The forbidden mate bond

Prologue

ELIZA POV

Never in my life did I imagine witnessing a father fighting his own son, but today, my fate hangs in the balance as the outcome of the duel between my dad and my stepbrother determines my fate. The absurdity of Dad accepting Zyon's foolish challenge is beyond comprehension.

From the moment Zyon challenged Dad to a duel over me, a sense of foreboding settled within me. Deep down, I knew this wouldn't end well. We all understood the inevitable outcome: one of them would have to die for the other to claim victory. And we all knew that Dad, the renowned high-ranked Alpha, wouldn't be defeated easily. Countless Alphas in the capital had tried and failed, conceding to his power. Yet, as I looked at Zyon, the hybrid whose complexion had turned paler than when we first met just days ago, I couldn't help but worry. His once-golden eyes now withered with each agonized groan that escaped his lips.

Dad didn't approach the duel with the same ferocity he displayed against other challengers. Both he and Zyon were transformed into their human forms, compelled by the oak moon, which amplifies the intricacies of shape-shifting. Nevertheless, Dad effortlessly unleashed something terrible upon Zyon.

I watched in horror as Zyon convulsed on the lawn, wracked with fever and pain. Mere miles away, our guests anxiously awaited us in the ice forest.

Dad callously seized Zyon by the hair, dragging him to me, and forcing him to his knees. Rage surged within me, fueling my helplessness. My hands clenched into tight fists, my claws digging into sweaty palms as I bore witness to my mate's torment, inflicted upon him by our own father.

"Reject her, now," Dad seethed, yanking Zyon's head up to meet my gaze.

"I..." Zyon's breath came in ragged gasps. Whatever Dad had done to him, the pain was excruciating. His eyes struggled to remain open.

I couldn't fathom the concept of a hybrid's mortality. All I knew was that Zyon couldn't die. He had claimed to be undead. Therefore, I couldn't bear the thought of his words being shattered before my eyes if he ended up being slain.

Rowen, standing behind me, placed a comforting hand on my back, his touch grazing the stylish slits of my beautiful dress. In the vast expanse of the backyard, it was just the four of us. Tears streamed down my face, smearing the carefully applied makeup the makeup team had spent hours perfecting. Rowen's hand gently cupped my cheek, his touch brimming with anticipation, knowing that the completion of the rejection would mark the beginning of our own mating rituals.

Zyon's eyes fluttered open, his gaze drifting from me to Rowen. A faint, mocking smirk danced upon his lips.

"I will not," he grunted defiantly at Rowen. The burns inflicted by Dad's actions caused him to groan in pain once more.

"I am your father and the Alpha of all 68 packs. Zyon Ridge, I command you to reject your sister, Eliza Ridge," Dad asserted.

"And yet, you keep repeating yourself. Isn't it exhausting?" Zyon laughed, a pained sound escaping his lips. He panted laboriously, veins pulsating around his glowing eyes.

As the moonlight shrouded the darkened capital, casting an eerie glow over the city, the weight of the moment bore down on me. Dad's grip tightened on Zyon's hair, his fingers entangled in the wet-like strands. It was a chilling sight, a juxtaposition of power and vulnerability. But it was more than just physical pain that afflicted Zyon; it was the anguish of our forbidden love, a love that threatened to destroy us all.

The cloudy skies, a constant presence over the capital, seemed to mirror the turmoil within our hearts. Even in daylight, the sun struggled to break through the city sky, its feeble rays unable to penetrate the thick veil of clouds. Zyon promised me he was immune to their touch, that his very essence defied the burning touch of sunlight.

"Why is he burning?" I cried out, my voice laced with desperation, hoping for an answer that would soothe the searing pain in my soul.

"Vervain," Rowen whispered with a hint of sadistic amusement, his voice almost a sinister melody in my ear.

Confusion clouded my mind as I turned to face Rowen, the man I was soon to be bound to in the sacred ritual of mating. "What's vervain?" I asked, my voice trembling with a mix of fear and curiosity.

With a wicked glint in his eyes, Rowen explained, "Let's say it's like wolfsbane, but since he seems to resist wolfsbane, vervain works perfectly fine for vampires, and he has their blood."

Dad was cheating. He was using a weapon. It was a cruel reminder of the darkness that lurked within our midst.

How could Rowen be so ruthless, though? I couldn't help but recall the past, the moments when Zyon had come to his rescue, sparing him from a fate that seemed inevitable. Zyon, with his gentle soul and the absence of the monster they presumed, resided within him, had shown mercy, had shown kindness. And yet, here we were, repaid with torment and manipulation.

"Dad, stop," I pleaded, my voice barely a whisper, as I fell to my knees, the weight of the moment overwhelming my senses, without a second thought about the perfect white dress designed for the big occasion.

But Dad's response was far from gentle. In an aggressive motion, he shoved me aside, the force propelling me through the air, crashing into one of the synthetic stone columns that stood as silent witnesses to our family's opulence. It was a jarring contrast to the usual tenderness he had shown me and my younger brothers, a betrayal that left me reeling.

"You will both stay away from each other," Dad's voice resounded with a mix of anger and desperation, his words laced with a tinge of self-preservation. "I have a reputation to keep. I have dignity in the eyes of the public. And as your father, I surely want you two alive, in case you don't care about your lives. Can't you see that you're dancing with fire? If the rest of the packs find out that you are going to doom everyone with your sinful bond, what do you think they would do? Feast with you at your marriage ceremony? They will have your heads, you insatiable children."

Silence enveloped us, broken only by the sound of my ragged breaths, each inhalation a struggle against the pain that threatened to consume me. I fought to rise to my feet, my body drained of energy, my breath shallow and labored. It was a moment of stark realization that left me bewildered and hurt. My father had never shown me such cruelty before.

Rowen's voice broke through the stillness, his words directed at my father, urging him to bring me closer to Zyon. Dad motioned for me to approach, his eyes filled with a mix of determination and sorrow. With a trembling voice, I pleaded with my stepfather, desperately hoping to sway him.

"I think she needs to be near him to get it over with," Rowen remarked, his tone carrying a sense of cold calculation. Dad crouched down, preparing to subject his likely lifeless son to the torment of vervain.

"Please, stop. I will do it." I begged, my voice filled with anguish and desperation.

My chest tightened, my heart pounding against my ribs as I could feel Zyon's suffering intensify. I rushed to his side and knelt down, his weakened form barely conscious, his eyes closed.

Cradling his cold face in my hands, my tears fell onto his parted, dark-red lips. His eyelids fluttered slightly, a hint of recognition in his dazed state.

"Don't," he mumbled, his voice exhausted and filled with pleading.

"I don't want to," I whispered through choked sobs, my voice cracking with pain. "But you're going to die."

"I am undead," he stubbornly refused, his words a reflection of his unwillingness to accept the inevitable.

He hadn't lived under our father's roof for all those years. He was unaware of the knowledge our dad possessed about the enemies that threatened our clan. If Dad wanted to end Zyon's life, he knew every way to do so.

With each passing moment, the wrenching pain inside me grew, tearing at my very soul. I uttered the words I never wanted to speak, the agonizing truth that would sever our connection.

"I, Eliza Ridge, reject you..." I paused, my trembling lips unable to contain the sob that escaped. Taking a shaky breath, I summoned the strength to finish my statement. "Zyon Ridge, as my mate."

It felt as if my soul was being ripped from my body. Tears blurred my vision as the torment surged through every vein, pulsating with relentless intensity.

Zyon shook his head, a single tear tracing a path down his pale, beautiful face.

"Zyon, I really don't want to hurt you," Dad interjected with annoyance. "Finish it and spare me the agony of witnessing your pain."

"Okay, okay..." Zyon sighed, defeated by my rejection. He swallowed hard, his voice strained. "I will leave instead," he weakly bargained.

Oh no!

Rowen hunkered down next to me, clicking his tongue in his mouth. "You promised to reject her, and you'll honor it."

"I can't say it, Demetrius. I can't. But take this instead. You will never have to see me in your territory. I will leave." He ignored Rowen and pleaded with dad.

My heart sank at the thought. "No," I cried, my voice filled with desperation.

"We have remained hidden," he continued, disregarding my plea. "I've done it for a hundred years. I can do it forever. It's better than rejecting my beloved."

"He will come back someday," Rowen scoffed, interrupting Zyon's plea as Dad contemplated the alternative his son had proposed.

As an observer, I couldn't imagine any father willingly choosing to kill his own son. While my father had always been a determined and relentless Alpha, he wasn't a killer, especially when it came to his biological child.

If I get a vote, I don't want the option Zyon negotiated for. It was killing me inside. I would rather have him with another. Despite how much it will pain me, I will bare it. But it means I will see him every day. However, I don't get a vote here. The faces of the three men say it.

He was going to banish Zyon forever, even though he had only arrived here a few days ago. I felt utterly worthless and impotent, consumed by an overwhelming desire to escape and find solace somewhere I could think clearly. But then again, I have a mating ritual to attend.

At that moment, overwhelmed by a glimmer of hope, I couldn't hold back the words that spilled from my trembling lips.

"Then I will leave with him," I blurted out, hastily wiping away the tears that blurred my vision.

My father's reaction was immediate, his disbelief and frustration evident in his words. "Are you insane? You have a mate, and it's not Zyon. Dammit, Lizzy. You are my heir. An Alpha doesn't run away. They are prominent."

Zyon, ever the voice of calm amidst the chaos, mumbled softly, his long hair falling in damp locks across his face.

"It's okay, Liz," he reassured me, his words a bittersweet comfort.

"No, it's not," I replied, my voice filled with searing pain. "You're supposed to stay."

But Dad's ultimatum cut through our fragile hopes like a knife. "You will stay here and leave at midnight. After the rituals, I will not have to see you again," he declared, his voice final, and with those words, what little remained of me collapsed into an abyss of perpetual despair.

In the blink of an eye, we were torn apart. Yesterday, Zyon and I had been an indescribable force of love and happiness, but now everything had unraveled. Dad had discovered our secret, leaving us defenseless against his demands. To rebel against him would invite grave consequences, as our forbidden union was considered an abomination, one that could cost us our lives if it reached the ears of the werewolf court.

So, yes, Dad was the antagonist in this tale, but in his twisted way, he believed he was protecting us from a far worse fate.

The weight of the truth bore down on me, and I broke into excruciating sobs. Zyon squeezed my hand, offering solace that felt both hollow and unattainable. He whispered apologies that, at that moment, I couldn't find it in me to forgive. Before I could protest further, Rowen pulled me away from my true mate, leading me toward the forbidding depths of the ice forest.

It was there, in the presence of hundreds of werewolves, guests hastily invited by my parents to prevent Zyon and me from happening, that I would be marked as Rowen's mate tonight. The prospect of this forced union only intensified the anguish within me. My heart shattered into irreparable pieces.