Betrayed by My Alpha Mate

The pack meeting hall buzzed with tension as I took my seat in the front row, my spine rigid with forced composure. Emma, my wolf, paced restlessly within me, her anxiety bleeding into my consciousness. The room smelled of polished wood and nervous sweat, but underneath it all was Veronica's cloying perfume—deliberately applied to mask her natural scent.

Nash stood at the podium, his Alpha presence commanding attention as he addressed the pack about the upcoming Phoenix Summit. I kept my eyes fixed on the floor, refusing to look at him.

"And I'd like to formally announce our delegation," Nash's voice carried through the hall. "As Alpha, I'll be leading the mission, accompanied by..."

I already knew what was coming, but hearing Veronica's name still felt like a knife between my ribs.

"Veronica Bell."

Applause rippled through the crowd. I didn't join in.

Veronica rose from her seat, her movements graceful as she approached the podium. She wore a modest blue dress that made her look fragile—a calculated choice.

"Thank you, Alpha Nash," she said, her voice honey-sweet. "Your compassionate leadership in this matter means everything to me."

She turned to face the pack, but her eyes found mine, holding my gaze with a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

"My wolf and I are deeply grateful for this opportunity to heal," she continued. "Some might not understand why I need this so badly, but trauma affects us all differently."

Emma growled inside me. *She's talking about us*, she snarled. *She's implying we're the ones who don't understand.*

I felt Hannah's presence through our pack link before I saw her. She slipped into the seat beside me, her expression grim.

*Jessica,* her voice whispered in my mind. *You need to know something.*

I glanced at her, keeping my face neutral.

*Veronica's been busy,* Hannah continued through our link. *She's been telling everyone who'll listen that you're jealous and unstable. That you can't handle her and Nash working together.*

My hands clenched into fists beneath the table. "When?"

*Since yesterday. Elena's been helping her spread the rumors through the mind-link network.*

Veronica finished her speech with tears glistening in her eyes—perfectly timed, perfectly fake. The pack applauded again, sympathetic murmurs filling the room.

I couldn't breathe. I needed to get out.

---

"Absolutely not." Beta Lee Gordon's voice was firm as he leaned against his desk. "Jessica, you can't seriously be considering severing your mate bond."

I stood before him, my hands trembling with suppressed rage. "I'm perfectly serious."

"The mate bond is sacred," Lee said, running a hand through his salt-and-pepper hair. "It's not something you can—"

"It's something I can and will do," I cut him off. "Nash threatened to reject me first. I'm simply beating him to it."

Lee's eyes widened. "He what? Jessica, that's—"

The door burst open. Nash stood in the doorway, his chest heaving as if he'd run all the way here.

"What the hell is going on?" he demanded.

I turned to face him, lifting my chin. "I'm requesting a formal mate bond severance ceremony."

Nash's face darkened with fury. "You're not thinking rationally."

"Rationally?" I laughed, the sound brittle even to my own ears. "You gave away my position to your former girlfriend, you threatened to reject me, and now you're telling me to be rational?"

"Enough!" Nash's Alpha command slammed through the room, making Lee flinch. "As your Alpha and mate, I order you to think about the pack's greater good!"

Emma recoiled inside me, the force of his command making her whimper. But I stood my ground.

"You lost the right to give me orders when you chose her over me," I said quietly.

Lee stepped between us. "Both of you, calm down. This isn't helping anything."

"Stay out of this, Lee," Nash growled.

"No." I straightened my shoulders. "I'm done with this conversation."

I walked past Nash without looking at him, my steps quickening as I left the office behind.

---

The training grounds were empty at midnight, bathed in silver moonlight that made the equipment gleam like metal ghosts. Hannah waited for me by the sparring circle, her expression grim.

"You came," she said simply.

"Of course I did." I joined her in the circle. "What did you find?"

Hannah pulled out her phone, her fingers trembling slightly as she swiped through screens.

"Look at these," she said, handing me the device.

The first image showed a mind-link conversation between Veronica and another female warrior. The words made my blood run cold:

*Stay away from Alpha Nash or you'll regret it. He still has feelings for me. Always will.*

The next was a training record—except it wasn't mine. It was Veronica's, showing impossible scores that would make her the pack's most elite warrior.

"These are fake," I whispered.

Hannah nodded grimly. "And these—" She pulled up another document. "These are your actual records. Except someone's altered them to make it look like you've been failing recent assessments."

I stared at the evidence of Veronica's systematic destruction of my career, my reputation, my life.

"She's been planning this for months," Hannah said quietly.

Emma stirred within me, her anger matching my own. For the first time since Nash's betrayal, I felt something other than pain.

I felt purpose.

"What else do you have?" I asked, my voice steady as steel.