During finals week, a group of women stormed into my house, screaming: “There she is! The vixen who seduced our Alpha!”
I didn't know who they were, or what they wanted.
The ringleader was my brother’s girlfriend. Without a word, she slapped me hard.
“You bitch! How dare you steal my mate?”
They brutalized me, wrecked my home, and dangled my mother’s only keepsake over my head.
“Admit on camera that you’re a slut, or I’ll smash this!”
To save it, I did. She smashed it anyway.
I completely lost it. I lunged at her, clawing bloody scratches across her face.
Just as they were about to scrawl humiliating slurs on my face, a furious roar shook the house:
“Are you insane? How dare you touch my sister!”
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1
Finals week. I was holed up at my brother Thane’s new place in Seattle, buried in a pile of textbooks. All I wanted was a little peace and quiet to study.
I’d barely opened a book when someone started pounding on the front door.
Thinking it was a delivery, I cracked it open without a second thought.
“Get in here, girls! This is her! The vixen who seduced the Alpha!”
The door was barely ajar before a short, heavily made-up woman shoved a selfie stick in my face. A whole gaggle of girls crowded in behind her.
“Who are you? I think you have the wrong house,” I said, frowning.
Before I could say more, they flooded into the living room, pushing me so hard I stumbled backward.
“Hmph. So you’re the other woman. You’re not even that pretty.”
The girls glared at me with pure hostility. My inner wolf began to stir, a low growl rumbling in my chest.
“What gives you the right to barge into my home? Get out!” I yelled.
I reached for my phone, but a woman with big curly hair snatched it away.
“Thinking of calling for help? Dream on!”
She glared at me and shrieked, “You bitch, trying to steal my mate? I’m going to teach you a lesson today!”
I was still trying to figure out what she meant by “other woman” and “mate” when a sharp slap cracked across my face. The sting left me stunned.
“Look at her, playing all innocent. I bet the Alpha falls for that act. He probably loves sluts like you,” the woman who hit me sneered.
She rubbed her wrist and yelled, “Don't you dare tell me you don’t know Thane! Swear on the Moon Goddess that you’re not his mistress!”
Thane Sterling is my brother! How dare she call me a mistress? Every penny I have came from my mother’s inheritance.
“I know Thane. I’m his sister!” I shot back.
No one had ever laid a hand on me before. My temper flared. “Now that you know he’s my brother, get the hell out!”
“Shameless fox! That’s what every mistress says when they get caught!” The woman laughed coldly, digging her nails into my already swelling cheek.
Tears welled in my eyes from the pain, but I couldn’t push her hand away.
“Celeste, look at this place. It’s huge and so opulent. Thane really spoils this little tramp,” one of the other girls said.
Celeste? The name sounded familiar. I shoved her away, clutching my burning face.
“You’re my brother’s mate, Celeste Crawford?” I asked.
That just seemed to energize the mob.
“So you knew Celeste was Thane’s mate and you still came onto him! Get a good look, everyone! Look at this shameless bitch!” The short woman shoved her phone in my face again.
I knew she was livestreaming. Furious, I slapped the phone out of her hand, sending it clattering to the floor. “Get that thing out of my face! I’m not his mistress! Celeste—”
Before I could finish, the livestreamer kicked me hard in the stomach. I doubled over in pain.
“I’m Thane’s sister! His actual sister!” I choked out, clutching my stomach, my voice tight with pain and rage.
Everyone froze. They all turned to look at Celeste. “Thane has a sister?”
Celeste’s face darkened. “Yes,” she said slowly. “He has a sister.”
“Did we mess up? If we just attacked the Alpha’s sister, we’re so dead…”
Just as the pack of she-wolves started to hesitate, a voice cut through the tension. “She’s lying. She’s not Thane’s sister at all.”