I waited in the grand hall for three hours on the night of Kael’s Alpha ceremony.

He was supposed to be wheeled onto the stage, paralyzed and dependent on me.

Instead, my phone buzzed with a live video feed from the pack hospital.

Through the shaky lens, I saw Kael—my mate of four years—standing perfectly on his own two feet.

He effortlessly pinned his secret lover, Selene, against the sterile door.

"Why haven't you told Elara your legs are cured?" Selene purred, tracing his chest.

"If that wolfless maid finds out, she'll pressure me to mark her," Kael scoffed, his voice dripping with disgust. "She's not fit to be an Alpha's mate."

Then, he claimed her lips with a ferocious growl, completely shifting into his massive wolf form to mount her.

My chest tightened, not with sorrow, but with cold clarity.

He didn't know I was the lost Lycan Queen.

I slowly took out my phone and texted my true pack.

***

"Elara is just a free maid without a wolf form. Why would I ever mark her?"

The voice coming from my phone screen belonged to Kael, my mate of four years.

On the grainy security footage, he had Selene pinned against the heavy oak door of his study. His hands gripped her waist, pulling her flush against him. Selene tilted her head back, laughing, before Kael crashed his mouth down on hers.

I stood in the center of the drafty manor hall, my fingers gripping the phone so hard the edges bit into my skin. The cold marble floor seeped through my thin socks.

"But she thinks you're going to make her Luna at the ceremony tomorrow," Selene purred, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Let her think what she wants," Kael replied, his tone dismissive. "She's useful. Nothing more."

Useful.

I paused the video. The frozen frame showed Kael's hand sliding up Selene's thigh.

I lowered the phone and stared at my left wrist. Thick, jagged scars crisscrossed the pale skin, wrapping all the way up to my elbow. Three years ago, a rival pack's poison paralyzed Kael's legs. The healers said he would never walk again. I locked myself in the basement and bled myself for three days and three nights, draining my Lycan core to synthesize the antidote.

I gave up my wolf form. I severed my ties with my royal heritage. All to save a man who now called me a free maid.

Four years of devotion, reduced to a joke.

The faint squeak of rubber tires echoed down the hallway.

I quickly locked my phone and shoved it into my apron pocket.

Kael rolled into the hall in his wheelchair. A thick woolen blanket covered his legs. He slumped against the leather backrest, his face arranged into a mask of exhaustion. He played the crippled Alpha well, hiding his recovery from the pack to weed out his political rivals. I kept his secret, nursing him in the shadows, waiting for the day he would finally stand and claim his title.

"Elara," he grumbled, rubbing his temples. "My legs are acting up again. The dull ache is unbearable today."

He didn't look at me. He just expected me to rush to his side, exactly like I always did.

"Go to the kitchen and make that bone broth porridge," he ordered. "Make sure it boils for an hour. My stomach can't handle anything else."

I didn't move.

"Did you hear me?" Kael snapped, finally lifting his head. His brows furrowed in annoyance.

My gaze shifted from his perfectly styled hair to the dark circles he had poorly faked under his eyes. He must have just come from Selene's room.

"You seem tired," I said, my voice flat. "Did you overexert yourself?"

Kael sighed, dragging a hand down his face. "Pack business. The elders kept me in meetings all morning. I need food, Elara. Not questions."

"Meetings," I repeated. "In your study?"

"Yes, in my study. Where else?"

"Was it a productive meeting?"

He glared at me, his patience fraying. "What is wrong with you today? I am injured. I am hungry. Do as you're told."

"I'm not making the porridge."

Kael froze. His hand dropped from his face. "Excuse me?"

"I said no."

"Are you trying to pick a fight right now?" He gripped the armrests of his chair, his knuckles turning white. "Tomorrow is the Alpha ceremony. I am under an immense amount of stress, and you decide to throw a tantrum over cooking a meal?"

"It's not about the meal, Kael."

Resting on the armchair beside me was the midnight-blue Alpha ceremony suit. I had spent the last two weeks hand-stitching the silver thread along the lapels, ensuring he would look flawless when he officially took over the pack tomorrow.

I picked up the jacket. The fabric felt heavy, burdened with my wasted effort.

"Put that down," Kael warned, his voice dropping into a low growl. "You'll wrinkle it."

"I made this for my mate," I said, running a thumb over the silver embroidery. "For the man who promised to stand by me, just as I stood by him."

"And I am that man," he shot back, rolling his chair forward a few inches. "Stop being dramatic. Go to the kitchen."

"You're a liar."

Kael's eyes narrowed. "Watch your tone. You forget your place in this house."

"My place?" I laughed, a harsh, dry sound that echoed in the empty hall. "My place is the free maid, isn't it? The wolfless stray who warms your bed and cooks your food while you plan to mark someone else."

Silence stretched between us, thick and suffocating.

Kael's expression shifted. The fake exhaustion vanished, replaced by a cold, calculating stare. "You went into my study."

"I didn't have to," I replied. "The security cameras feed directly to the main server. You forgot to wipe the logs."

He didn't apologize. He didn't deny it. He just clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"Selene is a pureblood," Kael stated, dropping the facade completely. "She has a strong wolf. The pack needs a Luna who can fight, not a crippled human who faints at the sight of blood."

He pointed a finger at my scarred arm. "Look at yourself, Elara. You have no aura. You have no strength. I appreciate what you did for me, but gratitude doesn't run a pack."

"Gratitude," I whispered. The word tasted like ash.

"I was going to tell you after the ceremony," he continued, his tone turning pragmatic. "You can stay in the manor. I'll even give you a generous allowance. But Selene will take the Luna title."

"You think I want your money?"

"What else do you have?" he mocked. "You gave up everything for me. You have nowhere else to go. Accept the reality, Elara. You are nothing without this pack."

I walked over to the large metal trash can near the entryway. I held the tailored suit over the rim.

"What are you doing?" Kael demanded, gripping the wheels of his chair.

"Taking out the trash."

I let go.

The expensive fabric slid into the garbage, landing on top of crumpled papers and discarded coffee grounds.

"Are you out of your mind?!" Kael yelled. He shoved the wheels forward, completely forgetting his act. "That's my ceremonial suit!"

"You can wear whatever you want tomorrow," I said, stepping back. "I won't be attending."

"You are my mate," he snarled, his eyes flashing gold. "You will stand beside me, or you will face the pack's discipline. You belong to me."

"I belong to no one."

"You have nothing!" he shouted, his voice echoing off the high ceilings. "No wolf, no family, no power. You think you can just walk away? I am the Alpha. I decide when you leave."

"You aren't the Alpha yet," I reminded him. "And you don't control me."

I pulled my phone back out. My fingers didn't tremble. I opened the encrypted messaging app I hadn't touched since the day I ran away from the Lycan territory.

I typed a single message to my mother, the Lycan Queen.

I agree to the marriage. Send a car for me.

Message sent. Read instantly.

Kael scoffed, trying to mask his sudden unease with arrogance. "Who are you texting? You have no one else. Your family abandoned you."

"We're done, Kael."

"We are done when I say we are done!" He pushed his wheelchair closer, reaching out to grab my arm.

As he lunged forward, the front wheel of his chair clipped the edge of the metal trash can. The impact jolted him hard to the right.

He flailed, trying to catch his balance. As his torso twisted, something snagged on the armrest and slipped out of his inner jacket pocket.

A piece of fabric fluttered to the floor, landing right beside my shoes.

It was a scrap of black lace, a bra reeking of Selene's signature vanilla and rose perfume.

I lifted my foot and stepped right over the scrap of black lace.

The sickeningly sweet scent of vanilla and rose clung to the air near my ankles, but I didn't stop. I left Kael sputtering in the hallway and strode directly into our bedroom. My worn leather suitcase sat on the top shelf of the closet. I dragged it down, threw it onto the mattress, and popped the latches open.

"Are you seriously doing this?" Kael demanded. The rubber tires of his wheelchair squeaked against the hardwood floor as he rolled into the room. "Throwing a tantrum over a piece of laundry?"

I ignored him. I pulled a stack of faded sweaters from the dresser and dropped them into the open case.

"Stop ignoring me, Elara!" He slammed his palm against the armrest. "Where do you think you are going? You don't have a dime to your name. You don't have a pack. You don't even have a wolf!"

"I am leaving," I said, grabbing a handful of socks and tossing them in next.

"You are making a fool of yourself." Kael rolled closer, parking his chair right beside the bed. He reached out and grabbed a gray shirt from my hands, tossing it onto the floor. "Put the clothes back. Stop this ridiculous act. You expect me to beg you to stay? Over a maid's jealousy?"

I bent down, picked up the shirt, and folded it neatly before placing it inside the suitcase.

"You think this scares me?" Kael scoffed, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms. "You will be sleeping on the streets by nightfall. The nearest town is fifty miles away. You can't survive out there alone."

"That is not your concern anymore."

"It is my concern when my mate acts like a spoiled child on the eve of my Alpha ceremony," he growled. "I offered you a place here. I offered you an allowance. You should be thanking me."

"Thanking you," I repeated, closing a side compartment. "For cheating on me in your study. For replacing me with a pureblood. You are right, Kael. I should write you a thank-you note."

He gritted his teeth. "I am doing what is best for the pack. Selene brings political power. You bring nothing."

The bedroom door swung open before I could answer.

Selene strolled in. She paused just inside the threshold, a smug smile playing on her lips.

My eyes locked onto her shoulders. She wore a heavy, silver-knit winter cloak. The thick yarn shimmered under the bedroom lights, the intricate braided pattern unmistakable.

I recognized every stitch.

I had knitted that cloak last winter. My fingers had cramped and bled from working the stiff, enchanted thread, weaving protective runes into the lining to keep Kael warm during the brutal mountain frosts. When it went missing from the closet, Kael told me he had used it to line a wooden box for a pregnant stray dog behind the kitchens.

Selene gripped the edges of the silver fabric and spun in a slow circle.

"Kael, honey," Selene purred, feigning innocence. "Does this look good on me? I thought I might wear it to the ceremony tomorrow night. The forecast says it will snow."

Kael shifted uncomfortably in his wheelchair. He shot a quick, nervous glance in my direction, likely expecting me to scream or throw something.

I just picked up my toothbrush from the bathroom counter and dropped it into a plastic pouch.

Selene stopped twirling and faked a gasp, pressing a manicured hand to her chest. "Oh, Elara! I didn't see you there. Are you cleaning out your closet? Making room for my things?"

"I am packing," I said flatly.

Selene stepped closer, running her fingers over the silver yarn draped across her collarbone. "I just love this cloak. Kael gave it to me last winter. He said it was far too beautiful to sit in a dark closet. It keeps me so warm."

"I know," I replied, zipping the plastic pouch.

Kael frowned, clearly thrown off by my calm tone. "Elara..."

"You told me you gave it to a stray dog," I said, looking directly at Kael.

Selene's smug smile faltered. "Excuse me?"

"I said," I turned my gaze to Selene, scanning her from head to toe, "it is a perfect fit for a stray."

"How dare you!" Selene snapped, taking a step toward me. Her eyes flashed a dangerous, predatory yellow. "I am a pureblood. I am the future Luna of this pack. You are just a wolfless servant."

"Then you should easily find your own clothes," I said.

I grabbed my winter boots from the corner of the room and shoved them into the last empty space in the suitcase.

"Kael, are you going to let her speak to me like that?" Selene whined, gripping the back of his wheelchair. "She insulted me."

"Enough, Elara," Kael ordered, his voice hardening. "Apologize to Selene right now."

"No."

I grabbed the two halves of the suitcase and slammed them together. The heavy zippers engaged with a loud, metallic scraping sound. I pulled the tabs all the way around, sealing the bag shut.

"I am packed," I announced.

I lifted the heavy suitcase off the mattress by the top handle. The wheels hit the floor with a solid thud.

Kael stared at me, his jaw slack. He had expected tears. He had expected me to fall to my knees and beg for my place in the pack, or at least fight Selene for his affection. My complete indifference was tearing his ego apart.

"Where do you think you are going?" Kael demanded, his voice rising in panic and fury. "You have no car. You have no money."

"Out of my way," I said.

I walked directly toward the door. Selene stood in my path, glaring at me with her arms crossed over the silver cloak.

"Move," I told her.

"Make me," she sneered.

I didn't stop walking. I drove the hard plastic shell of the suitcase directly into her shins.

Selene yelped, stumbling backward and clutching her leg. "You crazy bitch!"

"Elara!" Kael yelled, spinning his wheelchair around to face me. "Stop this right now! This is an order from your Alpha!"

"You are not my Alpha," I said, stepping past Selene and crossing the threshold into the hallway.

The air outside the bedroom felt lighter. The oppressive weight of the manor, the suffocating stench of Kael's lies, all of it began to peel away from my skin. I didn't look back. I just kept walking, the wheels of my suitcase rumbling against the floorboards.

I heard the frantic squeak of rubber tires behind me.

Kael pushed himself out of the bedroom, desperate to keep up.

"You think you can just walk away from me?" Kael shouted down the hall. "After everything I provided for you?"

I reached the top of the main staircase. I gripped the handle of my bag, ready to carry it down the steps.

Kael lunged forward in his chair. He slammed his hand against the wooden doorframe of the nearest guest room, blocking my path to the stairs. His knuckles were white, his face twisted in absolute rage.

"If you walk out that door today, I will never let you come back!" he roared.

My fingers closed around the freezing brass handle of the front door. Kael leaned heavily against the frame, his arm blocking my exit.

"I said move," I told him, dropping my shoulder and ramming it directly into his bicep.

The impact knocked him off balance. His wheelchair spun slightly, the rubber tires squeaking against the hardwood. I stepped past him, dragging my suitcase over the threshold.

A massive crack of thunder rattled the windows. Rain instantly hammered the manor roof, a sudden deluge washing over the front steps.

Selene hurried out of the bedroom, clutching the silver cloak tightly around her neck. She shrank against the wall, her eyes wide.

"Kael, the storm," she whimpered, pressing a hand to her chest. "You know thunder terrifies my wolf. I can't walk back to my estate in this."

Kael straightened his posture, recovering from my shove. He glared at my back.

"You are not walking anywhere, Selene," Kael said. He shifted his gaze to me, his eyes flaring with the oppressive, golden weight of his Alpha command. "Elara. You will drive Selene home."

The command washed over me, a heavy pressure trying to force my knees to bend. Without my wolf, the aura felt like a physical weight on my chest, but it could not break my mind.

"Your legs work fine," I said, staring at the driveway. "Drive her yourself."

"I am paralyzed!" Kael shouted, slapping his thighs. "And you are my mate. You will take the SUV, you will safely deliver my future Luna to her door, and then you will return this vehicle to my garage. Do you understand me?"

I looked at the matte-black SUV parked at the bottom of the steps. A full tank of gas. Four-wheel drive. The perfect escape vehicle to get me past the territory borders.

"Fine," I said, my voice completely flat. "Give me the keys."

Kael tossed the heavy key fob. I caught it out of the air.

I marched down the steps, ignoring the icy rain soaking through my sweater. I threw my suitcase into the trunk, slammed the hatch, and climbed into the driver's seat. The engine roared to life.

The rear doors opened. Kael and Selene climbed into the backseat together. Kael dragged his legs in, playing his crippled role to perfection, while Selene huddled against his chest.

"Drive," Kael ordered, pulling the door shut.

I shifted into gear and hit the gas. The tires spun on the wet gravel before catching, launching us down the dark, winding mountain road.

Silence lasted exactly two minutes.

"You smell so fucking good," Kael muttered, burying his face in Selene's neck.

"Kael, stop," Selene giggled, shifting her hips on the leather seat. "She can hear us."

"I don't care what the maid hears," Kael replied. His hand slid loudly over the fabric of her dress. "You are going to be my Luna. Let her listen to how a real Alpha treats his chosen mate."

I kept my eyes locked on the rain-slicked road. The windshield wipers slapped rhythmically back and forth.

"Are you really going to mark me tomorrow?" Selene asked, her voice dropping into a breathless purr.

"I'm going to do a lot more than mark you," Kael said. "I'm going to strip this dress off and claim you in front of the entire pack council. They need to see my teeth sinking into a pureblood neck."

"Oh, Kael," she moaned softly. I glanced in the rearview mirror. Kael had his hand shoved up her thigh, his fingers pressing into her skin.

"Does the wolfless stray even know how to drive?" Selene mocked, staring at the back of my head. "We hit a bump back there."

"She barely knows how to cook," Kael sneered. "Just ignore her, baby. Focus on me."

I pressed the accelerator harder. The SUV tore through the storm, the speedometer climbing past eighty.

"Slow down!" Kael snapped, gripping the grab handle above his head. "Are you trying to kill us?"

I didn't answer. I slammed on the brakes as the wrought-iron gates of Selene's estate appeared in the headlights. The heavy vehicle skidded on the wet pavement, fishtailing wildly before jerking to a violent halt right next to a massive, muddy trench by the curb.

"You stupid bitch!" Selene shrieked, clutching her chest.

"Get out," I said, shifting the car into park.

Kael shoved the rear door open. The rain instantly soaked his hair. He awkwardly lowered himself into his wheelchair, which a guard had rushed out to provide. Selene climbed out after him, holding an expensive leather overnight bag.

"Get my other bags from the trunk, Elara," Selene demanded, standing under the guard's umbrella. "And carry them up the steps. I don't want mud on my shoes."

I reached over to the passenger seat, grabbing the two designer duffel bags Kael had loaded earlier.

I rolled down the passenger window.

"Hey!" Selene yelled.

I shoved both bags through the open window. They plummeted straight into the deep, sludge-filled mud puddle by the curb. Brown water splashed up, soaking Selene's silver cloak and Kael's trousers.

"My clothes!" Selene screamed, dropping her umbrella.

Kael slammed his hands on his armrests. "Elara! Get out of that car right now!"

I rolled the window up, locked the doors, and slammed my foot onto the gas pedal. The tires spun in the mud, spraying a thick layer of wet dirt directly across Kael's face before the SUV launched forward into the night.

Four hours later, I sat on the edge of a sagging mattress in a cheap roadside motel. The neon sign outside blinked a steady, obnoxious red through the thin curtains. My wet clothes lay in a pile by the door.

My phone vibrated on the nightstand.

The screen lit up with an incoming video call. The caller ID read Kael.

I stared at the device. He probably wanted to scream about the stolen car. I reached out and tapped the green accept button.

I didn't see Kael's face.

The camera shook wildly, angled up at the ceiling of my former bedroom in the manor, before dropping down to show pale, sweaty skin.

"Fuck, Kael, put it deeper!" Selene screamed into the microphone.

The screen stabilized. Selene held the phone high above her head, pointing the camera down at her own naked body. Kael knelt between her legs, his hips driving forward with brutal force.

"Look at this, Elara!" Selene panted, her face flushed red, eyes rolling back. "Look at what you couldn't give him!"

Kael's hands gripped Selene's bare breasts, his thumbs pinching her nipples hard. "You like my cock, Selene? Tell the maid how my fucking cock feels."

"It's stretching my pussy so wide," Selene moaned loudly, thrusting her hips up to meet his next plunge. "Fuck, yes, Alpha. Ram it into my wet hole. Breed me right here on her side of the bed."

The wet, slapping sound of flesh hitting flesh echoed loudly through my phone speaker.

"I'm going to fill your cunt with my seed," Kael grunted, his face appearing in the frame as he leaned over Selene. Sweat dripped from his forehead onto her collarbone. "I'm going to knot you so hard you won't walk for a week. Fuck, you are dripping for me."

"Give me your knot, Kael!" Selene begged, turning the camera slightly so I could see Kael's thick, rigid length sliding entirely into her dripping wet folds. "Do you see this, Elara? He's balls deep in a real woman. You were just a pathetic, dry hole he used for practice."

Kael slammed his hips down, burying himself completely. Selene let out a high-pitched shriek of pleasure.

"Fuck, I'm close," Kael snarled, his jaw clenching. "I'm going to cum inside your tight pussy, Selene. I'm going to give you my pup."

"Fill me up!" she screamed, her nails digging into his muscular back.

The harsh blue light from the phone screen illuminated my completely expressionless face in the dark motel room.

My thumb hovered silently over the screen record button.