Adeline Cobb POV:

I walked into the corridor, the wedding gown dragging across the cold stone floor, heavy and pure white, far too conspicuous in a palace full of guards.

I had to get rid of this dress.

I slipped into a servant's alcove tucked between two marble pillars. After a moment of fumbling, the buttons finally gave way, my fingers still clumsy from the drug, and the gown slid from my shoulders, pooling at my feet. I changed into the simple riding clothes hanging nearby: a dark grey set that would let me move freely. My hand brushed against something cold in the pocket, a silver needle, thin and sharp. It was already there, tucked into the riding coat. I had no idea who left it, and I didn't care. Now it was the only weapon I had.

I quickened my pace, counting guard posts and memorizing exits. The palace sprawled like a maze, but I knew every corner. I had spent months here, preparing for a wedding that had become a joke, memorizing the layout in my idle hours. My legs remained weak, but I could still move. I pressed my palm against the wall for a moment, steadying myself, biting the inside of my cheek until I tasted the metallic tang of blood. The pain sharpened my mind.

Then I heard running footsteps.

"Adeline Cobb!"

A hand grabbed my shoulder and spun me around. My back slammed into the cold stone wall, his body boxing me in, one forearm pressed against the marble beside my head. Angelo had only managed to throw on the dark silk robe from before, hastily, the front still hanging open, revealing his bare chest and the traces of the night's debauchery.

His amber eyes burned with fury. His Alpha pheromones crashed over me like a tidal wave, the kind of force that would make any normal Omega's knees buckle and head bow in submission.

My knees trembled. The drug made it worse, a dull ache spreading through my legs. But I looked up at him, my face a mask of ice.

"I told you to stop. You can't leave," he growled, his voice low and dangerous.

"I heard you," I said flatly. "I just don't care."

Something flickered in his eyes, shock, confusion, a crack in his certainty. Perhaps he had expected the timid, obedient Adeline of the past, the one who let him push her around. He simply couldn't understand why the Adeline from before had changed.

Then hurried footsteps came from the end of the corridor. Ainsley stumbled into view, her hair a tangled mess, her silk robe slipping off one shoulder, breathless, her cheeks flushed.

"Your Highness!" she gasped, rushing to Angelo's side. "Sister, please don't do this. You're only making things worse for yourself."

"Shut up," I said, my gaze slicing toward her like a blade. "Does a mistress have the right to speak here?"

Ainsley flinched, pressing herself against Angelo like a wounded animal.

Angelo's grip on my wrist tightened, almost enough to crush bone. "Adeline Cobb! Who do you think you are? You're just an Omega your family sent to me! I give you face, and only then are you a prince's fiancée!"

I laughed. A dry, humorless sound. "So, I should thank you for the 'face' you've given me by performing a live show with my dear sister on my bed?"

His face flushed an ugly, deep red. He gritted his teeth. "Don't you forget, we are mates designated by the Moon Goddess! To disrespect me is to defy the will of the Goddess herself!"

A cold sneer formed in my mind. A man who betrays his own mate has no right to invoke the name of the Goddess. In this world, the mate bond was sacred, and betraying it was the gravest of sins.

"Respect is earned, Your Highness," I said calmly. "The moment you decided to let another woman into your bed, you forfeited your right to my respect."

Angelo was speechless, choked by my audacity. He had expected the timid, obedient Adeline of the past, not this stranger who dared to speak treason.

He took a deep breath, a cruel smile twisting his lips as he played his trump card. "Fine. You want to leave? Do you believe that I can, right here, right now, initiate The Rejection in front of everyone?"

The Rejection. The formal, public severing of a mate bond. It was an act that inflicted immense spiritual and mental pain, a profound humiliation, especially for the one being rejected.

At the mention of it, Ainsley's eyes lit up with feverish excitement. This was the outcome she had dreamed of.

Angelo watched my face, savoring what he believed was my impending breakdown. He was waiting for my fear, for my begging.

But I just looked at him, my expression unreadable. Then, slowly and clearly, I uttered a single word.

"Okay."

His smile froze. "What did you say?"

Ainsley's expression hardened into disbelief.

"I said, okay," I repeated, my voice steady. "Initiate the rejection now. I'll accept it immediately. It will save us both a lot of time."

I even took a step closer to him, my presence a challenge. "Go on, Your Highness. Let's see if you truly have the courage to reject your fated mate on your Marking night, all because you were caught in the act of cheating."

I pressed my advantage. "When this story gets out, what will they say about you? A prince who can't even control his own lust? Or a petty man who throws a tantrum after being caught by his mate?"

Angelo's face cycled through shades of red, white, and a sickly green. He knew he couldn't do it. It would be the biggest scandal of his political career, a permanent stain on his reputation.

He glared at me, his eyes promising murder, but he was trapped. I had him cornered.

Ainsley, seeing the tables turn, rushed to his side, tugging at his arm. "Your Highness, let it go. Sister is just speaking out of anger. Let's not stoop to her level."

I wrenched my wrist from Angelo's grasp. This time, with his mind in turmoil, I succeeded.

I took a step back, putting space between us. "I am not speaking out of anger."

I held his gaze for a long, silent moment. The air between us crackled with unspoken war.

My gaze swept over them both, finally landing on his stunned face. My voice was as cold and hard as diamond. "Listen closely, Alpha Angelo Hamilton."

"This rejection, this divorce... it is inevitable."

"But the one who initiates it will be me, Adeline Cobb."

The last shred of color drained from his face.

"I will make you the first Alpha prince in the history of this kingdom to be publicly rejected by his own Omega mate."

Without giving them a moment to process my words, I turned and strode down the long, empty corridor.

"Remember, don't follow me again. You two are annoying." I glanced back one last time.

Adeline Cobb POV:

I was almost at the main gates of the palace when I heard the sound I least wanted to hear.

Running footsteps. Again.

I didn't even need to turn around to know who it was. The sickening scent of peach blossom reached me before she did.

"Oh, for fuck's sake," I muttered under my breath. "You again? Do you have nothing better to do than chase me around like a lost puppy?"

I turned slowly, my expression a mixture of annoyance and utter contempt.

Ainsley stood there, flanked by two tall guards, her hair still a mess, her silk robe hastily rearranged. The mask of gentleness was gone, replaced by a face twisted with venom and triumph.

"Sister," she said, her voice dripping with fake concern. "The Prince told you to stay. Where do you think you're going?"

"Out," I said flatly. "Somewhere you're not. Get out of my way."

"His Highness is furious right now. Running around like this will only make him angrier," Ainsley said, her false sincerity grating on my nerves. "As your sister, I can't watch you make such a mistake. Please, come back to the room and calm down."

I stared at her for a long moment. Then I let out a short, sharp laugh.

"You can't watch me make a mistake?" I repeated, my voice dripping with disbelief. "You spread your legs for my fiancé on my wedding night, and now you're pretending to care about my well-being? That's rich."

Color flooded her cheeks, but she recovered quickly. She gave a subtle nod to the guards. They stepped forward, flanking me, their sheer size a silent threat.

I glanced at them. They were the Prince's personal guards, Gamma-level warriors. A drugged Omega would normally be helpless against them.

But I wasn't a normal Omega.

Years of secret training from my mother had taught me one thing: size didn't matter. Angles, momentum, and precision did. These Gamma guards were used to overwhelming opponents with raw strength. They weren't used to someone who knew exactly where to strike.

Ainsley's smirk widened, mistaking my silence for fear. "Be a good girl, sister. Come back with me. Maybe His Highness will even find it in his heart to forgive you."

I laughed. A sharp, cold sound. "Ainsley, do you know what your biggest problem is?"

She blinked, caught off guard.

"You fail to recognize your own station," I said slowly. "You think you can speak for the Prince, but what are you? You're nothing."

I stepped closer, lowering my voice to a venomous whisper only she could hear. "You are a bastard, Ainsley Wallace. A whelp who was only granted a surname out of my mother's pity."

The blood drained from her face. It was her deepest, most shameful secret. While many knew, no one had ever dared to say it to her face.

"You!" she shrieked, her facade shattering completely. "Seize her! Drag her back to the room!"

The two guards reached for me.

I didn't wait for them to touch me. My hand slipped into the pocket of my riding coat and closed around a thin, cold object. A silver needle. Standard operative issue. I had palmed it the moment I changed out of the wedding gown.

The first guard lunged for my arm. I dropped low, pivoting on my heel, driving my elbow into his solar plexus with every ounce of force I had. He folded like a piece of paper, gasping for air.

The second guard barely had time to react. I stepped into his reach, grabbed the front of his tunic, and slammed my forehead into the bridge of his nose. Cartilage crunched under the impact. He staggered back, blood spurting down his face.

Ainsley's eyes went wide. Her jaw dropped. She had expected a helpless Omega, not a woman who moved like a predator.

I didn't give her time to scream. I closed the distance between us in two strides and slashed the silver needle across her cheek.

She never saw it coming. A short, sharp scream was all she could manage.

The needle carved a thin, red line across her skin. It wasn't deep, but it was enough. It would scar.

Pain and shock made her stagger back, her hand flying to her wounded face.

"One more word," I said, my voice quiet and lethal, "and the next one goes into your eye."

She clamped her mouth shut, trembling.

I turned and walked toward the gate, my back straight, my steps steady.

Behind me, I heard Ainsley's enraged, tear-filled scream. "Get her! Don't let her escape!"

The guards were in no shape to chase anyone. I didn't bother looking back.

But I could hear them stumbling to their feet, regaining their balance, and coming after me. Their footsteps pounded against the stone floor, and I knew I was running out of time.

I pushed through the palace gates and into the corridor beyond. The drug was still a weight in my veins, my legs threatening to buckle with every step. I couldn't outrun them in this state.

Then I saw it. A decorative suit of armor standing in an alcove, gleaming in the dim light.

I threw my shoulder against it with every last ounce of strength I had.

With a deafening crash, the heavy metal suit toppled over, blocking the narrow corridor. Plates of steel scattered across the floor, creating a wall of tangled metal that would take the guards precious seconds to climb over.

I glanced back. The guards stumbled into the debris, cursing as they fought through the mess. In the distance, Ainsley stood clutching her face, her eyes filled with pure hatred.

I mouthed two words at her.

"Idiot."

Then I turned and disappeared into the shadows of the garden. I had to get to a place Angelo would never think to look.

Before leaving the grounds of the Prince's palace completely, I cast one last look at the brightly lit building. A single thought burned in my mind: Angelo. Ainsley. We'll meet again soon. And next time, I'll take back everything that belongs to me.