HIS to CLAIM ALPHA ZEKE

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CECELIAS POV

Fatima studied the names. "Elena is a good woman. Single mother with two kids of her own. She watched Golden sometimes but I can't imagine her talking to strangers."

"What about Marcus at the market?"

"Marcus is harmless. A bit of a gossip but not malicious." Fatima tapped the paper. "Though now that you mention it, he did comment once on how Golden looked like he could be Alpheyes."

My stomach dropped. "When was this?"

"A few months ago. I brushed it off as Marcus being dramatic but he seemed quite certain." Fatima's face paled. "You don't think he would have mentioned it to someone else?"

"We need to talk to him." Zeke was already pulling out his phone again, sending messages. "What about Sarah, the

preschool teacher?"

"Sarah's devoted to her students. She's been teaching for twenty

years." Fatima shook her head. "I can't believe she'd do anything to put a child in danger."

"People don't always realize what they're doing," I said quietly. "An innocent comment to the wrong person could be enough."

The door opened and one of Zeke's investigators entered, a young woman with sharp eyes. "Alpha, I have an update from the Seacreek interviews."

"Go ahead," Zeke said.

The investigator glanced at Fatima and me. "It's sensitive information."

"They can hear it," Zeke said firmly.

"We questioned Marcus from the market. He broke down after twenty minutes of questioning." The investigator

consulted her tablet. "He admitted that a woman approached him about six weeks ago. She claimed to be a journalist doing a story on small pack communities and asked about

interesting residents."

My hands clenched in my lap. "What did he tell her?"

"Everything, apparently. About Cecelia showing up three years ago,

about Golden's unusual appearance, about the speculation that the boy might have Alpha blood." The investigator

looked apologetic. "He said the woman paid him five hundred dollars for the information. He thought it was harmless gossip, didn't realize the danger."

Five hundred dollars. Someone had paid Marcus five hundred dollars to betray us and he'd done it without a

second thought. Anger flooded through me so suddenly I had to clench my teeth to keep from screaming.

"Where is he now?" Zeke asked.

"Still in custody. He's cooperating fully and seems genuinely remorseful." The investigator swiped her tablet. "He provided a detailed description of the woman. Dark hair, professional

appearance, scar above her left eyebrow. Matches what Mrs. Fatima described."

"And he didn't think to mention this before?"

Fatima's voice shook with fury. "A strange woman paying hundreds of dollars for information about a child and he saw

nothing wrong with that?"

"He says he thought she was just gathering background for her article." The investigator's expression said what she

thought of that excuse. "He claims he had no idea anything bad would happen."

Zeke dismissed the investigator with orders to continue questioning Marcus. Once we were alone again, the silence felt suffocating.

"I'm going to kill him," Fatima said flatly. "I'm going to walk to wherever you're holding him and strangle Marcus with my bare hands."

"Get in line," I muttered.

Zeke moved to pour himself coffee from the service, his movements controlled but tight with tension. "This confirms what we suspected. Someone's been gathering information about Golden for at least six weeks. This was planned

carefully."

"The woman with the scar," I said. "Can we find her?"

"We're running the description through databases now. If she's associated with any pack, we'll find her." Zeke took a long drink of

coffee. "The question is who she's working for."

"Someone with money," Fatima said. "Five hundred dollars is nothing to sneeze at, especially for information. This isn't some random criminal. This is organized."

"Agreed." Zeke set down his cup. "Which brings us back to motive. Why target Golden? If this is about money, ransom

demands would have come already. If it's personal, who

would want to hurt Cecelia or me through our son?"

The question hung in the air. I ran through possibilities in my mind. My father was dead. Zeke's father was dead. The war between our packs had ended years ago. Who held grudges

that deep?

"Layla," Fatima said suddenly.

Zeke and I both turned to look at her.

"Think about it," Fatima continued. "She tried to kill Cecelia once because she wanted her position. Now Cecelia's back with proof that you have a biological heir. That threatens Layla's son's position,

doesn't it?"

"Cameron isn't my biological son," Zeke said quietly.

The words dropped like stones. Fatima's eyes widened.

"What?"

"We discovered recently that Cameron isn't mine." Zeke's expression was carefully neutral. "Layla lied about the paternity. We confirmed it with testing."

Fatima looked between us, processing this information. "Then she has even more reason to want Golden gone. If he's your only biological heir-"

"She's been removed from any position of authority," Zeke interrupted. "She has no power here anymore."

"Doesn't mean she doesn't have connections." Fatima leaned forward. "A woman scorned and desperate is dangerous. If she arranged this before you discovered the

truth about Cameron-"

"We're investigating Layla's activities," Zeke said. "Her communications, her contacts, her finances. If she's involved, we'll find proof."

I wanted to believe it was Layla. It would be easier somehow if the threat came from a known enemy rather than a

stranger. But something didn't sit right about it. Layla was impulsive and emotional. This kidnapping felt calculated and cold.

A soft knock interrupted my thoughts. A staff member entered with a message for Zeke. He read it quickly, his

expression darkening.

"The investigators found something in Layla's quarters," he said. "We need to go."

"I'm coming," I said immediately.

Zeke looked like he might argue but nodded. He turned to Fatima. "You're welcome to stay here at the palace. We have plenty of guest rooms and it's safer than Seacreek right

now."

"Thank you, but I need to get back to my children." Fatima stood, hugging me tightly. "You call me the moment you hear

anything, understand?"

"I promise."

As Fatima gathered her things to leave, she pulled me aside while

Zeke was giving orders to his guards.

"That man still loves you," she whispered. "I can see it in how he looks at you. How he talks about Golden."

I shook my head immediately. "You're wrong. Whatever we had is long dead."

"Is it?" Fatima's eyes searched mine. "Because from where I'm standing, you both look like you're drowning and reaching for each other even as you try to swim away."

"Fatima-"

"Just think about it." She squeezed my hand. "Life's too short for pride, Cecelia. Especially when a child's happiness is at

stake."

She left before I could respond, her words echoing in my head as Zeke and I made our way through the palace toward Layla's quarters. Guards flanked us on both sides,

a constant reminder that nowhere was truly safe anymore.

"What did they find?" I asked as we climbed the stairs.

"I don't know yet. The message just

said it was important."

Layla's quarters were in the east wing, a suite of rooms that had once been designated for the Luna's sister or close family. I'd never been inside them during my time here. Now guards stood at the door, their expressions grim.

Inside, investigators were carefully sorting through drawers and closets. One of them approached Zeke immediately, holding an evidence bag.

"We found this hidden in a false bottom of her jewelry box," the

investigator said.

Through the clear plastic, I could see a burner phone. The cheap kind you bought with cash and threw away after use.

"Have you accessed it?"

Zeke asked.

"Not yet. We wanted your authorization first." The investigator handed him the bag. "But there's something else."

She led us to Layla's desk where papers were spread out. Bank statements showing large cash withdrawals over the past two

months. Receipts from a private investigator. And most damning, a handwritten note with an address in neutral

territory and a date from three weeks ago.

My blood ran cold as I read the note. The date was two days before Golden went missing.

"Get this phone unlocked immediately," Zeke ordered. "I

want to know every call made, every text sent. And find out what this address is."

"Already on it, Alpha." The investigator gathered the evidence

carefully. "We should have answers within the hour."

Zeke dismissed everyone except the guards at the door. He stood in the middle of Layla's room, his jaw tight and his

hands clenched.

"I trusted her," he said finally. "After everything, after all the lies about Cameron, I still gave her the benefit of the doubt. I

thought grief and desperation made her lie, not malice."

"We don't know for sure she's involved," I said, though my words felt hollow even to me. The

evidence was damning.

"A burner phone. Cash withdrawals. Meetings in neutral territory right before Golden disappeared." Zeke's voice was

cold with fury. "It's her, Cecelia. She did this."

I wanted to argue but couldn't. The pieces fit too perfectly. Layla hiring someone to gather information about Golden.

Layla arranging the kidnapping. Layla trying to eliminate the threat to whatever future she'd imagined for herself and Cameron.

"If it's her, where would she take

him?" I asked. "Where would she hide a child?"

"That's what we're going to find out." Zeke pulled out his phone. "And when we do, there won't be anywhere in this world she can hide from what's coming."

The certainty in his voice should have comforted me.

Instead, it made me realize how dangerous this situation had become. We weren't just looking for Golden anymore. We were hunting someone who'd proven they were willing to kill to get what they wanted.

And my son was caught in the middle of it all.