The Alpha's Exiled Mate Chapter 236

Freya’s POV

My eyes widened in shock. Kaelin Brooks, the perfect future Luna, Thorne's fiancée... was sleeping with this Beta wolf? The implications were staggering. If Thorne knew his chosen mate was unfaithful—with a Beta, no less—it would destroy their alliance.

Before I could process this revelation further, the conversation in the other room shifted. There was movement, the creak of a bed, and then sounds that confirmed my suspicions beyond any doubt. Kaelin's breathy moans and the Beta's grunts filled the small cabin, making me wince with embarrassment and disgust.

I turned away as best I could with my restraints, trying to block out the sounds. My mind raced with this new information. Kaelin was not only unfaithful to Thorne but was actively plotting against him. The question was: what did she hope to achieve?

The noises from the other room continued for what felt like an eternity, though it couldn't have been more than half an hour. Eventually, they subsided, replaced by murmured conversation too quiet for even my wolf ears to catch.

I quickly closed my eyes, feigning unconsciousness. If they came to check on me, I didn't want them to know I'd overheard their conversation—or what followed it.

Sure enough, moments later, the door creaked open. I kept my breathing slow and even, my body limp against the hard floor.

"Still out cold," the Beta wolf's voice observed.

"Good," Kaelin replied. "Let's wake her up."

Before I could prepare myself, ice-cold water splashed across my face and chest, shocking me into gasping alertness. I blinked rapidly, sputtering and shaking water from my eyes as I glared up at my captors.

Kaelin stood over me, an empty bucket in her hands and a cruel smile on her face. The Beta wolf lounged in the doorway, watching with amused interest. Up close, I could see that he was handsome in a rough way, with dark hair and the muscular build of a fighter.

"Welcome back, Freya," Kaelin said, setting the bucket aside. "I hope you enjoyed your nap."

I struggled to sit up, the silver chains making every movement painful. "Where's Ethan?" I demanded, my voice hoarse. "You promised you wouldn't hurt him if I came with you."

Kaelin laughed, the sound sharp and brittle. "Oh, Freya. Always so concerned about family. It's touching, really."

"Where is he?" I repeated, trying to keep the desperation from my voice.

Kaelin exchanged an amused look with the Beta wolf. "Why don't we show her, Derek?"

The Beta—Derek—nodded and disappeared back through the doorway. Kaelin crouched down to my level, her perfectly manicured fingers reaching out to brush wet hair from my face. I jerked away from her touch.

"You know," she said conversationally, "I've always wondered what it is about you that fascinates Thorne so much. You're not particularly beautiful. Your family is disgraced. You have no status, no power." Her fingers suddenly dug into my jaw, forcing me to look at her. "Yet he can't seem to forget you."

The door opened again, and Derek returned with another person—a man with silver-blonde hair and familiar features that made my heart leap with hope. He looked exactly like the man in the video, down to the silver collar around his neck.

"Ethan?" I whispered, straining against my chains.

The man looked at me with blank eyes, no recognition in his gaze.

"Not quite," Kaelin said with a laugh. "Meet Colin. He's one of our pack's most talented mimics. Show her, Colin."

The man straightened up, and before my eyes, his posture and expression transformed. Suddenly, he looked exactly like my brother—the same proud tilt of his chin, the same way of standing with his weight on his right foot.

"Hello, little sister," he said, and the voice was eerily similar to Ethan's.

Horror washed over me as I realized I'd been tricked. "You lied," I whispered, looking up at Kaelin. "You don't have my brother."

Kaelin's smile widened. "Your brother slipped through our fingers months ago," she admitted. "Even we don't know where he is now. But Colin here has been studying Ethan Riley for years. His scent, his mannerisms, his voice... everything. He can become Ethan whenever we need him to."

Rage boiled up inside me. I'd walked into their trap for nothing. Ethan wasn't here. He wasn't in danger—at least not from Kaelin.

"You bitch," I snarled, my wolf rising closer to the surface despite the silver's suppression.

Kaelin's expression hardened. Without warning, she shifted partially—her nails extending into claws, her teeth sharpening to points. Before I could react, she lifted her foot—now sporting a designer boot with a spiked heel—and brought it down hard on my hand.

Pain shot up my arm as the heel dug into my flesh. I bit back a scream, refusing to give her the satisfaction.

"You should watch your tone," she said mildly, as if she weren't grinding her heel into my hand. "After all, everything that happened to your family is your fault."

"My fault?" I gasped through the pain. "You're insane."

Kaelin increased the pressure, and I couldn't help the whimper that escaped my lips. "If you hadn't interfered with my relationship with Thorne, none of this would have happened."

She finally removed her foot, but the relief was short-lived. As I tried to cradle my injured hand, she circled around me like a predator toying with its prey. I twisted to keep her in my sight, unwilling to expose my back to her.

The movement caused my shirt to ride up slightly, revealing the crescent birthmark on the side of my neck. Kaelin's eyes narrowed at the sight of it, her lip curling in disgust.

"That bloodline mark makes me sick," she spat, her voice thick with hatred. "The precious Riley lineage. You think it makes you special?"

Before I could reply, her foot connected with my lower back, sending me sprawling. The silver chains twisted painfully around my limbs, burning wherever they touched bare skin. I couldn't shift to protect myself—couldn't even call on my wolf's strength to withstand the assault.

"You know why I hate you so much?" Kaelin asked, circling me again. "Three years ago, I worked very hard to provoke you. To make you angry. To guide you into attacking me."

I stared up at her, confusion mixing with the pain. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, come on, Freya," she said, her voice dripping with condescension. "You didn't really think our little 'confrontation' was an accident, did you? It was all planned. Every word, every insult—all calculated to make you lose control."

My mind reeled, trying to process what she was saying. That confrontation had led to my exile—to three years in Silver Shackle Prison, to the loss of everything I held dear.

"But why?" I asked, genuinely bewildered. "Why go to such lengths?"

Kaelin's eyes gleamed with malice. "Because Thorne was slipping away from me. He was spending more time with you, looking at you with those eyes..." She trailed off, her expression darkening. "I had to do something."

A terrible suspicion began to form in my mind. "But I smelled it," I said slowly. "When you claimed I attacked you and caused you to lose your pregnancy. I smelled the hormones. You were actually carrying a wolf cub—that's not something that can be faked."

Kaelin's smile was cold and triumphant. "No, it can't be faked."

"So you were actually pregnant?" I asked, confusion clouding my thoughts.

"Yes, I was carrying a child," she confirmed, her voice oddly flat despite the momentous admission.