Betrayed By My Fated Mate

I was the Luna candidate of the Silver Moon Pack.

During the mark ceremony, my sister Nicole barged in, her clothes disheveled. Tears streamed down her face as she accused me:

"Sister, if you wanted to become Luna, why did you have to hurt me like this?"

My mate-to-be, Malakai, also pointed at me, declaring me unworthy to serve the pack.

Then he turned and proposed to Nicole, nominating her as the new Luna.

I was thrown into the pack's punishment chamber, stripped of my rank, and branded an Omega. The pack despised me.

The day I was released, Malakai looked at me, covered in wounds, his eyes slightly moist:

"Madelyn, you've suffered."

"Just wait a little longer. Everything will be over soon."

"Once Nicole successfully takes over as Luna in ten days, I'll take you as my mate."

I'd heard this "wait a little longer" hundreds of times before.

I looked at the man before me, no longer the one I loved.

I clenched the note in my hand tighter.

It read: Ten days. Wait for me.

==============================

The lights in the punishment chamber flickered on and off, the sound of whips cracking through the air.

I was pulled out of the cold water and struck with several saltwater-soaked barbed whips.

Only when I was nearly unconscious, my flesh torn and bleeding, did the enforcer stop, cursing.

They threw a rough dress over me and dragged me outside.

"Bitch is tough. Even after being stripped of your rank, you're still alive."

"If it weren't for the Luna pleading for you, you'd have died in there."

Every step I took in the thin slippers sent sharp pain through my feet.

By the time I reached the main hall, the slippers were soaked in blood.

Malakai frowned when he saw my disheveled state.

"How dare you! Kneel before the Luna!"

I looked up and saw my sister, Nicole, sitting high on the throne, smug.

When our eyes met, she immediately shifted to trembling and pitiful.

"Smack!"

In the next moment, Malakai slapped me to the ground.

He stood above me, towering.

"How dare you look directly at the Luna."

I spat out the blood in my mouth, my ears ringing.

Nicole walked over with light steps, a handkerchief covering her tears.

She pressed hard on my wounds, hidden by her sleeve.

"Ah!"

I couldn't help but cry out in pain.

Nicole then fell backward, and Malakai caught her.

He kicked me away, and my wounds tore open.

I curled into a ball, trying to ease the pain.

Malakai instinctively took a step toward me.

But he stopped, his voice cold.

"Madelyn, who are you trying to fool with this act?"

In his eyes, I was faking it.

After all, as a Luna candidate, I had the ability to heal quickly.

But only those with the rank of Luna could heal so fast.

And now, I no longer had that rank.

Nicole glanced at me, cooing:

"Malakai, the smell of blood is so strong. I'm afraid it'll hurt the baby."

I looked up sharply.

She placed her hand on her stomach, and Malakai's face softened with adoration.

But when he looked at me, his expression turned cold:

"Get out!"

My numb heart was torn open again, bleeding fresh wounds.

I dragged myself out of the room, hearing their intimate whispers behind me.

As soon as I stepped outside, a thin willow branch struck me.

After several lashes, my face was covered in red welts.

"What bad luck."

They chased me into a drafty woodshed with the willow branch.

I huddled in a corner, trying to find some warmth.

The days passed, and no one remembered me.

The cold and hunger gnawed at me.

With what little consciousness I had left, I gripped the note in my hand, counting the remaining days.

Seven more.

Suddenly, a hard, cold roll was thrown at me, jolting my survival instincts.

I looked up to see a ragged Omega, Eden, pointing at the roll and then at his open mouth.

I understood and grabbed the roll, devouring it.

"Bang!"

The rickety door fell with a crash.

Malakai snatched the roll from my hand, his eyes red:

"How did you end up like this?"

I didn't answer, just crawled over and picked up the dirty roll, swallowing it.

He seemed shocked by my state.

Ignoring the filth, he held me tightly.

He whispered in my ear:

"Madelyn, just wait a little longer."

I murmured, "One hundred and eight times."

He frowned, confused. "What?"

This was the one hundred and eighth time he'd told me to wait.

He was about to say more.

But then the pack's Beta, Aliyah, stepped forward and said slowly:

"Alpha, the Luna is waiting for you to choose your mark ceremony attire."

At her words, the pity on Malakai's face vanished, replaced by cold indifference.

He was always like this—one moment tender, the next cruel.

I couldn't tell which was the real him.