After My Alpha Betrayed Me for Royalty

I waited until midnight before making my move. The pack house had finally fallen silent, the last of the day shift guards changing positions at the perimeter. My body felt heavier with each passing day, the wolfsbane slowly stealing my strength, but determination pushed me forward.

Healer Elara's quarters were dimly lit by a single lamp when I slipped inside. She jumped at my entrance, nearly dropping the mortar and pestle in her hands.

"Luna Sophia!" she gasped, her eyes wide with fear. "You should be resting."

"I need proof, Elara," I said, my voice steady despite the tremor in my limbs. "I heard you speaking with Beta Wells. About the wolfsbane."

The color drained from her face. "I—I don't know what you mean."

"Don't lie to me," I commanded, allowing my Luna aura to flare. Even weakened, it filled the small room, making the glass vials on the shelves vibrate slightly. "I am still your Luna, and I demand the truth."

Elara's shoulders slumped, defeat washing over her features. "He'll kill me," she whispered.

"He's already killing me," I countered. "And you've been helping him."

Tears welled in her eyes. "I had no choice. The Alpha's orders—"

"There is always a choice," I cut her off, stepping closer. "And now you have another one. Help me, or face the judgment of the Moon Goddess for betraying your sacred healer's oath."

Her hands shook as she moved to a locked cabinet behind her workstation. The small key around her neck opened it, revealing rows of carefully labeled vials and a leather-bound ledger.

"These are the samples I've been testing," she explained, voice barely audible. "Drawn from your blood over the past six months. The concentration has been increasing steadily."

I took one of the vials, holding it up to the light. The liquid inside had a faint purple sheen—my tainted blood.

"And this," Elara continued, opening the ledger, "is the record of wolfsbane shipments received by the Alpha's private storeroom. Dating back..."

"How long?" I asked, my throat tight.

"Three years," she admitted. "But the doses only became significant about eight months ago."

Around the time Ryan had first met the Lycan princess. The realization was a knife to my heart.

I photographed each page of the ledger with my phone, my hands surprisingly steady. "I'll need samples of the wolfsbane as well."

"Luna, please," Elara begged. "If he discovers I've helped you—"

"He won't," I promised. "Not until it's too late."

With the evidence secured in a pouch against my skin, I slipped back to my quarters, my wolf growling with renewed purpose despite her weakness.

Two more days until Marcus arrived. Two more days to gather my strength for what was to come.

* * *

The formal pack gathering was announced with less than a day's notice. Attendance mandatory. I knew what it meant before the engraved invitation was slipped under my door.

The courtyard had been transformed with silver banners and moon lilies—traditional decorations for significant pack ceremonies. I stood at the back, wrapped in a simple gray dress that matched my increasingly pallid complexion. No one approached me. No one met my eyes.

Pack members filled the space, their excited whispers falling to hushed silence as Ryan mounted the ceremonial dais. His Alpha King regalia gleamed in the afternoon sun, the crown of silver thorns resting on his dark hair. He looked powerful. Untouchable.

Behind him came the Lycan delegation, with Madison Harper at their center. She wore a gown of deep crimson that hugged her curves, her golden hair cascading down her back. Her eyes found mine across the crowd, a smile curving her lips as she ascended the steps to stand beside Ryan.

"Members of the Silver Moon Pack," Ryan's voice carried effortlessly across the courtyard. "Today marks a new chapter in our history. An alliance that will secure our future and expand our influence beyond all previous boundaries."

My wolf whimpered as his hand reached for Madison's, drawing her closer.

"To seal this alliance," he continued, "I present to you Madison Harper, daughter of the Lycan King, who has graciously accepted my offer of courtship."

Gasps rippled through the crowd. Courtship was the formal precursor to mating—a declaration of intent that couldn't be mistaken.

Ryan turned to Madison, and with deliberate slowness, leaned down to press his face against her neck. The scent-marking ritual—a public claiming that left no doubt about his intentions.

Madison's Lycan aura surged forward, washing over the crowd like a wave of exotic, overwhelming power. Her eyes locked with mine as Ryan's lips pressed against her skin, her expression one of pure triumph.

The crowd's hushed murmurs swelled around me, their shock and confusion a palpable force. But all I could focus on was the burning in my chest where our mate bond twisted in agony at the betrayal.

Eight years of devotion. Eight years of sacrificing my health, my happiness, my very essence for him and this pack. And this was how it ended—with my mate publicly claiming another while I slowly died from his poison.

As Ryan pulled back from Madison's neck, his eyes found mine across the courtyard. For a moment, something flickered in their depths—not remorse, but concern. Concern that I was still standing. Still breathing. Still watching.

My fingers closed around the vial of evidence in my pocket as a new emotion surged through me, burning away the hurt and humiliation.

Rage. Pure, cleansing rage.

He thought this display would break me. Instead, it had ignited something far more dangerous.

The countdown to Marcus's arrival had begun. And with it, the countdown to Ryan's downfall.