After My Alpha Husband Brought His Mistress Home

I found Ivey in the kitchens just after dawn, her hands deep in dishwater. The morning staff hadn't arrived yet. Perfect.

"Luna." She straightened immediately, wiping her hands on her apron. Her dark eyes flickered with concern. "Is something wrong?"

I glanced toward the hallway, then back at her. "Allie visited your quarters last night."

Ivey went still. "How did you—"

"Check under your mattress. Now."

She didn't question me. That was the thing about Ivey—she'd survived this pack by knowing when to trust her instincts. We moved quickly through the servants' wing, our footsteps silent on the worn carpet.

The room she shared with Nia was small but tidy. Two narrow beds, a shared dresser, a window that overlooked the training grounds. Ivey dropped to her knees beside her bed and reached underneath.

Her hand emerged holding a diamond bracelet. Then a ruby necklace. Then a pair of emerald earrings I recognized from the pack vault.

"Moon Goddess," Ivey breathed. Her face had gone pale. "She's framing us."

"She's terrified," I said quietly. "I showed her something yesterday. Something she wasn't supposed to see." I knelt beside her, gathering the jewelry. "Now she's trying to eliminate anyone loyal to me."

Ivey's jaw tightened. "What do we do?"

I smiled. In my previous life, I'd discovered the planted evidence too late. The guards had already found it. Nia and Ivey had been dragged before the pack council, and I'd been powerless to stop their exile.

Not this time.

"We give it back to her," I said.

Twenty minutes later, we stood in the underground garage. Allie's silver Mercedes gleamed under the fluorescent lights, parked in the spot marked "Pack Consultant." The vanity of it made my teeth ache.

Ivey pulled a thin piece of metal from her pocket—a lock pick she'd carried since her orphan days. Her fingers worked the car door with practiced ease. The lock clicked open.

"Trunk," I whispered.

She popped it from inside. I lifted the carpeted floor panel, revealing the spare tire well. Deep enough. Hidden enough.

I placed each piece of jewelry carefully inside, then covered them again. Closed the trunk. Locked the door.

*Your move, Allie.*

Isaac's voice boomed through the pack house at noon, amplified by his Alpha authority. "All pack members to the main hall. Immediately."

I arrived with the other Lunas and high-ranking females, my face carefully composed. Concerned but calm. Isaac stood on the raised platform, his jaw clenched. Allie hovered beside him, her expression a perfect mask of distress.

"Valuable items have been stolen from the pack vault," Isaac announced. His Alpha aura pressed down on the assembled wolves, making the lower-ranked members whimper. "Beta Cross will conduct a search of all quarters. Anyone found with stolen property will face exile."

Murmurs rippled through the crowd. I felt Nia and Ivey's fear spike from where they stood among the other Omegas. I caught Ivey's eye and gave the smallest shake of my head.

*Trust me.*

Beta David Cross was thorough. I had to give him that. He started with the Omega quarters, his team of Deltas moving through each room with grim efficiency. When they found nothing in Nia and Ivey's room, I saw Allie's face tighten.

She'd expected them to find the jewelry. She'd been so certain.

David moved through the pack house systematically. Guest rooms. Storage areas. Even the Alpha's office, though Isaac's scowl could have melted steel.

Nothing.

"The garage," David said finally. "We should check the vehicles."

Allie's scent spiked—sharp with sudden panic. I caught it immediately. So did several other wolves with strong noses.

David's team moved through the garage. When they reached Allie's Mercedes, David paused. His nostrils flared.

"The scent trail leads here," he said, his voice carefully neutral.

Allie laughed. High and brittle. "That's ridiculous. Why would I steal from the pack vault? I'm the Pack Consultant."

"Open the trunk, please," David said.

Allie's hands shook as she pressed the button on her key fob. The trunk popped open. David lifted the floor panel.

The jewelry glittered in the fluorescent light.

The crowd erupted. Gasps. Whispers. Accusations flying like arrows.

"I didn't—" Allie's voice cracked. "Someone planted this! I would never—"

"The scent trail doesn't lie," David said quietly. He looked at Isaac. "Alpha, the evidence is clear."

Isaac's face had gone rigid. I could see the war happening behind his eyes. Believe his mistress, or believe his Beta.

I stepped forward before he could speak.

"Perhaps," I said softly, my voice carrying just enough to reach the crowd, "Allie has been under too much stress. Adjusting to a new pack, taking on such important responsibilities..." I let sympathy color my tone. "Sometimes the pressure can make us confused. Overwhelmed."

I met Allie's eyes. Saw the fury there. The humiliation.

"I'm sure she didn't mean any harm," I continued. "We should be understanding. Forgiving."

The crowd shifted. I felt it—the subtle change in their perception. The Luna, gracious and kind, making excuses for the mistress who'd tried to frame innocent Omegas.

Allie's face flushed red. "I am not confused—"

"Of course not," I said gently. "But perhaps you should rest. Take some time to settle in properly."

Isaac's jaw worked. He couldn't defend Allie without looking weak. Couldn't punish her without admitting he'd brought a thief into the pack.

"Return the items to the vault," he said finally, his voice tight. "We'll discuss this later."

As the crowd dispersed, I caught Allie's gaze one more time. Her eyes promised murder.

I smiled.

*Let her try.*