Chapter 4. A She Wolf Scorned

* Zeina *

"No!"

The word ripped from my throat like a dying scream, raw and desperate. I shot up in bed, breath hitching violently, sweat slicking my skin. My lungs begged for air that refused to come fast enough. My heart pounded like war drums in my chest, frantic and hollow. My fists clenched the bedsheets so hard my knuckles turned white, and I stared into the dim room as if expecting the nightmare to still be there, still unfolding before my eyes.

But it wasn't.

Instead, the familiar scent of cedarwood and worn leather wrapped around me like a cruel embrace. The sheets were soft. The room was still. I was back in the master's bedroom. In his room. In our room. And yet, it no longer felt like mine.

"Your Majesty?"

The gentle voice pulled me back from the edge. I turned slowly to see Donna seated nearby, perched on the velvet-upholstered chair like a bird afraid to move. Her eyes were wide with concern, and her fingers twisted the hem of her blouse again and again like a child hiding a secret.

Her kindness only deepened the ache in my chest.

I couldn't speak yet. I couldn't breathe without tasting the memory.

Celine.

Even just thinking her name felt like a dagger being dragged down my spine. The she-wolf Robert had brought into our lives like some treasured guest. Like some gift. His gift to himself. The woman he'd chosen while I was still standing there still hoping, still loving, still holding on.

The betrayal wasn't just fresh. It was bleeding.

"I—" My voice cracked. I tried again. "Where is Robert?"

Donna's lips pressed into a thin line. Her eyes softened with pity and it made me want to scream. Pity made everything worse. Pity meant I was right to feel broken.

"He... he left after he brought you here, Your Majesty." She hesitated, eyes flicking downward. "And... the rogue she-wolf... she's staying in the guestroom. Next to the master's chambers."

The words didn't register at first.

When they did, I froze.

Next to our room. That she wolf is here!

"What!?" I gasped, every syllable laced with disbelief. Rage and hurt collided in my chest, tearing through me like a storm. My hands trembled at my sides, the heat of anger drowning out the cold pit of despair.

"He moved her there after... after we left the dungeons," Donna said quietly. "I'm sorry, Your Majesty."

"No," I whispered, shaking my head. "Don't apologize, Donna. You didn't betray me."

I swung my legs off the bed and stood, ignoring the burning in my legs and the way my body protested. Pain lanced through my chest, but I welcomed it, it meant I was still alive.

I was hurting. I was furious. But more than anything, I wasn't going to sit in this bed like some discarded thing while she crept further into the life that used to be mine.

"I'm going to see her."

Donna stood abruptly, alarm in her voice. "Please don't, Your Majesty. I don't like this. Nothing good will come from confronting her now."

I looked at her, my voice shaking with passion. "I can't just lie here while she moves in. While she fills the spaces I created. I will not let her take this from me. If I have to fight her to the death I will."

I stormed from the room, Donna's pleas fading behind me. The hallways of the Alpha House, once warm and familiar, now seemed foreign, hostile, even. The very air had changed, as if the walls themselves were mourning me.

When I reached the guestroom door, I didn't knock to ask. I tapped, to warn. Then I pushed the door open.

There she was.

Sitting in front of a mirror, her back to me, a servant carefully combing her hair as if she were a princess instead of a parasite. The servant, one I knew well, looked up and froze, then dropped her gaze respectfully.

"Luna Zeina," she said softly, bowing. "Good day."

"Leave us."

I didn't say her name. I wouldn't.

The servant fled the room.

Celine turned to me, rising to her full height. Taller than me. She made sure I noticed.

"You're here, Luna Zeina," she said with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "I'm so glad you're alright. We were all worried when you fainted in the dungeons."

Her voice dripped with false sweetness, like poison laced with honey. I could see the satisfaction gleaming in her eyes beneath that mask of concern. She didn't care. She never did.

"You don't belong here," I snapped. "You were a rogue yesterday. A prisoner. Today you sit in my home, in a room beside my bed, with servants brushing your hair like you're some honored guest. You think this is yours now?"

"I don't think, Luna," she replied calmly, arms crossing over her chest. "I know. Robert brought me here because he wants me. He's taking me as his mate. You may still hold the title of Luna, but we both know titles mean nothing when the Alpha has already chosen someone else."

She smiled again. That infuriating, serene smile. It pushed me past reason.

Before I could stop myself, I strode across the room and slapped her. The sound cracked like a whip through the air. She gasped, her hand flying to her cheek as her eyes filled with sudden tears.

But I didn't feel guilt. Not yet.

I squared my stance, ready for her retaliation.

But she didn't strike back.

Instead, she whispered, trembling, "You hit me..."

And then the door opened.

"Darling!"

Robert's voice, warm and low, for her.

I turned, breath catching. "Robert?"

He didn't look at me the way he used to. Not with tenderness. Not with longing.

He looked at me like I was the problem.

"She hit me," Celine said softly, turning to him with a look of wounded innocence. "I was only trying to speak kindly with her."

"Zeina," Robert said sharply. "Why did you do that? Why are you acting this way? She came here in peace. I wanted you two to talk, to understand each other. We have to make this work."

I stared at him, heart shattering with each word.

"You want me to understand this?" I asked. "You want me to accept that you've brought another woman into our life, our home? That I'm supposed to sit quietly while she takes my place one room at a time?"

He clenched his jaw, his voice cold. "I want peace. I want unity. And she's staying."

I stepped back, numbness flooding my limbs.

"And what about me, Robert?" My voice was barely a whisper. "Where do I stay?"

He said nothing.

And in that silence, I realized I had already been pushed out. Not from the house, but from his heart.