From Rejected Rogue to Alpha Queen: The Sterling Legacy

I was trapped in a cage made of pure silver, my skin sizzling against the bars, while my Fated Mate stood outside checking his watch.

"Not yet, Elena," Damien said coldly. "Victoria's son must be born first to secure the prophecy."

I was in active labor, but he pressed a button on a remote. A magical collar clamped around my neck, seizing my muscles and forcing my unborn baby to stay inside, suspending the birth in agonizing tension.

I screamed through our Mind-Link, begging him to save our son, but he severed the connection.

He called our child a mongrel and walked away to be with his brother's wife.

While I lay dying in a pool of black and gold blood, poisoned by his sister, Damien was next door celebrating the birth of another man's child.

When the doctor told him I was flatlining, he told them to save the power for Victoria.

He didn't know I wasn't a rogue. I was the daughter of the Alpha Prime, the King of all wolves.

He killed his true son and his True Mate for a lie.

My father saved my body, but my heart died in that cage.

One year later, I returned as the CEO of the company holding all of Damien's debt.

He knelt before me, weeping, begging for his Luna back.

I stepped on his hand with my stiletto heel and smiled.

"Your Luna died in the basement, Alpha. I am just here to collect what you owe."

Chapter 1

Elena POV:

The smell of my own burning flesh was the first thing that hit me.

It was a sharp, acrid scent that overpowered the damp mold of the basement. I shifted my weight, trying to find a comfortable position on the cold concrete floor, but my shoulder brushed against the bars.

Hisss.

Smoke rose from my skin. I bit my lip so hard I tasted iron, refusing to scream.

I was trapped in a cage made of pure silver.

In our world, silver is the only thing that can truly hurt a werewolf. It acts like acid against our skin and neutralizes our accelerated healing ability. For a pregnant wolf like me, it was a death sentence.

"Damien," I whispered, my voice raspy from days of dehydration. "Please."

My stomach tightened. Another contraction. It felt like a giant hand was squeezing my insides, trying to wring the life out of me.

Damien stood on the other side of the silver bars. He was the Alpha of the Blackwood Pack, the leader of hundreds of wolves. He was tall, with broad shoulders and eyes the color of stormy seas.

He was also my Fated Mate.

The Moon Goddess, our deity, pairs every wolf with a perfect match. When you meet your mate, you smell a scent that drives you crazy. For me, Damien smelled like rain and dark chocolate.

But he didn't want me. To him, I was just a Rogue-a wolf without a pack, a beggar with