Ella's POV.

Two Gammas stormed into the room with Beta Cole, Jason's personal Beta, right behind them.

“By order of Alpha Jason…” Cole began.

They didn’t even bother with respect anymore. The two gammas grabbed me by the arms.

“Don’t you dare touch her!” My mom cried, throwing herself in front of me. One of them shoved her aside and she hit the floor hard, landing on her buttocks.

“Mom!”

Something inside me snapped. I spun around and slapped the Gamma across the face as hard as I could. “Lay your hands on my mom again and I'll fucking rip out your throat!”

The Gamma stared at me, stunned.

My chest heaved as my wolf clawed weakly at the back of my mind, whimpering in pain. She wanted to fight but she just didn't have the strength left.

“Cole!” Michael yelled, stepping forward. “What do you think you're doing, huh? Since when did we start treating Lunas like criminals?”

Cole walked straight up to him and whispered something in his ear. Whatever he said turned Michael’s face completely pale. Michael looked at me, and the fear in his eyes was impossible to miss. For a second, I saw anger there too. Then he shoved past Cole and ran out of the room.

I stared after him, knowing something was terribly wrong, but no one else knew what it was. And judging by the look on Cole's face, he wasn't going to tell me either.

“Take her,” Cole ordered.

One of the Gammas tightened his grip on my arm.

Sylvie lunged forward, but Cole caught her wrist before she could reach me.

“This isn’t your concern,” he snapped. “You’ll only make things worse for her.”

She jerked herself free and lunged at him again, her eyes blazing.

“Worse? You’re dragging her out like a criminal in front of her mom, and you want me to just stand still?”

She kept thrashing and cursing, but Cole pushed her aside with such brutal force that she slammed into the wall with a cry and slid to the floor.

That was my breaking point.

I wanted to spit in Cole's face, scream and claw at his face until he bled. But my eyes darted to my mother who was still trembling on the floor. Sylvie was clutching her ribs, glaring at the men with whatever strength she had left.

I couldn’t risk them getting more hurt because of me.

“Wait outside.” I ordered quietly, tears welling up in my eyes.

But the Gammas hesitated. “We were ordered to…”

“Oh! You’re going to stand here and watch me change clothes?” My voice sharpened. “Or would you rather drag me half-naked to Jason in a hospital gown?”

They exchanged uncomfortable looks. And one by one, they obeyed, filing out. Even Cole turned to leave, but he paused at the doorway, giving me a strange look before stepping out and shutting the door behind him.

The room fell silent. Only my mom, Sylvie, and I remained.

“Ella, please, don’t do this,” Sylvie begged. “You know what Jason is capable of. Don’t walk straight into his hands. Who knows what he's planning?”

I shook my head. “If I run, I’ll only be putting both of you in more danger and I can't let that happen.”

My throat burned as I forced the next words out. “Don’t worry. I'll be fine.”

My mom’s lips trembled, but after a long moment, she nodded slowly, forcing herself to let me go even though every part of her wanted to stop me.

I picked up the hoodie Michael had given me earlier and shakily changed into it, along with a pair of jeans.

When I opened the door, the Gammas were waiting outside. And the moment I stepped into the corridor, they reached for my arms.

“Don’t touch me!” My voice echoed down the hallway. “This is an investigation, not an arrest. Remember your place!”

Whispers rose from the onlookers gathering around. Nurses, patients, and even a few doctors had stopped to watch.

“They say she had an affair.”

“How shameless."

Each word cut deep into my skin, shredding me into a million pieces, but I kept my fists clenched and my head held high. I wasn't going to shrink, especially not for a crime I didn't commit.

Behind me, Sylvie was still cursing at any of the blabbermouths brave enough to say something loud enough for her to hear. I didn’t look back. I just kept walking. Every step I took felt heavier than the one before it, but I refused to slow down.

Whatever Jason had waiting for me, I was going to face it head-on.

– – – –

As I stepped into the Pack Council Hall, I pulled down my hood. I wasn't expecting to see every member of the Pack Senate here.

Jason sat at the head of the round table. He carried himself with that same effortless authority that reminded everyone in the room who the Alpha was.

His burgundy shirt caught my eye. It was the same one I’d bought him for his last birthday. Of all the things he could have worn today, he chose that.

My chest tightened.

How could he be so insensitive? He wore it deliberately, maybe to taunt me with what we once shared. Or maybe he simply didn't care. Either way, it hurt more than it should have. I forced myself to look away.

In the middle of the hall was a lone chair. It wasn't at the table or among the Senate Alphas. It was just there, like a prisoner’s seat.

I swallowed hard and walked toward it. I had barely sat when sharp footsteps echoed behind me, forcing me to turn.

It was that slut, Dahlia.

She walked in with her head held high, wearing a smug smile like she already knew how this was going to end. Behind her, reporters swarmed in like bees, flashing their cameras violently as they shoved their microphones forward. One nearly hit my chin as they pushed past me, all of them rushing toward Jason.

I sat there in silence, watching them surround him.

“Alpha, are there any words you'd like to share before the hearing begins?” one of the reporters asked.

Jason leaned forward, wearing that polished mask of grief again. So polished that it almost fooled me too. His voice trembled just enough to sound sincere.

“I’m… I’m sorry the whole pack had to find out this way,” he said, lowering his gaze and pretending to be ashamed.

“I tried to make things work,” Jason said, shaking his head. “But what can you really do with a street dog? You can feed it, shelter it, even dress it up, but that doesn't change what it is.”

My stomach dropped. HELL!

Me?! Street dog?!

Did he really just call me that?

I almost laughed, not because it was funny, but because his audacity was actually impressive.

He was sitting there in the shirt I'd bought him, wearing that wounded little expression, comparing me to a stray like I had begged him to be my mate.

And somehow, he still looked like the victim.

And the worst part? They were all believing him. Every single one of them.

“You fucking liar!”

I shot to my feet, unable to sit there and continue listening to his filth. “How dare you, Jason?!”

My voice shook with rage. “You sit there spewing lie after lie, twisting my pain into your little theatre. Is this a fucking joke to you?!”

I immediately turned toward the crowd, my voice cracking with fury.

“And you all…” I looked from face to face. “You're really just going to stand here and keep lapping up his lies like they're holy water? Just because he’s the Alpha?!”

Their gullibility was honestly sickening. “Are you people actually this stupid?”

My wolf was already clawing at the inside of my skull, begging me to let her loose. I was about to leap across the table to rip that smug performance right off his face but two Gammas rushed forward and grabbed me, forcing me back into the chair. One pinned my shoulders down while the other locked a hand around my arm.

Gasps rippled through the hall.

“Jeez... she almost attacked him,” a man whispered from the back.

“She's so savage… completely heartless!”

“She’s more of a rogue than Luna material… How dare she play the victim!” another echoed.

My chest heaved as I struggled against the Gammas.

Jason seized the moment and slowly rose to his feet. He didn't even look surprised. If anything, there was only satisfaction in his eyes. He raised a trembling hand, soaking in the pity of the crowd, then jabbed his finger at me.

“Do you see?” he thundered, his voice booming through the microphones. “Do you all see what I have endured behind closed doors?”

He shook his head, looking every bit like a wounded man. “This was her temper whenever I tried to correct her. Her violence whenever she didn't get her way.”

The crowd erupted into murmurs again, some already whispering prayers for their Alpha and others staring at me like I was something dangerous that had just escaped its cage.

Jason raised both hands, and the hall slowly fell silent. Then he looked straight at me.

“Effective immediately, Luna Rhaella Hammond…”