The Cursed Alpha’s Second Chance Mate

Rhea’s POV I tried to scream, but my head was underwater. Literally. My lungs felt heavy, too heavy, as the pressure pressed so hard it felt like they would burst. “You good-for-nothing bitch. I hate you. I fucking curse the moon goddess for making you my mate,” Theon’s voice vibrated through the room. I thrashed, clawing at anything, trying to make a sound, but only gurgles escaped me from beneath the water. “Who do you think you are to question me? Huh? Do I look like I give a damn about your feelings, you useless whore?” He pushed harder. The sharp sting of wolf’s bane seared through the water and into my skin. I had heard drowning was one of the most painful ways to die. Add wolf’s bane to it and it was worse. Much worse. My head spun; stars blossomed across my vision. This was it, the end. Just when I thought I could not hold on any longer, Theon yanked my hair and slammed my head onto the floorboard. I was too numb to feel the impact at first. I greedily inhaled air, p

Rhea’s POV “Speak to me, baby.” I rushed, cupping her cheeks in my palms. “Please. Mummy’s here. Breathe.” I rocked her back and forth until my whole body shook like a leaf in a wild storm. “Help me. Help us.” The words tore from me, raw and unfiltered, a sound that did not feel like mine. Freye was having one of her episodes. “M… M… M…” Freye panted. Her breath thinned and thinned until it barely sounded like anything at all. Her eyes rolled up as if the world were scraping clean from her skull. Her skin was fever-hot. It felt like molten iron under my hands. “Quick, the hibiscus powder.” The remedy was only temporary, a scarce, expensive salve Healer Jarris had recommended to pull air back into her trapped lungs. We had spent a fortune on rare medicines and tonics to keep her alive. I would spend everything and more for my child. Never would I give up. “No, my lady, it is not working.” Liema’s voice trembled. My heart tripped. This was not like any episode before. Freye co

Rhea’s POV “My lady, please, don’t do this to yourself.” Liema set a cold plate on the bedside. “She’s not waking up.” The words ripped free. Tears fell. I had prayed until my throat was raw and fasted three days—penance and promise—refusing food until Freye opened her eyes. Still she lay pale and heavy as stone. Liema smoothed my hair. “It might be better for her this way,” she said softly. “Unconsciousness can be a mercy. She does not feel the pain. Think of it as rest for a wound.” For a moment that idea sounded like shelter. Then the fear returned: how to keep my child safe when I had nothing left to trade? It’s been three days already, and I had avoided Theon like a sickness. I stroked Freye’s hair and told brighter stories. I had imagined slipping away under moonlight with her, but the truth was brutal: the medication that kept her breathing came through Theon. He paid suppliers and the Healer. In small, suffocating ways he controlled our survival, and that is why I

Rhea My throat constricted as Alpha Malric’s lips curved into a knowing smirk. His head tilted slightly, and for the first time, I noticed the flicker of light in his eyes, like a dying flame refusing to go out.“Interesting,” he murmured. His voice was low, deep enough to vibrate through my chest, each syllable dragging like velvet over glass.Then, with deliberate slowness, he rose to his full height. My breath caught. He was tall — impossibly so — and the moment he stood, everything near him seemed to shrink in comparison.His voice was calm, but there was a dangerous edge to it, What are you?” His tone wasn’t curious. It was predatory.The blue in his iris flashed, catching the lightbulb as he studied me with unbearable focus. “For you to stand before me… to defy me…”“I— No, I…” The words stumbled out uselessly, tumbling from my tongue like I’d forgotten how to speak. Maybe I had. Because the stories were true, just his presence alone was enough to make the ground shift beneath

Alpha Malric’s POVInhaling sharply, the room seemed to bleed red.I smashed the nearest object. Wood splintered under my fists. Not enough.“Damn it.” I closed my eyes. Rhea’s face flashed through my mind, her eyes, her lips… and blood. Heat rushed through me, desire gnawing at control as I felt blood rush to my groin. My erection straining against the fabric. My wolf stirred beneath my skin, claws raking at my sanity. Hunger clawed through me, insatiable and vicious. I groaned, hands pressing against my throbbing head. This shouldn’t be happening. This wasn’t happening.“Do it,” my wolf growled. “You know you want to.”“I said stay back,” I snapped. Control clawed at me like a leash. But I couldn't. Her scent knocked me to my feet, her scent made me a weak man. “Why fight me?” His voice was everywhere. It sounded like it was always. Dark, amused, and viscious. “She’d be… perfect for you.” I knew what was happening here, he was trying to provoke me. I froze, fists tightening. “She