But before I could speak, the screech of claws on wet stone cut through the rain, followed by a female's shrill, furious voice.
"Selene, you shameless omega!"
Raven didn't even bother shifting to shield herself from the weather. She burst from her crimson carriage like a she-wolf possessed.
She shoved aside the cloak Alaric was holding over me and jabbed her finger in my face, screaming.
"You're about to sever your bond and you're still trying to lure him with your scent? What, you can't survive without Alaric? Is that it?"
Rain instantly soaked through my clothes. The icy droplets hammered against my skin—but they were nothing compared to the cold that had already settled in my bones.
Alaric's brow creased, but not because I was getting drenched. He reached for Raven's hand, his voice tender with concern.
"Raven, what are you doing here? It's pouring—you'll make yourself sick."
He slipped off his outer fur and draped it over her shoulders. His tone was so gentle, so warm—as if the cold, indifferent Alpha who'd stood before me seconds ago had never existed.
Raven melted into his arms on cue, her eyes reddening as she pouted up at him.
"I was worried you'd go soft on her. This omega is so manipulative—what if she tries to use the pup against you again?"
Then she shot me a venomous glare. Her gaze dropped to the broken plastic crown in my hands, and her lip curled with undisguised disgust.
"Clutching that worthless trinket like it holds any power? You should count yourself fortunate that Alaric bothers to offer you territory scraps at all—most Alphas would cast out a rejected Omega with nothing."
I wiped the rain from my face, my expression carved from stone, watching the two of them display their sickening bond right before me.
Alaric stroked her back with a weary exhale. "Enough, Raven. I already marked the rejection scrolls, didn't I?"
Raven's eyes sparked with sudden cunning. She pressed herself closer against his arm and lifted her chin, shooting me a look of pure triumph.
"Since we're already heading to the Elder Tribunal today for the bond severance, why not complete everything at once?"
She turned to Alaric, her voice thick with honeyed sweetness. "My Alpha, if you're finalizing the Bond Rejection anyway, why don't we just perform the Mating Ceremony today too?"
Alaric blinked, clearly caught off guard. Uncertainty flickered across his features.