CH.3

MAYA

The arranged car pulled smoothly up to the curb of the mansion, the lights in the house were on.

I limped up the driveway, finding the door unlocked.

I pushed the front door open and what greeted me was soft, feminine laughter echoing from the master bedroom.

I walked toward the sound. Every step shot fire through my side, but the cold rage burning in my chest pushed me forward until I stood before the master bedroom’s door.

One kick from me sent it wide open with a loud bang.

Kyle was shirtless on our bed, his arm wrapped tightly around Harper.

They both froze.

Then Harper sat up, disgust contorting her beautiful features. “Ugh. You’re still alive.”

Kyle sighed, clearly irritated. “That idiot doctor promised me you’d bleed out on the table.”

I stared at them without tears. The Maya who would've cried died on that operating table.

“You look disappointed.” My voice came out flat, completely devoid of emotion.

“Since you refused to die gracefully,” Kyle said coldly as he picked up a file from the nightstand and tossed it on the floor near my feet.

“Sign them!” He leaned back on the pillows casually. “We got what we needed. I have no more use for a worthless Omega.”

Kyle tapped his palm. “I only married you to trick you into donating a kidney to the woman I love. My true mate. Harper.”

‘My true mate. Harper.'

Those words echoed in the quiet room, churning my stomach violently.

My knees nearly gave out but I as a raw, gaping hole tore open in my chest, completely eclipsing the agony of my stitched abdomen.

He had spent months carefully molding my trust, making me fall completely in love with him, just so he could coax me on an operating table.

I dragged a trembling hand over the thick bandages on my side, bile rising in my throat.

I gave him my absolute devotion, and he only saw me as livestock. A spare part for the woman he actually wanted.

He butchered me on our wedding night, and I had thanked him for the privilege.

Harper smiled, tracing a finger down her stomach. “Yes. I’m his fated mate, and I’m carrying his child. Thanks for the kidney, though.”

I looked down at the divorce agreement.

“You plotted this from the beginning.” I met his gaze directly. “The job. The dating. The proposal. All of it to harvest my kidney for your mate.”

Harper smirked. “You finally figured it out. I ruined my kidneys partying, needed a new one. Kyle had his people dig through medical records and found you.”

Kyle sneered. “You were an easy target, Maya. Desperate for affection. A pathetic nobody with no family to ask questions if you died.”

A dark, humorless laugh escaped my lips.

They were wrong if they expected me to break down and cry about a broken heart.

“You're right.” I stepped fully into the room. “I was an easy target. But you made one mistake.”

Kyle frowned. “What are you talking about.”

I kicked the divorce papers away. “I'll sign the divorce papers. But you have to give me my kidney back first.”

Heavy silence filled the room.

Harper gripped the bedsheets, her smug smile vanishing.

“What did you just say?” Kyle stood up, his eyes darkening with an Alpha’s deadly warning.

I didn't back down. “You heard me. Cut her open and give it back. Then I'll leave.”

“You’re insane!” Harper scrambled backward until her back hit the headboard. “That’s mine now!”

Kyle was livid.

He marched across the room and grabbed my arm in a tight grip. “Get out of my house!”

“It was never your house!” I twisted my arm violently. “You bought it with my kidney! Give it back!”

I lunged toward the bed, my hands reaching for Harper who shrieked in panic and kicked out.

Her foot slammed directly into my healing incision and blinding agony exploded in my abdomen.

I collapsed to the floor, gasping for air.

“Bitch!” Kyle grabbed a handful of my hair.

“I'll kill you both! I'll take back everything you stole!” I clawed at his hands as he dragged me down the hallway, my fingernails scratching uselessly at the floor.

Kyle opened the front door and hurled me into the freezing rain that had begun to pour at some point.

I hit the wet pavement hard.

Kyle stood in the doorway, staring down at me with contempt. “You’re dead for this. I'll make sure of it!”

The heavy oak door slammed shut with that threat.

Rain instantly soaked through my sweater.

I curled into a ball on the concrete, warm blood seeping through my bandages and staining the dark fabric, mixing with the puddles forming around me.

I refused to give up. I refused to let them win. So, I forced myself up and stumbled down the lonely street.

The streetlights flickered overhead under the gloomy weather.

Then I heard sudden footsteps splashing in the puddles. Soon, three figures dressed in black closed the distance between us.

Panic spiked in my chest.

Kyle had meant his threat. He sent them to finish the job the surgeon failed to do.

I tried to run, but my legs gave out, sending me kissing the ground hard.

The men surrounded me.

One of them yanked my head back, another pulling out a long, serrated knife from his jacket.

“Alpha Kyle and Luna Harper send their regards.” The man grinned wickedly, raising the blade without a preamble. They acted swift and merciless.

'This is really the end.' My body went completely limp, too weak to fight.

Just when I’d given up hope, a roaring engine shattered the dreadful moment as blinding headlights swept across the alley.

The man holding the knife moved swiftly, wanting to finish the job, but the sound of gunshots echoed through the rain. Then everything went quiet, save for the purr of engines coming to a stop near where I lay shivering on the wet pavement, my vision blurred.

Strong arms lifted me from the freezing ground and a thick, warm coat draped over my shoulders, shielding my soaked sweater from the biting wind.

“You're safe now.” The deep, commanding voice rumbled close to my ear.

I forced my heavy eyelids open, my breath hitching when I found Alpha Dorian looking down at me.

“I'm glad you survived little wolf.” He wiped a streak of mud from my cheek, a faint, dangerous smirk curving his lips. “It would have been a tragic waste to lose my future wife before our game even began.”