(Isara’s POV)
“Speak,” Raiden’s voice cut through the line, sharp as steel. “Explain why the loyal Luna of Xavian Silverhowl wishes to see her Alpha ruined.”
I told him everything. The false explosion spell on the tracking rune. Finding Xavian in the hidden clearing with Brienne. The words I heard about the moon experiments on my unborn pups. His plan to disgrace me and cast me aside.
By the time I finished, tears were sliding down my face once more.
Raiden said nothing for a while.
“Do you hold proof?” he asked at last.
“Yes.” My voice no longer trembled. “Healer records. Gold transfers. Share agreements. All of it.”
“And you possess half of his trading empire?”
“He does not know. No one knows,” I replied. “I also have evidence of crimes within his pack business. But I cannot act openly. He has allied Alphas, legal wolves and my own bloodline behind him.”
“Your bloodline stands with him?”
The question pierced deep because it was true.
My mother never truly wanted me.
When I was ten, the truth came out. Brienne and I had been exchanged at birth due to a mistake in the healer’s den.
I had grown up in a small border village, raised by a kind seamstress. We had little coin, but I had known warmth and simple joy.
Then the great house of Silverhowl claimed me and brought me to their grand city estate. Yet my mother could not release Brienne. She had raised her. Loved her.
So she kept us both.
But it was always clear who she favored.
“Isara, stand straight. You look like a farm pup.”
“Isara, speak properly. Your tone shames us.”
“Isara, why can you not be like Brienne?”
No matter how hard I tried, I was never enough. I studied court manners but stumbled. I learned the old tongue yet spoke it imperfectly.
Brienne shone bright and graceful and my mother made sure I knew I was less.
By eighteen, I had learned silence. To shrink. To expect nothing.
That was when I met Xavian. Strong. Confident. Ambitious. He looked at me as if I mattered.
“You are not like the others,” he once told me.
I gave him my heart without caution.
When he asked for my hand after six moons, I agreed without doubt.
The night before the mating ceremony, my mother pulled me aside. “Xavian Silverhowl uses you. But you are too blind to see.”
I ignored her.
I became his Luna. Spent eight years trying to be flawless.
All the while Brienne lay with my mate in secret and I never suspected.
My chest tightened as I forced myself back to the present.
“My family adores my sister,” I told Raiden quietly. “When Xavian rejects me, they will support him. I cannot rely on them.”
Raiden paused. “Then you seek vengeance.”
“I seek justice,” I corrected, my voice breaking. “He slaughtered my pups. Used their essence to heal my adopted sister so she could bear his heir. He tricked me into surrendering everything. Now he plans to throw me away like refuse.”
“And why come to me?” Raiden asked, curious.
“Because you despise him,” I answered honestly. “He warned me about you. Said you would stop at nothing to see him fall.”
Raiden gave a low, dark laugh. “What is it you desire from me, Isara?”
I tightened my fists. “I want him stripped of all he owns. His trade empire. His name. His freedom. I own half of his company. You are his strongest rival Alpha. Together we can destroy him.”
Silence lingered before Raiden spoke again.
“If I help you, it will not be an act of kindness. I will demand payment.”
My stomach tightened. “What payment?”
“Become my mate.”
“Your mate?” I whispered, stunned.
“Yes,” Raiden said simply. “If I am to wage war against Xavian Silverhowl for you, I require something lasting. Not gold. Not shares. You.”
“But…”
He cut me off. “Consider my offer, Luna Silverhowl. You hold my number.”
The bond line went dead.
I stared at the communicator, thoughts racing. Become Raiden Ravengrowl’s mate. The sworn enemy of my mate.
I shook my head. No. I did not need him. I had proof. I had power. I could stand alone.
I would see Xavian lose everything, just as he had stolen everything from me.
