4 Alphas, 1 True Mate

Chapter 8: The Unwanted Bride

Emma's POV:

"I can give it back!" Nora says quickly. Too quickly. "Of course I can. I'll move my things right now—"

"No." The word comes out flat. Empty. "It's fine. I'll take another room."

"The guest rooms are all—" Caleb trails off. Uncomfortable.

"Being renovated," Father finishes. "We were planning to expand. So the only available space is—"

"The servant's quarters." Mother's voice is small. Apologetic. "Just for tonight. Just until we can arrange something better."

I stare at them.

My family. The people who are supposed to protect me. Love me. Fight for me.

They can't even give me my own room back.

"That's fine," I hear myself say. "The servant's room is fine."

Mother looks relieved. "Wonderful. It's clean. Comfortable. You'll barely notice—"

"I'm sure."

I climb the stairs. Each step feels heavier than the last.

At the landing, I pause.

The hallway is different. New paintings on the walls. But not new—familiar. I squint at one.

It's a family portrait. Recent.

Father. Mother. Caleb. Nora.

Four people smiling at the camera.

No space for a fifth.

'They replaced me. They actually replaced me.'

I keep walking. Past my old bedroom. The door is open.

Inside, everything is different. Pink instead of blue. Nora's clothes scattered across my bed. Her perfume heavy in the air.

My desk—the one I used to study at—is covered in her makeup. My bookshelf holds her romance novels instead of my histories.

Even my old stuffed bear—the one I've had since I was six—sits on her dresser. Forgotten.

'She took everything. Everything that was mine.'

"Emma?" Nora appears beside me. "Are you okay?"

I turn. Look at her.

Really look at her.

She's wearing one of my dresses. The blue one I loved. The one that used to fit perfectly.

On her, it's loose in the chest. Tight in the hips.

"That's my dress," I say quietly.

Nora glances down. Has the grace to look embarrassed.

"Oh. I—I thought since you weren't coming back—"

"I understand." I don't. But what else is there to say?

I continue down the hall. To the servant's quarters at the end.

The room is small. Barely bigger than a closet. A single bed. A tiny window.

Nothing like the spacious bedroom I grew up in.

I close the door. Lock it.

The silence is deafening.

I sink onto the bed. It creaks under my weight.

'This isn't right. Something isn't right.'

My family hugged me. Cried with me. Said they were grateful I'm alive.

But their eyes—

Their eyes were calculating. Worried. Almost—

Almost annoyed.

Like my return is an inconvenience. A problem to solve.

'They've moved on. Without me. They built a new life where I don't exist.'

And now I'm back. Disrupting everything.

I pull my knees to my chest.

Tomorrow. Tomorrow I'll see Alpha Nathan.

Tomorrow I'll have to explain everything.

Tomorrow I'll face—

'Evan.'

My fiancé. The man I was supposed to marry.

The man who was supposed to love me. Protect me. Come for me.

He didn't.

'What do I even say to him? How do I look him in the eye after—after everything?'

Lucian's voice echoes in my memory. "If he loved you, he would have already come."

I shake my head. Force the thought away.

'Evan will understand. He'll be furious. He'll demand justice. He'll—'

But what if he doesn't?

What if he looks at me the way my family did? Like I'm damaged. Ruined. Tainted.

What if he can smell Lucian on me and—

My stomach turns.

I curl tighter. Press my face into my knees.

Outside, the house is quiet. My family settling into their beds. In their rooms. Living their lives.

Without me.

I'm home.

But somehow, I've never felt more alone.

***

The Next Day

The walk to Alpha Nathan's estate feels endless.

Father leads. Mother stays close to my left side. Caleb walks behind me like a guard.

No one speaks.

My stomach twists.

Mother smooths my hair. Again. She's done it five times since we left the house.

"Remember what we discussed," she whispers. "Be respectful. Don't raise your voice. Let your father handle the talking."

I nod. My throat is too tight to speak.

Alpha Nathan appears first. Tall. Broad-shouldered. His gray hair swept back. Luna Margaret follows—elegant in a silk dress, her expression carefully neutral.

Behind them, Evan.

My heart stops.

He looks the same. Sandy hair. Warm brown eyes. The strong jaw I used to trace with my fingers.

Those eyes lock on me.

Shock floods his face. His mouth opens. Closes. Opens again.

"Emma?" The word is barely a whisper.

I can't speak. Can't breathe.

"Alpha Nathan. Luna Margaret." Father steps forward. Bows. "Thank you for seeing us on such short notice."

"Of course." Nathan's gaze never leaves me.

"Emma." Nathan's voice is gentle. "We're glad to see you alive. We all thought—we were told you were dead."

"I was taken," I manage. "Six months ago. Rogues kidnapped me from the meadow."

Nathan's jaw tightens. "We searched. For weeks. We found nothing."

"They sold me." The words scrape out. "To Red Claw Pack."

The room goes silent.

Luna Margaret's face pales. Evan's head snaps toward me.

"Red Claw?" Nathan stands slowly. "You were in Red Claw territory for six months?"

I nod.

"Who—" His voice hardens. "Who took you?"

"Lucian Hale."

Evan makes a sound. Strangled. Broken.

Nathan's hands curl into fists. "That bastard. That spoiled, vicious—" He stops. Forces control back into his voice. "What did he do to you?"

I can't answer. Can't force the words out.

Mother's hand finds mine. Squeezes.

"He kept her prisoner," Father says quietly. "Against her will. For the entire six months."

Nathan's eyes close briefly. When they open, fury burns there.

"We'll demand justice." His voice is steel. "We'll send a delegation. We'll make Red Claw answer for this. Lucian Hale will pay—"

"With what leverage?" Luna Margaret's voice cuts through the room like ice.

Everyone turns.

She sits perfectly still. Perfectly composed. Her expression unchanged.

"Red Claw is the most powerful pack on the continent," she continues. Each word measured. Precise. "They have three times our warriors. Ten times our resources. And Lucian Hale is their heir apparent."

"He committed a crime," Nathan snaps. "He kidnapped and imprisoned—"

"A girl who was taken by rogues." Margaret's gaze slides to me. Cold. Assessing. "Red Claw will claim they rescued her. That Lucian was merely... keeping her safe until she could be returned."

My hands ball into fists.

"That's a lie," I say. My voice shakes but I force it steady. "He didn't rescue me. He bought me. He—"

"Can you prove it?" Margaret's question lands like a slap.

I stare at her.

"Do you have witnesses?" she presses. "Documentation? Evidence beyond your word?"

"I—" My throat closes. "No. But—"

"Then it's your word against the heir of Red Claw Pack." She turns to Nathan. "I also heard something concerning. The eldest Hale son has returned."

Nathan's face goes white.

"Ethan Hale?" Caleb's voice is sharp. "He's back?"

"Three days ago." Margaret's tone is matter-of-fact. "The reports say he's... changed. Twelve years at the Spartan Academy. They say he's become the strongest warrior on the continent. That he could destroy an entire pack single-handedly."

Silence crashes down.

"You're suggesting we do nothing?" Nathan's voice is dangerous. Quiet.

"I'm suggesting we think strategically." Margaret stands. Smooths her dress. "Emma's ordeal was terrible. Tragic. But starting a war with Red Claw over it—" She pauses. Looks at me. "Is one woman worth the lives of our entire pack?"

Rage floods my veins.

"One woman?" I stand. My chair scrapes back. "I'm a person. Not a political inconvenience—"

"Emma." Father's hand grips my arm. Warning.

"Your father is right." Margaret's gaze is steel. "You should consider your position carefully."

"My position?" The words rip out. "What about Lucian's position? What about justice?"

"Justice?" Margaret's expression doesn't change. "You were gone for six months. In Red Claw territory. With Lucian Hale." Her eyes rake over me. "You've lost your purity. Your innocence. Your value as a potential Luna."

The words hit like physical blows.

"Mother—" Evan finally speaks. His voice is strained.

"I'm merely stating facts." Margaret turns to Nathan. "Our son was engaged to a respectable Beta's daughter. That arrangement was beneficial. But now—" She gestures at me. "The situation has changed."

"The situation?" I can barely form words. "I was kidnapped. Imprisoned. Raped—"

"Lower your voice." Margaret's tone sharpens. "Hysterics won't help anyone."

"I'm not being hysterical—"

"You don't even have your wolf." The words drop like stones. "I can't sense her at all. What kind of Luna candidate can't shift?"

Heat floods my face. Shame crashes over me in waves.

"She's weak," I hear myself say. "From six months of—"

"From six months with another Alpha's son." Margaret's expression is pitying. False. "I'm sorry, Emma. Truly. But you're no longer suitable to be the future Luna of Silver Moon Pack."

Nathan's face goes red. "Margaret—"

"The engagement between Evan and Emma," Margaret continues, her voice final, "Must Be Cancelled."