My Alpha Left Me for a Fake Princess

The bell above the door of *The Gilded Claw* chimed softly as I stepped inside, the scent of sage and old parchment washing over me. It was a stark contrast to the sterile, modern smell of the Silver Lake Pack House, and for a moment, I let my shoulders drop. Here, amidst the dusty relics and enchanted trinkets, I didn't have to be the trembling, wolfless Omega everyone thought I was.

"Miss Hayes," the shopkeeper, an elderly warlock named Elias, greeted me with a bow that was far too deep for a girl in faded jeans and a thrift-store sweater. His milky eyes lingered on me, seeing something no one else in this town bothered to look for. "Your commission is ready."

He placed a velvet box on the counter. I opened it, my breath hitching. Inside lay a dagger forged from pure moonstone, the blade shimmering with an iridescent glow that seemed to pulse in time with my own heartbeat. It was a courting gift. A promise. Tonight was our three-year anniversary, and I was finally going to tell Leo the truth. I was going to tell him that the weak girl he’d been protecting was actually the daughter of the Lycan King.

"It hums when you touch it," Elias whispered, his voice trembling slightly. "Only a wolf of... significant lineage could make moonstone sing like that."

I quickly snapped the box shut, sliding a stack of cash—saved from my secret allowance—across the glass. "Thank you, Elias. Keep the change."

I hurried out before he could say more, clutching the box against my chest like a lifeline. My wolf, usually dormant under layers of suppressants and sheer willpower, stirred uneasily. *He isn't worth this,* she growled in the back of my mind. *He treats us like a pet.*

*He protects us,* I countered silently, unlocking my beat-up sedan. *He loves me for me, not my title.*

But as I drove back to the Silver Lake territory, the knot in my stomach tightened. Leo had been distant lately. No, not distant—cold. He stopped holding my hand in public weeks ago. He stopped calling me 'babe.' I told myself it was just the stress of his Alpha training, the pressure from his parents. Tonight would fix everything. Once he knew I was a Royal, his parents would have to accept me. The pack would have to respect me.

I parked around the back of the massive Pack House, avoiding the main entrance as usual. I was allowed in the kitchen and the servant’s quarters, but the main foyer was reserved for "ranked members." I slipped through the service door, the heavy velvet box hidden deep in my tote bag.

The kitchen was bustling with Omegas prepping for the Alpha’s dinner, but the moment I walked in, the chatter died. It wasn't out of respect. It was fear.

Standing by the granite island, arms crossed over her designer silk blouse, was Luna Austin. Leo’s mother.

She didn't look at me. She was