehead. "I'll be right back, baby," I whispered.

The hallway felt colder than usual. My feet were silent against the old floorboards as I reached the door and cracked it open, ready to tell whoever it was to come back later. Standing before me was a face I hadn't seen in weeks but hadn't forgotten.

Alex.

"Hi Moonleaf," the man at the door said, his warm voice tugging at a distant memory. "It's good to see you again."

"Alex?" I blinked, squinting through the low light.

He nodded, giving me that same lopsided smile I remembered from weeks ago, the quiet patient whose wounds I'd stitched, whose recovery I'd overseen. The kind soul who'd asked for nothing and thanked me for everything.

"Come in," I said, opening the door wider. "You look much better than the last time I saw you."

He chuckled as he stepped inside, his eyes scanning the modest interior of my living room. "I owe that to you."

I managed a tired smile. "You don't owe me anything. I was just doing my job."

He looked at me then, and something passed over his face. "Still, I came to return the favor. I didn't come alone."

And that's when I felt it.

A sharp sting bloomed behind my eyes. A scent familiar and forbidden rushed at me like a thunderclap: cedar wood and the electricity of a storm rolling across a winter lake. My heart stuttered.

No. No, it couldn't be.

My wolf stirred violently beneath my skin, wide awake and snarling, clawing to the surface as if she recognized something my mind refused to process.

"Alex…" I whispered, breath catching. "Who's with you?"

He looked toward the door. "I think you already know."

And then he stepped in.

Drew.

Everything in me shattered. My breath left my lungs in a rush, as though the room had been emptied of air. My knees threatened to give way, and my fingers gripped the door frame to stay upright. The scent was stronger now, unmistakable and laced with the power of an alpha.

cedar wood. Rain. Him.

My wolf howled.

He looked the same, and yet not. There were new lines carved into his face and shadows behind his ice-blue eyes. But those eyes, Goddess, those eyes still pierced straight through me like no time had passed at all.

"Ruby," he said, his voice low, barely more than a breath.

Hearing my name on his lips was a knife twisting in a wound that had never truly closed.

For a moment, none of us moved. Not Alex.

Not Drew. Not me. My heart was a drum. My wolf, a tempest, and my soul, a battlefield.

I didn't know if I wanted to run or fall apart in his arms, but I did know one thing.

The man who broke me, the man I mourned, the father of my child, was standing in my living room, very much alive.

My wolf stirred violently inside me, howling with recognition, with longing, and with betrayal. The connection lit up every nerve in my body like lightning.

"No…" I stumbled back, shaking my head. "No. No. This isn't possible. You're dead."

Drew took a step forward, his eyes wide with something raw: grief, regret, longing. "Ruby…"

"Don't," I whispered, voice cracking. "You died, Drew. I buried you in my heart. I mourned you."

The room tilted. My knees buckled beneath me. I heard my name, vaguely, as everything blurred around me. Then darkness.

When I came to, I was in his arms. Wrapped in warmth and arms I once knew better than my own. His scent wrapped around me like a cruel memory, intoxicating and suffocating all at once. My cheek was pressed to his chest, his heartbeat steady and strong.

No.

No, this couldn't be happening.

The moment my eyes fluttered open and met his, everything in me rebelled. My wolf whimpered, her emotions tangled in a raw mess of longing and agony. My human heart was no better. I wanted to push him away. I wanted to hold him forever.

His face hovered inches above mine, drawn and pale. "Ruby." His voice was hoarse, laced with regret and something else, something I didn't want to name.

I shoved against his chest, scrambling to sit up. "Don't touch me!"

He let me go instantly, but the pain in his eyes carved into me like a blade. My chest heaved as I backed away, trembling.

"You're alive," I whispered. "You let me think you were dead. You lied to me," I hissed. Why?"

His mouth opened and then closed. Then it opened again. "I had to disappear," he said, "to escape your father. He was going to kill me, Ruby."

"Then you should have stayed dead," I retorted, anger clouding my emotions. It was safer to feel angry than let his words get through to me.

His face crumpled, as if my words punched straight through his ribs. "I didn't know what else to do," he said hoarsely. "I thought I was protecting you."

"Don't," I said, my voice low but firm. "Don't you dare call that protection."

I took a shaky breath, pointing at him, the anger bubbling just beneath my skin. "You think disappearing was what broke me? It wasn't. It was the moment you looked me in the eye and rejected me like being fated-mates didn't matter."

His face tightened. He looked like he wanted to speak, but I wasn't done.

"You didn't just reject me, Drew. You used me, not because of who I was, but because of who my father was. I wasn't a person to you. I was a weapon you turned on him, and when you were done, you tossed me aside."

"That's not…" he started, his voice raw.

"No." I held up a hand, blinking back tears. "Don't tell me it wasn't personal. You marked me. You knew what that meant, and then you acted like I was nothing. Do you have any idea what that did to me?"

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I never stopped thinking about you, Ruby."

"Stop," I said, my voice catching. "Whatever this was, whatever it could have been, you ended it. You chose revenge over us. Over me."

He opened his mouth again, but I backed away toward the door, each step carved from fury and pain.

"Now please," I said, barely above a whisper. "Leave."

This time, it wasn't just my voice that was trembling. It was everything: my soul, my bond, my heart. I felt them shattering, even as I told him to go.

"I'm not here for that," he said quietly. "I'm here for the child. For Liora."

A lump formed in my throat. I looked past him to the woman who had followed him in. She stood with quiet strength, her posture composed, her eyes watchful but kind.

"My name is Lena. We know what your daughter's facing. Your message made it to the right ears. Drew is the alpha of the Lunaris pack now. He is the only one who can help your child."

I said nothing, torn between listening to her placating tone and asking them all to leave.

"Drew told me what happened," Lena continued. "Ruby, Liora needs an alpha to survive this. Drew is her only chance. Please."

There was something about her, something steady and comforting that pulled at me. Her presence reminded me of Nia. I could understand the rationale behind her plea. Liora needed help, and being hurt by Drew and rejecting his help would not save my child.

I closed my eyes, my heart pounding. My wolf paced inside me, torn between fury and instinct.

She remembered him. She still ached for him, but I couldn't go there.

Not again. Not now. The ache inside me sharpened.

I looked toward the hallway and the bedroom where my daughter lay, suffering.

Liora. This wasn't about me anymore. This was about her.

I turned to Drew, my voice hollow. "Fine. Heal her. Do what you came to do, but once she's better, you leave. No goodbyes, no explanations. You walk out and never look back."

Drew flinched. "Ruby…"

"No," I said sharply, eyes hard. "This isn't some big reunion, Drew. My daughter's in danger, and right now, I need results, not feelings. You're here because she needs you. That's it."

He nodded, slowly, pain etched into every line of his face. Finally, he gave a solemn nod. "Okay."

"Good," I said tightly, folding my arms.

His eyes lingered on me for a moment too long. I turned away, refusing to let him see the tears forming again.

Lena stepped closer, placing a hand on Drew's shoulder. "We'll leave you two now. Focus on healing the girl."

Alex lingered, glancing between us with something like sympathy in his eyes. "Thank you," he whispered, "for what you did for me. I hope this pays it back."

"Thank you, Alex," I said, managing a faint smile. "Really."

He nodded once, respectfully, and followed Lena out. The door clicked shut behind them, and just like that, it was me, Drew, and Liora. We had stayed apart in this war, and now, somehow, fate had drawn us back into the same storm.

Nia's words echoed in my mind like a warning bell.

Liora's ailment was a blood curse. It must have come from Drew's pack.

My throat tightened. I glanced toward the hallway where Liora lay asleep, fragile and defenseless.

The curse that nearly killed her still lingered like smoke in the air, and now Drew, her father, was standing here, breathing the same air. Unaware.

I didn't know what terrified me more: the possibility that his return might place her in greater danger or the truth I was keeping from him.

My wolf stirred, pacing with unease. Was it just a coincidence that someone in his pack had attacked my child, and he was unaware?

Drew might be unaware, alright, but someone in his pack was intent on destroying me or my child, probably to avenge my father's crimes against them.

I couldn't say it. Not yet, not with so much at stake, not while Drew was still in the dark about Liora's identity. So, I said nothing. I just stood there, my heart racing, and secrets burning like coals beneath my ribs.