Chapter 2

I lunged forward and snatched the letter back.

Tina immediately shrank behind Ryan.

Ryan’s face darkened with displeasure.

"Emily, you're clearly emotionally unstable right now. Take tomorrow off from the herbal dispensary."

I glared at him.

"I am the manager of the dispensary. You lead the warriors; you have no right to order me around."

Tears spilled down Tina's cheeks right on cue.

"Emily, I swear I never meant to take anything from you. I just love Ryan so much."

I broke into mocking laughter.

"You sure love him a lot—enough to waltz right into another woman's home."

Ryan's tone dropped into a warning growl.

"Watch your mouth."

Hurried footsteps echoed outside.

An apprentice from the medical wing rushed to the door, out of breath.

"Emily! Your mother suddenly has severe chest tightness and her breathing is failing. The healer needs you there immediately!"

I grabbed my bag and bolted.

Instinctively, Ryan moved to follow me.

For a fleeting second, a sick sense of relief brushed against my heart.

The next moment, Tina clutched her stomach and dropped to her knees.

"Ryan... my head is spinning..."

"I didn't eat anything last night, my blood sugar must have crashed..."

Ryan's boots stopped dead in their tracks.

He threw a glance at me.

"Go ahead without me."

"I'll carry her to the clinic first, and then I'll be right over."

I didn't say a single word.

As the door swung shut behind me, I caught a glimpse of him scooping Tina up into his arms.

On my way to the ward, I reached out to him three times through our mind link.

Total silence.

When I arrived at the recovery ward, my mother’s face was deathly pale.

The head healer pushed a consent form right in front of me.

"Sign it. We need to administer emergency medicine, and we might have to resuscitate her."

My hand shook so violently that I could barely scrawl my name.

Over the past eight years, Ryan always promised, "Your mom will be my mom."

He told me I’d never have to be scared.

He said whenever pack troubles came, he'd be there to shoulder them.

Yet when the real crisis hit, the only person standing here to sign the papers was me.

Outside the ward, I pulled up the pack's public announcements.

The very first voice broadcast belonged to Ryan.

He was officially announcing his mating bond with Tina.

Through the broadcast, he declared: *Please welcome the new mate by my side.*

The timestamp matched the exact moment I sent my third mind link.

The comments were flooding in with congratulations from pack members.

Tina responded under the post: *Thank you, everyone! Ryan promised to treat the whole pack to a feast tonight!*

Staring at the screen, an icy numbness crept from my fingers straight to my heart.

When my mother woke up, the first thing she whispered was, "Where's Ryan?"

I quickly clutched the device against my chest, hiding the screen.

"He's busy treating wounded pack members."

"Healers are always swamped, I know," she murmured softly.

Just then, a visitor from the neighboring bed leaned over with a gossip-hungry grin.

"Wait, isn't your daughter engaged to Ryan? He just marked someone else, and the bride isn't your daughter!"

She thrust her screen right in front of my mother's face before I could stop her.

The moment my mother heard the recorded announcement, her breathing turned violent and ragged.

The calming incense by her bedside flared erratically with her spiking pulse.

I rushed out of the room, shouting frantically for a healer.

As I ran past the front steps of the council hall, I saw Ryan.

He was holding Tina's hand, handing out celebratory drinks to the cheering crowd.

Someone whistled loudly. "Damn, Ryan, keeping a beauty like this hidden from us all along!"

Tina blushed, leaning affectionately into his side.

### 小说标题

The Alpha's Broken Promise: My Mate Replaced Me### 全文翻译

Betrayed by the Pack's Elite (Part 2)

When Ryan saw me, his forehead immediately creased.

His very first words were, "How could you upset your mother to the point of a medical crisis?"

I stood rooted to the spot, my mother’s critical condition notice trembling in my clenched fist.

I flung the paper straight into his face.

"Ryan, how can you even look at yourself in the mirror?"

The entire council hall fell dead silent.

Tina's tears started streaming down right on cue.

She whispered, her voice frail and tremulous, "Emily, please don’t blame Ryan. It’s all my fault."

Ryan instantly stepped in front of her, shielding her with his body.

"We are in the council hall. Don't make a scene."

I stared at the celebratory announcement clutched in his hand.

A wave of bitter, dark amusement washed over me.

I wasn't throwing a tantrum.

I simply looked him dead in the eye and asked in front of the entire pack:

"What right do you have to blame me?"

No one in the hall dared to utter a sound.

Tina leaned tightly against Ryan’s back, weeping softly.

Ryan lowered his voice, irritation bleeding through.

"Emily, don’t interfere with pack affairs."