After My Mate’s Betrayal, I Became the Lycan Princess

The drive back to the Royal Estate was silent, the weight of what had happened pressing down on us both. I stared out the window, watching the landscape blur past, my mind racing with questions about Kaleb's violent protection.

When we arrived, Kaleb didn't release me immediately. His fingers remained intertwined with mine, his thumb tracing circles on my palm.

"Come with me," he said softly, leading me not to my room but to his private study.

The room was warm, lit by a single lamp that cast long shadows across leather-bound books and ancient artifacts. Kaleb locked the door behind us, then turned to face me.

"I need to show you something," he said, his voice uncharacteristically hesitant.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small object—a pendant on a silver chain. When he placed it in my palm, I gasped. It was a wolf's tooth, crafted into a necklace, but what made me react was the small metal casing attached to it.

"A bullet casing?" I whispered, turning it over.

"Not just any bullet casing," Kaleb said, his eyes never leaving mine. "Yours."

I looked up at him, confused.

"We've met before, Sophie." His voice dropped lower. "Many years ago."

The room seemed to spin around me as he continued.

"I was a ward of the Royal family, training to be a warrior. You were just a pup, maybe seven years old." His fingers brushed my cheek. "During a training exercise, I was shot—a rogue had infiltrated the grounds."

My breath caught as fragments of memory surfaced.

"You found me bleeding in the woods," he continued. "You gave me this." He held up the pendant. "You said it would make me stronger."

"You were so small," I whispered, the memory crystallizing. "And scared."

"I wasn't scared," he countered, a smile touching his lips. "Not after you found me."

He stepped closer, his hand cupping my face. "I never forgot you, Sophie."

The air between us charged with something primal and electric. His lips hovered just above mine, his scent enveloping me—pine and winter storms and something uniquely him.

I wanted to close the distance, to taste him, to let myself fall into whatever this was becoming.

But doubt crashed through me like ice water.

"My wolf is dormant," I whispered, pulling back. "I'm broken."

Kaleb's eyes flashed gold. "You're not broken," he growled. "You're powerful."

---

Three days later, the Royal wing was under attack.

I jolted awake to the sound of splintering wood. A figure burst through my bedroom door—Nolan, his eyes wild and bloodshot, his clothes disheveled.

"Sophie," he rasped, lunging toward me. "We need to talk."

I scrambled backward, but he grabbed my wrist, yanking me toward him.

"I made a mistake," he pleaded, his breath hot against my face. "The rejection—it's killing me."

I could see it in his eyes—the mate bond sickness eating him alive. His wolf was going mad without its true mate.

"I can fix it," he insisted, his fingers digging painfully into my skin as he tried to drag me away. "We can redo the ceremony. Victoria means nothing—"

"Let. Me. Go." I snarled, using the Alpha voice Marcus had taught me.

Nolan's grip tightened. "You're mine," he growled. "You've always been mine."

Before I could respond, a blur of movement shattered the wall beside us. Plaster and stone exploded inward as Kaleb appeared, his eyes blazing with fury.

With one hand, he ripped Nolan away from me and hurled him through the opposite wall. The sound of bones cracking echoed through the room as Nolan crashed into the hallway.

Kaleb stalked toward him, his body vibrating with lethal intent.

"Kaleb, wait!" I cried, rushing after him.

Nolan lay crumpled on the floor, blood trickling from his mouth. Kaleb stood over him, his hand raised to deliver what would surely be a killing blow.

"Don't," I said, placing my hand on his arm.

Kaleb turned to me, his eyes still glowing with rage. "He touched you."

"Yes," I agreed, my voice steady. "And he'll pay for it."

I stepped forward, looking down at the man I had once loved with every fiber of my being. Now, all I felt was disgust.

"Death is too easy," I told Nolan, my voice cold. "I want you to watch me take everything."

---

The night before the Moon Goddess Festival, I burned with fever.

My skin felt too tight, my bones aching as though they might split apart. I tossed and turned on sweat-soaked sheets, crying out as waves of heat crashed through me.

"Sophie!" Kaleb's voice seemed to come from far away.

I felt cool cloth against my forehead, then my wrists. Gentle hands smoothed back my hair as I thrashed.

"It's happening," I gasped. "Something's wrong."

Kaleb's face swam into view above me, his expression tense with concern. "Your wolf," he murmured. "She's fighting to break free."

All night he stayed by my side, replacing the cloths when they warmed, whispering ancient Lycan prayers in a language I didn't understand.

"Stay with me," he urged as dawn approached. "Don't fight it anymore."

I felt his energy flowing into me through his touch—steady, powerful, anchoring me as my body warred with itself.

"The Moon Stone," I whispered. "It's calling to me."

Kaleb's eyes widened. "The royal artifact? That's impossible unless..."

He didn't finish the sentence, but I saw the realization dawning on his face.

"What's happening to me?" I pleaded.

His hand tightened around mine. "Your awakening," he said softly. "It's dangerous, but you can't stop it now."

As the sun rose, casting golden light through the windows, I felt something stir deep within me—not just my wolf, but something more ancient and powerful. Something royal.