The Alpha's Fake Luna Is the Lycan King's Mate

Eleanora POV:

I made it back to the Alpha suite, the place I had once thought was my home, and locked the heavy door behind me. The click of the bolt was the only sound in the room.

The tears wouldn't come. They had dried up the moment I saw that little boy's eyes.

I thought back over the last five years. Every time the full moon approached, Jaxon had an excuse-Pack business, a trip, a crisis. Now I knew. He was just spending it with his real family. And the "calming herbal tea" he brought me, the one he said was to ease the pressures of being a Luna? I had thought it was a sign of his love.

A soft knock came at the door. "Nora, open up. Let's talk. I can compensate you," Jaxon said, his voice laced with that practiced, gentle tone he used to get his way.

Compensate me? A bitter laugh scraped my throat. My youth, my trust, my belief in the sacredness of a Mating bond. What could possibly pay for that?

I ignored him. My hand went to my phone, to a single encrypted contact: Julian. My brother. I typed out a single message: I need help.

I didn't send it. Not yet.

Jaxon's patience wore thin. I felt the pressure of his Alpha command against the door, a forceful push of will. But the lock was special, reinforced. It held. I heard him snarl in frustration through the thick wood. A moment later, his voice echoed in my mind, a command sent through the Pack mind-link.

"Watch her. Don't let her leave the Pack House!" he snarled to his Beta.

Leaning against the door, I could faintly hear the mental chatter of the guards in the hall.

"Alpha's in a mood today."

"It's because Kiley's back. This is going to be good."

I let my head rest against the door and let myself remember home.The Carlisle estate sits on the ridge above the coast, a long grey house with a drive that takes a full minute to walk. The kitchen always smelled of bread. The older Pack members called me Miss Eleanora before I could read. My father, Marcus, used to sit with me on the east porch and name every ship on the water until the moon came up.

The memories come in pieces. That is the part I have never been able to explain — not the warmth itself, but the gaps around it. I remember Julian carrying me through the orchard on his shoulders, telling me the whole Pack would be mine the day I asked for it. I remember that I was different, even then, though no one would say how.

I do not remember my mother's voice.

I never asked for the Pack. I told my father I would choose my own life instead, and I chose Jaxon Slate. Julian didn't argue.

He only made me promise one thing — that I would be the one to call. Five years, and I never did.

They think I am nothing. Something to be moved where it suits them.

I pushed myself to my feet and walked to the vanity. One by one, I took off the diamond earrings, the sapphire necklace, every piece of jewelry Jaxon had ever given me, and dropped them into the trash can.

The woman in the mirror was a stranger — pale, with eyes that burned with a purpose I hadn't seen in years. The compliant, hopeful Eleanora was dead.

I needed proof. And I needed an ally inside this house. Clara Montgomery. The Pack's doctor and my only real friend.

I used the internal line to call her. "Clara, I'm not feeling well. Can you come to my room? And bring your testing kit."

Half an hour later, Clara arrived, medical bag in hand. The guards let her pass, their reluctance clear. The moment she saw my face, her professional calm broke. "Nora, what happened? Your scent... it's full of pain and... fury."

I shut the door and handed her a small pouch of the dried herbs Jaxon always used for my tea. "Test this. Tell me what's in it."

Her expression turned serious. She worked quickly, her portable analyzer humming softly. A few minutes later, she looked up, her face ashen.

"Nora..." she whispered, her eyes wide with horror. "This contains a high concentration of Withering Root."

"What is that?" I asked, a cold dread coiling in my stomach.

Her voice trembled. "It's an old herb. If taken over a long period... it makes a she-wolf barren. It slowly destroys the womb, making it impossible to carry a pup."

So that was it. He hadn't just cheated on my heart. From the very beginning, he had stolen my right to ever become a mother.

My fists clenched, nails digging into my palms. I didn't cry.

"Clara, I need your help," I said. "Don't tell anyone about this."

She looked at the resolve in my eyes and nodded firmly. "I'm always on your side."

From the very bottom of my jewelry box, I retrieved a small, sleek satellite phone engraved with a single letter 'C'. A gift from my brother, Julian, for emergencies.

"I'm going to leave this place," I told Clara. "But I'm not running away. I'm going to make them pay."

A new plan was forming, sharper and more vicious than simply escaping. I needed a bigger weapon. An ally so powerful he would make Jaxon Slate tremble.

My family's arranged match. The one I had always refused to even consider. The whispered name of the Lycan King.

I opened a false bottom in my vanity drawer. Inside lay a single, black metal card. On it, one name and a number.

Alistair Vanderbilt.

I would accept this alliance. Not for my family, but for my revenge.

I deleted the unsent message to my brother. It wasn't time for him to step in. I had to earn my first piece of leverage myself.