My first life had ended in humiliation, crushed under the weight of this man's schemes and disdain. Yet here I was, alive once more, and the rules of the game had changed.
Mike's brow furrowed as my silence lingered.
"Jade is everything you're not. She's pure, delicate, and refined despite her humble origins. Her beauty could make spirits dance, her grace worthy of a mate's crown. Unlike you, she will bring honor to this family."
I nearly laughed. His words were as hollow as the promises he had once whispered under the silvery light of our mating bond.
Back then, I was naive enough to believe him. Back then, I had no idea that he had married me only for the wealth my mother had painstakingly amassed for my dowry-wealth that had made .
"When I was struggling to lead during the famine, I had no choice but to borrow your family's wealth. I saved lives with that money, yet now, with peace restored and the alpha himself promising me rewards, it's time you made way for Jade."
He said it so casually, as if tossing me aside were no different than shedding a coat he'd outgrown.
In my first life, my mother had doted on me, reminding me every day of my blessings.
"Never let anyone know your worth until the right time, my darling," she had said. "Once you have your mate's heir, your place will be secure."
But Mike had never valued me. The moment he laid eyes on the riches accompanying my dowry, I became nothing more than a pawn in his schemes.
"Jade may have your favor," I said, my voice steady, sharp as steel.
In my past life, after the famine relief was complete, Beta Mike wasted no time declaring his intent to marry my cousin Dariya and crown her as his Luna.
Back then, I had refused to yield.
He sneered at my protest.
"Jade is your cousin," he snarled.
"I've broken no vows by choosing her. Look at you-fat,weak, repulsive, unworthy. If it weren't for your family's lands , I wouldn't have so much as claimed you as my mate, let alone considered you fit to bear my pups. You should be grateful I'm even offering you a place as my second mate. Don't overreach."
The venom in his words should have shattered me, but I had been weak then, just a lowly wolf clinging to the hope that love could bloom from duty.
I believed that if I endured his scorn, humbled myself before his arrogance, and bore his heir, my place within the pack-and his heart-would be secured.
That night, dressed in ceremonial silks dyed the red of blood moons, I stepped into his den.
But as I pushed open the oak doors carved with runes of loyalty and protection, the sight that greeted me turned my world to ash.
There, sprawled in the glow of the hearth fire, Beta Mike was entwined with my half-sister Dariya. Their shadows twisted and merged, a mocking dance of betrayal beneath the wolf sigils etched into the walls.
Dariya's cruel laughter echoed through the room as she rose languidly, draping herself in furs as if to shield her sin. Her lips curled into a smirk that bared her sharp teeth. "Sister," she purred, her voice dripping with malice,
"Dressed like that, you look less like a Beta's mate and more like a stray mutt scrounging for leftovers. Pathetic, really."
Her words cut deep, but it was Mike's silence that was the sharpest blade. He didn't bother to defend me, didn't look at me with even an ounce of guilt. Instead, his eyes held the cold triumph of a predator savoring its kill.
What followed was a nightmare I never escaped.
Mike cast me out of the pack lands, dragging me to the borders where the moonlight barely reached.
"You disgrace the title of mate," he growled, his wolf surging beneath his skin as if to emphasize his disgust. "Your impurity is an insult to the pack. You're no longer welcome here."
With a cruel shove, he threw me into the outlawed territories, where rogues and feral wolves roamed, waiting to devour the weak. They descended on me like vultures, their claws tearing into my flesh, their howls a symphony of my suffering. I endured agony beyond measure, my wolf crying out for mercy as I was ripped apart.
When I managed to crawl back to the packhouse, clinging to the faint hope that my mate bond would protect me, Mike was waiting.
He condemned me before the gathered wolves, his Beta voice booming with righteous fury. "She has dishonored herself," he declared, his words laced with lies. "Her betrayal and impurity are a stain upon this pack. I sever this bond and cast her out as a rogue."
And so, I died. Alone. Abandoned. Betrayed.
While Mike and Dariya thrived, their lies building them a throne of stolen wealth and power. They became the pride of the pack, celebrated as the ideal pair, while I faded into the shadows, my name smeared and forgotten.
But that was a lifetime ago.
Now, standing before him, I forced a radiant smile onto my lip. "Beta Mike, you're absolutely right," I said sweetly, my voice as smooth as a wolf's purr before a kill. "Dariya deserves the finest. The estate has grown old and worn; we must ensure it is properly renovated to welcome your new Luna."
Let him think he had won.
This time, I would play the long game.I would see her buried under the weight of debts so deep not even the moonlight could save her.
And Mike? He would learn that betrayal had a price.
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