Page 82 of Claiming His Rejected Mate

“Because your father took everything from me.”

Eldon licks his lengthening snout, his breathing uneven. “My mother was an Omega,” he says, his voice quieter now, but no less sharp. “A nameless, forgotten woman who served under your father’s rule. Until he killed her.”

My stomach tightens.

I remember.

I remember the stories, the whispers of the woman who had been made an example of. I was too young to feel anything but fear for my father. He was like some fairy tale beast.

“You stood by and watched,” Eldon continues, his eyes burning with hatred. “Maybe you were too young to understand. Maybe you didn’t know. But I did.” His voice breaks slightly. “I was just a boy when he ripped my life apart. And I swore that one day, I would do the same to you, his son.”

My snarl is getting nastier by the second, my breathing sharp, my wolf eager to end all this.

“Everything you love,” he says, his smirk returning, cruel and full ofpurpose. “Your pack. Your title. Your Mate. I wanted to take it all.”

Rage ignites in my veins. My vision blurs with fury.

I lunge, shifting midair. This time, I don’t fight to maim. I fight to kill. I dive at him, my fangs aiming for his throat.

A sharp cry pierces the air.

My entire body locks. The scent of Hazel’s blood reaches me before my mind can catch up.

And in that moment of hesitation, Eldon moves.

He ducks, twisting out of the way just before I snap at his neck. I would have ended him and he knows. He doesn’t waste time. He runs.

I spin, ready to chase, ready to end this.

But then I see her.

Hazel is on her knees, gripping her arm where blood seeps through the fabric of her armor. Her Omegas stand protectively beside her, their faces pale but determined.

And all thoughts of Eldon vanish.

I move without thinking, reaching her side in seconds and shifting back to human form. My hands find her shoulders, gripping tight. “You’re hurt.”

She exhales sharply, but her eyes meet mine, steady despite the pain. “I’ll live.”

I don’t realize I’m shaking until I feel her fingers brush against mine.

“You hesitated,” she murmurs.

I swallow hard. “I was going to go for the kill.”

She tilts her head, watching me carefully. “And yet, you’re here, beside me, instead of slaughtering him.”

A breath shudders through me.

She’s right.

I should have ended Eldon. I should have made sure he never had the chance to come back, to finish what he started.

But the second I heard her voice—

The second I sensed she was hurt—

I chose her.

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