After My Mate Claimed His Mistress, I Unleashed My Power

The applause for the "Future Alpha" was still ringing in the rafters when Henrik raised a hand, silencing the pack. The joyous atmosphere instantly curdled into something heavy and expectant.

"Sienna," Henrik called out, his voice amplified by the microphone. "Step forward."

The crowd parted like the Red Sea, leaving a wide, empty aisle between the pillar where I stood and the dais where my husband held his mistress's hand. I didn't tremble. I didn't look down. I walked the path of my own execution with the grace of a queen, my chin held high despite the simple gray dress that marked my fall from grace.

I stopped at the base of the stairs. I looked up at them—the beaming, pregnant mistress and the arrogant, foolish Alpha.

"For ten years, this pack has waited for an heir," Henrik announced, his eyes boring into mine. "A Luna's primary duty is to strengthen the pack's lineage. In this, Sienna Burke has failed. She is barren, and her wolf is weak."

A murmur rippled through the hall. I saw pity in some eyes, but mostly relief that they weren't the ones in the crosshairs.

"Therefore," Henrik continued, his voice devoid of the warmth he once promised me at the altar, "I am formally stripping Sienna of the title of Luna. Effective immediately, Violette Hill will assume the duties of the pack mother."

He paused, waiting for me to break, to cry, to beg. When I simply stared at him, his jaw tightened.

"However, I am a merciful Alpha," he sneered. "I will not cast you out to the rogue lands, Sienna. You have served us... adequately in the past. You may remain in the Silver Glade Pack as an Omega. You will serve the new Luna, clean the pack house, and perhaps, in time, redeem your failures."

The ultimatum hung in the air like a guillotine blade. *Submit or die.* become a servant to the woman who stole my life, or become a rogue with a target on my back.

"Or," Henrik added darkly, "you can leave. But know this: if you walk out those doors as a rogue, you will be hunted if you ever cross our borders again."

I didn't answer him. I couldn't. If I opened my mouth, I would have ordered his execution. instead, I offered a stiff, mockery of a bow—not to him, but to the absurdity of his arrogance—and turned on my heel.

As I reached the heavy oak doors, the meeting was dismissed. The pack swarmed toward the buffet, eager to ignore the unpleasantness of my demotion. I felt a hand on my arm. Soft, manicured fingers dug into my bicep.

"Going so soon, Omega?"

Violette stood there, her other hand resting on her stomach. Her scent was cloying, a mixture of expensive perfume and the rot of her lies. She leaned in close, her voice a poisonous whisper meant only for me.

"Henrik promised me I could redecorate," she purred, her eyes dancing with malice. "I'm thinking of turning the Alchemy Hall into the nursery. I'll have all your little jars and books thrown in the incinerator. It’s only fitting that my son sleeps in the place where your 'career' died."

Something inside me snapped.

It wasn't a conscious decision. It was the ancient, primal spirit of the White Wolf, the blood of the Lycan King that I had suppressed for a decade. The rage didn't come from my throat; it came from the earth itself.

A low, resonant growl vibrated through the floorboards. It was a sound deeper than thunder, a seismic frequency that caused the silverware on the tables to rattle and the massive glass windows of the Great Hall to shudder in their frames.

The chatter in the hall died instantly. Every wolf froze, their instincts screaming that a predator—an apex predator—was in the room.

Violette flinched violently, stumbling back as if physically struck by the sound. Her face went pale, her eyes darting around in terror. "What... what was that?"

For a second, the air crackled with the pressure of my aura. I stared at Violette, and for the first time, she saw the abyss in my eyes. She saw death.

"It’s just thunder, Violette," Henrik’s voice cut through the tension, oblivious and dismissive. He walked up behind her, placing a hand on her waist, glaring at the ceiling. "Storm's coming in over the mountains. Don't be jumpy. It’s bad for the pup."

He looked at me, sneering. "Still here, Sienna? Get to the kitchens. The celebration dishes won't wash themselves."

He hadn't felt it. He was so blinded by his own ego, so convinced of my weakness, that he mistook the growl of a Lycan for the weather.

I permitted myself a small, terrifying smile. "As you command, Alpha."

I walked out into the cool night air, leaving the warmth of the pack house behind. But I didn't go to the kitchens. I went straight to the dusty guest wing in the East Tower.

Once inside, I locked the door and moved the heavy wardrobe aside. Behind it, wedged into a loose stone in the wall, was a small velvet pouch I hadn't touched since the day I met Henrik. My hands didn't shake as I pulled out the communication crystal. It was a jagged piece of moonstone, dormant and gray.

I pricked my finger with a small knife, letting a single drop of royal blood fall onto the stone. Instantly, it pulsed with a blinding silver light, humming with a power that the Silver Glade Pack couldn't even comprehend.

"Commander," I whispered into the glowing stone.

The response was immediate. The deep, rough voice of a man who had been waiting for this order for years echoed from the crystal. "Your Highness. We are listening."

"Code Eclipse," I said, my voice cold and steady. "The charade is over, Rex. Initiate the extraction protocol."

"Understood," Rex Blackwood replied, the excitement palpable in his tone. "Shall we strike tonight?"

"No," I said, looking out the window toward the Alpha's quarters where Henrik was likely toasting to his fraudulent heir. "Not yet. I need the evidence first. infiltrate the medical wing. Secure Dr. Elena Cross's private archives. Specifically, the fertility screenings from ten years ago regarding the Alpha bloodline."

"The records proving he is sterile?"

"Yes," I replied, watching the moon rise. "He wants to celebrate a legacy? I’m going to hand him his extinction."