JUST A MISTRESS TO MY OWN MATE

AURORA’S POV

The clink of cutlery echoing in the still air, was too loud in the wake of everything unspoken.

Across from me, my mother sat pale and trembling. Her skin was drawn tight over her bones, her lips nearly blue. The cloth around her shoulder was soaked through again, fresh blood leaking through layers that had already been changed too many times today.

The bite was still bleeding.

The vampire’s bite.

She hadn’t healed. She wasn’t healing and I currently didn't know what to do for her. My wolf was stirring uneasily in my chest, growling low, restless. She could sense it. Something bad was about to happen.

“Eat faster,” my father's voice brought me back to reality and I froze immediately.

My fork hovered above the plate. That single sentence, that command confirmed everything I feared. The whispers I’d caught. The strange tension that had haunted the house since sunrise.

“Don’t tell me your telling her to eat faster because of your evil plans",

My mother stood up, her voice raising, her eyes fixed on Brandon, my father with fury and disbelief. I didn’t lift my gaze. I already knew what he’d done. I had heard the whispers, felt the shift in the air since this morning. My wolf had been restless ever since, growling low in my chest, pacing, sensing something was wrong.

Brandon didn’t even flinch after my mother fuming.

“Killian once saved me when I was attacked by the rogue, so I had to do it” His tone was cold. He didn’t care and he didn’t even stop eating. He went on with his food.

Beside me, Jason, my twin brother froze. I didn’t have to look at him to know what he was thinking. I could feel his energy shift, his wolf was close to the surface, just like mine.

“Was involving my daughter in the mating contract necessary? Is my innocent daughter worthy of that?” my mother snapped.

I closed my eyes. There it was.

The truth, spoken aloud.

I wasn’t a wolf with a future of her own anymore. I was an offering. My father gave me away just like that to pay for Alpha Killian's mercy on him.

Jason’s fork hit the table with a sharp clatter. The bond we shared as twins pulsed between us, hot and aching. I knew he felt it my pain, my fear.

Brandon our father didn't bother’ looking up.

“I won’t let this happen,” Jason spoke in an angry voice.

“You can’t just hand her over.” He added.

Our father finally looked up, meeting Jason’s gaze with eyes as cold as stone. Unapologetic.

“I already did and it was necessary,” he said simply. "Alpha Killian is so powerful, thats why I signed that marriage contract. This deal benefits us all.”

All? I wanted to scream. How does it benefit me?

“How does it benefit her?” Jason demanded, voice shaking with rage. “You’re sending her to a monster. They call him the Phantom for a reason.”

The Phantom. Alpha Killian. The man whose wolf was rumored to be feral. Some said he didn’t shift anymore because he’d lost himself to the beast. Others whispered that he had claws even in human form.

My future husband

“In our world, mating isn’t about love. It’s about power. And your sister’s sacrifice ensures our survival.”

I felt like I couldn’t breathe. My wolf whimpered softly in my chest, her presence curling inward like she couldn’t bear to face what was coming.

“She’s not strong enough for this,” my mother whispered. “You know that, Brandon .”

“Then she’ll learn to be. Just like all of us had to.”Brandon’s voice was steel.

"But she is your daughter, Brandon", My mother tried to plead.

“And as her father, I’ve made the decision that will keep this family alive.” He retorted too abruptly.

That was it. The end of the conversation. The final sentence in the story of my freedom.

A thick silence fell for a moment but it was soon broken only by the shallow rasp of my mother’s breathing. Her hand pressed against the wound on her shoulder, her blood staining the tablecloth a deeper red. She was weakening but my father didn't care.

"You the reason we still have a place in this pack. Killian could have let me die, so go and prepare yourself, the wedding is taking place tonight",

I froze more in the seat. It was tonight.

Tonight?

The word thundered through my skull, louder than any scream. My hands curled around the edge of the table until my knuckles turned white. Jason let out a low growl beside me, his chair screeching back as he stood abruptly.

“I’m not ready,” I whispered.

“You better be,” My father snapped immediately.

“If you think I’m letting her go alone—” Jason started.

“You’re not going at all,” My father cut in. “You’re forbidden from entering Killian’s territory.”

Jason turned away, his fists clenched at his sides. He had nothing to do about it together with my mother. She was just crying now, silent tears sliding down her cheeks.

I couldn’t sit there another second. I stood, my chair scraping against the floor, and left the dining room without a word.

The walls felt like they were closing in as I stumbled back to my room, hot tears blurring my vision. My wolf was silent. Empty. Like she didn’t know what to say to me. Like she didn’t know how to save me.

I was curled up on my bed when I heard the knock.

"Don't bother sleeping, shower and prepare yourself", It was my father.

Even now, after everything he’d just said, after watching my mother bleed at the table and hearing Jason’s voice shake with rage, he sounded the same. Steady. Unmoved. Like this wasn’t his daughter he was selling off, just another duty to be fulfilled.

I didn’t answer. I couldn’t.

“You’ll be escorted in one hour. If you’re not ready, I’ll have someone drag you out.” His voice was low but threatening. “Don’t embarrass me, Aurora.”

His footsteps faded after and I felt like collapsing.