When My Alpha Chose Poison Over Me

My mother-in-law, Hattie, the former Luna of the Silver Fang Pack, had gone to the countryside to take photographs and accidentally ingested wolfsbane. Out in the wilderness, she pleaded with me to find my mate, Alpha Noel, to take her to the hospital, but I shook my head and refused.

In my previous life, I had desperately searched for Noel in the woods, injuring myself in the process, to drag him away from his secret rendezvous with Celine Ortiz, the rogue werewolf who had been his first love, and begged him to save his mother. We managed to get her to the hospital in time, and she pulled through. However, Celine's reputation was sullied, and her ex-mate abandoned her. In her despair, she ended her life.

My mate publicly praised my devotion as a dutiful daughter-in-law, yet on the seventh day after Celine's death, he force-fed wolfsbane petals into my mouth. "Maryam, you killed Celine! You deserve to die too and make amends to her."

In this new life, Noel and Celine's passionate affair finally reached its closure. When he returned home, he had lost his mind.

"Maryam, help me, help me..."

Hattie lay on the ground, frothing at the mouth, her face twisted in pain. Her helpless hands reached out, pleading for my help. The pack members who accompanied her grew increasingly frantic.

"What should we do? We're too far out here for an ambulance to arrive in time."

"Where’s Alpha Noel? Wasn't he supposed to come with us? Quick, find him to drive his mother to the hospital."

I hesitated and replied, "He's gone up the hill with Celine. If I go to find him, I'm worried he won't want to come."

The pack members exchanged uneasy glances, all too familiar with the situation. They knew about Celine and were aware of Noel’s deep obsession with her. If it weren't for Celine being a rogue and infertile, they would have mated long ago. Even after Noel and I had formed our mate bond, he remained inseparable from her. Hattie often felt distressed by this and blamed me for not being able to keep her son's attention.

Today, we agreed to come out here because Celine wanted some fresh air and a bit of adventure. That's why Noel took us all on this outing.

I looked down and confessed with embarrassment, "And I don't have any money..."

Noel controlled the pack's finances, and he had given everything to Celine, leaving me nothing for household use.

The atmosphere turned icy, and the pack members looked at me with sympathy.

"Let's all go together and find Alpha Noel. We have to bring him back."

"Maryam, stay here and take care of your mother-in-law. We’ll be back soon."

I stayed behind, caring for Hattie. At that moment, reality hit me—I had indeed been given another chance at life.

Hattie lay on the ground, convulsing painfully. "Maryam, I don't think I'll make it. Please look after Noel," she implored. "I know he's wronged you, but he's still your mate. Don't give up on him. He's just been led astray by that temptress."

"If I survive, I'll make sure to tear down that rogue's facade..."

I remained indifferent, watching her, though I couldn't ignore the ache in my heart. She never understood, even in her final moments, that not even she, his own mother, could prevent Noel from indulging Celine. For him, Celine remained that untouchable ideal.

"Hold on, Hattie, he'll be back soon," I tried to reassure her, though there was little more I could say.

Soon enough, they returned, drenched in sweat and exhausted. I glanced around, but Noel was nowhere to be seen.

They expressed their frustration. "Alpha Noel's out of his mind; he insisted on experiencing nature with that rogue, Celine."

"No matter how much we reasoned with him, he wouldn't leave her. He accused us of lying to him just to drag him back. All he could talk about was us trying to separate them, claiming all I wanted was to keep him to myself. What's going on in his head?"

"Even if he doesn't believe us, it involves his own mother. How can he not at least check on her?"

"It's that sly little rogue, Celine, who keeps pretending we're trying to steal Alpha Noel away from her. They both have mates, for the Moon Goddess’ sake! They can't be together—that's just pack law!"

"They truly deserve each other. How can two people be so perfectly and equally awful?"

After venting their frustrations, the group suddenly remembered that Noel’s mother was still lying on the ground, barely hanging on.