Alpha Rejected True Mate

The greenhouse was my sanctuary in a pack house that had never felt like home. Dawn hadn't yet broken when I slipped inside, the familiar scent of damp soil and blooming flowers wrapping around me like an embrace I'd long been denied elsewhere. My fingers trembled slightly as I reached for the watering can—a weakness I couldn't afford to show outside these glass walls.

I focused on the white lilies, my favorites. Their pure petals reminded me of what I once was—hopeful, untainted. Before the mate bond that became my prison.

"You're wilting too, aren't you?" I whispered to a drooping bloom, gently supporting its stem. My wolf, Luna, whimpered softly in the back of my mind. Once silver and strong, she now barely stirred, weakened by the sickness that had been consuming us both since I gave too much blood to save William three years ago.

A sudden tremor ran through my bones, stronger than the usual morning weakness. Luna whined, a sound of warning and resignation.

"I know," I murmured. "We need to see Elara."

The walk to the healer's cabin felt longer than usual. Each step required concentration as I kept my back straight, my face composed—the perfect image of a Luna that no one truly saw. The freesia and vanilla scent that marked me as William's true mate had dimmed over the months, just like everything else about me.

Elara's cabin smelled of herbs and ancient remedies. The elderly healer looked up from her mortar and pestle, her eyes widening slightly at my unannounced appearance.

"Luna Sarah," she said, quickly setting aside her work. "You should have sent word."

"Some things are better discussed without announcement," I replied, my voice soft but steady. "The weakness is worse, Elara. And Luna... she's fading faster."

Elara's weathered hands were gentle as she examined me, her fingers pressing against pulse points, her eyes studying the pallor of my skin. But I already knew what she would find. I'd been watching my own decay for months now, cataloging each new symptom, each fresh pain.

"The wolf sickness has progressed," she finally said, her voice heavy with the weight of her diagnosis. "The bond rejection has accelerated it beyond what I'd feared."

"How long?" I asked simply.

Elara's eyes filled with tears she couldn't professionally hide. "Six months, Luna. Perhaps less."

I nodded, absorbing the finality of it. Six months of watching William with Rebecca. Six months of being the phantom Luna, the mate who wasn't wanted. Six months of feeling my wolf slowly die within me.

"No one can know," I said firmly. "Especially not the Alpha."

"But Luna, perhaps if he knew—"

"He has made his choice, Elara." I cut her off, more sharply than I intended. "William chose Rebecca long ago. My death will simply free him to make it official."

I left the cabin with my secret safely contained, my scent carefully controlled to mask the fear and sorrow. The pack house loomed ahead, a beautiful prison where I lived as an unwanted obligation.

That evening, Marcus Thorne, the pack's Gamma, appeared at my door. His expression was carefully blank, but I caught the flash of pity in his eyes.

"Alpha William requests your presence in his study, Luna."

William's study was his domain, a place where I was rarely summoned. The rich scent of pine and rain—his scent—hit me as I entered, followed by the oppressive weight of his black wolf's aura pressing against my chest.

He didn't look up from his papers. "Sarah."

Not Luna. Never Luna from his lips.

"Rebecca's wolf is losing its sight," he said without preamble, his voice clipped and cold. "The healer says a Luna's healing essence can restore it. You will participate in a blood ritual to transfer your wolf's healing abilities to her."

My heart clenched painfully. Even now, knowing I was dying, he was asking me to give more of myself to the woman he truly wanted.

Luna whimpered in protest, but I silenced her. This was our reality.

"I will help Rebecca," I whispered, meeting his gaze directly for perhaps the first time in months. His eyes widened slightly at my boldness. "But first, I want you to complete our mating ceremony. Mark me as your Luna, just once."

William's black wolf stirred visibly beneath his skin, surprised by my request. For a moment, something flickered in his eyes—confusion, perhaps, or the faintest hint of curiosity about the mate he had never truly known.

"Very well," he said finally. "If that's your condition."

As I left his study, a single thought sustained me: he would mark me before I died. One moment of the connection I had craved for three years. One moment of being truly his Luna before the darkness took me completely.