From Bait to Queen: The Rejected Mate's Destiny

From Bait to Queen: The Rejected Mate's Destiny

Moria Anninger

5.0
Comment(s)
286
View
12
Chapters

To the Dark Moon Pack, I wasn't just invisible; I was a stain. Dean Lee, the Alpha designed for my soul, treated me like a shameful secret while he paraded his mistress, Karina, in red silk. The night of the Charity Auction, Dean bought my late mother's moonstone pendant-the only thing I had left of her-for a hundred thousand dollars. I begged him for it. Instead, he clasped it around Karina's ankle. With a cruel laugh, Karina stomped her stiletto heel, crushing the moonstone into dust. Dean just watched, his eyes cold and unfeeling. "It was just a cheap rock," he said. "I'll buy you diamonds." But the cruelty didn't stop at emotional torture. When rogues attacked, Dean used me as live bait to distract them from Karina. He threw me into the Blood Pit, a gladiator arena, to fight a massive Feral wolf while he sat in the VIP box with Karina on his lap. "She won't last three minutes," I heard him say through our dying bond. He watched with bored detachment as I was ripped apart, refusing to save me even as I screamed his name. He saved the mistress and drowned the mate. I died on that arena floor. Or so he thought. Years later, the mysterious and world-renowned artist "H.Y." returned to New York for a gallery opening. When Dean saw me on stage, he rushed forward, tears streaming down his face, trying to claim the wife he had mourned. "Hayley," he choked out, reaching for me. "You're alive. You're mine." I didn't cry. I didn't run. I unleashed a shockwave of ancient White Wolf energy that blasted him across the room, shattering the glass displays. "I don't take orders from dogs anymore," I said, looking down at him. "I, Hayley York, hereby reject you."

From Bait to Queen: The Rejected Mate's Destiny Chapter 1

To the Dark Moon Pack, I wasn't just invisible; I was a stain. Dean Lee, the Alpha designed for my soul, treated me like a shameful secret while he paraded his mistress, Karina, in red silk.

The night of the Charity Auction, Dean bought my late mother's moonstone pendant-the only thing I had left of her-for a hundred thousand dollars.

I begged him for it. Instead, he clasped it around Karina's ankle.

With a cruel laugh, Karina stomped her stiletto heel, crushing the moonstone into dust. Dean just watched, his eyes cold and unfeeling.

"It was just a cheap rock," he said. "I'll buy you diamonds."

But the cruelty didn't stop at emotional torture. When rogues attacked, Dean used me as live bait to distract them from Karina.

He threw me into the Blood Pit, a gladiator arena, to fight a massive Feral wolf while he sat in the VIP box with Karina on his lap.

"She won't last three minutes," I heard him say through our dying bond.

He watched with bored detachment as I was ripped apart, refusing to save me even as I screamed his name. He saved the mistress and drowned the mate.

I died on that arena floor. Or so he thought.

Years later, the mysterious and world-renowned artist "H.Y." returned to New York for a gallery opening.

When Dean saw me on stage, he rushed forward, tears streaming down his face, trying to claim the wife he had mourned.

"Hayley," he choked out, reaching for me. "You're alive. You're mine."

I didn't cry. I didn't run.

I unleashed a shockwave of ancient White Wolf energy that blasted him across the room, shattering the glass displays.

"I don't take orders from dogs anymore," I said, looking down at him.

"I, Hayley York, hereby reject you."

Chapter 1

Hayley POV:

The crystal chandeliers of the Pierre Hotel ballroom cast long, jagged shadows against the velvet walls, caging me in. I stood by the kitchen service doors, gripping a glass of lukewarm water, trying to blend into the wallpaper.

To the Dark Moon Pack, I wasn't just invisible; I was a stain.

My eyes found him instantly. Dean Lee, Alpha of New York's most powerful pack, anchored the center of the room. Even from here, his scent-crushed pine and ozone-hit me like a physical blow. It made the wolf deep inside my soul whimper.

Mate, she whispered, weak and thready.

But Dean wasn't looking at me. His hand rested on the waist of Karina, a Beta draped in red silk who laughed too loudly.

"Don't stare, mutt," a passing warrior sneered, checking my shoulder. Water sloshed onto my cheap grey dress. "You're lucky Alpha Dean let you out of the penthouse."

I kept my head down. Dean kept me around not as a mate, but as a shameful secret-a wolf-less Omega charity case. But tonight was the anniversary of my mother's death, and I needed him.

When the music swelled, Dean moved toward the terrace. I slipped through the crowd, heart hammering against my ribs.

"Dean?" I stepped onto the cool stone balcony.

He turned. His eyes, usually the color of stormy seas, looked glazed, almost unfocused before sharpening into a glare.

"I told you to stay out of sight, Hayley." His voice was a low growl.

"I know," I stammered. The proximity was dizzying. "It's about the necklace. My mother's moonstone. You have it in the pack vault. Please, Dean. It's the only thing I have left of her."

He looked at me, expressionless. "No."

"But... why? It's just a trinket to the pack."

"Karina likes moonstones," Dean said, adjusting his cufflinks. "She needs jewelry that befits a Luna. You have no need for ornamentation. It draws attention to your lack of status."

"She's not your mate," I whispered, the pain flaring hot. "I am."

Dean stepped forward, his Alpha aura washing over me, heavy and suffocating. There was a strange, sweet scent clinging to him-something cloying that masked his natural smell.

"You are an Omega with a dormant wolf," he spat. "You are weak. The Dark Moon Pack cannot have a weak mother. Know your place."

The glass doors opened. Karina stepped out, a smirk painted on her lips. "Is the stray bothering you, baby?"

"Just dealing with the trash," Dean said, turning his back on me.

I stood there, wind biting through my dress, as my soul cracked. I hid in the shadows of a potted plant to compose myself. Minutes later, the door opened again. Dean and Elder Marcus.

"The rogue chatter has increased," Marcus said. "They are targeting the penthouse tonight. They want Karina."

"Let them come," Dean said calmly.

"But Karina-"

"Karina goes to the panic room," Dean interrupted. "Hayley stays in the main bedroom."

I froze.

"Alpha?" Marcus sounded confused.

"The rogues track scent, but they're stupid," Dean explained, his voice devoid of emotion. "Hayley is saturated in my scent because she lives in my house. We put her in the open. The rogues will think she is the Luna. They attack her, buying us time to flank them."

"She could die," Marcus said.

"If she dies, she dies. The bait is expendable."

The world tilted. I wasn't a charity case. I was meat.

Run, my wolf screamed.

I turned to flee, but glass shattered in the ballroom. Screams erupted. The stench of rotting meat filled the air. Rogues.

I scrambled toward the service exit, but a heavy hand grabbed my hair. I was thrown across the room, crashing into a waiter's stand. Pain exploded in my shoulder. A massive, mud-matted wolf lunged at me.

"Dean!" I screamed.

Across the room, Dean was shielding Karina toward the secure exit. He looked back. Our eyes met. He saw the claws raised.

And he turned away.

Silver-coated claws raked across my chest. Fire tore through my skin. The poison sizzled in my blood, halting my healing.

I crawled backward. The rogue raised a claw for the kill. Suddenly, a waiter-moving with supernatural speed-slammed into the rogue, knocking it aside.

"Go!" the stranger hissed, shoving a burner phone into my bloody hand. "Fire escape. Now!"

I ran until my lungs burned. Collapsing in a dirty alleyway three blocks down, I dialed the only number stored in the phone.

"Secure line," a mechanical voice answered.

"This is Hayley York," I rasped. "I have the defense schematics for the Dark Moon Pack. I know the blind spots."

"And what do you want, little wolf?" Alpha Brennen of the Silver Lake Pack asked, his voice like velvet wrapped around a dagger.

"I want out," I sobbed. "Help me fake my death."

"Done. Stay where you are."

Continue Reading

Other books by Moria Anninger

More

You'll also like

Inferno Heiress: Freed From Hell To Reclaim My Empire

Inferno Heiress: Freed From Hell To Reclaim My Empire

Clara Voss
5.0

Hayley was betrayed by those who should have loved her most. To save their precious adopted daughter from a punishment she deserved, her own parents sent Hayley straight into a living hell—an infamous prison where survival demanded cruelty, and weakness meant death. Four years later, the girl who had entered those iron gates no longer existed. She emerged with a single, unbreakable rule carved into her soul: Every betrayal would be repaid tenfold. The day she walked free, the world trembled. A convoy of luxury cars lined the road. A legion of loyal followers awaited her triumphant return. Her father tried to buy her silence with money. But money had long lost its power over her. Her adopted sister hid behind sweet words and false kindness. But empty smiles no longer fooled her. Everything that had once been stolen would be reclaimed—piece by piece. When her parents attempted to tie themselves to the city's most feared man by offering their adopted daughter, Hayley's lips curved into a cold smirk. "Not on my watch." Backed by a legendary hacker, shadowy allies, and an entire prison willing to burn the world for her, Hayley dismantled her enemies with terrifying precision. Then the tyrant noticed her. "You're interesting," he said. "Be my woman, and the city is yours." Hayley raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. "You want to own me? Survive me first." High society became their battlefield. Power collided with desire. Ambition clashed with obsession. In this ruthless game of dominance and temptation, only one would kneel first. The girl once abandoned in hell rose from its ashes, crowned by fire and vengeance—And in the end, even the most feared ruler in the city would bow, offering his empire to the woman who had conquered both hell… and him.

The Billionaire's Secret Twins: Her Revenge

The Billionaire's Secret Twins: Her Revenge

Shearwater
4.5

I was four months pregnant, weighing over two hundred pounds, and my heart was failing from experimental treatments forced on me as a child. My doctor looked at me with clinical detachment and told me I was in a death sentence: if I kept the baby, I would die, and if I tried to remove it, I would die. Desperate for a lifeline, I called my father, Francis Acosta, to tell him I was sick and pregnant. I expected a father's love, but all I got was a cold, sharp blade of a voice. "Then do it quietly," he said. "Don't embarrass Candi. Her debutante ball is coming up." He didn't just reject me; he erased me. My trust fund was frozen, and I was told I was no longer an Acosta. My fiancé, Auston, had already discarded me, calling me a "bloated whale" while he looked for a thinner, wealthier replacement. I left New York on a Greyhound bus, weeping into a bag of chips, a broken woman the world considered a mistake. I couldn't understand how my own father could tell me to die "quietly" just to save face for a party. I didn't know why I had been a lab rat for my family’s pharmaceutical ambitions, or how they could sleep at night while I was left to rot in the gray drizzle of the city. Five years later, the doors of JFK International Airport slid open. I stepped onto the marble floor in red-soled stilettos, my body lean, lethal, and carved from years of blood and sweat. I wasn't the "whale" anymore; I was a ghost coming back to haunt them. With my daughter by my side and a medical reputation that terrified the global elite, I was ready to dismantle the Acosta empire piece by piece. "Tell Francis to wash his neck," I whispered to the skyline. "I'm home."

Chapters
Read Now
Download Book
From Bait to Queen: The Rejected Mate's Destiny From Bait to Queen: The Rejected Mate's Destiny Moria Anninger Werewolf
“To the Dark Moon Pack, I wasn't just invisible; I was a stain. Dean Lee, the Alpha designed for my soul, treated me like a shameful secret while he paraded his mistress, Karina, in red silk. The night of the Charity Auction, Dean bought my late mother's moonstone pendant-the only thing I had left of her-for a hundred thousand dollars. I begged him for it. Instead, he clasped it around Karina's ankle. With a cruel laugh, Karina stomped her stiletto heel, crushing the moonstone into dust. Dean just watched, his eyes cold and unfeeling. "It was just a cheap rock," he said. "I'll buy you diamonds." But the cruelty didn't stop at emotional torture. When rogues attacked, Dean used me as live bait to distract them from Karina. He threw me into the Blood Pit, a gladiator arena, to fight a massive Feral wolf while he sat in the VIP box with Karina on his lap. "She won't last three minutes," I heard him say through our dying bond. He watched with bored detachment as I was ripped apart, refusing to save me even as I screamed his name. He saved the mistress and drowned the mate. I died on that arena floor. Or so he thought. Years later, the mysterious and world-renowned artist "H.Y." returned to New York for a gallery opening. When Dean saw me on stage, he rushed forward, tears streaming down his face, trying to claim the wife he had mourned. "Hayley," he choked out, reaching for me. "You're alive. You're mine." I didn't cry. I didn't run. I unleashed a shockwave of ancient White Wolf energy that blasted him across the room, shattering the glass displays. "I don't take orders from dogs anymore," I said, looking down at him. "I, Hayley York, hereby reject you."”
1

Chapter 1

27/01/2026

2

Chapter 2

27/01/2026

3

Chapter 3

27/01/2026

4

Chapter 4

27/01/2026

5

Chapter 5

27/01/2026

6

Chapter 6

27/01/2026

7

Chapter 7

27/01/2026

8

Chapter 8

27/01/2026

9

Chapter 9

27/01/2026

10

Chapter 10

27/01/2026

11

Chapter 11

27/01/2026

12

Chapter 12

27/01/2026