I let my gaze sweep over them, slow and heavy with disappointment. “He committed a crime against the Moon Goddess herself. He violated the sacredness of the mate bond. He marked her without her consent.”
Gasps ripple through the crowd.
“And because of him,” I continue, my voice cracking despite my efforts to stay calm, “Jasmine had to do the unthinkable. She had to kill a part of herself. Her wolf is gone. Her soul was shattered. She lost everything–her identity, her strength–just to escape him.”
Silence. Thick, suffocating silence..
I take a deep breath, trying to steady my voice, blinking back the sting in my eyes. I refuse to let tears fall–not here. “You still want me to release him? After that?”
No one answers.
“I made a mistake,” I admit, raising my voice. “A terrible one. I thought the law I created would protect us. That giving the male authority over his mate would make him more protective. More responsible. I believed that as the head of the bond, a man would cherish his mate, guide her, protect her like his own heartbeat while she submit to him as her duty.”
My gaze catches a man lowering his head in shame. Another steps slightly away from his trembling mate.
“I never meant for it to be twisted into this. I never expected you to beat them, to control them, to treat them like fucking possessions. You took something sacred and turned it into a weapon. You made yourselves kings in your homes and turned the very women the Moon Goddess gifted you–your mates–into prisoners. You shamed the mate bond.”
Some women wince. One clutches her arm. Another shields her child behind her. I see one edge away from her mate, fear written across her face. His fists tighten, like he wants to strike her even now–but he knows better than to try it in front of me. He’ll be made an example.
“I was blind,” I murmur, disgusted with myself. “And now I will correct my mistake and end this stupid law.”
A warrior steps forward, handing me a scroll. The law. The one I wrote with my own fucking
hands.
I hold it high, for all of them to see–then tear it apart, slowly, piece by piece, letting the shreds fall to the ground like snow.
“All laws that favour men over women are hereby abolished. As of this moment, males and females are equals. That is the new law. Women will no longer submit to men simply because
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they’re men. To the women who have carried this pain alone…. who have endured heartbreak, abuse, and silence while being told to be ‘strong‘–I am sorry. I am sorry it’s taken me this long to open my eyes.”
The crowd stares in stunned silence.
“If you’re a man–if you’ve raised your hand against the woman the Moon Goddess chose for you–this is your chance to make it right. Drop your pride. Get on your knees if you have to. And beg for her forgiveness. Beg like your soul depends on it. Because it does. Do it in private if you’re too much of a coward to do it here.”
I turn to the women now, softening my tone.
“And if you’re in a toxic bond… if the man promises and swears to change but your soul tells you otherwise… you don’t have to stay. You can reject him. Right now. And I swear to you–no harm will come to you. Not while I’m still breathing.”
Some women begin to cry quietly. Others turn to their mates, their eyes lit with something I haven’t seen in a long time–strength.
Then a gruff voice breaks through the crowd, sharp with disbelief. “How can you say all this, Alpha? How can you go against the natural law of things? You expect us to accept this? Are you going to take responsibility for breaking your own law?”
I square my shoulders. My heart is heavy but steady. I know what I have to do.
“You’re right. I broke my word. I went against the law I created.”
The crowd holds its breath.
“So,” I say, lifting my chin, voice unwavering, “to prove I’m not doing this out of pride…”
I exhale slowly, then finish the sentence:
“I will step down as Alpha of the Blood Fang Pack.”
