THE REJECTED BREEDER: NOW THE QUEEN.

That masked man.

the Alessia.

' I am currently too weak to shift, Alessia. ' My wolf's sad voice brought me back to reality.

I was back to my room, more precisely, the cold room that I shared with the dirty clothes and the damaged washing machines that had ceased to function after years of not being used. Yes, in the past, the pack clothes were washed by machines, but ever since they got themselves a slave, a new era began, a washing machine in the form of a human, and that's me, Alessia.

Well, that cold laundry room had, although I hated to admit, become a place that felt like home after years of occupying it, and sadly, it was time to say goodbye.

' Alessia, are you even listening?' Irked by my silence, my wolf snapped, although her weak voice sounded more like a joke than she intended. Well, deep down, she hated herself for how weak she had become. She was an Alpha wolf, after all. To end up being so weak and defenceless was more like an insult to her Alpha wolf ego, but I shared different sentiments. To me, she was the strongest wolf there ever was. To have survived everything, from starvation to the monthly wolf's bane dose that they usually injected us with, how was she not powerful?

Other wolves would have long died, either Alpha or omega, but Isara survived, enduring every punch, every torment, and every insult with me. And yeah, they all thought that my wolf was dead, and I never corrected them. If anything, Isara perfectly masked her scent, and to others, I was without a wolf. I had been waiting for my eighteenth birthday to shift into my wolf and, with the help of my mate, mobilize the warriors to fight for the pack against my uncle.

With Lucian's help, it would have been possible. He was the pack's beta, after all. Well, that was until he married Elara, and he was now the soon-to-be Alpha.

'It doesn't matter whether we can phase or not, Isara. We can't stay here anymore.' I whispered, scanning the tiny black bag that was lying on top of my one and only blanket. That small bag had everything that I owned and needed: a photo album and a bank card, the one that was given to me by my grandmother on my eighteenth birthday, and a new red dress. And yeah, the red dress was also a gift from my grandmother. She was the only person who never gave up on me, but sadly, she was too weak and sickly to do anything about my situation.

When I came to the pack, I secretly sneaked to the pack hospital where she was currently staying. When I saw her, her face looked pale, devoid of any emotions or warmth as she handed the dress and bank card to me before going back to sleep, well, not until after she had weakly wished me a happy birthday, of course. Back then, I was too excited about meeting with Lucian and planning our takeover to care and dwell over my grandmother's obviously troubled state, but now, a few hours later, everything was making sense.

She was heartbroken on my behalf. Being the only person close and dear to me, she understood how much I treasured Lucian. It was not a secret that Lucian and I were in love, after all. The news of Lucian marking and mating with Elara must have broken her beyond words. My poor Grandma. She wasn't always like that. In the past, she was charismatic and full of energy, but the death of my father, her favourite son, plugged her into the hell that she was currently living in.

'We have everything that we need to escape, Isara. After this, whether we die or survive, it doesn't matter, as long as we are out of here.'I linked to my wolf, my eyes glazing with determination as I took one final look at everything.

It was the perfect time to leave, while everyone was still asleep. If there was anything that I had learned from my six years of being a slave, it was the art of camouflaging and being invisible. On countless occasions, to survive, I had to be more creative, and I was banking on the same skill to escape from that hell that was once my safe haven. Besides, I knew the whole pack like the back of my hand, so obviously, I was confident in my escape plan.

And it was going as planned until I heard hurried footsteps approaching. It's more like the devil was bent on torturing me over and over again. It was Elara. I was way too familiar with her footsteps and her annoying weak wolf scent.

" Sister? Are you awake? I knew it!" Her sickening sweet voice tore through the air, disrupting the moment of silence that I was previously soaking in.

" Thank you for decorating the Alpha suite. Lucian and I had a good time." She whispered, a blush coating her facial features, and I wanted nothing but to slap her face.

" Who would have thought that Lucian had so much energy in bed? I didn't sleep the entire night." She whined, deliberately lifting the hem of her silky robes to expose those bold hickeys that adorned her fair skin... She was trying to provoke me. She knew how much I loved Lucian. She knew how important he was to me, and now, she was flaunting her victory and his betrayal on my face.

I took deep breaths, trying to suppress my anger, appearing calm on the outside, although deep down, I was a broken mess; my heart was reduced to a puddle of tiny little pieces, broken beyond repair. I had already guessed what the two newlyweds were up to beyond those closed doors but confirming it with Elara's visibly swollen lips and those countless hickeys? I relived the betrayal all over again.

" I couldn't wait to share the good news with you, cousin. " She paused, as if afraid to say the next piece, and I swallowed down a scoff. I hated how overly sweet she was acting, but I couldn't do anything about it. The current me was not in a position to scoff on her face. The difference between us was worlds apart, talking from experience, of course. Over the last few years, I had been tricked by her sweet words and voice, only to fall directly into her trap. She was baiting on my patience, waiting for me to sneer, scoff, or talk back, and she would order her guards to teach me a lesson. I knew the plot too well.

" So, I am not only now married to Lucian, but I am also pregnant with his child." She confessed, her hands delicately caressing her flat tummy.

To that, I froze, and for a moment, I forgot to breathe. I couldn't maintain that emotionless facade that I was trying so hard to keep. My eyes were clouded with tears as I looked at her, and seeing the joyous smile that she wore, I must have looked very pathetic at that moment. The triumphant glint that crossed her eyes did not escape my eyes. Once again, she had succeeded in breaking me, and for the umpteenth time, Lucian had broken my heart.

There, the evidence of his betrayal stood before me, bold and provocative, mocking all the efforts that I had put forth, waiting for him, holding onto something that was never there from the start.

" I thought you were emotionless. " She mocked, taking deliberate steps towards me.

" I thought nothing could break you, not even the sight of the man you love marrying me. But now? The news of my pregnancy has you breaking down?" She sneered, gently caressing my cheeks, all the while, wearing a sweet smile, a smile that had my gut twisting with bile.

" I was not planning on telling you this, but, I am in a good mood. I can never let go of any chance to make you suffer, dear cousin." Her voice was unusually chilly as she whispered.

" It is now four years since Lucian and I became a thing. All along, I was the woman that he chose. I am the woman that he has been in love with, Alessia. " Listening to her words, I shook my head in denial. It couldn't be. It...it was not true.

" You are lying. " I shouted, too shocked to care about my current status.

" See this?" She lifted her hand, and she then folded the sleeves of her silk robe, exposing a wristband. A very familiar wristband.

" Remember this?" She asked, wearing a mocking smile. How could I not? I had made that wristband, painstakingly.

Four years ago, I sacrificed the little time that I had to design that wristband for Lucian. After doing my slave chores, I barely had over one hour of rest, and I sacrificed that, failing to sleep, crafting that piece for Lucian. It was a love token, a token of appreciation. It was beautiful; the gems had my sweat and tears in them. I even spent countless hours, pleading for the moon goddess's blessing over it. It was supposed to protect Lucian, to keep him safe, and to keep our love alive.

I had spent a whole year making it. Back then, he said he loved it. He promised to protect it, the same way he was going to guard our love..only to give it to Elara?

Staring at it, wrapped delicately around Elara's wrists, a surge of fury washed over me, and I yanked it away, tearing it apart.

Those sparkling beads bounced beautifully off the ground, and the sight broke my heart even more. It was my hard work, after all. Something that I once treasured, something that I once gave to someone I loved.

" He gave it to me. It was his first gift to me." Unbothered by the fallen beads, she confessed, a loving smile stretching the corners of her lips.

" I never liked it; I just enjoyed the feeling of hurting you. So, dear cousin, wake up. Lucian never loved you. No one ever did. From the beginning, he was on our side." She whispered, delivering those heartbreaking news like it was nothing serious.

"Before your father died, he left a clause. The loser kinda predicted his death... It stated that if anything were to happen to him, you could take over the pack after your eighteenth birthday as long as you stayed in the pack for one month before your eighteenth birthday. And, .." She paused, a devious smile dancing over her lips...

" As long as you can win in a fight against the current Alpha. Can you, though?" She gave me a once over as she asked.

Everything was making sense. No wonder they drove me out of the pack a month ago. It was all planned...

" Do you know who was administering those wolf's bane shots to you every month for the past six years?" She asked, with a knowing smile.

" It's the love of your life, Lucian. " She delivered, nonchalantly so, like it was nothing serious.

A tear slid down my eye as I recalled.

That ruthless masked man...

The one that every month, for years, had had me bound by silver wires, injecting me with shots, ruthlessly punching my face...

He was Lucian?

" Now you know the truth. "

" My father is summoning you to his office. "