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78


Jane

Fear shot through my entire body when I saw the Alpha King and his warriors. His cold laughter made my heart break into pieces.

The look in his eyes was dangerous and filled with evil. I was terrified—not for myself, but for Vishal.

“What’s wrong with you, Mom?! How could you help Father with his dirty tricks?” I whispered, but I was sure the Alpha King could still hear me.

Mom looked at me with confused eyes. “I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”

“Father told the Alpha King I would be here. That’s how he knew to come. Why would you help Father hurt me? You know how much I suffered because of this man.”

“I don’t know what’s happening, sweetheart. I didn’t help your father do anything. This was all his idea,” she said sadly.

I felt a little better knowing my mother wasn’t part of this trap. But now my anger turned toward the Alpha King. Vishal was watching everything with confusion, and I wished more than anything that he wasn’t here.

I would have given anything to keep him from seeing this terrible situation. Something told me this wouldn’t end well. Things never ended well between me and the Alpha King, but now with Vishal here, I feared it would be much worse.

“Hello, little mate. It’s been such a long time since we last saw each other,” the Alpha King said with that cruel smile that made my stomach turn. “I never thought you would come running back to me, darling.”

“I would rather die than come back to you,” I said with disgust.

His jaw tightened, and his face turned hard with anger. He was trying to stay calm, but I could see the rage building up inside him.

I was scared. He was going to hurt Vishal. What would happen to me if he hurt my mate? My heart was beating so fast I thought it might explode. I was shaking with fear.

I couldn’t lose my mate. I was already a rejected werewolf. If I lost my second chance mate, I might truly die this time.

“Hey, are you okay?” Vishal moved closer to me. I wanted to push him away. The Alpha King hadn’t noticed him yet, and I wanted to keep it that way.

“I’m fine, Vi. Don’t worry about me,” I said with a weak smile, trying to make him step back. But he wouldn’t move and stayed right beside me.

He took my hand and held it protectively. He was trying to comfort me, but his actions only made me more worried and scared.

“What the hell is going on here?” the King roared. I jumped at his voice, quickly pulling my hand away from Vishal’s. Oh no, my worst fear was about to come true.

“Get away from my mate right now!” the King commanded, as if I were something he owned. “You have no right to touch my mate!”

Vishal got angry at his tone and stepped forward. “You have no right to call her that.”

“What did you just say?!” The King stepped forward too, and I was afraid they might start fighting right there.

Vishal wouldn’t back down, no matter how much I pulled at his arm. It was one thing for me to challenge the cruel King, but I didn’t want to put my precious mate in danger.

“You heard me clearly. Jane isn’t your mate, and you have no right to call her that,” Vishal said bravely.

“Who are you? And why are you holding my mate’s hand like that?!” The King roared, getting ready to show his fangs and claws.

“Stop it, both of you!” I jumped between them before things got violent. My mate Vishal was strong, but it wasn’t smart to fight alone against a ruthless King and all his soldiers. The odds were not in Vishal’s favor.

“Who is he, Jane?!” The King demanded.

I wouldn’t answer because I didn’t want the Alpha King to hurt Vishal. But then my father came outside, and I knew things were about to get even worse.

“My King, don’t pay attention to that fool. That’s the ugly creature my daughter brought back as her second mate,” he said meanly. “I already told her to reject him, but she wouldn’t listen to me, her own father.”

“You must be joking, little mate! You need to reject him right now, and you’re coming with me to my pack.”

“I will never let my mate leave with someone like you. My Jane isn’t going anywhere,” Vishal growled. “She’s mine. She’s my mate!”

“You dare to claim the King’s mate right in front of him?! You think you can steal what belongs to me?!” The King turned to his soldiers. “Grab her now.”

I tried to fight back, but the King used his mind link to command his soldiers. Before I knew what was happening, they had Vishal in a chokehold.

“If you try anything stupid, or if you try to fight me, I’ll kill your little plaything,” he threatened.

“Stay away from my mate. I know about all the evil things you’ve done, and I’ll never let you hurt her again, King,” Vishal dared to speak.

“What I do with my mate is nobody else’s business! Who are you to tell me what I can do with my mate?” The King yelled. “She will be my Queen. The Luna of my pack. It’s forbidden to touch another man’s mate, you know that!”

I was confused and crying my eyes out. Vishal wouldn’t stop challenging the King. I was so afraid he might get killed.

“I’ll kill you and destroy your entire pack for touching my mate,” The King declared, and I gasped in horror.

“She’s my mate,” Vishal announced firmly. “Jane is my mate.”

“Really?” The King asked with a nasty smile. “Do you have proof? I can smell that you haven’t marked her yet. You’re just lying. She doesn’t carry any man’s scent. Why are you trying to steal what’s mine?”