My Alpha Tried to Steal Our Son

I was reviewing the security footage from our gates when Naya burst into my office, her face pale and eyes wide.

"Chelsea, we need to talk." She closed the door behind her, her detective's instincts automatically scanning the room for listening devices.

"What is it?" I asked, setting aside the tablet showing Benjamin and his mother arguing with the guards.

Naya placed a thick folder on my desk. "It's about Emerald."

I braced myself against the desk. "Worse than identity fraud?"

"Much worse." She opened the folder, revealing surveillance photos of Emerald meeting with shadowy figures in abandoned warehouses. "We've been tracking her burner phone activity."

"And?"

"She's not just a con artist, Chelsea." Naya's voice dropped to a whisper. "She's connected to the Blackwood trafficking ring."

My blood turned to ice. "The child traffickers?"

Naya nodded grimly. "We've been monitoring their operations for months. Emerald's phone has been pinged at three different drop sites."

I stared at the photos, trying to process this revelation. "But why target Benjamin? Why our pack?"

"Because she's been 'procuring' children under the guise of adoption and surrogacy fraud." Naya's fingers traced a diagram of the trafficking network. "Wealthy families, private adoptions—perfect cover."

The implications hit me like a physical blow. "She doesn't just want to displace Liam," I whispered. "She wants to sell him."

Naya's eyes met mine, confirming my worst fears. "That's why we need to move carefully. If she suspects we know..."

I straightened my spine, forcing down the terror threatening to overwhelm me. "I need to see her face when she thinks she's winning."

---

The Bellvue Café was exactly the type of place Emerald would choose—pretentious enough to impress, public enough to create a scene. I'd arranged to meet my lawyer here, knowing Emerald would show up to gloat.

I spotted her the moment she walked in, her crimson dress cutting through the sea of business casuals like a knife. She made a show of checking her watch before approaching my table.

"Chelsea," she purred, sliding into the seat across from me. "How... resilient of you to be out in public."

I kept my expression neutral as I sipped my latte. The recording app on my phone blinked steadily in my pocket.

"Emerald." I nodded politely. "I didn't realize you were a café regular."

"Oh, I'm not." Her smile was venomous. "But I had to come see you after you froze Benjamin's accounts. Such a... dramatic gesture."

I set down my cup carefully. "Did you need something?"

"Just to deliver a message." She leaned forward, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "I will be the new Luna by the end of the month. And once I am, I'll make sure your little bastard is sent to the best orphanage money can buy."

My heart hammered against my ribs, but I kept my face impassive. "Is that so?"

"Oh yes." Her eyes glittered with malice. "Benjamin agrees with me that the pack deserves a proper heir. Not some... outsider."

I reached for my phone, pretending to check the time while ensuring the recording was still running. "I see."

"Do you?" She leaned closer, her perfume suffocating me. "Because I don't think you understand what's coming. You've lost everything, Chelsea. The pack, your husband, your reputation."

I met her gaze steadily. "Enjoy the throne while it lasts, darling."

Confusion flickered across her face at my calm response. She'd expected tears, begging, perhaps even a scene. Instead, she got ice.

---

"Are you sure about this?" Marcus asked as we finalized the details for the live broadcast.

I nodded, checking the contract for "The Pack Truth" one last time. "It's the perfect trap."

"And if it backfires?"

"Then I'll deal with it." I signed my name with a flourish. "But it won't."

The production team had been ecstatic when I called. A live DNA test to prove the paternity of a pack Alpha's child? Ratings gold.

"Benjamin's agreed to be there?" Marcus asked.

"Of course." I smiled thinly. "The prospect of a public divorce settlement was too tempting. He still thinks he can get half my fortune."

"And Emerald?"

"Will be right beside him, planning her victory party."

Marcus's phone buzzed with a message. "Naya says the FBI is ready. They'll be in position during the broadcast."

I nodded, feeling a strange calm settle over me. "Then let's give them a show they'll never forget."

As I hung up the phone, I caught sight of Liam sleeping peacefully in his nursery across the hall. For him, I would burn Emerald's world to the ground.

The stage was set. The players were in position.

And I held all the cards.