Betrayed By The Alpha's Order

To help the fake heiress marry my intended mate, on the day of our mark ceremony, my brother abandoned me in a cave filled with rogues. Under his orders, several rogue wolves, their faces twisted with malice, closed in on me. No matter how I pleaded, my brother remained unmoved.

“Willow, Joaquin was always meant to be Emelia’s mate. Your presence has disrupted her happiness,” he said coldly.

Three days later, he returned to take me home, asking if I still dared to challenge Emelia.

“I won’t,” I replied hollowly. “I’ll give up everything for her.”

What my brother didn’t know was that to protect myself from the rogues, I had jumped into the Moonstone Altar, a forbidden and dangerous place. The one who saved me wasn’t a rogue or a pack member but a powerful Lycan, hidden away and feared by all.

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My brother stood at the entrance of the cave, his expression stern as he looked down at me. “Willow, do you understand where you went wrong?”

I nodded, my eyes empty, my voice barely audible. “Yes.”

“You came back at the worst possible time, almost ruining Emelia’s happiness. Joaquin is her fated mate, not yours,” he continued, his tone sharp. “If you behave, I’ll find you a suitable mate from the pack. Someone reliable.”

I stared at Clark, my heart already frozen. He was my brother, my blood, yet he had always favored Emelia. Because of Emelia’s mother’s deceit, our fates had been swapped. She grew up with his love, the warmth of our family, while I endured the life meant for her—a life of neglect and pain.

The day I was brought back to the pack, I thought the Moon Goddess had finally given me justice, but I was wrong. From the smallest luxuries—jewelry, the sunlit room, the training resources—to the largest—our parents’ affection, my mate—everything was taken from me. I was the one with the potential to become a Luna, but my parents and brother suppressed me at every turn. They poured their resources into Emelia, a weak and spoiled Omega.

“Fine,” I thought bitterly. “Let them favor her. It doesn’t matter anymore.”

As my brother turned to leave, he paused and added, “Don’t even think about sabotaging Emelia’s mark ceremony. You were the one who ran away, rejecting Joaquin. I don’t want to hear a single word that could tarnish Emelia’s reputation. Otherwise, I won’t hesitate to let the pack know you’ve been alone with rogues.”

I let out a cold laugh and nodded. He was so concerned about Emelia’s reputation that he had silenced everyone involved in that day’s events. But what about me? When he sent those rogues after me, did he ever think of the consequences I would face?

The cave had been damp and dark, the rogues’ snarls echoing in the air. Every time they approached, I felt my stomach churn with fear and disgust. If I hadn’t cut my arm, drawing the attention of the Lycan hidden in the Moonstone Altar, I wouldn’t have escaped.

“Brother,” I said softly, “don’t worry. You’ll all get what you want.”

He was still anxious, still warning me not to ruin Emelia’s ceremony. But what he didn’t know was that in a few days, I would be offered to the Lycan at the Moonstone Altar as a sacrifice.

“Remember,” he said, his voice harsh, “when you return to the pack, keep your head down. Or I’ll have no problem sending you back here.”