I Healed My Mate Only for Him to Betray Me

My hands wouldn't stop shaking as I held the vial up to the moonlight filtering through the laboratory's single grimy window. Ten years. Ten years of research, of failed experiments, of stolen moments in this hidden room beneath the pack house that no one knew existed. The Wolfsbane antidote glowed with an ethereal silver-blue luminescence, beautiful and terrible all at once.

I was Aria Shaw, the Silverclaw Pack's forgotten Healer, and tonight I would give Hayes Spencer back everything he'd lost.

The extraction process had taken thirty-six hours straight. My wolf whimpered inside me, exhausted from channeling the precise amount of energy needed to stabilize the volatile compound. Every muscle in my body screamed for rest, but I couldn't stop now. Not when I was this close.

I climbed the hidden stairs, my legs trembling with each step. The antidote felt heavy in my pocket, heavier than its physical weight. It carried the burden of a decade's worth of hope.

Hayes's room was dark except for the night light I'd installed years ago. He lay sprawled across the bed, one arm thrown over his eyes in that familiar gesture of frustration. Even in sleep, he couldn't escape the prison of his blindness.

Buster lifted his graying head from his spot by the door, tail thumping weakly in greeting. I pressed a finger to my lips, and the old wolf-dog settled back down with a soft whine.

"It's okay, boy," I whispered. "Everything's about to change."

I approached Hayes's bedside, my heart hammering so hard I was sure it would wake him. Carefully, I uncorked the vial. The scent of moonflower and distilled wolfsbane filled the air, sharp and sweet.

"Hayes," I murmured, touching his shoulder gently. "I need you to drink this."

His clouded eyes opened, unfocused as always. "Aria? What time is it?"

"Time for a miracle." My voice cracked on the last word. "Trust me. Please."

He must have heard something in my tone because he didn't argue. He never argued with me about medical things. I was the only constant in his world of darkness, after all.

I helped him sit up and guided the vial to his lips. He drank it in one swallow, then immediately convulsed.

"Hayes!" I grabbed his shoulders as his body went rigid. His back arched off the bed, muscles straining. A guttural scream tore from his throat.

This was normal. I'd tested the antidote on smaller subjects. The awakening process was violent, painful, as the dormant wolf fought its way back to consciousness. But knowing it was normal didn't make it easier to watch.

I placed my hands on his chest, letting my healing energy flow into him. It was the last of my reserves, everything I had left after the sleepless nights of preparation. My vision blurred. My own wolf whimpered, retreating deep inside as I poured our combined strength into Hayes's awakening.

"Come on," I whispered, tears streaming down my scarred cheeks. "Come back to me. Come back."

His thrashing gradually subsided. His breathing evened out. And then his eyes opened.

Really opened.

For the first time in ten years, Hayes Spencer looked at me with clear, focused vision. His eyes were the color of amber, sharp and bright and alive.

I smiled, exhausted and relieved and so incredibly happy. "Hayes? Can you see me?"

His gaze traveled over my face. I watched his expression shift from confusion to recognition to something that made my stomach drop.

Disgust.

"God," he breathed, jerking away from my touch. "You're... what happened to your face?"

I touched my scars instinctively, the raised silver lines that crisscrossed my cheek and neck. "The Rogue attack. You know that. Hayes, you can see—"

"Get away from me." He scrambled backward on the bed, staring at me like I was something grotesque. "How long have you looked like that?"

Before I could answer, his door burst open. Ember Webb swept in, her blonde hair perfectly styled even at this late hour, her skin glowing with that irritating Beta radiance.

"Hayes!" She rushed to his side, deliberately shouldering me out of the way. "I heard you screaming. Are you alright? Your eyes—oh my goddess, your eyes!"

Hayes looked at her, and I watched something shift in his face. Something hungry and possessive.

"Ember," he said, his voice filled with wonder. "You're beautiful."

She preened under his gaze. "You can see me? Hayes, this is incredible!"

"I can see everything." His hand reached for hers, ignoring me completely. "My wolf—he's back. I can feel him. Strong. Powerful." He stood, towering over both of us, his Alpha aura suddenly blazing to life.

I swayed, drained and dizzy. "Hayes, you need to rest. The transformation—"

"I need you to leave," he cut me off, not even looking at me. His eyes were locked on Ember. "Both of you, actually. Ember, go tell Marcus to call an emergency pack meeting. It's time everyone knew their Alpha has returned to full strength."

Ember shot me a triumphant smirk before gliding out.

I stood there, alone with the man I'd just saved, and felt the first crack form in my heart.

"Hayes," I tried again. "I need to monitor your vitals. The antidote—"

"Was apparently successful." He finally looked at me, and the coldness in his gaze froze me solid. "Thank you for your service, Healer Shaw. You're dismissed."

Healer Shaw. Not Aria. Not the woman who'd spent ten years as his eyes, his hands, his constant companion.

I left before he could see me break.

The pack meeting was called for dawn. I dragged myself there, still wearing my stained laboratory clothes, my hair a tangled mess. The entire pack gathered in the great hall, buzzing with confusion and excitement.

Hayes stood on the Alpha platform, Ember at his side like she'd always belonged there. He looked magnificent—powerful, commanding, every inch the Alpha he was born to be.

I felt pride despite everything. I'd done that. I'd given him back his strength.

"My pack," Hayes's voice rang out, silencing the crowd. "Ten years ago, I was struck down by a cowardly Rogue attack. Ten years I've lived in darkness, weak and helpless. But today, I stand before you whole. Today, your Alpha has returned!"

The pack erupted in cheers. I smiled despite my exhaustion.

"And today," Hayes continued, his eyes finding mine across the crowd, "I make another announcement. I have found my true mate. The woman who will stand beside me as Luna."

My heart leaped. Finally. After all these years, he would acknowledge our bond publicly.

Hayes pulled Ember close, and my world tilted.

"Ember Webb has agreed to be my Chosen Mate," he declared. "She will be your Luna."

No. No, this wasn't—

I pushed through the crowd, ignoring the startled looks. "Hayes, wait. You can't—"

His eyes locked on mine, cold and dismissive. "Ah, Healer Shaw. Perfect timing." He raised his voice so the entire pack could hear. "I, Alpha Hayes Spencer of the Silverclaw Pack, reject you, Aria Shaw, as my fated mate. You are too weak, too damaged, too pathetic to stand beside a true Alpha. I choose Ember Webb as my Luna, now and forever."

The rejection bond snapped like a physical blow. Pain exploded through my chest, radiating outward until every nerve ending screamed. My wolf howled in agony, a sound that echoed only in my head.

I fell to my knees, gasping, while the pack stared in shock.

Hayes turned away, pulling Ember into a possessive kiss.

And I finally understood: I hadn't saved my mate.

I'd created my own destroyer.