REJECTED

He scoffed as he turned in my direction "Alpha Ezra of the Midnight Pack has already sworn in his anger that nothing will change his mind. He's already decided that he will wage war against the eight of us. Yesternight, I received information that the Alpha's troops have already begun crossing the boundary. He must be building an army with the Packs in the northern region. But we will sue for peace and resolve whatever the problem is. I get why Alpha Ezra has been cynical from the very start but whatever he has up his sleeve this time around, I will be ready for him. Alphas Fabiola and Cantwell will come with me immediately after this to Alpha Ezra's Pack where we shall meet with him and reason things with him. The rest of you will go around the Packs and prepare them for whatever might be ahead. This is why the training was made compulsory for everyone since last month when I smelt a rat. Now, my greatest fear might come to pass because of a megalomaniac who has sworn that peace and oneness is not and will never be in his vocabulary. It's time we acted fast, else we will blame ourselves for any misfortune that might befall us." 

We commiserate with him with much shaking of heads. I was surprised that all these had happened without my knowing it. 

"Who has anything else to say?" Allan asked. He responded with silence. 

"With that, I hereby bring this meeting to a close. Thank you all for your continued cooperation. You don't know how gratified I am. And one last thing concerning you, Walker." His accent still lingered but he pronounced my name correctly. My heart leapt. 

"I will make this clear so that no one will blame me in the future. It is already a universally-acknowledged fact that any wolf who is not able to find his mate till their twenty-second Carmella will be forced to leave the Pack in search of his mate. It's not my fault that you haven't been able to find your mate but whether this war comes or not, you will leave. It is the law and I must follow it up" 

"That is unreasonable," Fabiola said to him. I was surprised. "You know how much he has contributed and are you going to overlook that simply because he has not been able to find his mate. It's not his fault, and this is the time we need everyone together." 

"I think I agree with her"  a wan of a smile was tilted across Kai's face. He raised his hand to prove his point. 

"I feel the same way for him, but the Luna has laid down rules which we cannot boycott. It's not my fault also that he is not able to find his mate and I can't do anything about it other than go through the normal procedure." 

Fabiola made a sound full of disgust. I chuckled uncomfortably inside. I remembered our teenage years when I had the hots for her. And she'd loved me back when it was late. Her mate found her a week after our friendship blossomed into romance. I remembered the occasions when she came to wake me so that we could go train together. We'd been at each other's side for only a week but it felt like years. 

But all this didn't matter. What mattered was averting the misfortune that was looming. One was being banished from the Pack, and the other was becoming a rogue. 

*********

I closed my eyes and breathed to the rolling rhythm of the raging sea. This was the only place I found peace. I remembered that very day. It was cold, harsh and devoid of promise. My emotions were torn apart and shredded into unrecognizable pieces. Mate-finding which should be every Alpha's crowning glory became for me a physical agony full of torment and devoid of promise. I'd never known a worse disgrace since that night. 

At some point I'd be calmly accepting the fact that I'd lost her for good but soon, the pain and anguish returned. 

I can tell you that that was the moment everything fell apart. My world came crashing down and it seemed as if I was constantly tossed from one vile current to another, I lost my place among friends and Fabiola who was dearest to me deserted me against her wish. 

It all started when I met the most beautiful of shifters, Melissa. And she made my life a wreck. 

Melissa had been my girlfriend since we were fourteen. We were inseparable. We were young in love, because it was all that mattered. We were always at each other's side, ready to do the other's bidding and fulfilled every fulfillable fantasy. I mated her when we turned fifteen, mistakenly marked her at sixteen and it all came crashing at seventeen. 

I was blinded by Cupid then, everything seemed so real and genuine. The faith that she was my fated mate was unwavering until that evening during the Ascension. 

Before then my parents had counselled me to end my relationship with her. They were chauvinistic and did not want anything to do with an Omega. They thought I would grow up to realize that I was dating the wrong person but it went contrary to their expectation. The Alpha then, Alpha Morales, didn't bother. In fact, he was in support. What was more, I swore never to stray from her side. 

Our love was young, and fervent and that was all that mattered. It did not matter to me If she was Omega or not. what mattered was that I had the love of my life by my side. But I was mistaken, and that mistake made my life a living hell then.