Betrayed on Mate Ceremony Eve

Their footsteps crunched up the embankment, unhurried. Casual. Like they were leaving a dinner party instead of a murder scene.

I threw my weight against the driver's door again. The metal groaned but held firm, the twisted frame an impossible barrier. Every movement sent waves of exhaustion through my limbs. The wolfsbane had seeped into my bones now, turning my muscles to water. My wolf's presence flickered like a dying candle—there one moment, gone the next.

*Stay with me,* I begged her. *Please.*

No answer. Just silence where her voice should have been.

Through the mate bond, I felt Edwin's satisfaction wash over me. Not guilt. Not hesitation. Relief. Pure, uncomplicated relief that his problem was being handled.

The sensation made me want to vomit.

"Edwin, please." The words scraped past my raw throat, barely louder than a whisper. Smoke burned my eyes, my lungs. "The mate bond—the Moon Goddess—"

He stopped at the top of the embankment. Turned. In the glow of his headlights, his features looked carved from stone. Those hazel eyes I'd spent a year memorizing held nothing but contempt.

"The Moon Goddess gave me a weak, late-blooming she-wolf with no remarkable bloodline as my fated mate." His voice was flat. Final. "I'm choosing better."

Capri appeared at his side, slipping her arm through his with practiced ease. She smiled down at me, her expression one of serene satisfaction.

They climbed into the vehicle together. Doors slammed. The engine purred to life.

I watched their taillights disappear around the curve, two red eyes vanishing into darkness. The mate bond stretched between us, thin and agonizing, pulling at something deep in my chest even as the man on the other end drove away from my death.

Alone. I was alone.

Smoke curled thicker through the vents. Somewhere beneath me, gasoline dripped steadily onto the ground. The flames licking at the engine compartment cast dancing shadows across the shattered windshield.

I was going to die here. On a dark road, miles from anyone who cared. And tomorrow, Capri would stand where I should have stood, wearing my crown while my ashes cooled.

No.

The thought cut through the fog of despair with sudden, sharp clarity. No. I refused to make it that easy for them.

My fingers fumbled beneath my seat, muscles trembling with the effort. Alexander's voice echoed in my memory: *It's connected directly to me, Aleah. Any time, day or night. Promise me you'll keep it charged.*

I'd rolled my eyes. Told him he was being overprotective. That Edwin's pack was difficult, not dangerous.

My brother had always seen what I refused to.

The device was small, barely larger than a car key fob. I nearly dropped it twice before my shaking hands found the activation button. A red light blinked to life.

"Alexander." My voice cracked, barely audible even to my own ears. I forced more air into my lungs despite the smoke that clawed at my throat. "Edwin... he did this. Wolfsbane. Can't shift. Help."

The words came out broken, fragmented. But the device was transmitting. My coordinates, my voice, everything Alexander needed to find me.

If he wasn't too late.

The effort drained whatever reserves I had left. My head fell back against the seat, too heavy to hold up anymore. Through the cracked windshield, I watched flames lick higher beneath the crumpled hood. The heat was building. Soon the fire would reach the fuel tank.

My wolf's whimpers had faded to nothing. The concentrated wolfsbane in this small space had poisoned us both to dangerous levels. I could feel my heartbeat slowing, my thoughts growing fuzzy at the edges.

*Moon Goddess,* I prayed silently, *if you're listening... if my bond to Edwin ever meant anything... don't let it end like this.*

Darkness crept in at the corners of my vision.

---

Alexander's pen hovered over the Mate Ceremony protocols spread across his desk. Standard Alpha duties—reviewing ceremonial procedures, confirming guest lists, ensuring everything was perfect for his little sister's big day.

Something had felt wrong all evening. A restlessness his wolf couldn't explain. He'd attributed it to nerves, to the knowledge that tomorrow Aleah would officially belong to another pack.

The emergency alert shattered everything.

The device on his desk screamed to life, red light flashing in urgent pulses. Aleah's voice filled the room, broken and faint but unmistakable:

*"Alexander... Edwin did this... wolfsbane... can't shift... help..."*

Her GPS coordinates blazed across the screen. Twelve miles from Crimson Shadow territory. On the isolated highway she always took.

For three heartbeats, Alexander couldn't move. His mind refused to process what he was hearing. Edwin. His sister's fated mate. The man blessed by the Moon Goddess to protect her.

*Edwin did this.*

Then his wolf surged forward with a roar that rattled the windows in their frames. The sound tore from his throat, more animal than human, fury and terror twisted together.

The pack mind-link exploded with his command.

*"Marcus, mobilize the extraction team—NOW. Warriors to my position in sixty seconds. Bring cutting equipment, wolfsbane antidote, and medical supplies."*

He was already moving, the door slamming behind him hard enough to crack the frame.

*"My sister is dying."*