My Alpha Mate Poisoned Me for His Mistress

I didn't sleep. I sat on the edge of my bed until the sky turned grey, staring at the healer's logbook in my lap. The words kept running through my mind like a curse: *Suppress shift. Prevent conception.*

When the sun came up, I changed into clean clothes and walked downstairs. The pack house was already awake. I could hear voices in the kitchen, the clatter of dishes, someone laughing. Normal. Like nothing had happened.

I knocked on the door of Trevor's office and waited.

"Come in," he called.

I pushed the door open. Trevor was sitting behind his desk, a mug of coffee in one hand, his laptop open in front of him. He looked up when I entered. His expression didn't change.

"Sophia," he said. His voice was calm. Too calm. "Close the door."

I did. Then I crossed the room and set the logbook on his desk.

"I want my money back," I said.

He glanced at the logbook but didn't touch it. "We've been over this."

"No. We haven't." My voice was steady. "You stole from me. You poisoned me. You lied to me for three years. I want every dollar returned to my account. And then I'm leaving."

Trevor set his mug down slowly. He leaned back in his chair and studied me. "Where are you going?"

"Silvercrest."

"Your mother's pack."

"My pack," I corrected.

He smiled. It didn't reach his eyes. "You think they'll take you back? After you abandoned them to come here?"

"I didn't abandon them. I followed my mate." The word tasted bitter in my mouth. "I thought the Moon Goddess blessed me. I was wrong."

Trevor stood. He was taller than me. Broader. He walked around the desk and stopped a few feet away, close enough that I had to tilt my head back to look at him.

"You're not leaving," he said.

I met his gaze. "Yes. I am."

His jaw tightened. "Sophia, I didn't want it to come to this. But you're being unreasonable."

"Unreasonable?" My voice rose. "You marked another woman. You drained my inheritance. You had your healer feed me wolfsbane so I couldn't conceive—"

"Enough."

The word hit me like a shockwave.

Trevor's voice changed. It dropped lower, turned sharp and commanding, vibrating with a weight that made the air feel thick. His Alpha tone. I had heard him use it on pack members before—warriors who questioned orders, Omegas who stepped out of line. But never on me.

Until now.

"Kneel," he said.

The command slammed into me. My knees buckled. My body wanted to obey. It was instinct, primal, wired into every wolf's DNA to submit to the Alpha's voice. The pressure built in my chest, crushing down on my ribs. My vision blurred at the edges.

I felt myself sinking.

And then Selene screamed.

It wasn't a whisper this time. It was a raw, feral snarl that tore through my mind like claws raking stone. My wolf—poisoned, skeletal, barely alive—threw herself against the command with everything she had left.

*No,* she howled. *Not again. Never again.*

I dug my nails into my palms. The pain helped. I focused on it, used it to anchor myself. My legs shook. Blood dripped from my nose, hot and copper, but I stayed standing.

Trevor's eyes widened.

"Sit down," he said, louder this time. The Alpha tone thickened. "Forget what you saw. Go back to your duties."

Selene snarled again. The mate bond twisted inside my chest, trying to force submission, but she clawed at it, shredding it thread by thread. My whole body trembled. Sweat ran down my back. My knees felt like they would give out any second.

But I didn't kneel.

Trevor stared at me. His hand flew to his throat, fingers scratching at his skin. It was a nervous tic I had seen before, whenever something didn't go the way he planned. He took a step back.

"How—" he started.

The door opened.

Gia walked in. She looked fresh and rested, wearing a cream-colored sweater and jeans. Her dark hair was pulled into a neat ponytail. She glanced at me, then at Trevor, and smiled.

"Oh good," she said lightly. "You're both here."

I wiped the blood from my nose with the back of my hand. "Get out."

Gia's smile widened. She closed the door behind her and leaned against it, arms crossed. "I don't think so, sweetheart."

"This doesn't concern you," I said.

"Actually, it does." She tilted her head, studying me like I was a bug pinned to a board. "You're planning to leave. To run back to Silvercrest and tell your mother's pack all about the terrible things we did to you. Poor little Sophia, poisoned and betrayed."

I didn't answer.

"Here's the problem," Gia continued. Her voice stayed light, almost cheerful. "If you do that, I'll make sure every Alpha on this continent knows you're a thief."

I blinked. "What?"

She reached into her pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. She unfolded it slowly and held it up. It was a bank statement. My name was at the top. Below it, rows of transactions—withdrawals, transfers, all marked as *unauthorized*.

"I've already prepared the records," Gia said. "Treasury funds. Pack emergency reserves. All stolen by you over the last two years. If you leave, I'll send these to every pack council from here to the coast. No one will believe you. No one will take you in."

My stomach twisted. Selene growled weakly.

"You're lying," I said.

Gia laughed. "Am I?" She folded the paper and slipped it back into her pocket. Then she twisted the gold bangle around her wrist, turning it slowly until the metal bit into her skin. She didn't flinch. "You can try to run, Sophia. But you won't get far. And when you come crawling back—because you will—we'll be waiting."

She pushed off the door and walked past me, brushing my shoulder as she left. The door clicked shut behind her.

I stood there, blood drying on my upper lip, my whole body shaking.

Trevor didn't say anything. He just watched me.

I turned and walked out.