Rejected for True Luna

I smoothed my hands over the silky fabric of my dress for the twentieth time, checking my reflection in the mirror. The deep burgundy material hugged my curves perfectly, and I'd spent hours on my makeup and hair. Everything had to be flawless tonight. Our third anniversary deserved nothing less.

My fingers trembled slightly as I fastened the silver pendant Alexander had given me on our first anniversary around my neck. The weight of it felt like a promise—like proof that I belonged to the Silverfang Pack, to him. That I wasn't just some low-ranking she-wolf from the Moonveil Pack anymore. I was his chosen mate.

"You look beautiful," I whispered to my reflection, trying to believe it. "He'll be pleased."

The banquet wouldn't begin for another hour, but I knew Alexander would be in his private chamber, preparing his anniversary speech. I wanted to surprise him, maybe steal a moment alone before we had to share our celebration with the entire pack.

The hallways of the Silverfang Pack house were eerily quiet as I made my way toward the Alpha's wing. My heels clicked against the marble floors, echoing in the silence. A strange feeling crept up my spine—something wasn't right. My wolf stirred uneasily within me, which was odd. She rarely made her presence known; I was a late bloomer, my wolf still weak and underdeveloped despite my age.

I paused outside Alexander's door, hearing muffled voices from within. Perhaps he was with Beta James, discussing pack business before the banquet. I raised my hand to knock, then hesitated. The scent wafting from under the door wasn't James's familiar pine and leather. This was something floral, feminine, and... intimate.

My heart hammered against my ribs as I slowly pushed the door open.

Candles flickered throughout the room, casting long shadows across the walls. On the bed—our bed—Alexander's powerful form moved rhythmically over another woman. Her silver-streaked hair spilled across my pillows, her moans filling the space that should have held my voice.

"Victoria," he groaned, burying his face in her neck. "My true Luna."

I couldn't move. Couldn't breathe. The room spun around me as if I were falling, though my feet remained rooted to the floor.

Then something extraordinary happened. A searing pain tore through my mind as a voice—wild, fierce, and undeniably mine—roared to life inside me.

*He betrayed us! Kill them both!*

My wolf—my long-dormant, supposedly weak wolf—had awakened with a vengeance. And with her came a flood of memories that weren't mine. No, they were Alexander's thoughts, bleeding into mine through a mind-link I'd never been strong enough to access before.

Images flashed through my consciousness: Alexander whispering to council members about my "concerning sympathies toward rogues"; Alexander instructing the training master to exclude me from combat lessons; Alexander laughing with Victoria about keeping his "silver pet" while they built their true alliance.

"A rogue sympathizer," he had called me to the pack elders. "Beautiful but unstable. Unfit for true Luna duties."

I gasped,