The Alpha’s Rejected And Broken Mate
Chapter 77

Amber

POV

It was dark, that was my first thought. My eyelids felt gritty and as I forced them open, I half expected to see that I was in a dark dank cave or something. But instead, the sun was shining warmly, and I could feel it on my skin. I experimented with moving my limbs, happy to see that they were all functioning fine.

How had I gotten here? I remembered what I had done. I had sliced my wrists in a desperate attempt to get some sort of freedom, unable to live with a mate who was incapable of making a decision and who had literally made me feel like I was living in prison. Did I intend to die? Maybe. Because that was the only way I had of escaping the prison and getting away. But right now it didn't feel like I had died. I wasn't in the hospital either. Instead, I was lying down on lush grass, the sky a clear blue overhead, birds chirping away from their nests and perching on branches. There was a meadow up ahead, full of vibrant colorful flowers and I sat upright, feeling my hair swaying in the breeze.

Where was I? I had never seen this place before. It was beautiful though. Eerily so. I struggled upright and then automatically glanced down at my wrists. I flinched, seeing dark red scars where I had sliced myself with a shard of glass. But they weren't bleeding, in fact, they were just scars and nothing more. Old ones, as though they had healed already. How was that even possible? By all rights, I should be in the hospital, unless I really had died and this was heaven? It wasn't how I envisioned heaven though.

I awkwardly began to make my way towards the flowers, each step feeling light and my body feeling like it was floating as I walked, bending down to sniff the flowers. I can't help but notice that the majority of them consist, surprisingly, of purple roses, which are my favorite flowers in the world. They have the most delicious sweet scent, which reminds me of perfume. It never fails to cheer me up when I smell it.

Ahead, I could hear the sound of trickling water and I made my way toward it, seeing a waterfall up above. My hands automatically go together and I scoop up some of the liquid, the water refreshing and cool to the touch. It immediately satiates my thirst. It tastes so pure, so divine. nothing like normal tap water or fresh water from a spring. It tastes a million times better. I headed towards a nearby tree that offered plenty of shelter and had a low-hanging branch, allowing me to sit beneath the shade and away from the warmth of the sun. For some reason, I feel relaxed, like I have no worries whatsoever. Nothing was causing me any concerns. It was like all my worries had floated away.

"Are you well?" asked a musical voice and my head whipped around to see the most beautiful woman I have ever seen, standing directly behind me.

She had silvery glistening hair, with big blue eyes, and a mark of a crescent moon on her forehead. The woman wore a white dress that was off the shoulders, tight underneath her generous bosom, and then flowing down to her ankles. She was barefoot, an anklet of small round moons dangling off the anklet.

"I'm fine, thank you," I told her with a dry mouth.

She smiled, her teeth a brilliant white, and moved to the front of me, so that I might see her better, instead of having to look over my shoulder at her.

"You know, you scared everyone with that little stunt you just pulled," she said quietly, grabbing hold of one of my arms and examining my wrist with a critical eye. She seemed pleased to see the scars, examining my arm all over, before finally letting go. I was speechless and wondering who this woman was, who seemed so comfortable touching me. She was a shifter, that much I could tell just by looking at her, while she also smelled intoxicating, like a bunch of flowers, similar to the scent coming from the meadow. Part of me suspected she was a goddess of some kind, because of how beautiful she was.

"I'm sorry," I said dumbly as she gave a small huff of annoyance.

"You know, you could have died" she continued in that musical tinkling voice of hers, "and your plan would have gone horribly wrong, wouldn't it?"

I wondered how she knew about the plan.

"Don't you want to sit down?" I asked her suddenly, wondering how she could possibly be comfortable, standing there without shoes on, even with the softness of the grass.

She waved a hand in response and suddenly another branch appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, which allowed her to sit and perch on it, still facing me. She looked concerned. "Your mate is worried about you" she began.

Ha, I thought to myself sourly. I bet my mate was worried about me. It was his fault that I had gotten this desperate in the first place. If he'd just rejected me or allowed me to leave, things wouldn't have turned out this way. I didn't care how worried Rowan was about me, all I cared about was getting my freedom back. I needed to get out of Rowan's pack and the more time I spent there, the more confined and claustrophobic I felt.

"My mate," I snarled, "is the reason I did it in the first place. Plus, he isn't my mate. If I could reject him, then I would."

She bit her lip, looking a bit forlorn. "Do you not find anything to love about your mate?" she asks sadly "anything at all?"

I thought about it. Rowan was gruff, pigheaded, stubborn, obstinate, and a real a*****e. As far as I was concerned, there was nothing to love about my mate at all.

"Nothing," I assured her, "there is nothing that I like about my mate."

What was it to her if I liked my mate or not? It's not like it affected her in any way.

"What would you do then, if you had the chance?"

"Reject him," I said automatically. "Get my freedom back, go travel. Finally, get another job and maybe go to college."

"What if he doesn't want you to reject him? What if he begged for your forgiveness?"

I still wouldn't forgive him for everything he's put me through or done to me. Rowan had really f****d up and I couldn't stand to be near him half the time. When I found my mate, I wanted someone who was willing to fight for me, to show me just how much they adored and loved me. Instead, I had gotten Alpha Rowan, which was far removed from what I had imagined.

"It wouldn't make a difference," I told her calmly. "he went too far when he used his alpha tone on me to prevent me from escaping or leaving his pack."

She went silent for a moment, grabbing hold of a flower and quietly sniffing it, looking content to sit where we were, looking a bit upset. "Yes" she murmured, "he did go a bit far when he used that dratted tone. There was no excuse for it" she sniffed, looking a bit haughty.

She sighed. "I had such big plans for the two of you, but now I can see what mistake I made, planning the two of you getting together. You are too feisty for him, I think, and require a more dominant and loving mate than Rowan can possibly be."

She stretched, her hands high up ahead, muttering things under her breath as I sucked in my own breath. What could the woman mean by planning for Rowan and me to get together? Nobody had that kind of power that I knew about, except for the moon goddess and she was merely a legend. She wasn't real, was she?

"My name is Selene," the woman tells me sweetly, stopping what she was doing, "and I'm the moon goddess, in case you haven't guessed already."

My jaw drops open and I stare at her in shock. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. So much for the moon goddess being a legend or a tale talked about around bonfires. She was real and she was standing or rather sitting right with me in the flesh! This had to be a dream or maybe I was really dead?

"You're not dead" she muttered, obviously reading my mind, "although it was touch and go for a little while" she added, frowning at me.

I glanced down at my wrists involuntarily. She watched me, with a scowl on her face. "Foolish child," she said softly, "to try and end a life that has yet to live. I know you've grown up experiencing abuse and pain, but it's made you the resilient and brave woman you are today. That is why I was so surprised to see you take this route. I don't normally intervene in such matters, but in your case, I made an exception."

"What is it you want from me?" I asked her quietly.

She stiffened. "It's not what I want from you, but rather what you are going to do for some children in the future. You are going to be the one to save them. As only you have the ability to. Just like you have the ability to heal and breathe fire. Not to mention the ability to bring undesirable wolves or other sides to the surface."

I digested her words. "Why," I asked her suddenly, confused and bewildered, "why did you give me these special powers? Why not someone else?"

She mulled my words over. "I think you mean, why not you" she pointed out. "Why not you Amber? You're one of the strongest women in the world, not because of the fighting prowess you possess, but because of your ability to live with the punches and keep fighting, even when everything looks bleak. Not to mention the forgiving heart you possess. Not everyone is as forgiving and loving as you are. You possess a uniqueness not easily found in this world."

"You give me too much credit", I protested weakly.

"Or you don't give yourself enough," she told me, counteracting my argument. "Now then, you need to go back, child, and I'm prepared to do something for you, but only if you are certain that you want to reject Rowan. So make your mind up now, because once you decide, there is no going back."

I didn't have to think about it, let alone consider it for any length of time. I knew what I wanted to do and I wasn't afraid to speak out and say what was on my mind. "I want to reject Rowan", I said honestly, and sincerely.

"Then I'm giving you the ability to ignore his alpha tone and the orders he used. When you wake up", she told me quietly, "you will have the choice to stay where you are and give Rowan another chance or to leave and find a second chance mate, one who will hopefully treat you better. However," she paused and looked off into the distance, her eyes going cloudy for a moment. "The second chance mate will not be one that you are expecting and will come as a great surprise. I can tell you, that he will adore you, and will fight for your love, but that's all I can tell you."

That sounded more than a little thrilling to me. I smiled at the moon goddess and shrugged my shoulders, wondering what she meant by my getting back. "Bless you child" she whispered, and then I felt her touch my forehead and stroke it, as she closed her eyes. I felt like I was falling through the sky as there was a rush of wind, and then suddenly I was surrounded by darkness once more. I could hear an annoying beeping sound this time and when I tried to lift my arms I couldn't. My eyes felt gritty and I struggled to open them, seeing a white ceiling up above me. My eyelids fluttered and then I heard the soft sound of my mother sobbing quietly in the corner of the room. I lifted my head up, wincing at the pain in my head, and heard my mother's voice as she hastened to my side. "Thank goodness you're awake!"