Chapter 1When my brother Soren called telling me to get to his campus ASAP, his dead-serious tone scared the hell out of me.
I haul ass over to the Elder's office at Crescent Moon University, and what do I find?
Him, Elder Kellan Grimstone, and this girl Jade Embermoor I helped out last semester when rogues cornered her near the territory border—all sitting there looking at me.
Jade clutched her slightly swollen belly, dropped to her knees in front of me, and started ugly-crying:
"Babe, I know this pup scares you, but you CAN'T just ditch us like this!"
Elder Grimstone's wolf dominance slams into the room: "I don't care if you're Alpha blood. This is on YOU. The Wolf Council doesn't tolerate males who abandon their mates and pups!"
Outside the office, pack members gather. Phones out. Cameras rolling. Every single person staring at me like I'm the villain.
And through all that chaos, Soren's just chilling against the wall with this smirk on his face:
"Wow, sis. Not even gonna acknowledge your pup? Cold."
---
Jade's crying gets worse, her Omega scent spiking with distress—manipulative as hell, designed to trigger every wolf's protective instincts.
"Riven..." She looks at me like I broke her heart, voice all shaky:
"Even your brother's saying the pup's yours. Why won't you just admit it?"
Soren's eyes go wide. He jumps in:
"Hold up! Did nobody hear me say 'SIS'?!"
"Soren, I'm not deaf!"
Jade shoots up, pointing at me with a trembling finger:
"Ever since I got knocked up, you've been calling him your 'sis' right in front of my face!"
"You two are playing me, aren't you? Trying to dodge your responsibility to the pack? How long is this shit gonna go on?!"
I whip around to look at Soren. He's backed into the corner doing that prayer hands thing, and his eyes are screaming: Sis, I swear—I was just trying to get her to slip up and expose herself! I didn't think it'd backfire on YOU like this!
"I'm pregnant with a pack heir, we're not even officially mated, and everyone thinks I'm some rogue's slut now. Thanks for that." Jade touches her belly, tears streaming:
"Riven, all I want is for you to accept the bond and step up. Is that so wrong?"
She looks at me all sad, her voice dropping to that wounded Omega tone:
"My mom always said Alpha wolves are heartless... I laughed it off, but holy shit... she called it, didn't she? You're really letting me down here."
What the actual fuck.
Okay, yeah, I'm 5'10" with a voice like gravel and an Alpha's dominance that makes weaker wolves submit on instinct.
But I'm literally begging you here—
Can you at least check if I've got the right biology before trying to pin a pup on me?!
I'M A FEMALE ALPHA!
I touch my buzzed head—kept short for faster shifts between forms—and honestly? This is some Black Mirror shit right here.
If I'd known she'd pull this crap, I would've just left her to those rogues when they cornered her near the mall parking lot.
"Jade, you've got the wrong wolf. I keep my hair short for patrol shifts, but I'm actually—"
"Enough!"
Elder Grimstone cuts me off, his wolf's authority slamming into the room:
"Look, I get it—you're young and you're freaking out about fatherhood. But SHE'S the one who's gonna pay for this, not you! You think you can just say 'my bad' and walk away from a bonded mate?"
He looks at me like I'm hopeless, his disappointment radiating through the pack link:
"Look at yourself! Where's the honor in you?! What kind of Alpha abandons their bloodline?!"
That's what I'm saying!
What honor?! I don't have the right equipment for this accusation!
"Elder, I'm really—"
"Stop!"
He waves me off, cutting me off again:
"Contact your pack. Now. Alpha Hadrian and Luna Celeste need to be informed."
He pauses, his expression hardening:
"Jade's from a broken pack—Embermoor's practically dissolved. She's got nobody. This is serious. We need the Shadowcrest leadership here to handle bloodline obligations."
The second he finishes talking, Jade rushes at me, her scent drenched in fake distress pheromones:
"Babe, please—please don't do this! You're all I've got. Literally the only wolf who didn't treat me like trash. If you leave me and this pup, I won't—I can't—"
"Stop, stop, STOP!"
I'm waving my hands, backing up as my wolf bristles at her proximity:
"Don't call me babe, I—"
"I know!"
Jade cuts me off, voice breaking:
"I know, I know you're mad, okay? I wasn't careful about protection and that's on me. But please—just accept the bond. I'll do anything. I'll submit completely—I don't even care about rank, just don't make me raise this pup as a packless Omega."
Meanwhile, the crowd outside explodes, wolves and humans alike losing their shit:
"Dude, what the fuck! This is pissing me off! What Alpha knocks up an Omega and then bails?!"
"I mean, look at them—that dominant aura, obviously bad news! Total heartbreaker!"
"Record this! We're putting this on the pack forums! Let the whole Wolf Council see!"
"Yo guys, check this out—caught a live Alpha dodging mate responsibility! Drop some donations and I'll go in and film their face up close!"
All these phone cameras are like silver bullets pointed at me.
Soren clearly didn't think it'd blow up like this. He blocks me, veins popping in his forehead as his Beta instincts kick in:
"What are you all filming?! This is my SISTER—"
But the hate just gets worse:
"Yeah right, nice try! You Nightfang wolves think you're above pack law!"
"Omegas, if you see this, RUN from Alphas like this!"
In less than an hour, I'm getting crucified online for shit I never even did.
I stop Soren from defending me and look at Jade, all weak and innocent over there, her Omega act perfected to prey on every wolf's instincts.
Fine. You wanna play dirty and drag my bloodline through the mud?
Let's see who's still standing when the Wolf Council gets involved.
Chapter 2
I look at Jade and smile, letting my Alpha presence bleed through just enough to make her wolf flinch:
"Okay, so where's your proof this pup is even mine?"
Everything stops. Like, dead silence.
All those phones filming? They whip around to her, waiting to see what she's gonna say.
Jade's face flashes with panic, but she covers it up fast with more tears and that manipulative Omega scent:
"Proof? You're asking ME for proof? That night we bonded... you—don't you remember the marks? The scent exchange?"
"Which marks? What night?"
I keep my voice flat, like I'm talking about patrol schedules:
"Where's the bonding record filed with the pack registry? Where's the witness documentation? Or..."
My eyes drift to her belly:
"Show me something—anything—that proves we even bonded. 'Cause how do I know that pup's even got my bloodline?"
Jade's face flashes red:
"How am I supposed to— It's not like we recorded the bonding ceremony! The pup IS the proof! You can scent them!"
Elder Grimstone's looking at me like I've lost my mind:
"Riven, seriously? You're being ridiculous. You want documentation for a mate bond? That's sacred between wolves!"
"So... nothing? No proof at all?"
I raise my eyebrows and look at all the cameras:
"So what—she just gets to claim I'm her mate and that's it? Just because she says so?"
"Then I could point at any wolf in here right now and say they're my mate. Hell, I could point at YOU, Elder—and claim your bloodline. That's how this works?"
"How dare you!"
Elder Grimstone's face goes red, his wolf surfacing for a split second.
I laugh, cold and sharp:
"Elder, before you call me ridiculous, did you ever think—based on JUST her word, with ZERO actual proof—you're forcing me to accept a bond? How is that fair to me? To my pack?"
Right then, Jade speaks up, her voice stronger:
"You want proof? FINE!"
She pulls out her phone and shows some screenshots:
"Here's the confirmation from when you took me to that packhouse gathering. Here's the receipt from when you bought me dinner after saving me from those rogues. And this... this is the motel record from the first time we..."
She pauses, then lowers her voice just enough for everyone to hear:
"The pup's from the third time. Riven, you still gonna deny it?"
Oh, so THAT'S why she kept asking me to meet up after I saved her ass—she was building a case to trap me all along!
I glance at her so-called "evidence" and smirk:
"Some random receipts and records you could've easily faked? And you think I'm that stupid?"
"This Alpha's disgusting! They ASKED for proof and now won't accept it!"
"What a piece of shit. Just wants to use an Omega and bail!"
Hearing everyone turn on me, Jade's tears start up again, her Omega distress scent flooding the hallway:
"Babe, how can you say that about me?"
"I know I'm just an Omega from a broken pack and you're Shadowcrest royalty, but the pup didn't do anything wrong! They deserve their Alpha parent!"
Elder Grimstone literally steps in front of her, his dominance pressing against mine:
"Would an Omega really destroy her own reputation just to frame you?!"
He shakes his head like I'm a lost cause:
"Look, I thought maybe you were just some young Alpha freaking out about parenthood. But nah—you got a real problem. You're lying, making shit up, trying to make HER look like the crazy one. And no pack's gonna tolerate that."
He sucks in a breath, his authority crackling through the air:
"This ain't just drama between you two anymore. You lied to wolves in this territory, you're making Crescent Moon University look like shit—we're way past that now. So here's what's gonna happen: You apologize to Jade. Right now. Accept the bond and step up. Or I'm contacting Alpha Hadrian today, and you're looking at being stripped of your heir status. Maybe exiled for dishonorin' the pack."
Behind the Elder, Jade's got this little smirk on her face.
She tugs on his sleeve, all soft and submissive:
"Elder Grimstone, no! Please! They just—they made a mistake, okay? But they're not a bad wolf, I know they're not... If they'll just acknowledge the pup as theirs, that's all I need. I don't need sorry. I don't care about rank."
This whole innocent Omega act? It's winning everyone over. And it's painting me as the villain.
Online, the pack forums are spiraling. I can see the worry in Soren's eyes. I know if I just blurt out "I'm female" right now, nobody's gonna believe me.
They'll all think it's just another excuse. And then not only will I not clear my name, but my gender and bloodline will become gossip for every pack in North.
I take a deep breath, my wolf settling into hunting mode.
Time to make this bigger.
Chapter 3
I turn to the nearest camera and say, calm as anything:
"Look, everyone—everyone watching this shit—I'm just as confused as you are. This whole thing is fucking insane."
I pause, looking around at the crowd of wolves and humans alike:
"But whatever. Doesn't matter what I say when she's standing there pregnant, claiming we're bonded. So you know what? Let's stop talking. Let's go get proof."
I look straight at Jade, my stare ice-cold, letting my Alpha dominance leak through:
"Jade. We can't figure this out talking, so let's go to the pack clinic. Right now. In front of all these people. Get a blood bond test. Let's see if that pup actually carries my bloodline."
Jade's face goes white. She blurts out:
"No... I can't!"
The rejection is so sudden it catches everyone off guard. Even Elder Grimstone looks confused.
I push harder, my wolf rising to the surface:
"Why not? Isn't this the best way to prove who's lying? Jade, you're scared."
With everyone staring, Jade's eyes dart around and her fingers twist her shirt.
But then, like she's made up her mind about something:
"Fine! Let's GO! You're forcing me to do this, Riven! And when that test shows it's yours—and it WILL—you better accept the bond! For me and this pup! And you say it out loud, right here, in front of everyone! You claim what you did!"
I wasn't expecting that. But that look on her face for a second there? Yeah. That was fear.
I almost laugh. But I keep it to myself.
"Sure. Let's do it."
So this whole circus moves from the Elder's office to the most trusted pack medical facility in the territory—Moonstone Clinic, run by neutral wolves who handle bloodline disputes.
It's not just students showing up—local pack reporters and livestreamers swarm the place with cameras, turning the clinic hallway into a complete zoo.
Nobody wants to miss this drama.
While we're waiting for results, reporters crowd around me:
"Riven, are you nervous right now?"
"Why don't you believe Jade? Did something happen between you two that made you reject this pup so hard?"
"Don't you think forcing a blood bond test is kinda cruel? She's already vulnerable as an Omega."
I look at the pushiest reporter and ask, totally straight-faced:
"What if I told you I'm female? Would you believe me?"
The reporter freezes for a second. Then he and everyone else start laughing, voices dripping with sarcasm:
"Riven, are you seriously gonna lie about your own biology just to get out of this?"
I laugh, don't say anything else.
If they only believe what they wanna believe, fine. Let's wait for the results.
The truth always comes out.
Time drags. The hallway's tense as hell, thick with competing wolf scents—anger, anxiety, curiosity.
Jade's staring at the floor—can't see her face. Elder Grimstone's pacing like crazy, his wolf barely contained. Soren's glued to my side, his Beta instincts on high alert.
Finally, the clinic door opens. Dr. Orion Ravencrest in a white coat walks out holding a report, his expression unreadable.
Every camera snaps to him.
The doctor looks around, then locks eyes with me and Jade. He hands me the paper.
I look down.
There it is, bottom of the last page:
[Blood Bond Analysis: 99.99% match. Riven Nightfang is the biological parent of the unborn pup.]
Fuck.
I stare at the doctor, completely stunned, my wolf howling in confusion.
Around me, people lose it:
"Fucking asshole! Got nothing to say now, huh?!"
"Yeah, let's see them bullshit their way out of THIS one!"
"Strip their heir status! They don't deserve Shadowcrest!"
I'm standing there, brain totally fried, cameras flashing everywhere, and Jade throws herself at me crying:
"The bloodline doesn't lie! Look at this—it's right here!"
Jade's waving the test around, sobbing: "Riven! What do you have to say NOW? You SAID you'd accept it!"
Elder Grimstone's face is dark red, his voice harsh and cutting:
"Riven, the proof is right here! You keep lying, and now we're talking about what kind of Alpha you are. So apologize to Jade. Now. Accept the bond and figure out what you're doing about this pup. Or I'm contacting Alpha Hadrian today, and you're looking at exile."
"This test is FAKE!"
Soren's eyes are bloodshot, his wolf barely contained. He gets in front of me, yelling at the cameras:
"My SISTER is FEMALE! She literally CAN'T father a pup—"
"Stop!"
I snap back to reality and cut him off, shaking my head slightly.
Immediately people start talking:
"These Nightfang wolves are really putting on a show! One plays dumb, the other claims biology doesn't exist?"
"You think you can fake a blood bond test? Moonstone Clinic is neutral and legit as hell!"
"Still trying to dodge pack responsibility. Pathetic!"
The cameras are basically in my face now, questions getting more brutal, wolves pressing closer with their judgment.
I look at that insane report, then at all these angry strangers around me—wolves who should know better, humans who don't understand our world.
Suddenly, a crazy idea hits me.
