Marked By The Ruthless Alpha King

Annamarie Whitmore POV:

The grand hall of the Blackwood Pack was filled with the scent of pine and the solemn atmosphere of the mate ceremony. I stood on the dais in a simple white dress, surrounded by powerful werewolves dressed in their finest attire.

The Hayes family was one of the most respected bloodlines within the Blackwood Pack, and Jared was its only heir. We had known each other since we were young, and as we grew older, the Moon Goddess chose us as fated mates. For years, I had believed that bond would eventually lead us to stand together as Alpha and Luna.

That was why, despite everything I had endured as a wolfless female, I had never questioned whether Jared would accept me. To me, the bond between us was something sacred, something even the Hayes family would never casually cast aside.

The whispers had followed me for years. Some looked at me with pity, while others considered me a weakness that brought shame to the Whitmore name. I had learned to ignore those voices, but standing in front of the entire pack today, I could still feel every gaze on me.

The Elder stepped forward and raised his voice.

"In the witness of the Moon Goddess, Jared Hayes, do you accept Annamarie Whitmore as your one, your only, your lifelong mate?"

The entire hall fell silent. All eyes turned toward Jared.

I looked at him and tried to calm the uneasiness in my chest.

The Moon Goddess had chosen our bond. A fated mate was a blessing that no werewolf could question.

Jared had never shown open disgust toward me before. Even though I was wolfless, he had always maintained the appearance of acceptance, responded to my feelings, and treated me with the courtesy expected from the future Alpha of the Blackwood Pack.

I believed the Hayes family's teachings had given him enough honor and responsibility to respect the bond chosen by the Moon Goddess.

More importantly, I didn't want to be rejected.

Because I knew what would happen after Jared rejected me.

Without the future Alpha's bond, I would lose my value in the Whitmore family. I would become nothing more than an abandoned piece, a burden they could discard or trade away whenever it benefited them.

I couldn't let that happen.

My fingers tightened around the fabric of my dress as I looked at Jared. For a moment, I waited for him to speak the words that would change my life.

Then Jared smiled. The expression on his face made the uneasiness in my chest grow heavier.

He didn't look at me. He turned toward the crowd and spoke in a clear, steady voice loud enough for everyone in the hall to hear.

"I, Jared Hayes, reject you, Annamarie Whitmore, as my mate."

The moment Jared's words fell, my mind went blank.

The hall around me seemed to spin, and the voices of the crowd blurred into a distant noise. The pain from the broken mate bond surged through my body, forcing me to take a step back.

Jared narrowed his eyes and looked at me, his expression cold and distant. "You are wolfless, Annamarie. You cannot shift, you cannot sense the emotions of our wolves, and you cannot carry the responsibilities expected of the future Luna. I refuse to bind the Blackwood Pack to a mate who can never truly stand beside its Alpha."

A murmur swept through the hall. Some guests lowered their eyes, while others exchanged knowing glances. A few even nodded in agreement, as if Jared had finally said aloud what everyone had already been thinking.

My legs almost gave out. I pressed my fingers against the edge of my dress, using the fabric to keep myself standing.

No one came forward to defend me. The whispers grew louder, and every word carried the same conclusion: a wolfless female had no place beside the future Alpha.

At that moment, Carrie rushed toward me.

"Annamarie..." Her voice was soft and worried. "I know this hurts. Seeing my sister treated this way... it breaks my heart."

For years, I had lived under their roof knowing that I would never truly be their daughter. But after Carrie learned that Jared and I had been chosen as fated mates, something in her changed. She had always been the Whitmores' precious biological daughter, yet she could not accept that I, the adopted daughter she had always looked down on, had been chosen by the future Alpha.

From that day on, she had found every opportunity to come between Jared and me, quietly turning small misunderstandings into conflicts and making sure our relationship never had a chance to grow stronger.

I had tolerated it because I believed our bond was chosen by the Moon Goddess and would eventually overcome anything she tried to do. Now, after Jared had rejected me in front of the entire pack, I finally saw the satisfaction hidden beneath Carrie's worried expression.

She had waited for this moment for a long time. And now that the bond between Jared and me was broken, she had finally found the opening she had been looking for.

The disgust rising in my chest made me take a step back. I looked at Carrie coldly and said nothing.

Carrie's eyes immediately turned red. "Annamarie... I was only trying to comfort you. Why are you looking at me like that?" Her voice trembled, loud enough for everyone around us to hear.

The people nearby immediately looked at me with disapproval.

"She rejected her sister's kindness?"

"Carrie was only trying to help."

"Maybe this is why Jared made his choice."

The whispers grew louder.

I stood there silently, watching the same people who had just witnessed my rejection now judge me for refusing Carrie's performance. She had always been good at this. Whenever she wanted something, she would put on that innocent, wounded expression and let everyone else see her as the kind, considerate sister while making me look cold and cruel. Over the years, she had used the same trick again and again, and somehow, I was always the one who ended up looking like the villain.

Before I could respond, the Elder's voice sounded again.

"Annamarie Whitmore, you must accept his rejection."

I lowered my eyes, but before I could speak, I caught sight of Jared.

His gaze was no longer on me.

His eyes were fixed on Carrie, filled with a warmth I had never seen when he looked at me. The way he watched her made something inside me go completely still. I suddenly understood that his rejection was not only because I was wolfless. His heart had already turned toward someone else, and in his eyes, perhaps I was the one standing between him and the person he truly wanted.

The last trace of hope I had for Jared disappeared completely. I had spent years believing that our bond meant we were meant to be together, yet at that moment, I felt as though I had become the person he blamed for standing in the way of his happiness.

My fingers slowly loosened around the fabric of my dress. There was nothing left for me to hold on to.

My voice was quiet but steady.

"I, Annamarie Whitmore, accept your rejection."

The moment I spoke those words, the final connection between Jared and me disappeared.

Pain spread through my entire body. The metallic taste of blood filled my mouth, but I swallowed it. I refused to collapse in front of them and become the entertainment of this hall.

Jared turned away from me and walked toward Carrie. The crowd surrounded them with congratulations and smiles.

I stepped down from the dais and headed toward the exit.

But before I could leave the hall, Cornelius appeared in front of me. Beside him stood a wealthy older man I had never seen before.

My foster father's eyes fell on me with open greed, as if he were looking at a valuable possession that had finally become available.

"Annamarie," Cornelius said, smiling. "Come here. I have someone you need to meet."

I looked past him at the unfamiliar man standing beside him. The man's eyes lingered on me with undisguised interest, making my skin crawl. I understood instantly.

This was the future Cornelius had prepared for me. In his eyes, I was no longer a daughter, but a resource that could be exchanged for his own benefit.

The moment his hand reached for my arm, I stepped back and pulled away.

"No."

The smile on Cornelius's face faded.

"Don't make this difficult, Annamarie." His voice was no longer gentle. "You should be grateful. After losing the future Alpha's protection, this is the only value you have left."

His words cut deeper than I expected.

I saw the greed in his eyes and the man's undisguised desire beside him. After everything that had happened tonight, after Jared had publicly rejected me, I refused to let another person decide my life and turn me into something they could control.

When Cornelius reached for me again, I turned and ran.

"Stop her!"

The shout erupted behind me.

Heavy footsteps followed immediately, closing the distance with every second.

I lifted my dress and pushed through the crowd, ignoring the shocked voices around me. I didn't look back.

I already knew what would happen if they caught me. I pushed through the side door and ran into the cold night.

The Forbidden Forest was ahead. A place even Rogues avoided. But I no longer cared.

If I stayed, I would become someone's possession. If I ran, at least my fate would still belong to me.

I lifted my dress and disappeared into the darkness. Behind me, the people chasing me stopped at the edge of the forest.

"Forget it. That woman is crazy. She actually ran into the Forbidden Forest."

The footsteps behind me suddenly stopped. Their voices faded into the distance as the people chasing me finally gave up.

"I'm not going in there to die."

I kept running deeper into the Forbidden Forest. The trees closed around me, and the path behind me vanished completely. Branches scratched my skin, and roots caught my feet. My white dress became torn and stained with dirt and blood.

My body grew weaker with every step, but I kept moving. Survival was the only thing left in my mind.

I didn't know how long I ran before the sounds of the Blackwood Pack's celebration faded completely. The laughter, music, and cheers from the ceremony disappeared behind me, replaced by the silence of the forest and my own heavy breathing.

Then a powerful scent reached me.

Blood and a deep sandalwood scent mixed with something cold and dangerous.

I stopped.

A moment later, the sound of metal clashing echoed through the trees. I followed the sound and hid behind a massive oak tree.

In the moonlit clearing, several figures surrounded a tall man. Their weapons reflected a silver glow. Silver blades, weapons designed to kill werewolves. The moment I saw them, I realized I had walked into an assassination.

I wanted to leave, but my exhausted body refused to move. The man in the center noticed every attack before it reached him. He moved instantly, his strikes precise and powerful. One attacker after another fell before him, unable to resist.

Then one of them was thrown through the air and crashed into the oak tree behind me. The impact forced me out of hiding and into the center of the clearing.

The entire area fell silent. Every gaze turned toward me. Including his. Amber eyes locked onto mine.

The man finished the remaining attacker within seconds before walking toward me. His expression remained cold as his gaze fell on my pale face and torn white dress.

When he realized I was wolfless and had appeared in the middle of the Forbidden Forest during an assassination, a trace of disbelief flashed through his eyes.

How could someone without a wolf appear in a place even ordinary werewolves avoided?

His voice was low and powerful.

"A wolfless?" He looked at me carefully. "Why are you here?"

I wanted to answer and explain everything, but the rejection, betrayal, and fear I had endured finally overwhelmed me.

My vision blurred, and my body lost its strength.

Before darkness took over, I felt a pair of strong arms catch me, their touch cold and steady as they held me while I finally lost consciousness.