Define Treachery

Elarie Newton thought she could hide her secret forever. After becoming pregnant with no idea who the father was, she buried her shame, concealing the truth for months. But when her father, Alexander Newton, found out, her world crashed down in an instant. "Get out of my house! I don’t have a daughter who’s a slut like you!" Alexander’s voice had cut through the silence like a blade. Abandoned and alone, Elarie had been left to fend for herself. Five years later, she was still fighting—fighting to survive, to raise her son, Daniel, and to give him a future. But the load she carried was becoming unbearable. With Daniel starting school, her low-paying job barely covered their bills. Then came a glimmer of hope. A job interview. Her final chance to turn things around. Elarie stepped into the conference room with her heart pounding, filled with hope and determination. Behind the massive desk sat Danreb Scott, a man whose cold, calculating gaze pierced right through her. “So, Ms. Newton…” He had dragged his eyes from her feet to her head. “…do you really think you’re capable of working with me without a degree?” Elarie’s breath had hitched, but she had straightened her spine. “I’ve done more with less.” This was her chance to prove that her past didn’t define her—that she was more than the broken girl her father had cast aside. But would Danreb Scott see beyond her scars, or would her past continue to haunt her? But one thing was for sure. Elarie was ready to fight for her son’s future, even if it meant working under the icy gaze of the man sitting across from her.

Around the seventh month of my pregnancy, I overheard a conversation between my mate, Zane Andrews, and Ciara Phillips, the she-wolf I had taken in out of compassion after her family was brutally slaughtered by rogues. In a sultry, flirtatious tone, Ciara purred, “Zane, my love, if your wife discovers that the fertilized egg I planted in her womb isn’t truly hers by blood, she’ll be devastated—perhaps to the point of despairing suicide, don’t you think?” Zane snorted, his voice dripping with disdain at the mention of me. “It’ll work for us if she simply dies from heartbreak. Damn it. I can’t shake the worry that she might sever our bond and leave me with nothing. Let’s keep this under wraps until our child inherits all her assets. Only then will we reveal the bombshell, plunging her into darkness.” Ciara giggled, praising Zane for his cunning. My claws itched to lash out, but I held back, knowing the time for confrontation wasn’t yet. My heart sank as their betrayal cut deep. Years ago, I had defied my pack elders’ warnings about Ciara being a potential threat, taking her in and grooming her into our pack's doctor, funding her education out of sheer empathy. Now, I regretted every moment of my kindness. To think that my mate, who had once begged for my protection for his fragile pack, had the audacity to betray me. If not for my support, his pathetic pack would have crumbled long ago, leaving him nursing his wounds in a dark corner, fretting over survival. After a long moment of contemplation, I made my decision. I would feign ignorance to their schemes and play along by giving birth to Ciara’s baby. Two decades passed. Ciara’s child grew up, bearing the name Simon Andrews. Aware of their treachery, I still transferred all my assets to him. Once the paperwork was completed, Ciara boldly approached me in front of the entire pack, a maternity DNA test in hand. With a smug smile, she declared, “Leia Holland, look at this! I am Simon’s biological mother. Leave h