When I Know My Brother Has Become the Ruthless Alpha

I stood still outside the private chamber of Dreadhowl Citadel, my fingers shaking around the keys to the crimson speed carriage I had saved for five winters to gift Zarek.

Seven winters of love under the Moon Goddess, seven winters of planning our future in the pack, shattered inside me like broken crystal.

"How long will you keep playing with Mireya?" A deep male voice carried through the oak door.

My heart froze when I heard my name. The metal keys bit into my palm.

"Come on, Alpha Zarek. Sabine has been asking about you since she returned from Highcrest Dominion." Another voice joined in. Glasses clinked in a toast.

"Unbelievable that you have been courting Kellan's sister all this time." A wolf laughed. "Does he even know his best friend has been sharing furs with his runaway sister?"

My brother's name struck me like a claw across my chest.

Kellan Graywolf…

My brother, the Gamma of our birth pack. The same Kellan Zarek claimed he barely knew.

"Imagine his face when he learns the truth," someone said.

"He will not." Zarek's voice finally rose above the rest. Calm and cold. "Mireya was only convenient. A placeholder while Sabine was gone."

"Seven winters is a long placeholder," someone mocked.

"She made it simple. So hungry for affection after her pack troubles." Zarek chuckled. "All those tales about knowing her brother, about waiting to reveal everything after our mating ceremony. She swallowed every word."

The keys slipped from my hand and struck the marble floor. The sharp sound echoed like a howl of betrayal. Silence fell inside the chamber.

"Did you hear that?"

I did not stay. I ran down the stone corridor, leaving behind the gift I had planned, leaving behind seven winters of lies, leaving behind the second pack I thought was my home.

——

I collapsed onto my bed in our shared den, tears staining the pillow. The darkness of the room felt like the hollow inside my chest. Every memory replayed. Every kiss beneath the full moon. Every promise he whispered about claiming me as his Luna.

The front door opened. I wiped my face quickly as his steps approached.

"Mireya?" Zarek's voice sounded warm, the same voice that once made my wolf purr. The lamps lit the room. "You would not believe what happened at dinner."

I turned over and forced a smile. "How was it?"

"It was good. Nice seeing everyone again." He removed his jacket. "Strangest thing though. The guards found keys to a red speed carriage outside our private chamber. Can you imagine someone dropping that?"

My chest tightened. "That is strange."

"And tomorrow night we have plans." He sat beside me. "My old schoolmate, Sabine Bloodrose, is back from Highcrest Dominion. She is hosting a gathering."

Sabine. The name tasted like ash.

"The friend you mentioned before?" I asked softly.

"Yes, just a classmate." He brushed it aside easily. "You will come, right?"

I searched his eyes for guilt, for even a shadow of the cruelty I had heard. There was nothing. Only that charming smile that once felt safe.

"Of course," I said. "I would not miss it."

He pressed a kiss to my forehead. "Good. Rest, little wolf."

Soon his breathing became steady. I stared at the ceiling while silent tears slid into my hair.

The next evening, his hand rested on my lower back as we entered Sabine's high tower suite. His touch burned through my black gown.

"Mireya, try the moon wine." He handed me a crystal glass and kissed my temple in front of the gathered wolves.

Across the room stood Sabine in a red dress, her gaze fixed on him like prey marked by a hunter.

I slipped away toward the corridor that led to the washroom.

"Well, look who it is. The runaway sister." Sabine's voice cut through the hall.

She leaned against the wall, glass dangling from her fingers. The red fabric clung to her like fresh blood.

"It must be easy, living your perfect life while your brother carried the weight alone," she said with a sneer. "Do you know how selfish that is? Abandoning your pack?"

My throat tightened. How did she know?

Zarek.

I had told him everything. Every secret beneath the moonlight. He had handed her my scars like weapons.

"What is wrong? No words?" She stepped closer. "Zarek and I have history. Deep bonds. The kind that do not fade because some girl pretended to be his Luna."

I pressed back against the wall.

"Tonight he returns to me," she said, draining her glass. "He was always mine. You were just warming his den while I was away."

I struggled to breathe as she moved closer.

"Want to hear something amusing?" Her finger traced my arm. "Two nights ago, while you were at your art gathering…"

My stomach dropped.

"He came to my place first." She lowered her voice. "Then he said he wanted it in his own bed. Yours and his."

My vision blurred.

"Those silk sheets you adore?" She leaned near my ear. "We ruined them."

My knees weakened. I gripped the stone wall.

"The way he pulled my hair, forced me down." She ran her hand through her dark locks. "He said you were too gentle. Too safe. But me?" She laughed softly. "I awaken the beast in him."

Tuesday night flashed in my mind. I had slept in those sheets. He had kissed me there.

"He changed the bedding quickly after," Sabine whispered, gripping my wrist. "He did not want his precious Mireya discovering what kind of Alpha he truly is. Though I must say, the danger of being caught made it even sweeter."