Mia stepped closer, her smile deceptively sweet. "You stole my name, my place, my life. You owe me an apology." Leon turned to her with fondness, then looked back at me with ice in his eyes. "You? You're nothing. A stray with no known lineage. You have no right to question her." "How could a bastard like you ever be worthy of a Beta like me?" His voice hardened as he delivered the final blow: "I, Leon, reject you as my Mate." His words cut through me like lightning. Pain exploded in my chest, tearing through every nerve. My wolf screamed in agony, as if she were being ripped from my soul. Still, I forced myself to stand tall. Looking into his eyes, I said: "I, Pauline, accept your rejection." The bond between us snapped clean, final and irreversible. For a brief second, Leon's face paled. But then he recovered. Mia leaned into him, eyes sparkling with triumph. "Leon's wanted this for a long time," she said. "Honestly, letting you go like this is more than you deserve." Leon looked down at her with admiration. "Mia is everything a true Alpha-born woman should be." Then he smirked at me. "You're not worthy of being my Mate, but if you want, you can still be my lover." I said nothing. I stepped past him, turned my back, and walked away. This place had rejected me. And from this moment on, we were nothing to each other.