THE ALPHA KING'S FORGOTTEN MATE

The first thing Lena saw when she entered the dining room was the empty place at the table. The second was her father smiling at Elara. Lena stopped in the doorway, the serving bowl heavy in both hands, her own plate still sitting on the kitchen counter behind her.

"Lena," her mother said sharply. "Don't just stand there." Lena blinked and walked forward. "Sorry, Mother."

Miriam had a way of making even a quiet sentence sound like a correction. Her sharp eyes moved over Lena before settling on the bowl. "Put that down." Lena placed the stew in the middle of the table. "Is the rice ready?"

"Yes."

"Then bring it. And the water." Lena had already turned when Miriam added, "The bread too."

"I'll bring them." She went back into the kitchen. Behind her, Adrian's low voice carried across the room. "Elara, you handled yourself well today."

Lena's steps slowed. "Thank you, Father," Elara replied.

"You're growing into the woman this family expected you to become."

Miriam smiled. "I told you she would."

Lena picked up the rice, then returned with the bowl and placed it on the table. Elara was already sitting comfortably, her long hair falling neatly over one shoulder. She had a graceful way of carrying herself that made her seem perfectly at ease wherever she went.

Lena filled the glasses and brought the bread. When she returned, Elara looked at her. "You've been in the kitchen all afternoon, you should sit down."

Lena glanced at the empty place. "I will."

"After everything is served," Miriam said.

"Yes, Mother." Adrian continued speaking to Elara. "You should remember what I told you. You can't afford to be careless."

"I won't be, you have nothing to worry about father."Elara smiled.

"That's why we can trust her," Miriam said. Lena looked at Elara. Her sister met her eyes for a moment and smiled politely.

Lena remained standing. She collected the empty serving dishes and returned them to the kitchen before coming back to the dining room. Nobody stopped their conversation. She listened while Adrian asked Elara questions and Miriam praised her answers, keeping her hands together and waiting. She had spent the afternoon preparing their meal, her back still ached from standing, and the smell of onions and spices clung to her hands.

"Father?" Adrian looked up. "What is it?"

"Did you like the stew?" Miriam glanced at her. Elara stopped eating. Adrian looked toward the bowl. "You made it?"

"Yes." He took another spoonful. "It's fine." Lena waited a moment. "Just fine?"

Adrian frowned. "What did you expect?" Lena lowered her eyes for a second. "I just wanted to know if I did well."

Miriam sighed. "Lena, you cooked dinner. Like you were supposed to, why are you looking for praise?"

"I wasn't."

Adrian set down his spoon. "You were." Lena went quiet. "You're twenty-two," he said. "You should know better than to wait for approval because you completed a task."

"I just asked if you liked it." Lena lowered her head wishing she never said anything. "And I told you it's fine. What else do you want?"

Lena reached for the plates. Adrian stopped her. "Lena." She looked up. "Do you want me to praise you?"

The question made her uncomfortable. "No, Father."

"Then stop behaving as if you do." Lena's fingers tightened around the edge of the table. "I understand."

"Do you?" Adrian leaned back. "You have no rank, Lena." The words were familiar, she had known for years that she was unranked, had known what that meant every time someone else was given a place and she was given a task. "No wolf," he added, and Lena looked down.

She had waited for her wolf when she was a child. At eight, she had listened to other children talk about the strange presence they felt inside themselves. At ten, she had asked questions about their first shifts. At twelve, she had watched Elara shift for the first time, and everyone had celebrated. Lena had gone to bed that night believing her own wolf would come soon. It never did. There had been no voice beneath her thoughts, no instinct answering her, no shift waiting to happen. Years passed. Nothing changed. By twenty-two, Lena had stopped expecting a wolf to appear, but she had never forgotten what its absence had cost her.

Adrian's voice brought her attention back to him. "And nothing that makes this family exceptional." Lena lifted her eyes. "Know your place."

She stood still for a moment, then nodded. "Yes, Father."

Elara shifted in her seat. "Father.."

Adrian looked at her. "What?" Elara glanced at Lena. "Nothing."

Lena reached for the plates. This time, she did not wait for anyone to tell her what to do. She collected them and carried them into the kitchen. Her own plate was still on the counter. Lena looked at it, then picked it up. She almost carried it back to the table. Instead, she took it upstairs. She would eat alone.

Lena pushed open her bedroom door with her shoulder and placed her plate on the small table beside her bed. Her room was quiet. She sat down and looked at the food. It was cold.

"Of course." She took a bite anyway.

Downstairs, she could hear the faint sounds of her family moving around, a chair scraping against the floor, someone laughing, a door opening and closing. Lena continued eating. When she finished, she carried the plate downstairs, washed it, and returned to her room. She closed the door and sat on the edge of her bed, looking at her hands for a moment before reaching beneath her pillow.

Her fingers found the faded blue ribbon. Lena pulled it out and held it between both hands. The ribbon was old and worn, but she had kept it carefully for years. She began to hum, softly ,the same little tune she used whenever she wanted the house to disappear for a while. After a few moments, her shoulders relaxed. She stopped humming, and the room became quiet again.

Lena looked at the ribbon. She had wanted one kind word from her father. Instead, she had asked for it and learned that even asking had become something he could use against her.

She folded the ribbon and stood, crossing to the small wooden chest near the wall. Inside were the few things she kept for herself. She took out a small box and placed the ribbon inside, then closed the lid and locked it. The key rested in her palm. Lena looked at it before slipping it into her pocket and sitting back down.

There were things she could not change. She could not give herself a wolf. She could not give herself rank. She could not make her father proud or make her mother treat her like Elara. But she could decide what she gave them. Tomorrow, she would still wake early. She would still do the work expected of her. She would still keep the peace. But she would no longer stand around waiting for someone to notice. She would no longer ask for words she already knew they would not give her.

Lena pulled the key from her pocket and placed it beneath her pillow. Then she lay down, pulled the blanket to her chin, and turned toward the wall.

For years, she had tried to earn a place at her family's table. Tonight, she stopped trying. She would survive quietly.

Lena was carrying a basket of folded clothes upstairs when she heard her father's voice from the study. She stopped halfway up the stairs, the study door was partly open, and a man's voice came from inside.

"Your account has been overdue for too long, Adrian."

Lena recognized it immediately: Mr. Hale, the moneylender, a short, heavy man with a neatly trimmed beard and a habit of tapping two fingers against his palm whenever he was waiting for an answer. "I know what I owe," Adrian said. "Then you know why I'm here."

"I need more time."

"You've already had more time." Adrian was silent. Lena shifted the basket against her hip.

"How much longer?" Mr. Hale asked. "Until the next payment comes in."

"You don't have one coming in." The silence that followed lasted longer this time. Lena had never heard her father so quiet.

Mr. Hale spoke again. "If this remains unpaid, your standing will suffer."

"I know." Adrian said. "Your position, your name, your family's reputation. None of it is separate from the debt."

Adrian let out a slow breath. "I said I know."

"Then you need another way to settle it."

"What way?" Mr. Hale paused. "You have daughters."

Lena's fingers tightened around the basket. Adrian answered without hesitation. "Elara."

Mr. Hale made a thoughtful sound. "She is well regarded and there are families who would be interested in her."

Adrian's voice dropped. "You mean marriage."

"A favorable marriage."

Lena stared at the narrow opening of the door. Adrian did not answer.

Mr. Hale continued. "A good arrangement could cover a considerable part of what you owe."

"Elara won't agree. I know her." Adrian said. "You haven't asked her."

Adrian went silent for a moment, then continued "But she has plans."

"Plans can change."

"No." Adrian added, "Not Elara." Lena lowered her eyes. The basket suddenly felt heavier.

Mr. Hale's chair scraped against the floor. "You have very little time to decide what you're willing to do."

"I understand."

"I hope you do." The door opened, and Lena quickly lifted the basket and continued upstairs without looking back. She entered her room and set the clothes on the bed, standing there a moment.

She had always known her father was strict. She had always known Elara was treated differently. But she had never understood that there was a problem large enough to make Adrian consider marriage as a way out of it.

She sat down, the thought staying with her. He refused Elara before she even heard the offer. She did not need to ask what that meant.

The next morning, Lena was in the kitchen cutting vegetables when she heard Elara's voice in the hallway.

"You wanted to see me?"

Adrian answered from the study. "Come in."

Elara stepped inside but left the door open. She had her long hair tied neatly behind her, and her chin was raised in the way Lena had seen whenever Elara was certain she would get her way.

"What is this about?" Elara asked.

Adrian looked at her. "Our finances have become difficult."

"How difficult?"

"Enough that I need your help." Elara's expression changed. "What kind of help?"

"There is a family interested in you." She understood immediately. "No."

Adrian's face tightened. "You haven't heard the proposal."

"I don't need to."

"Elara."

"I won't marry someone to settle your debt." Adrian stared at her. "It would be a good match."

"For me or you?" Adrian went silent for a minute then continued, "You would have security, a respected name, and a comfortable life."

"I already have those things."

"You could have more."

"I don't want them from a marriage I didn't choose." Adrian rubbed his forehead. "If this becomes public, it will affect everyone in this house."

"Then handle it."

"I'm asking you to help me handle it."

"And I'm saying no." Lena stopped cutting. Adrian's voice hardened. "You would turn your back on your family?"

Elara gave him a steady look. "I am not turning my back on anyone. I'm refusing to marry a stranger."

"You have responsibilities."

"So do you." The kitchen went silent, Adrian staring at her.

Elara continued, "You made the debt. Don't make my future the payment."

Adrian's jaw tightened. "You think this is easy for me?"

"I think you're asking me because you believe you have more to lose than me."

"That's not what I said."

"You didn't have to." Elara turned toward the hallway. Adrian called her name. She stopped. "You're my daughter."

"And I'm still allowed to choose my own life."

She took another step. Then Adrian said quietly, "why won't help the family"

Elara glanced toward the kitchen. Lena's hand remained around the knife. Elara looked back at Adrian. "I'm not your only daughter, why don't you ask Lena."

Lena went still, breath caught somewhere in her throat. "Don't" Adrian's face hardened.

"You need a solution, right?"

"Not her." Adrian said. Elara gave a small shrug. "She has no rank. No wolf. You always say she has no future here."

"That doesn't mean..."

"It means she has less to lose." Lena lowered her eyes. Adrian's voice cut through the room. "Enough, Elara."

Elara did not argue. She simply looked at him. "You wanted my answer. You have it."

She walked away, her footsteps disappearing toward the stairs. Adrian remained in the hallway, and Lena waited. He looked at her for a moment, then toward the study.

"Finish the vegetables."

He walked away. Lena looked down at the cutting board, the knife resting beneath her hand. She picked it up and continued with her work. Behind her, the study door closed.

She did not look toward it again.

Lena knew something was wrong when her father asked her to come into the study. Adrian rarely called for her unless he needed something done, so she stood outside the open door with her hands folded in front of her, waiting for him to tell her what he wanted.

"You asked for me, Father?"

"Close the door."

Lena did as he asked and took the chair opposite his desk. Adrian sat rigidly behind it, his usual controlled expression still in place, but there was tension around his mouth that Lena had not seen before. A sheet of paper lay beneath his hand, and his fingers remained pressed against it.

"What is it Father?" she asked.

Adrian looked at her for several seconds before speaking. "You remember the debt we discussed?"

"I remember."

"It has to be settled."

Lena watched him carefully. "What are you going to do?"

Adrian's fingers shifted against the paper. "I've made arrangements."

Her stomach tightened. "What kind of arrangements?"

"You're going to the Moonlit Auction House."

Lena stared at him, waiting for him to explain, and when he did not, she asked, "For what?"

Adrian's gaze dropped briefly to the paper before returning to her. "You will be sold there. The payment will be used to settle the debt."

The words took a moment to reach her, and Lena's hands tightened in her lap. "You're sending me to be sold?"

"I don't have another way to settle it and as you already know, you add nothing to this family so why keep you" His voice was clipped, but the strain around his eyes remained.

"When?" lena asked trying to understand if he actually meant it. "Tomorrow."

Lena's eyes widened. "You've already arranged everything?"

"The agreement has been made."

"So there is really nothing I can do?"

Adrian's jaw tightened. "Lena, arguing with me will not change the debt."

She lowered her eyes. He had always been difficult to argue with, but this was different. He was not pretending the choice was easy. He was simply refusing to look for another one.

"And Elara?" Lena asked.

Adrian's expression changed slightly. "What about her?"

"Is she staying?"

"She isn't part of the arrangement." Lena nodded slowly. "I thought so."

Adrian's gaze sharpened. "Don't start" She folded her hands more tightly. "Does Mother know?"

"She knows."

"And she agreed to this?" Adrian looked away for a moment. "Your mother understands what the family is facing."

Lena glanced around the study. She had stood in this room many times while Adrian gave her instructions, corrected her, or reminded her where she belonged. Never had she imagined sitting here while he explained that her future had become part of a debt.

"What am I supposed to take?"

"Clothes. Whatever personal things you cannot leave behind." She nodded. "Anything else?"

Adrian shook his head. "Don't carry things you won't need." Lena looked at him. "Will I be allowed to keep my own things?"

His eyes flickered toward her. "Just take what matters to you." It was the closest thing to kindness he had offered during the conversation. Lena looked down. "Father?"

Adrian's shoulders stiffened. "What?"

She almost asked whether he was sorry. Instead, she asked, "Is that all?"

He glanced toward the papers on his desk. "For now." Lena stood, then reached the door, but Adrian spoke before she could open it. "Lena."

She turned. His expression was hard again, but the strain around his eyes remained.

"Don't make this harder than it already is."

Lena held his gaze. "I won't." She opened the door, walked into the hallway, and the door closed behind her.

Lena stood there for several seconds before moving. She had imagined herself fighting if her father ever tried to take something from her, demanding an explanation until he listened. But Adrian had already made the arrangement, and she knew what arguing with him would bring. Nothing.

Lena turned toward her room.

She had nearly reached her door when she heard Elara behind her.

"Lena."

Lena stopped. Elara stood at the end of the hallway, her long hair neatly tied behind her as always.

"I heard Father was sending you to an auction house tomorrow," Elara said. "Yes." Lena knew either one of her parents told her or she was eavesdropping on their conversation.

Elara looked toward Lena's room. "Have you started packing?"

"Not yet."

"You should." Lena studied her sister's face. "Are you relieved?" Elara did not pretend otherwise. "I am."

The honesty caught Lena off guard. "Because it isn't you?"

Elara held her gaze. "I wasn't going to give up my future for father's debt"

Neither spoke for a moment. Lena had spent years believing that, beneath everything else, Elara might still care about her as a sister. She had not expected Elara to fight their father or take her place. She had only wanted to see some sign that losing her would hurt.

Instead, Elara simply looked uncomfortable. "I don't know what you want me to say," she said.

"Neither do I."

Elara's expression softened slightly. "I'm sorry." Lena looked at her. The words were quiet, but they carried no offer to help and no attempt to change what had happened.

Lena nodded. "It's fine." Elara glanced toward the bedroom door. "You should pack what you need."

Lena gave a faint smile, more like it was forced than happiness. Elara left, and Lena watched her disappear down the hallway before entering her room.

The wooden chest beside her bed caught her attention. She crossed to it, unlocked it, and lifted the lid. The faded blue ribbon lay where she had left it, folded carefully among the few things she had kept hidden from everyone else.

She picked it up and ran her fingers over the worn fabric. There had been a time when Lena believed her family might eventually see her differently. She had never expected much. A kind word from Adrian, approval from Miriam, or concern from Elara would have been enough.

She had kept waiting because hope was easier to carry than the truth.

A knock came at the door. Lena placed the ribbon in her lap. "Come in."

Miriam stood in the doorway, her sharp eyes moving immediately to the clothes spread across the bed. "You need to pack, you don't have much time"

"I've started." Lena folded a dress and placed it beside the others. "Did you know?" Miriam looked at her. "Know what?"

"That Father was going to sell me."

Miriam's mouth tightened. "Your father had to make a decision."

"And this was the one he made."

"He did what he believed was necessary."

Lena looked down at the dress in her hands. "Were you going to tell me?"

"You have been told now."

She placed the dress on the bed. "Did you think I would refuse?"

Miriam's eyes narrowed. "I thought you would understand the situation."

"I do but.."

"Then don't make trouble before you leave."

Lena met her mother's gaze. "yeah sure like I always do." Lena said with sarcasm in her voice.

Miriam's attention shifted to the blue ribbon in Lena's hand. "You won't need that."

Lena closed her fingers around it. "I'll decide what I need."

"Be sensible child. You don't need that" Miriam gave her one last look before leaving, and Lena waited until her mother's footsteps disappeared before returning to the chest.

She placed the ribbon inside, then continued packing. There were only a few clothes to fold, along with the handful of personal things she considered worth taking. She had never owned much, so preparing to leave took less time than she expected.

When she finished, Lena reached beneath her pillow and pulled out the small key to her wooden chest. She held it for a moment before unlocking the chest one final time. The blue ribbon rested inside.

Lena touched it gently, then closed the lid and locked it.

Tomorrow, she would leave this house because her father had sold her to settle a debt. Lena slipped the key beneath her pillow and sat quietly on the edge of the bed, staring at the locked chest.