Hidden Secrets (editing and improving the story)

Chapter 52 - Rejection

Elektra's pov:

At five o'clock, I got into the car and headed toward the Silver Dawn Pack, my mind a storm of conflicting emotions. I was deeply unsettled—torn between loyalty to the plan and the ache in my heart that wanted to abandon it altogether. One part of me screamed to turn back, while the other urged me forward. I wasn't just anxious to see Alexander's reaction—I was longing to see him, to be near him again. And yet... something inside held me back. Doubt gnawed at me, and I couldn't shake the fear that I was walking into a mistake. I needed to know—did he truly love me?

An hour and a half later, I reached the southern border of the Silver Dawn territory. After passing through border control, I drove toward the imposing pack house where Alexander's office was located. The air was thick with tension and the scent of pine, and my hands trembled slightly as I pulled into the parking lot.

As I approached the main entrance, a guard stepped forward to greet me. He offered to accompany me inside. I started to decline, but he insisted firmly—his sense of duty clearly outweighing my desire for solitude. Reluctantly, I allowed him to escort me. When we arrived outside Alexander's office, the guards there were already informed and swung the doors open the moment they saw me. My escort remained behind as I stepped inside alone.

The moment Alexander saw me, he stood abruptly, his expression shifting from surprise to something deeper—relief, maybe even joy.

"Elektra... Oh Goddess, how much I've missed you!" he said, striding toward me and wrapping me in a tight embrace. I stood stiffly, arms at my sides, unwilling to return the gesture. My heart ached, but I couldn't give in. Not yet.

Sensing my reluctance, he slowly released me, placing his hands gently on my shoulders, searching my eyes with a soft, almost wounded smile.

"You can't imagine how much I've missed you," he repeated, his voice quieter, touched with sadness. I said nothing, only stared back at him, trying to read the truth—or the lie—behind his words.

"I've had your room prepared," he added, trying to brighten the moment. "Everything's ready for you. I have some meetings to attend, but I plan to spend the evening with you."

"Alexander," I interrupted, my voice steady though my chest burned with emotion, "I need to tell you something important. Please—don't speak until I'm finished."

He looked puzzled. "What's going on?"

I took a deep breath, my whole body trembling.

"I, Elektra River, reject you as my mate, Alexander Anderson, Alpha of the Silver Dawn Pack."

The words came out slow, deliberate—and the moment they left my lips, a searing pain tore through my chest. My legs buckled. The agony was like nothing I'd ever known.

Alexander caught me before I could collapse, his arms steadying me as I writhed with the invisible wound that rejection had left behind.

"Elektra... talk to me, please!" he pleaded, his voice raw with worry. He guided me to a nearby sofa and fetched a glass of water, placing it in my shaking hands. I took a few sips, but it barely helped. My head spun. My stomach churned. My limbs felt like lead.

Maybe rejecting him was a mistake. A terrible, irreversible mistake.

"Elektra, how are you feeling?" he asked softly, kneeling beside me. He wasn't angry. He wasn't demanding explanations or retaliating with harsh words. He was simply... there. Watching over me.

And strangely, he didn't seem affected at all by the rejection—at least, not physically. Meanwhile, I felt like I was dying. My body screamed in protest, my soul convulsed with grief.

What was happening to me?

Then everything went black.

When I opened my eyes, the world was a blur of warm light and muted shadows. My body felt heavy, like I'd been submerged underwater for hours. For a moment, I didn't know where I was. Then I caught the scent—cedar, leather, and something distinctly Alexander—and it all came flooding back.

I was lying on a plush bed in a softly lit room, blankets pulled up to my chest. A fire crackled faintly in the hearth, its glow casting dancing patterns across the walls. I blinked slowly, and that's when I saw him—Alexander—sitting in a chair beside the bed, elbows on his knees, his hands clasped together tightly as if he were praying. His head was bowed.

He must've sensed I was awake because he looked up, his eyes meeting mine instantly. Relief flooded his face.

"Elektra," he breathed, standing quickly and kneeling beside the bed. "Thank the Goddess, you're awake."

I tried to sit up, but a sharp throb in my head forced me back down with a quiet wince. His hands hovered, unsure whether to help or give me space.

"What... what happened?" I asked, my voice hoarse.

"You passed out. The pain... it hit you harder than I've ever seen." His voice cracked slightly. "You've been unconscious for hours."

I stared at him, confused. "But you... you didn't feel it?"

He shook his head slowly. "I felt something. A tug. A sting, maybe. But nothing like what you went through." He looked away then, jaw tight. "That's not normal."

My chest tightened. "You were unaffected because... you don't feel the bond, do you?" My voice was barely above a whisper.

Alexander looked back at me, startled. "No. That's not true. I do feel it—more than you know. But..." He paused, choosing his next words carefully. "There's something wrong. With us. With this bond."

Silence fell between us like a storm cloud. My heart raced, anxiety curling in my stomach.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"I don't know," he admitted. "I've felt the pull toward you from the moment we met, but I never experienced the full force of the mating bond. Not like others describe it. I thought maybe I was broken. Or maybe it would grow stronger over time. But when you rejected me... Elektra, I should've collapsed from the pain."

"And I did," I muttered bitterly. "I felt like I was being torn in half."

He leaned closer, his eyes searching mine. "That's why you came here, isn't it? To see if what we had was real."

I nodded slowly, tears threatening to spill.

"I needed to know if you loved me. If this was just something we were forcing, or if it was fate. But... you didn't chase after me. You didn't fight for me when I left."

"I didn't know how," he said quietly. "I thought giving you space was what you needed. I didn't want to push you away."

His hand reached out, hovering near mine. "Elektra... do you still want the rejection to stand?"

I hesitated.

I had come here intending to sever the bond completely—to reclaim my heart and free myself from this painful limbo. But now, lying here with him so close, so concerned, I wasn't sure of anything anymore. My body still ached, but a different kind of pain had settled in my chest: longing.

"I don't know," I whispered. "I don't know what I want anymore."

His hand finally touched mine—warm, steady. "Then stay. Just for tonight. No talk of bonds. No decisions. Just... stay."

I looked at him, and for a heartbeat, I saw the boy behind the Alpha. The one who missed me. The one who maybe, just maybe, loved me in his own way.

"Okay," I murmured.

And for the first time in days, I closed my eyes not in pain, but in something that felt almost like peace.