I Escaped After My Alpha Poisoned Me for His Mistress

I stood in Cade's office, my heart pounding against my ribs. This was it—my final test of loyalty. If he failed this one, I would know there was no hope left for us.

"My wolf is dying," I said quietly, watching his reaction.

Cade looked up from his desk, his expression more annoyed than concerned. "What are you talking about?"

"The emotional severing... it's killing her." I swallowed hard, forcing tears into my eyes. "I need you to complete a bonding run with me tonight. Just the two of us. In wolf form."

Something flickered across his face—surprise, perhaps even a hint of the old Cade. "A bonding run?"

"It's the only way to strengthen our connection." I stepped closer, my voice breaking. "Please, Cade. If you ever loved me..."

He sighed, setting down his pen. "Fine. The clearing by the eastern border. Midnight."

Relief flooded through me. He'd agreed. Maybe there was still hope.

"I'll be waiting," I whispered.

---

The moon hung full and bright above the forest as I paced the clearing. My wolf paced restlessly inside me, sensing my anxiety. Every few minutes, I checked my phone. 12:15. 12:30. 12:45.

By 1:00 AM, the cold had seeped through my clothes, numbing my fingertips. I'd shifted back to human form, unable to maintain my wolf in the freezing night air.

"Maybe he got held up," I told myself, though I knew better.

At 2:00 AM, I finally admitted defeat. My legs cramped from standing in the same spot for so long as I made my way back to the Pack House.

The lights were still on in Cade's study. I approached quietly, my heart sinking with each step.

Through the partially open door, I could see him—relaxed in his leather chair, a glass of scotch in hand. Across from him sat Marcus Rivera, Estella's father, his own drink barely touched.

"The border dispute will be settled by the full moon," Marcus was saying. "My sources say the Northern Pack is backing down."

Cade nodded, swirling his amber liquid. "Good. We don't need another war right now."

I stood frozen in the hallway, watching as he laughed at something Marcus said. He'd forgotten. Completely forgotten about me waiting in the cold forest for hours.

The phantom Cade appeared beside me, his translucent form trembling with rage and grief. But for the first time, he didn't plead with me. He simply looked at me with resigned eyes, his form fading slightly as if accepting what was coming.

---

"I'm done," I whispered to the empty room as I pulled my suitcase from the closet.

The phantom Cade sat on the edge of our bed, watching as I carefully folded clothes into the bag. He no longer tried to stop me, his presence a silent acknowledgment of what needed to be done.

I moved to the desk and pulled out a piece of paper, coding a message using an old system from my days as a communications officer. The recipient: Scott Hayes, the rogue doctor I'd heard rumors about.

"I need help," I wrote in carefully disguised language. "Blood Moon Run. Eastern border. Midnight."

I sent the message through an old secure channel, praying it would reach him.

"He'll help you," the phantom Cade whispered, though I was the only one who could hear him. "He's a good man."

I looked at him, surprised by the endorsement. "You know him?"

"We met once, long ago." The phantom's eyes grew distant. "Before everything changed."

---

The cabin at the edge of neutral territory looked abandoned from the outside—weathered wood and broken shutters. But when I knocked, the door opened immediately.

"You must be Sofia," said a deep voice.

Scott Hayes was taller than I'd expected, with careful eyes that assessed me without judgment. He stepped aside to let me enter.

"I got your message," he said simply.

"I need to escape during the Blood Moon Run," I said, my voice steadier than I felt. "I need your help."

He studied me for a long moment. "You're the Luna of Silverfang."

"Was," I corrected. "I will be soon."

Something shifted in his expression—a softening around the edges. "The corruption there... it's worse than I thought if it's driven you to this."

"You know about it?"

"I was Gamma there once," he said quietly. "Before they exiled me for questioning their methods."

His calm, respectful demeanor was so different from Cade's aggressive dominance that it took me a moment to adjust.

"Can you help me?" I asked finally.

He nodded once, decisively. "Yes."

---

Over the next week, I met Scott three more times, always careful to use different routes and meeting places. Each time, we refined our plan.

"The Blood Moon Run creates chaos," Scott explained during our third meeting. "The pack runs wild, scents get mixed and confused. It's our best chance."

He handed me a small vial filled with dark green paste. "This will mask your scent entirely."

"What is it?" I asked, uncorking it.

"A mixture of herbs and wolf's bane," he said grimly. "It needs to be applied directly to your skin. It's... painful."

I looked at the paste, then back at him. "Will it work?"

"Yes." His eyes met mine steadily. "But Sofia... once you cross that border, there's no going back."

I thought of Cade's betrayal, of Estella's smug face, of the phantom Cade growing fainter each day.

"I know," I said firmly. "I'm ready."