Chapter 3 Alpha King Alaric

Tessa's POV

"I have decided to leave him and this pack." I said, my voice steady. "I need your permission, Alpha Jason."

His brow furrowed, the lines on his face deepening. "Did Jasper... do something to hurt you?"

The question cut deeper than it should have. My throat tightened, but I forced myself to hold his gaze. "He's my mate. But I can't force him to love me."

Jason sighed, leaning back in his chair, clearly torn. He had always treated me with more kindness than my own father ever had. "Would you consider giving my foolish son one more chance?"

I almost laughed. A bitter, broken laugh. One more chance? How many more did he need? He had already taken three years' worth of them and shattered me again last night in front of the entire pack.

"But he—" I began, but Jason raised a hand, interrupting me.

"Actually I just received a royal decree."

He slid a document across the desk. The parchment looked too heavy, the golden seal of the Alpha King glinting under the light. My stomach turned as I unfolded it, scanning the words.

"Alpha King Alaric intends to marry Beta Marcus's daughter." Jason's voice was even, but I caught the slight hesitation, the concern lacing his tone. "Bianca is the only unmated female in your family. I've already notified your father."

For a moment, the words didn't make sense. My brain lagged behind my eyes, refusing to process what I was reading. Then the meaning slammed into me like a punch.

"King Alaric?" My voice cracked in disbelief. "The one cursed by witches? The one who's not expected to live past thirty?"

Jason nodded slowly. "That's him. They say he's brutal with she-wolves."

Alpha King's images flared in my mind—rumors of torn throats, his brides who never showed again after stepping into his palace, the way his name was whispered like a warning.

But when I lifted my eyes to Jason's, my fear burned into something else. Maybe it was a chance for me.

"Alpha Jason," I said firmly. "I want one thing from you."

He blinked, startled, clearly not expecting resolve instead of pleading.

***

The Ashford estate was colder than I remembered. The air always smelled faintly of polished wood and expensive wine, but no amount of luxury could soften the cruelty housed within its walls.

My father Marcus sat stiffly in his chair, a glass of scotch sweating in his hand. My stepmother Gloria lounged beside him in silk, her lips already curled in disdain the moment I walked in.

"What?" Marcus's voice thundered, breaking the silence. "You'll marry King Alaric in Bianca's place?"

"Yes." My answer cut through the air, sharp as steel.

He sat up straighter, staring at me like I'd gone mad. "You'd give up your fated mate Jasper... just to marry a dying tyrant?"

Gloria's brows pinched, genuine surprise flickering across her face. "I thought being Jasper's Luna was all you ever wanted."

Her words stabbed like a blade. Once, they would've been true. Once, I would have clung to the dream of being Jasper's Luna until my hands bled. But not anymore.

Last night's memory rose unbidden, dragging me under.

Through my bedroom window, I'd seen them. Jasper at the gate, his arms wrapped around Bianca as though she were air itself, something he couldn't survive without.

"Bianca," he whispered, his voice thick with devotion, "you saved me. I swear to the Moon Goddess, I'll only love you."

Her head tilted against his chest, coy but quiet. "What about your mate, Tessa?"

He hesitated only a breath. "Once I'm Alpha, I'll reject her."

Then he kissed her, long and deep, as though sealing his vow with her lips.

The sight had hollowed me out completely. It wasn't the first time he betrayed me, but it was the final one.

I blinked back to the present, my eyes cold, my voice steadier than ever. "I don't want Jasper anymore. I'll reject him."

Marcus and Gloria exchanged a stunned glance, their disbelief slowly softening into something else. Approval. Greed.

Gloria's lips curved, her eyes gleaming like a snake's. Marcus leaned forward, scotch forgotten.

"But," I said, letting my tone sharpen, "I have one condition."

Marcus narrowed his eyes, suspicion flickering. "What condition?"

I held his gaze, unflinching. "I want my mother's entire inheritance. Every cent. Cash. All of it."

The words hit him like a blow. His face froze, then shifted between shock and anger. "Tessa! How dare you..."

But I cut him off with a smirk, my lips curling in mockery. "Ten million dollars. To buy your precious little daughter's future. Fair trade, isn't it?"

Gloria's gasp echoed through the room, and Marcus's scotch glass cracked in his grip.

But I didn't flinch.