After My Mate Chose My Best Friend, I Took Everything

The fluorescent lights in the pack hospital made everything look corpse-pale. I stood beside the examination table where my mate lay, his skin gray and clammy, his once-commanding Alpha aura reduced to barely a flicker. Dr. Aris adjusted his glasses and delivered the verdict with clinical detachment.

"End-stage renal failure. The wolf-poisoning has destroyed both kidneys completely."

Giana's perfectly manicured hand flew to her throat. "There must be something—"

"There is." Dr. Aris turned to me. "Luna Adelina possesses rare healing bloodlines. She's a perfect match."

I didn't hesitate. Eight years as Xander's mate had trained me well. "I'll do it."

Giana's lip curled. "Even an Omega's parts are barely good enough for an Alpha."

The words should have stung. They didn't anymore. I'd heard worse from her over the years, each insult carefully designed to remind me of my place. But when I looked at Xander, searching for some flicker of gratitude or love, I found only predatory relief in his amber eyes.

"Three days," he said, his voice rough. "We'll schedule it for three days from now."

Not thank you. Not I'm sorry you have to do this. Just a command, as if my kidney were pack property he had every right to claim.

I nodded and left the room, my spine straight, my face carefully blank.

Two hours later, I stood in Xander's study, searching through his desk for the medical insurance papers Dr. Aris needed. The room smelled like him—pine and earth and Alpha dominance. My fingers trembled slightly as I opened drawers, hating that I still responded to his scent even now.

That's when I knocked over the hollowed-out book.

Letters spilled across the mahogany desk like accusations. The scent hit me first—vanilla and rain. Selah's scent. My best friend's scent, saturated into paper, intimate and unmistakable. My hands shook as I unfolded the first letter.

*Three more days, and she'll be too weak to fight the rejection. We'll cast her out as damaged goods. Finally, I can take my rightful place as your Luna.*

The words blurred. I grabbed another letter.

*The Elders won't question it once she's given up her healing kidney. A weakened Omega has no place as Luna. They'll support us.*

My wolf, Sera, howled inside my mind. I pressed my palm against my mouth to keep from screaming.

*Xander, where are you?* I mind-linked him, my mental voice steady despite the earthquake inside my chest.

*Meditating in the woods,* he replied smoothly. *Need to clear my head before the surgery.*

But through the open channel, I heard it. Selah's breathy giggle. The distinct metallic sound of a zipper.

I severed the link.

For a long moment, I just stood there, letters scattered around me like evidence at a crime scene. Eight years. Eight years of devotion, of enduring Giana's cruelty, of trying to be worthy of a mate who looked at me like I was a useful tool. And this was my reward.

They were going to use me. Carve out my kidney, take my healing bloodline, and throw me away like trash.

Sera snarled. *We should reject him first. Now.*

*No,* I thought back. *Not yet.*

I gathered the letters carefully, tucking them back into their hiding place. My hands had stopped shaking. Something cold and sharp had settled in my chest where my heart used to be.

The greenhouse was dark when I entered, but I knew every plant by touch. Moonshade grew in the corner, its silver leaves glowing faintly. Bitterroot twisted around the trellis, its bark rough under my fingers. I'd studied healing herbs for years, learning their properties, their uses.

Their secrets.

I harvested what I needed with steady hands, crushing the plants into a paste. The scent was bitter and green, nothing like my usual honeysuckle. When I applied it to my scent glands—throat, wrists, the inside of my elbows—it burned slightly. The herbs would mask my natural scent and mimic the hormonal changes of early pregnancy.

In the small mirror hanging by the door, I studied my reflection. My fingers traced the mate mark on my neck, the place where Xander had bitten me eight years ago during our marking ceremony. I'd thought it meant forever.

I'd been such a fool.

But I wasn't that fool anymore.

*We're not just leaving,* I told Sera. *We're taking everything.*

My wolf's approval rumbled through me like thunder. In the glass, my eyes had changed. They looked harder. Colder.

Good.

I had three days before the surgery. Three days to plan. Three days to make sure that when I walked away from the Coopers, I wouldn't be walking away empty-handed.

They wanted to use me? Fine.

Let's see who ends up used.