His Unwanted Mate: The Secret Silvermoon Heir

Isla POV

I used my ten-million-dollar dowry and exhausted my health to keep my mate's bankrupt pack afloat and buy life-saving elixirs for his dying mother.

However, when Alpha Justin finally returned from the war, he not only reeked of another she-wolf's scent, but also slapped a Royal Decree on the table, coldly announcing that Gamma Brenna would be his "Co-Luna."

His parasitic family, who had survived entirely on my blood and wealth, immediately turned on me, mocking me as a "wolfless orphan" whose family was slaughtered.

"Brenna is a warrior; she doesn't have the time to raise children," Justin told me arrogantly. "So, you will act as their unpaid nanny. If you behave, I'll sleep with you just once to give you a pup as a 'consolation prize.' But my heart and body belong entirely to Brenna."

They demanded I swallow this ultimate humiliation, step aside, and continue funding their luxurious lifestyle.

They thought I was a pathetic, wolfless victim who would obediently act as their personal ATM just to avoid being cast out into the woods as a Rogue.

They didn't know that my "wolfless" body harbored a rare, ancient White Wolf. They didn't know that Justin's so-called "heroic glory" was stolen-built on the slaughtered corpses of my family to cover up his own cowardice.

And they certainly didn't know I had already visited the Alpha King.

Keep your consolation prize, Justin.

I'm packing up every last cent of my ten million dollars and securing my Royal Severance Decree.

With the entire Royal Army standing behind me, I'm going to sit back and watch your arrogant pack starve to death.

--

The dim wall lamps of the Luna's Suite cast long, twisted shadows of the ancient oak trees outside. I sat perfectly still in the heavy, carved oak chair, my hands folded in my lap, counting the seconds. I was waiting for the triumphant return of my mate and newlywed husband, who had spent the last year fighting Rogues at the border.

The heavy oak door creaked open. Alpha Justin Hayes stepped into the room, wearing his scuffed, half-worn tactical armor.

"You're back!" A joyful smile broke across my face as I lifted my skirt and rushed forward, my heart pounding with a year's worth of longing.

But as I neared him, my smile shattered.

The first thing that hit my nose wasn't the familiar, intoxicating scent of his cologne and sweat. It was the sharp, suffocating stench of cheap spices and another she-wolf's pheromones.

My blood ran cold. The air was violently sucked from my lungs. My hands, which had reached out to embrace him, froze in mid-air and began to tremble uncontrollably. Deep within my soul, my dormant White Wolf let out a visceral, agonizing whimper before it twisted into a furious growl.

Justin recoiled slightly, as if my enthusiasm disgusted him. His eyes, once full of devotion, were now cold and impatient. He didn't even bother to greet me.

"I returned with Gamma Brenna Wilson," he announced, his voice devoid of any warmth or guilt. "She fought by my side this past year. We share a profound soul resonance, and the Alpha King has already granted my request to make her my Co-Luna, equal in rank to you."

A phantom silver blade plunged straight into my chest, twisting violently. "Soul resonance?" My voice cracked, barely a whisper. "Do you remember what you told me before you left?"

Before he marched to the battlefield, he had gently kissed my forehead, his eyes full of tenderness as he swore devoutly to the Moon Goddess: "For my entire life, I will only love Isla, my one and only Luna. Wait for me to bring back the news of victory."

He brought back the victory, yes. But he also brought back a knife to stab me in the back.

He scoffed, pacing the room with an arrogant swagger, completely dismissing my pain. "Forget those words. I didn't know what true love was back then. I only thought you were a suitable match-until I met Brenna."

Each word was a resounding slap to my face.

"She is different from you," Justin continued, his eyes practically dripping with tenderness at the mention of her name. "You are wolfless, uselessly waiting at home, offering me no help at all. Brenna possesses a powerful Inner Wolf. She can fight by my side and resonate with my Alpha blood. If you truly love me, you should respect my feelings."

He paused, adding with a sickening tone of mercy, "Besides, this is a Royal Decree we earned through our military merits. I don't need your permission. You should be thanking me that I didn't ask the Alpha King to strip you of your Luna title entirely."

A wave of profound nausea twisted my stomach. My fingers dug into my palms so hard my nails nearly pierced the skin. Yet, with a trembling breath and a lingering trace of desperate defiance, I asked, "Did your mother, Luna Bertha Hayes, agree to this?"

"Of course," Justin's voice softened remarkably. "Brenna has a bright and pleasing nature. She coaxed my mother into such good spirits that her condition has significantly improved."

A bitter, metallic taste flooded my mouth.

His mother had been gravely ill. During the year he was away, I managed the Bloodfang Pack's crumbling affairs by day and played the devoted nurse by night. I ate and slept by her bedside. I exhausted my own health and drained my dowry just to keep her breathing. And this was my reward? They gladly accepted my blood and sweat, only to welcome another woman the moment she smiled at them.

The agonizing pain in my chest suddenly peaked, and then... it went completely numb. The shattered pieces of my heart hardened into pure ice.

"Before I consider whether or not to respect your decision," I said, my voice eerily calm as I locked eyes with him, "I want to meet this future Luna with my own eyes."

"Absolutely not," Justin snapped, his tone laced with absolute disdain. "Brenna is the kingdom's first female Gamma. She doesn't have time for petty, inner-pack jealousy, nor would she want to entangle herself with a wolfless girl like you."

I slowly stood up, my spine perfectly straight. The air around me dropped a few degrees. "A girl like me? Justin, have you forgotten that I am a daughter of the Silvermoon Pack?"

"My father, Alpha Arthur Crawford, and my brothers bled into the earth defending this kingdom. Do not speak to me as if I am some ignorant child."

"That was them," Justin rolled his eyes, completely oblivious to the lethal stillness in my posture. "You're ultimately just a fragile woman who belongs hidden away in the Pack House, living off your dowry. Don't embarrass yourself by trying to stand in the presence of a real warrior. You'd suffocate under her Gamma aura."

He stared down at me, his chest heaving with arrogant indignation, waiting for the tears and the pathetic submission he believed he was owed.

I didn't give him the satisfaction.

Instead, I let out a soft, humorless laugh. It wasn't a sound of sorrow, but of chilling, absolute mockery that echoed in the dim Luna's Suite, making his Alpha brow twitch in sudden, inexplicable discomfort.