Bite Me Alpha

Elara

“Die, traitor.”

Alpha Magnus Thorn’s voice is steady—too steady—as the silver blade slides between my father’s ribs. I hear the wet sound it makes. A sick, final sound. And I swear it echoes through the entire marble hall.

My father—Jared Wilder—doesn’t even scream.

His body jerks forward as the blade slides out.

Blood spills across his white shirt like ink soaking into paper.

But that’s not what breaks me.

It’s the way Alpha Magnus casually wipes the blood on my father’s shirt. His own shirt. Like my father—Beta Jarad Wilder of the Crescent Moon pack—was nothing more than dirt beneath his boots. He flicks his wrist as if shaking off water and turns to the watching crowd with a calmness that makes me want to vomit.

“Treason,” he says to the watching crowd, brushing a speck of red from his sleeve. “Always deserves a personal touch.”

The moment turns glassy. My ears ring. My legs wobble.

Dad.

No. No, no, no—this isn’t happening. This can’t be real.

My father was loyal.

He was strong.

He never—never—would have turned against the pack.

“Lies,” I whisper, shaking my head. “He’s not a traitor. He’s not!”

But then Magnus lifts his head to read the screen. “Signed documents, detailing an alliance with the rogue packs,” he says readingthe text. “Beta Jarad intended to overthrow me. He would’ve sold us all to the wild wolves outside our borders.”

“No,” I breathe. “No, he—he didn’t…” I yelled.

“Dad!” My voice cracks as I try to run to him—but I freeze mid-step.

“Elara, freeze.”

The command lands like a slap against my soul.

My body locks, stiff and trembling.

A command.

An Alpha’s command.

I scream inside my head. My wolf thrashes in panic, wanting to break through, but the magic is too strong.

Across the glassy floor of the modern, high-ceilinged castle hall, I see the pack watching from their seats—wolves I’ve grown up beside. My friends. My neighbors. My people.

No one moves.

No one helps.

And then—

My mother’s scream.

A piercing, soul-breaking sound that sends goosebumps crawling up my arms. “Jared!” she sobs as two guards grab her arms and drag her forward. “Don’t do this—please!”

Her nails scrape against the tiles as she struggles, crying, kicking. “Let me go! My husband is not a traitor!”

Her voice cracks. She sounds like she’s choking on her own breath.

And I can’t even reach her.

“Mom!” I shout, but the Alpha’s hold doesn’t break.

Tears stream down my face. “Let her go! Stop this!”

From the side of the room, one of the elders stands and holds up a tablet, displaying forged files. “Here are the documents. All signed by Jared Wilder—proof of his betrayal.”

I stare at the screen.

His signature is there. Perfect.

Too perfect.

I blink. “That’s not real…” My voice trembles. “That’s not his—he never—he wouldn’t!”

I look to Dominic.

He’s standing near the front, his face pale, jaw tight. He doesn’t look at me.

“Dominic!” I call out, shaking. “Please—say something! Make it stop!”

He’s my mate.

He’s supposed to protect me.

He doesn’t move.

His fists are clenched, his lips pressed tight. And that’s when I realize…

He’s letting this happen.

My heart shatters in my chest.

Beside him, Serena—my best friend—sobs into her hands. Her mascara runs down her cheeks as she hiccups for breath. “Elara,” she whispers, shaking her head like this is too much for her.

But she won’t say anything.

She can’t.

Speaking up would get her in trouble—because of me.

Oh, Goddess.

I’m alone.

The guards force my mother up the marble steps of the platform where my father now lies motionless, blood pooling beneath him.

She struggles, but they shove her to her knees beside him.

Her eyes search the hall—wild, pleading—until they find mine.

“Elara,” she cries out.

My name feels like it rips out of her throat.

I scream. I thrash. I fight.

My eyes find my father’s body again. And just as they start to drag my mother up, I see his eyes flicker open one last time.

They find mine.

And he mouths one word—

“Survive.”

Everything inside me shatters.

My mother is pushed to her knees. The executioner was ready.

I can’t let this happen.

I won’t.

My wolf growls louder than ever before. The Alpha command still holds—but I feel something deeper now. A power I’ve never felt. A heat that boils in my blood.

My fingers twitch.

Then my legs.

And then—

Snap.

The Alpha’s control over me shatters in an instant, like glass under fire.

My wolf howls, rising in full force inside me. Her power roars through my blood, raw and untamed.

I move.

I tear forward, ignoring the cries behind me. “Mom! Hold on—I’m coming!”

The executioner lifts his blade, ready to strike.

“No!” I scream. “Don’t touch her!”

I leap up the steps—faster than I’ve ever moved in my life. My claws unsheathe, my body surging with wild, desperate strength.

I’m inches away when—

Arms wrap around me, yanking me back mid-air.

“No—let me go!” I scream, clawing and kicking. “LET ME GO!”

“Elara, stop!” Dominic’s voice is in my ear, breathless and desperate.

“Why are you doing this?” I sob, fighting him with everything I have. “She’s my mom!”

“I can’t—if you interfere, they’ll kill you too—”

“They’re already going to!” I scream. “She’s innocent! You know she is!”

“Don’t make this worse!” he hisses.

“She’s not a traitor!” I cry, voice breaking. “My dad died for a lie—and you’re letting them kill her too!”

He flinches—but he doesn’t let go.

I hear the blade before I see it fall.

A sharp clang.

A thud.

And then… silence.

My mother’s body slumps beside my father’s, her hand falling just inches from his.

“No…” My voice is barely a whisper. “No, no, no…”

My knees buckle. Dominic eases me down, still holding me tightly, even though I’ve stopped fighting.

I’m too broken to move.

I feel something warm dripping down my arm—my own blood, from where my claws dug into myself without realizing.

This isn’t real.

This can’t be real.

But it is.

And then Magnus walks onto the stage, stepping over the bodies of my parents like they’re trash on the floor.

“The Wilder bloodline ends tonight,” he says, brushing his sleeves. “The girl will be executed at sunrise.”

No one objects.

Not a single voice raises in protest.

They all agree I should die.

Even Serena, still crying into her hands like she’s the victim.

Even Dominic, who still won’t meet my eyes.

They all turned their backs.

My breath comes in ragged, shallow gasps. My vision spins.

Someone jabs something into my neck.

A tranquilizer.

As my body starts to go numb, I hear Magnus voice again.

But this time… his tone is low.

Too low.

She knows too much,” he says softly to his adviser.

“Make sure she doesn’t wake up.”

A nod.

A smile.

Then..

Darkness.