His First Love Took My Place as Mother

"Record the facts separately," I told the lead council elder, gripping the edge of the wooden witness stand. "Taking a glass bottle from a cabinet is not pouring poison into a cup."

Sienna sat two feet away, pressing a white handkerchief to her mouth. She leaned closer to Carter, her shoulders trembling. "I never wanted to tear this family apart. I should have just stayed in the guest room."

"You asked me to hand you the medicine," I said, staring directly at her. "I placed the sealed bottle on the counter and walked away."

"I was too weak to open it," Sienna whispered, lowering the handkerchief. "I thought you were helping me. I didn't know you hated me that much."

Carter placed his hand over hers. He stood up, addressing the five elders seated across the circular room. "As Alpha, pack safety comes first. Until we clear this up, we must treat the threat as real."

"You are treating it as a conviction," I shot back. "You are telling the council I am guilty before the hearing even begins."

Carter did not look at me. "I am protecting my pack. If anyone else was accused of poisoning a guest, you would demand the same precaution."

"Call the boy," the lead elder instructed, banging his wooden gavel against the table.

The heavy oak doors creaked open. Eli walked into the center of the room. He kept his head down, his small sneakers scuffing against the stone floor. He fixed his eyes on Sienna first, offering her a tiny, reassuring nod, before climbing into the wooden chair.

"Tell us what you saw in the kitchen, Eli," the elder asked, his tone softening.

"I saw Mom take the blackthorn bottle," my son said, his voice echoing off the high ceilings. "Then Sienna got sick."

"Did you see your mother put the medicine into the tea?" the elder pressed, leaning over his parchment notes.

Eli hesitated. He picked at the hem of his school uniform shirt. "No."

"Then why did you tell the guards your mother did it?"

"Because Mom hates Sienna," Eli answered quickly. "She yells about the pictures. She gets mad about dinner. I didn't want her to hurt Sienna again."

"Eli," I said, keeping my tone perfectly steady. "Do you really believe I would intentionally poison a guest in our home?"

Tears spilled down his cheeks. He rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand. "I don't know!"

"Look at me, Eli. Look at your mother."

He finally met my gaze. "You are always angry now. If you are going to be mad all the time, I just want Sienna to be safe."

A cold numbness spread through my chest, freezing the blood in my veins. "Would you rather have her as your mother?"

"She doesn't make me feel like liking someone else is a betrayal," my son answered.

"That is enough," Carter snapped, stepping forward and blocking my view of Eli. "Do not interrogate him. He is just a child."

"He is my child," I said, my voice cracking. "And you let him sit there and testify against me based on a feeling."

"The council has heard enough," the lead elder announced, stamping a red seal onto a parchment file. "Luna privileges suspended pending investigation. You will vacate the Alpha House immediately."

"It is a temporary arrangement, Lena," Carter told me, signing his name on the suspension order. "The guest cottage is already prepared for you."

"You are throwing me out of my own home," I said.

"I am securing the perimeter," Carter replied, handing the quill back to the elder. "Pack your bags."

When I walked back into the Alpha House to gather my coats, three cardboard boxes already sat by the front door. The head housekeeper stood in the hallway, folding my winter sweaters into a blue trunk.

"Put the rest in the leather duffel," the housekeeper instructed the maids, not meeting my eyes.

I grabbed the trunk lid and slammed it shut. "I can pack my own clothes."

"The Alpha requested we expedite the process, Luna," she replied, her voice clipped. "The guest cottage is waiting."

I ignored her and opened my wallet to check for my identification card. The white prenatal appointment slip stared back at me from behind the plastic window.

A sharp, sudden cramp ripped through my lower abdomen. I doubled over, catching myself against the hallway console table. The pain twisted like a rusted knife turning in my stomach.

I had planned to tell them tonight, right after Eli received his science medal. I pulled out my phone and dialed Carter's number.

The first call rang until it disconnected.

The third call went straight to voicemail.

By the seventh call, the line simply clicked dead.

I dialed for the twelfth time, leaning heavily against the wall as another wave of pain hit me. The screen lit up with an incoming text from Eli.

Mom, please stop. Sienna is about to give me my medal.

A notification from the academy portal popped up right below his message. Live Stream Started. I tapped the link.

The video loaded, showing the school auditorium stage. Sienna stood center stage, wearing a tailored navy blazer. The principal handed her a gold medal. The banner above them read Family Representative.

She leaned down and placed the ribbon around Eli's neck. Carter stood right behind them, clapping loudly, a proud smile stretching across his face.

I locked my phone screen. I did not walk out to the guest cottage.

I went into Carter's study and placed my Luna access seal on the center of his mahogany desk. I slid the diamond wedding band off my finger and set it next to the metal badge. I dropped my house keys beside the ring.

I only took my driver's license, cash, a faded photograph of my mother, and a crayon drawing Eli made when he was four, depicting just the three of us.

I opened the pack security app. I submitted a temporary departure permit and turned off all my location-sharing settings.

The walk to the Northstar boundary took forty minutes. The wind bit through my thin sweater, but I kept my pace steady, ignoring the dull ache radiating through my pelvis.

I stopped in front of the stone marker dividing Ashborne territory from Northstar lands. I pulled out my phone and pressed Eli's contact name one last time.

The line connected. A roar of applause and cheering blasted through the speaker.

"Eli," I whispered.

The call ended.

A new text from Eli appeared on my screen. Can we not do this tonight?

I shoved the phone into my pocket and stepped over the boundary line.

The second my boot hit Northstar soil, another massive cramp tore through my stomach, forcing me to my knees in the dirt.

Warm blood rushed down my legs, pooling dark and heavy against the dry earth, while the mate bond in my chest remained entirely silent.