LOGINTate's POVThe papers were still on the conference table where they had been sitting for months, tucked into the same folder Nicole had first slid across to me back when all I wanted was a chance to prove I deserved to keep looking her in the eye.FORMAL PETITION — DISSOLUTION OF MATE BOND RECOGNITIONTO: The Alliance Judicial Council and Federal Research Institute BoardFROM: Nicole Carter (formerly Nicole Locker, registered Omega)RESPONDENT: Tate Caesar, Alpha of the South River PackEvery word on that header was a monument to a time when I had been a monster, and she had been forced to survive me.I pulled the chair out, the wood scraping against the floor, and sat down. Nicole was already sitting across from me, her arms resting on the table, her eyes watching my hands."I'm not signing it," I said.She did not flinch. "I'm not asking you to anymore."“You drafted this to force my hand," I said, leaning forward. "Back when you needed it to protect the twins. Back when you didn't
Nicole pov "I registered them as Dr. Nicole Carter’s dependents," I said, stepping closer to the board table. "I paid every credit for their room, board, and nursery care out of my own grant stipends. No institute funds were used to support them. They live here under the exact same residential rules as the children of any other senior researcher."I turned off the projection screen, bringing the bright light down to the soft glow of the room."I hid my identity to protect myself and my children from a pack that had already tried to kill me once through neglect and cruelty," I said, keeping my voice steady even as the words themselves weren't easy to say out loud in a room full of strangers. "I did not conceal my identity to gain research advantage. I concealed it to survive long enough to build something worth protecting. Those are not the same act, and I ask the board not to treat them as though they are."The oak doors opened, and Director Reyes stepped out into the quiet marble ha
Nicole's POVThe notice arrived at seven in the morning, delivered not by internal mail, but by a uniformed page from the Office of the Director who refused to leave until I signed the brass-bound ledger.I tore the heavy parchment seal with my thumb, unfolding the crisp vellum across the kitchen counter while the kettle began to hum behind me.I stared at the letter, the black ink of the header staring back at me like a threat.Federal Research Institute of Alliance Medicine.Director Reyes had signed it. A mandatory appearance in Closed Session. Inquiry 408-B.My hands stayed steady, but my chest pulled tight as I read through the three points laid out in cold, formal print. They knew about my legal title as Luna of the South River Pack—the title I had left behind years ago in the mud and snow. They were questioning my clinical ethics regarding Subject B—Tracy Caesar, the woman who had helped make my life a living hell, now sitting in my trial under my care.Thursday at 14:00 Hours
Tate's POVThe brass key turned smoothly in the lock of the sub-basement storage cage—a space the Federal Research Institute allocated to visiting Alpha delegations for secure recordkeeping. I hadn't asked Corwin to fetch the box for me. My fingers trailed over the cold gray metal of the archive drawers until they stopped at the file labeled South River Alliance Filings: Inactive.I pulled the heavy paper sleeve from the cabinet, the dust catching in the weak light of the fluorescent tube overhead. My thumb traced the raised ink on the front cover.The DocumentSOUTHERN WEREWOLF ALLIANCE REGISTRY PETITION FOR DECLARATION OF DEATH SUBJECT INFORMATION: Full Legal Name: N. Caesar, née LockePack of Origin: South River PackStatus: Pending Approval — Alliance Central RecordsFiling Authority: Office of the Alpha, South River PackDate of Filing: Three weeks post-search termination DECLARATION: The search in the Northern Forest territory has yielded no viable recovery of the subject
Nicole's POV I leaned over the wide wooden desk, my fingers tracing the fine lines of a fresh brain scan. The dark blue ink of my red pen left small, precise dots beside the temporal lobe markers. Sheets of medical charts were stacked high on my left, while the steady tick of the wall clock filled the quiet room. Outside the tall window, the afternoon sun cut through the glass, casting long, geometric shadows over my half-finished reports. My back ached from hours of sitting, but I kept my head down, making one final note in the margin. The door handle clicked open. Marlon walked in with two steaming paper cups. His step was slower than usual, his jaw tight, and his eyes stayed fixed on the floor for a long second before he raised his head. A strange, heavy look hung across his face—one I had never seen on him before. "You have news," I said, before he'd even sat down. "I have news." He set one coffee in front of me and held the other in both hands like he needed something to
Tate pov "I was no hero," I said, my voice dropping into a rough, quiet register. The warmth in my eyes darkened with a heavy, familiar weight. "I was a tyrant. I was acting out every cruel lesson Caesar ever beat into me, and I took it out on you because you were the easiest target.""Tate, don't""No, Nicole, let me say it," I interrupted gently, squeezing her fingers. "I need to look at you and say the full truth. I ordered the maids to put that birth control powder in your food every single day. I convinced myself it was about control, that keeping you from bearing an heir was some kind of pack security because of what your father did. But it was just pure, bitter cruelty."Nicole looked down at our joined hands, her shoulders tightening slightly at the memory. "I remember sitting at that kitchen table every morning. I used to force myself to swallow whatever was set down in front of me while everyone called me barren. I thought my own body was failing me.""It wasn't your body—i
Nichole pov "Shit, shit, shit." I was already ten minutes behind and the parliament office was a fifteen minute walk, Tate's suit still in the garment bag over my arm and my shoes not properly fastened because I hadn't had time to sit down and do them right. I had overslept, which never happen
Nicole's POV "Move aside!" Maid Mara stepped directly into my path as I rounded the corner, her shoulder cutting across mine hard enough to make me catch myself against the wall. "Luna," she said, then added under her breath, "or trash." I pretended not to hear. Straightened up and started to w
Nicole's POVI don't sleep. I sit at the kitchen table for a long time after I get home, still in my work clothes, my hands wrapped around a mug of tea that goes cold before I drink any of it. The apartment is quiet after the twins go down. Usually, that silence settles me. Tonight, it just gives
Nicole pov He nods slowly. He doesn’t try to fix it for me. He just stands there, holding the weight of both versions of himself without flinching. The man I left wouldn’t have known how to do that."The rejection papers," I say."Nicole""I’m not asking you to sign them tonight. I just need you t







