Chapter 584
Duncan suddenly slammed on the brakes, the heavy SUV jerking to a halt before we even reached the estate gates. His face drained of color. “Luna — the Alpha King just ordered me to stop the vehicle or face treason.”
“Drive, Duncan,” I commanded, projecting every ounce of my Luna authority into the small space. “He is acting out of panic. If you stop this car, you will answer to me.”
Duncan swallowed hard, torn between his Alpha’s wrath and his Luna’s absolute resolve. He gritted his teeth and pressed the accelerator, tearing out onto the highway.
Twenty minutes later, the heavy double doors of the Four Seasons executive lounge loomed before me. Inside, the air smelled of expensive espresso, cheap perfume, and the nervous sweat of reporters. I pushed the doors open.
Camera shutters began clicking immediately, the red recording lights of digital pens blinking like hungry eyes. I ignored the flashes, my maternity dress flowing around me like armor as I walked straight toward the velvet sofa where Seraphina Vance sat clutching a manila folder. Her smug smile faltered for a fraction of a second at my solitary arrival.
“Adella,” Seraphina sneered, recovering her composure. “Come to watch your crippled King fall? Or are you here to beg?”
I didn’t blink. I walked directly to the coffee table and planted both hands flat on the stolen files she was preparing to distribute.
“Did you consult your lawyers, Seraphina?” I asked, my voice ringing with an icy clarity that silenced the entire room. “Distributing stolen medical records carries a federal prison sentence in the human world.”
She scoffed, though her expression flickered with unease. “We are wolves. Human laws—”
“Then let’s talk about Pack law,” I interrupted, leaning closer. “Under The Ancient Pack Covenant, weaponizing an Alpha’s battle wounds to incite rebellion is high treason. It carries the penalty of having your Inner Wolf stripped and permanent exile.”
The smugness vanished from her face, replaced by a flicker of genuine terror as she pressed back against the sofa.
I leaned in until my face was inches from hers, dropping my voice to a whisper meant only for her ears.
“This is your only warning. Burn the file — or I will burn your entire world to the ground.”
Bella Rose POV
The hum of the fluorescent lights in Dr. Alistair Vance’s private clinic felt like a drill against my skull. I sat rigidly in the ergonomic chair, staring at the high-definition monitor on his desk. It was playing enhanced thermal footage of me — Bella Rose — bypassing his archive’s firewall ten minutes ago.
“You’re slipping, Bella,” Dr. Vance said, his voice a clinical drawl. The room smelled of sterile alcohol. “I could summon the Elders right now. Have you stripped of your Pack status and exiled as a Rogue by nightfall.”
Panic seized my throat. “I was just looking for—”
“I know exactly what you were looking for,” he interrupted, stepping closer. “Seraphina’s files. You’re working for the Luna.” He smiled — a thin, bloodless line. “But I’m not going to turn you in. We are going to make a deal.”