My Alpha Husband Wants My Heart For His Mistress

The freezing mud sucked at my bare knees. I stayed rooted to the riverbed, my chin tilted up to meet the icy, falcon-like stare of the man towering over me.

Rain slicked off his dark tactical gear. The silver insignia of the Lycan High Court gleamed on the collar of his trench coat. Behind him, a dozen heavily armed enforcers emerged from the shadows, their rifles trained on the opposite bank.

"Get up," the man commanded. His voice cut through the storm, low and devoid of pity.

I planted my palms in the muck and pushed. My elbows buckled instantly. My chest tore open wider, the fresh incision screaming in agony as golden blood spilled down my ribs.

Vicious barking erupted from the tree line on the opposite bank. The hounds were closing in.

"Target sighted! She is at the river!" a guard shouted over the roar of the water.

Flashlights sliced through the darkness, painting the churning rapids in jagged beams of white.

Paxton broke through the brush, flanked by a dozen Shadow Creek elites. His chest heaved under his soaked shirt. When his gaze locked onto me kneeling in the mud, his upper lip curled, exposing his elongated canines.

"There you are, you treacherous bitch," Paxton snarled.

He took a step toward the water, but stopped when the flashlight beams illuminated the towering figure standing right in front of me.

Forest Hoffman. Supreme Enforcer.

Paxton's posture stiffened. The feral rage in his eyes shifted into calculated arrogance. He waved a hand, signaling his guards to hold the hounds back.

"Enforcer Hoffman," Paxton called out, projecting his Alpha tone across the rushing river. "Step aside. You are harboring a fugitive of my pack."

Forest did not shift his stance. He kept his hands resting loosely on his tactical belt. "This is High Court territory, Alpha Paxton. Your jurisdiction ends at the water's edge."

"She is my wife," Paxton shot back. He stepped closer to the churning rapids, the water lapping at his boots. "And a violent felon. She set fire to the pack orphanage tonight. Dozens of pups are in the burn ward because of her. Hand her over."

Lies. All of it.

My throat burned with the effort to scream. Paxton was framing me to justify tearing out my heart. He needed a legal excuse for the execution, a story to feed the pack while he gave my life to his mistress.

"Is that so?" Forest asked. He glanced down at me, his expression unreadable.

"She is dangerous," Paxton continued, his tone projecting fake sorrow. "The madness took her. She attacked our Luna, poisoned our supplies, and tried to murder our son. I must bring her back to face justice."

Forest crossed his arms over his broad chest. "The High Court handles all felony arson cases involving pack infrastructure. If she is guilty, my tribunal will sentence her."

"This is an internal pack matter!" Paxton yelled, his facade cracking. "She belongs to Shadow Creek. Give her to me!"

I had seconds before Paxton crossed that river and dragged me back to the operating table. I forced my right hand up from the mud. The golden blood still oozed from the open wound on my chest, coating my fingers in a bizarre, glowing luminescence.

I reached out and dragged my nails across the toe of Forest's black military boot.

The golden liquid smeared against the dark leather, glowing faintly in the gloom.

Forest's gaze snapped to my hand.

"Clan Tribunal Asylum Request," I rasped. The words scraped like sandpaper against my raw throat. "I invoke the ancient code."

Paxton roared from the opposite bank. "Shut her up! She has no right to invoke anything! She is a convicted criminal!"

"I request asylum," I whispered again, my vision tunneling.

"You are in no condition to speak," Forest muttered, his voice a low rumble above me.

The agonizing fire from the silver cuffs on my wrists flared, digging straight to the bone. The golden glow of my blood flickered, then dimmed. My muscles gave out entirely.

I collapsed forward, my cheek hitting the side of Forest's boot.

Strong hands gripped my shoulders before I could slide completely into the river. Forest hoisted me up, his grip firm but careful. He did not toss me aside.

He stared at the golden streak of blood I had left on his footwear. Then his eyes tracked up to my wrists. The silver shackles had burned through my flesh, exposing the white bone beneath the charred edges.

His jaw tightened. A muscle jumped in his cheek. He looked at the mangled skin, then back across the river.

"Captain," one of the enforcers behind Forest stepped forward, lowering his rifle slightly. "She is bleeding out. That looks like pure silver poisoning. We need a medic."

"Hold the line," Forest ordered his men, his eyes never leaving Paxton. "No one crosses."

"She is lying!" Paxton yelled over the thunder, his patience snapping. "She is a murderer! Bring her to me, Hoffman. That is an order from an Alpha!"

Forest shifted his weight, pulling me flush against his armored chest. The cold metal of his gear sent a shock through my failing system. "The High Court takes orders from no Alpha."

"I will not let you take her!" Paxton lunged into the rushing water. His elites followed, splashing into the shallows, their claws extending. Water sprayed around their waists as they pushed against the current. "She belongs to me!"

"Take one more step," Forest said.

Forest drew his weapon in a single fluid motion. The massive silver-alloy pistol leveled directly at Paxton's forehead.

The Alpha froze mid-stride. The rushing water swirled around his knees.

"This woman has invoked the Tribunal," Forest stated. His tone carried no anger, only absolute authority. "She is now under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Supreme Court."

Paxton bared his teeth, the veins in his neck bulging. "You are making a mistake, Enforcer. Shadow Creek will not forget this insult. You are protecting a monster."

Forest cocked the hammer of the pistol. The sharp metallic click echoed louder than the storm.

"Cross the border and die," Forest told him.

Silence fell over the river, broken only by the pouring rain.

Paxton stared down the barrel of the gun. The elites behind him exchanged nervous glances, slowly backing out of the water. No pack wolf survived a bullet from a Supreme Enforcer's weapon.

Paxton's fists clenched so hard his knuckles turned white. He glared at me, limp and bleeding against Forest's coat.

"You think you won, Elena?" Paxton shouted.

I could not answer. The darkness was pulling me under, numbing the pain in my chest.

Forest adjusted his hold on me, tucking my head beneath his chin to shield my face from the biting rain. "Stand down, Alpha. Go back to your territory."

Paxton spat into the river. He turned his back to the water and yanked a black walkie-talkie from his belt.

He pressed the transmission button, his voice carrying over the rushing current.

"Notify everyone to execute Plan B," Paxton ordered. "I will make sure not even the High Court can protect this bitch."