The Alpha King's Rejected Queen

"You're not even trying anymore." The words hit me like a slap. I stood in the doorway of our bedroom, watching Declan button his shirt. His back was to me, but I could hear the disgust in his voice. "I am trying," I whispered. He turned around. His blue-green eyes were cold. "Trying? The pack house is a mess. The dinner last night was embarrassing. You cannot even handle basic Luna duties." My chest tightened. I had spent all day yesterday preparing that dinner. I had cooked everything myself because Declan said we needed to cut staff costs. My hands were burned from the oven. My feet ached from standing for hours. But the stew had been too salty, and one of the councilors had complained. "I amsorry," I said. "I'll do better." Declan walked past me without looking at me. "Isabel would never have made those mistakes." There it was. Isabel. My adopted sister. The golden child. The one everyone loved. "Isabel isn't your Luna," I said quietly. He stopped at the door. For a second, I thought he might turn around. He might apologize. He might actually see me for once. "Maybe she should be," he said. Then he left. I stood there for a long time. My wolf, Luna, stirred in my mind. Leave him, she said. He doesn't deserve us. "I cannot ," I whispered out loud. "I love him." He doesn't love you. I knew she was right. I had known for a long time. But I kept hoping. I kept trying. I kept thinking that if I could just be perfect enough, good enough, quiet enough, he would finally see me. I looked around our bedroom. The bed was made with the sheets Declan liked. The curtains were open because he hated waking up in the dark. His favorite coffee was brewing downstairs. Everything in this house was arranged around him. What did I have? Nothing. I walked to the mirror and stared at myself. Brown hair that needed washing. Hazel eyes with dark circles underneath. A thin frame because I always gave Declan the best portions of food. I looked tired. I looked sad. I looked invisible. The pack meeting was in an hour. I needed to get dressed. Declan liked it when I wore simple clothes. He said Luna should be modest and respectable. Isabel always wore beautiful dresses, but Declan said that was different. Isabel could do whatever she wanted. I pulled on a plain gray dress and brushed my hair. Then I went downstairs to make sure everything was ready for the meeting. The pack house was quiet. Most of the pack members were already at the town hall for the weekly assembly. I was supposed to be there too, but Declan told me to stay home and clean up from breakfast. He said my presence was not necessary. I washed the dishes. I swept the floor. I did everything I was supposed to do. Then I heard voices from Declan's office. I should not have stopped. I should have kept walking. But something made me pause outside the door. "You cannot keep treating her like this." That was Owen, Declan's Beta. He was one of the few people who was kind to me. "I'll treat my wife however I want." Declan's voice was sharp. "She's a good Luna. She works hard. She..." "She's weak," Declan interrupted. "She's nothing like her sister." My hand went to my chest. It hurt. It actually physically hurt. "Isabel isn't your wife," Owen said. "Maybe she should be." There was silence. Then Owen spoke again, quieter. "What are you saying?" "I amsaying I made a mistake. I should have waited. I should have married Isabel instead." I backed away from the door. My heart was pounding. My hands were shaking. Luna growled in my mind. I told you. I went back to the kitchen. I needed to think. I needed to breathe. That's when I saw it. A small jewelry box on the counter. It was wrapped in silver paper with a bow. There was a note attached. I picked it up. The handwriting was Declan's. For my true Luna. Yours forever, D. My heart stopped. I opened the box. Inside was a diamond necklace. Beautiful. Expensive. The kind of thing Declan would never buy for me. We couldn't afford things like this. Or so he always said when I asked for anything. This was not for me. I knew it was not for me. The front door opened. I heard laughter. Isabel's voice. "Declan! I amhere early. I couldn't wait to see you!" I looked down at the necklace. Then I looked at the door. Isabel walked into the kitchen. She stopped when she saw me. She was wearing the exact same necklace. We stared at each other. Her hand went to her throat. She touched the diamonds. "Rhea ," she said. Her voice was sweet. Too sweet. "What are you doing with that?" "I found it," I said. My voice did not sound like my own. Isabel smiled. It did not reach her eyes. "Oh. That. Declan gave it to me last week. was not that sweet of him? He said every important woman in his life should have something beautiful." "You're not his wife," I said. Her smile got wider. "No. But I amthe one he wants." The room spun. I gripped the counter. Isabel walked closer. She smelled like expensive perfume. Her golden hair was perfect. Her blue eyes sparkled. She was everything I was not. "You should know something," she said softly. "Declan and I have been seeing each other for months. He loves me. He's always loved me. You were just... convenient." "Get out," I whispered. "This is my brother-in-law's house. I have every right to be here." "GET OUT!" Isabel's mask slipped. For just a second, I saw real hatred in her eyes. "You're pathetic," she hissed. "You always have been. Even when we were kids. You were the weak one. The broken one. The one nobody wanted. That's why our parents love me more. That's why Declan wants me. You're nothing, Rhea . You've always been nothing." Something inside me snapped. I did not think. I just moved. My hand swung out. The slap echoed in the kitchen. Isabel's head snapped to the side. She gasped. We both froze. Then Isabel started screaming. "HELP! SOMEBODY HELP ME! SHE'S ATTACKING ME!" "What? No..." Isabel grabbed a vase from the counter and threw it at the wall. Glass shattered everywhere. Then she picked up a shard and cut her own arm. "STOP!" I shouted. But she did not stop. She knocked over a chair. She scratched her own face. She made it look like we'd fought. Then she fell to the floor, sobbing. Footsteps thundered down the hall. Declan burst into the kitchen. Behind him were my parents...Alpha Magnus and Luna Elena of the Silverridge Pack. They must have arrived early for the Summit Ball tonight. They all stared at the scene. The broken glass. Isabel on the floor, bleeding and crying. Me standing there with the jewelry box still in my hand. "What did you do?" Declan's voice was deadly quiet. "I did not..." "She attacked me!" Isabel sobbed. "She found the necklace and went crazy! She said I was trying to steal her husband! She hit me and...and..." She dissolved into tears. My mother rushed to her side. "Oh, baby girl. It's okay. You're safe now." Baby girl. She called Isabel baby girl. She'd never called me that. Not once. "Rhea ," my father said. His voice was hard. "Apologize. Now." "I did not do anything!" My voice cracked. "She's lying! She told me she and Declan have been..." "Enough!" Declan roared. The room went silent. He looked at me like I was a stranger. Like I was something disgusting. "You're out of control," he said. "You're jealous and bitter and you're taking it out on an innocent person." "Declan, please..." "I will not hear it. Isabel is a guest in this house. She's family. And you attacked her." "I did not ATTACK HER!" My father stepped forward. His hand moved so fast I did not see it coming. The slap sent me stumbling backward. I hit the counter. My cheek burned. "How dare you," my father said. "How dare you raise your voice to your Alpha." Tears streamed down my face. Not from the slap. From the realization that nothing I said mattered. They'd already decided I was guilty. "I want a divorce," I said. Everyone went still. The words hung in the air. I couldn't believe I had said them. But now that they were out, I couldn't take them back. "What?" Declan looked shocked. "I want a divorce," I repeated. Louder this time. "I am done." My mother gasped. "Rhea , you cannot be serious." "I am. I am done with all of this. Done being invisible. Done being second choice. Done pretending everything is fine when it's not." Declan's shock turned to anger. "You do not get to decide that." "Yes, I do." "The Summit Ball is tonight!" my mother shrieked. "The most important event of the year! And you want to cause a scene?" "I do not care about the ball." My father grabbed my arm. Hard. "You will care. You'll attend that ball with your husband. You'll smile. You'll play your role. And afterwards, we'll discuss this... tantrum." "It's not a tantrum. It's the truth. I do not want to be married to someone who doesn't want me." "Too bad," Declan said. His voice was ice. "You signed a contract. You made vows. You're my Luna until I say otherwise." Luna snarled in my mind. Fight back! do not let them do this! But I was so tired. So tired of fighting. So tired of trying. So tired of being nothing. "Fine," I said quietly. "I'll go to the ball. But after that, I amdone. With all of you." I pulled my arm free from my father's grip and walked out of the kitchen. Behind me, Isabel's crying stopped. I heard her whisper something to Declan. I heard them laugh. I made it to the bathroom before I broke down. I locked the door and sank to the floor. My hand was bleeding. When did that happen? I looked down and saw a cut across my palm. I must have grabbed the broken glass without realizing it. The pain felt distant. Like it was happening to someone else. I stared at my hand and watched the blood drip onto the white tile. Everything was falling apart. And I had no idea how to fix it. But deep down, in a place I did not want to look at, I knew the truth. I did not want to fix it. I wanted to run.