MAVERICK POV
Juniper's video is already going viral.
I watch my phone screen in horror as the clip spreads across werewolf social media. Thousands of views in twenty minutes. Comments flooding in—some supportive, most vicious.
"Predator Alpha claims teenage mate""Maverick Nightshade grooming his daughter's friend""This is why he needs to be removed as Alpha"
Garrett stands beside me, his face grim. "Alpha, the Council is demanding an emergency session. Today. Not in three days—NOW."
"Let me see that phone," Elara says sharply. I hand it to her and watch her expression darken. "Celestia's already weaponizing this. She's claiming you're mentally unstable and a danger to young wolves."
Scarlett sits on my couch, wrapped in a blanket, her face blotchy from crying. "This is my fault. I should have stayed in my room. I should have—"
"Stop." I crouch in front of her, taking her hands. "This is NOT your fault. Juniper was hurt and angry. She reacted badly."
"She hates me now." Fresh tears spill down Scarlett's cheeks. "She was my only real friend and I ruined everything."
Our daughter hates us too, Storm whimpers inside my mind. We've lost her.
The pain of that truth is worse than any physical wound.
"We need a strategy," Elara says, all business now. "The Council meeting is in six hours. They'll use that video as proof you're unfit to lead."
"What can I possibly say?" I stand up, running my hands through my hair in frustration. "They have video evidence of me with an eighteen-year-old. My own daughter calling me mentally unstable. It's over."
"It's not over," Scarlett says quietly. She stands up, letting the blanket fall. Her eyes flash Alpha-gold. "Not if I claim MY birthright."
Elara's eyebrows rise. "You want to officially accept your position as Thorne Alpha? Now?"
"Why not?" Scarlett's voice gets stronger. "You said I'm the heir. That the Thorne pack has been waiting twelve years for me. So let's make it official. Let's show the Council that I'm not some helpless teenager. I'm an Alpha in my own right."
"Scarlett, you just shifted four days ago," I say carefully. "You're not ready for pack politics and—"
"And what? I should just hide while your life falls apart?" Her jaw sets stubbornly. "No. We're mates, Maverick. That means we fight together."
She's magnificent, Storm purrs with pride. Strong. Brave. Perfect.
"Even if you claim your birthright, the Council won't care," Garrett points out. "They'll still see the age gap as inappropriate."
"Then we give them something else to focus on," Elara says slowly. A dangerous smile spreads across her face. "We expose Celestia's real crimes. The murder of Scarlett's parents. The conspiracy to hide an Alpha heir. The forged testimony against Maverick."
"We don't have proof of any of that," I say.
"Not yet. But we have six hours to find it." Elara pulls out her phone. "I've been investigating the Thorne murders for twelve years. I have contacts. Resources. If Celestia was involved, there's evidence somewhere."
"And if we don't find it in time?"
Elara's expression hardens. "Then we go to the Council meeting anyway and force Celestia to defend herself publicly. Make her nervous. Nervous wolves make mistakes."
It's a gamble. A huge one. But what choice do we have?
"Do it," I say. "Find whatever you can. I'll prepare for the hearing."
Elara nods and leaves with her Thorne wolves, already making calls.
Garrett hesitates at the door. "Alpha? For what it's worth... I believe you. The mate bond is sacred. Anyone who truly understands pack law knows you didn't choose this."
"Thank you, Garrett." His loyalty means more than he knows.
After he leaves, it's just me and Scarlett.
She moves closer, her green eyes searching mine. "Do you regret it? The mate bond? Everything that's happened?"
"Never." I cup her face gently. "You're the best thing that's happened to me in years. I just hate that you're suffering because of me."
"I'm suffering because people are cruel and judgmental and afraid of what they don't understand." She leans into my touch. "But I'm not afraid. Are you?"
"Terrified," I admit. "Of losing you. Losing my pack. Losing what little relationship I have left with Juniper."
"Then let's fight for it. All of it." Scarlett rises on her toes and kisses me softly. "Starting with surviving this Council meeting."
The next six hours are chaos.
Elara's team digs through old pack records, interviewing witnesses, following money trails. Garrett prepares statements and gathers character witnesses. Scarlett works with Elara to understand Thorne pack history and her role as heir.
And I... I try to figure out how to save everything I love.
At 11 AM, we gather in the formal Council chamber—a massive stone building at the territory border where all major pack decisions are made.
The Council consists of five ancient Alphas who govern werewolf law on the East Coast. They sit at a raised table, their faces grave.
Celestia is already there, looking perfect in a white suit. Juniper sits beside her mother, refusing to look at me. Caspian Ironfang stands behind them—when did he arrive? His presence means Celestia has powerful allies.
We take our seats on the opposite side. Me, Scarlett, Elara, and Garrett.
The head Councilor—an ancient Alpha named Marcus—bangs his gavel. "This emergency session will determine whether Alpha Maverick Nightshade is fit to continue leading the Nightshade pack. Celestia Nightshade has brought charges of mental instability, inappropriate conduct with a minor, and general unfitness to lead."
"Scarlett Thorne is eighteen," I say immediately. "She's not a minor."
"She's barely eighteen," Celestia counters smoothly. "And you've been grooming her since she was sixteen. My daughter has video evidence of your inappropriate relationship."
The Council plays Juniper's video. Watching it again feels like swallowing glass.
"Alpha Maverick," Marcus says gravely. "How do you explain mating with your daughter's teenage friend mere hours after she arrived at your territory?"
"I don't explain it. I claim it." I stand up, letting my Alpha aura fill the room. "Scarlett is my fated mate. The mate bond snapped into place the moment we met. I didn't choose this—the Moon Goddess did."
"The mate bond doesn't excuse predatory behavior," Celestia says sweetly. "You've clearly been planning this for years."
"That's a lie," Scarlett says, standing up beside me. Her Alpha presence rivals mine—silver and powerful. "I've known Maverick for years and he never once looked at me inappropriately. The bond activated when I shifted into my true form. When my bloodline awakened."
"Bloodline?" Marcus leans forward with interest.
This is it. Our gamble.
"I am Scarlett Thorne," she says clearly. "Daughter of Desmond and Vivienne Thorne. Heir to the Thorne territories and Alpha of my pack."
Gasps ripple through the chamber. Even the Council looks shocked.
"The Thornes are dead," Celestia says, but her voice wavers slightly. "Everyone knows that."
"My parents are dead," Scarlett agrees. "Murdered twelve years ago. But I survived. I was hidden among humans to protect me from whoever killed my family."
"This is ridiculous!" Celestia stands up. "She's making up stories to—"
"We have proof," Elara interrupts. She stands and approaches the Council table with a thick folder. "DNA evidence confirming Scarlett's parentage. Documentation of payments from an unknown source to Silas and Margot Thorne—payments that stopped the day Scarlett turned eighteen. And most interesting... phone records showing Celestia Nightshade contacted Silas Thorne the same night Scarlett first shifted."
Celestia goes pale. "That proves nothing."
"It proves you knew about Scarlett," Elara says coldly. "It proves you've been monitoring the Thorne heir. Why would you do that unless you had something to hide?"
"I want my lawyer," Celestia says quickly.
"Answer the question," Marcus demands. "Why were you contacting Silas Thorne about his daughter?"
"I... I was concerned. As a fellow pack leader. Making sure she was adjusting to—"
"You killed my parents." Scarlett's voice cuts through Celestia's stammering like a knife. "You orchestrated the car accident. You murdered the Thorne Alphas and tried to kill me too. But I survived. And now I'm going to destroy you the same way you destroyed my family."
The chamber explodes into chaos.
Celestia shifts immediately—her ice-white wolf lunging at Scarlett with killing intent.
But Scarlett's massive silver wolf is faster.
The two she-wolves collide in mid-air, claws and fangs flashing.
And I realize with horror that I'm about to watch my mate fight to the death with my ex-mate.
In front of the entire Council.
With my daughter screaming in the background.