Revenge of His Stolen True Mate

Alaina Cole POV:

A bowl of liquid, black as ink and reeking of bitter herbs, was shoved in front of me. The ceramic scraped harshly against the wood, a dull thud that echoed in the sudden silence.

"Drink it," my aunt, Susan Michael, commanded. Her face was a twisted mask of impatience. "Stop wasting time. Billy Hicks is waiting for a 'clean' new bride."

The word 'clean' felt like a physical blow, sending a tremor through me. I looked down, seeing my own pale, haunted reflection in the dark liquid. My stomach churned.

That smell... it was too familiar. It was a key, violently twisting a lock in my mind, throwing open a door to a memory drenched in blood.

It all started on the Feral Night. A drugged Alpha-out of his mind, driven by instinct-had taken me without ever knowing my name. I fled before dawn, carrying his seed, not even knowing his face. But that one night left me with this child.

Later, my aunt and uncle discovered I was pregnant. They saw profit, not family. They found Billy Hicks, a brutal Rogue who would pay for a "clean" bride. They sold me to him and pocketed the money. The day I was handed over, Billy forced the same potion down my throat-the abortion draught, meant to kill the pup inside me.

It failed. The pup survived. But months later, in a filthy shack, I went into labor on a full moon night. Billy was outside, drinking and laughing with his Rogue friends.

I felt the pup inside me struggling weakly for life.

Then the hemorrhage took everything. The last thing I saw was Billy stumbling in, kicking me aside with a look of disgust, cursing me as "useless."

Cold. Darkness. An endless void. I never even saw my baby's face.

A violent shudder wracked my body, yanking me from the memory. I gasped for air, my hands gripping the edge of the table so hard my knuckles turned white.

I wasn't dead.

I was back.

Back in this kitchen. Back before they sold me. Before Billy put his hands on me. Before I bled out on that dirty floor.

My stomach was flat. But I pressed my hand there, and I felt it-a tiny warmth, a pulse. My pup. Still there. Still fighting.

I was twenty-one again. Same house. Same poison. Same two faces waiting for me to drink.Not this time.

My uncle, Sean Michael, lost his patience. He strode over, grabbing a fistful of my hair and yanking my head back. "What are you waiting for? You're an Omega carrying some unknown bastard's pup. That draught will flush it right out of you. Then Billy gets a clean bride, and we get paid. We're being merciful by not throwing you out on the street!"

His words were sharp, but this time, I didn't cry or beg like I had before.

My eyes changed. I looked through his greasy, flushed face and saw his future: a pathetic, broken man, cast out of the Pack for his crimes.

Susan chimed in from the side, her voice a wheedling whine. "Just drink it, Alaina. Once that pup is gone, Billy will take you, and we'll all be done with this mess. It's for the best. Especially for your cousin, Khloe. She has an important meeting with a very important person soon. Our family can't afford any scandals."

Khloe. The name ignited a firestorm of hatred in my chest. It was her. She stole everything that should have been mine, including the favor of that Alpha.

I remembered the Feral Night. I had stumbled home, dazed and disoriented, barely knowing where I was. I had no idea that in my discarded clothes lay a cufflink engraved with the Silver Moon Pack's crest and a note from the Alpha-proof of our bond, a token meant to bring me to him. But I was too fogged to notice. And Khloe, my dear cousin, had found them first.

She stole the cufflink and the note. She bought expensive perfume to mimic my scent. And she went to the capital, to the Silver Moon Pack, and claimed she was the Omega he had mated with. She was sitting in his estate right now, wearing his gifts, calling herself his future Luna-while I sat here, being force-fed poison to kill his child.

The memory burned through me like acid.

Slowly, inch by inch, I lifted my gaze to meet Sean's. My eyes were cold, calm, and utterly devoid of fear.

He flinched, his grip on my hair loosening unconsciously. "What are you looking at?"

I didn't answer. My attention shifted to the bowl. I knew what was in it-cheap, dangerous herbs that would ravage my body.

In my past life, drinking it had left me so weak, so unable to fight back against Billy's abuse.

No.

This time, I wouldn't believe a single word. I wouldn't drink a single drop.

Seeing my hesitation, Susan softened her tone, a falsely sweet poison. "Good girl, just drink it and it will all be over. Billy will give you a generous bride-price. We'll get a cut. Your sacrifice is worth it."

Her words exposed their true motive: greed. They didn't care if I lived or died, only how much they could profit from me.

I took a deep breath, forcing down the urge to scream. It wasn't time to fight back. Not yet. I needed to survive. I needed to protect my child.

I had to be smarter than them. More ruthless.

My hand reached out, slowly closing around the cold ceramic bowl.

Satisfaction bloomed on Susan and Sean's faces. They thought I had finally surrendered.

I made a silent vow to the child in my womb. Baby, I will never let anyone hurt you again. You are mine. You are the child of that god-like Alpha. You carry the noblest blood in this world. And those who hurt us, I will make them pay a thousand times over.

I lifted the bowl to my lips. Just as they thought I was about to drink, my wrist "accidentally" trembled.

The bowl tipped. Most of the black liquid spilled onto my worn dress, a small amount splashing onto the floor with a faint sizzle.