My Son Gave My Luna Ring to the Pregnant Mistress

I zipped the canvas duffel bag shut. The metal fastener scraped loudly in the quiet bedroom.

The door swung open. Nathan marched in, Oliver trailing right behind him.

"You are actually packing?" Nathan asked. His brow furrowed in disbelief. "Over a piece of jewelry?"

"I told you I was leaving," I said.

Oliver crossed his arms. "Let her go, Dad. She ruins everything anyway."

I turned to face the boy. He wore a heavy leather jacket I had never seen before.

"You missed your combat tutoring this morning," I said.

"Catherine said I didn't have to go," Oliver shot back. "She let me take the motorcycle out on the dirt trails."

"You are thirteen years old," I said. "You have no license. And you were drinking last weekend. I smelled the alcohol on your clothes."

"It was just a few beers!" Oliver yelled. "Catherine gets it. She actually lets me live. You just want to control every single second of my day."

Nathan placed a heavy hand on Oliver's shoulder. "The boy has a point, Maddie. Your parenting is suffocating."

I stared at my husband. "My parenting?"

"Yes," Nathan insisted. "You are entirely too traditional. You treat him like a prisoner in a training camp, not a teenager."

I looked at Oliver. My mind flashed back to his first shift.

Three years ago, the change had ripped through his small body, violent and uncontrollable. He had screamed in agony as his bones snapped and reformed. I had stayed on the floor of the containment cell all night. I held his thrashing, panicked wolf form against my chest. I let his wild claws shred my arms until the sun rose, bleeding for hours just to keep him grounded.

Now, he stood here complaining about combat drills.

"I was training him to survive as an Alpha," I said.

Oliver sneered. "I don't need your training. Catherine told me the truth."

"What truth?" I asked.

"About the Royal Twins," Oliver said. He puffed out his chest, looking incredibly proud of his secret knowledge. "When her babies are born, they get the Alpha title. I am just adopted. I am not in the succession line anymore."

The absolute foolishness of his words struck me.

"So I don't have to do your stupid drills," Oliver continued. "I get to be free."

Catherine had poisoned him completely. She convinced him to surrender his birthright willingly, buying his loyalty with skipped classes and cheap beer.

"Is that what she told you?" I asked.

"Yeah," Oliver said. "She said I deserve a normal life."

I didn't argue. I didn't explain the pack laws he was so eagerly throwing away. I reached into my purse and pulled out the thick manila envelope Marcus had delivered an hour ago.

"What is that?" Nathan demanded. He stepped forward, his Alpha instincts flaring at the sight of legal documents.

"Your freedom," I said directly to Oliver.

I pulled a pen from the nightstand drawer. I flipped the document open to the final page.

"I am leaving your education fund intact," I stated. I pressed the ink to the paper. I signed my name in a swift, sharp motion. "But I am officially revoking all inheritance arrangements."

Nathan's eyes widened. "What?"

"The downtown commercial properties, the pack business shares, the offshore accounts," I listed. "They all revert to my maiden name immediately."

"You cannot do that!" Nathan snapped. He reached for the folder.

I pulled it back. "They are my personal assets, Nathan. Brought into this marriage by my family."

"He is your son!" Nathan yelled.

"He is not my son anymore," I said. I tossed the folder onto the mattress. "You made sure of that last night."

Oliver glared at the heavy stack of papers. "Keep your money! Catherine will give me whatever I want. She actually cares about me."

I picked up my duffel bag and slung it over my shoulder.

"I am sure she will," I said.

I walked out of the master suite. I didn't look back at either of them.

The grand staircase lay empty. Most of the pack members were still recovering from the anniversary gala. The silence in the massive house felt heavy, thick with the aftermath of last night's public betrayal.

Oliver had rushed past me in the hallway, eager to find his new mother figure.

As I reached the bottom step, I paused.

He stood frozen outside the parlor doors. The heavy mahogany panels were cracked open just an inch.

I stayed on the landing. I didn't speak. I simply watched the rigid tension seizing his shoulders.

Inside the parlor, Catherine's voice rang out. It sounded bright and painfully sharp.

"Of course I bought him a motorcycle, Sarah," Catherine laughed.

Oliver flinched. His hands balled into tight fists at his sides.

"If he breaks his neck on it, it just solves my problem faster," Catherine added.

A woman's voice murmured something indistinguishable through the phone.

"No, Nathan doesn't care," Catherine continued. "He thinks I am bonding with the boy. It is honestly hilarious. The kid is so desperate for approval, he will do anything I say."

Oliver stopped breathing. His shoulders hiked up toward his ears.

"He even humiliated Madeline in front of the whole pack last night," Catherine boasted. "Handed the ring right to me. Like a good little dog."

Sarah murmured another response.

Catherine sighed loudly. "I know. But I will not have to pretend much longer."

The parlor grew quiet for a brief second.

"Once my babies are born, that adopted brat needs to get out," Catherine stated coldly. "I am not sharing my twins' inheritance with some stray."

Oliver took a shaky step backward. His face completely drained of color.

He turned his head and looked toward the stairs. His wide, panicked eyes met mine.

I held his gaze. I didn't offer a comforting smile. I didn't rush across the foyer to hold him.

I turned the knob on the front door and walked out into the sunlight.