Mated to Her Alpha Instructor Chapter 131

Regis

The horse's hooves struck the cobblestones in a rhythm that matched my racing heartbeat as I guided my mount through the academy gates at dusk. Several hours of hard riding had left both beast and rider bone-weary.

I dismounted in the stable yard, tossing the reins to a startled groom. "Walk him cool, then extra grain." The words came out rougher than intended, Valdor's impatience coloring my tone. My wolf had been prowling beneath my skin since we'd left the border, agitated by the distance from our mate, by the puzzle pieces that refused to form a coherent picture.

The council building loomed dark against the night sky, but a single window glowed on the third floor—Father's office. He'd received my message, then. Good.

I took the stairs three at a time, my body protesting the movement after a day in the saddle. The door stood ajar, warm light spilling into the corridor. Alfred sat behind his massive desk, still fully dressed, a tumbler of amber liquid catching the lamplight.

"You look like hell," he observed mildly, though his eyes were sharp as he assessed me. "Sit before you fall down."

"No time." I braced my hands on the desk, leaning forward. "Silas Crowe has disappeared from the border station. Three days ago, right after we discovered evidence of sabotage in the supply lines—someone's been systematically weakening our defenses."

Father's expression hardened. "And you think Cornelius is involved."

"I know he is." I pulled the folded parchment from my coat—one of Kieran's reports, hastily penned before I'd left. "Medical supplies redirected, patrol schedules leaked, maintenance on the underground tunnels delayed just long enough for someone to use them undetected. It's too coordinated to be random incompetence."

"But you don't have proof connecting Cornelius directly."

"Not yet." I met his gaze steadily. "That's why I need your help with a bluff."

Understanding flickered across his features, followed by something that might have been approval. "You want to make him think Silas has already confessed."

"Exactly." Valdor stirred, predatory satisfaction bleeding through. "Cornelius is arrogant, but he's also paranoid. If he believes his co-conspirator has betrayed him, he'll scramble to save himself."

Father stood, moving to the door and locking it with a decisive click. "I'll summon him under the guise of urgent family business. Less suspicious than an official inquiry at this hour." He paused, amber eyes—so like my own—studying me carefully. "And if this works? If he confesses?"

"Then I strip his title and confine him before he can warn anyone else involved." My hands curled into fists on the desk. "And then I return to the border and stay with Eileen."

Father's face went very still. "You think the target is your mate."

"I think the target is our child." The admission tasted like ash. "A pregnancy between a wolfless woman and a pureblooded Alpha—it shouldn't be possible, Father. Which makes it valuable to the wrong people."

He was silent for a long moment, then reached for the bell pull beside his desk. "Let's see what Cornelius knows about his hired snake."

---

Twenty minutes later, Elder Cornelius Blackwell was escorted into the underground chamber beneath the council building—a room designed for private family deliberations, warded against eavesdropping and lined with stone that muffled even the sharpest hearing.

He entered with the swagger of a man accustomed to authority, though I caught the slight hesitation when he saw both Father and me waiting. "Alpha Regis? I didn't realize you'd returned from the border so soon." His smile was oily, ingratiating. "I trust our Luna-in-training hasn't failed her practical examination already? I'd be willing to show leniency if certain... arrangements could be made."

I remained silent, watching him with the same cold focus I'd use tracking prey through the forest. Father moved past him to secure the door, the heavy lock sliding home with an audible thunk. The sound echoed in the windowless space.

Cornelius's smile faltered. "What's the meaning of this?"

"Silas Crowe has confessed." I kept my voice level, almost bored, as I delivered the lie. "We know everything."

The color drained from his face so quickly I thought he might faint. "Confessed to what? I barely know the man—"

"He says you authorized his activities at the border." I took a step forward, letting Valdor rise close enough to the surface that my eyes caught the lamplight, reflecting gold. "Sabotaging supply lines. Passing information to hostile packs. He was quite detailed in his testimony."

"That's absurd!" Cornelius's voice cracked slightly. "I never authorized any such thing!"

"He also mentioned," I continued as if he hadn't spoken, "that you specifically instructed him to monitor my mate. To find opportunities to make her 'disappear.'"

"No!" The word burst from him, sharp with genuine panic. "I told him to observe the girl, yes, but only to interfere with her training! To make sure she'd fail the evaluation!" He caught himself too late, eyes widening as he realized what he'd admitted.

I smiled, and from the way Cornelius flinched, it wasn't pleasant. "So you do acknowledge directing Silas to act against my mate."

"That's not—I didn't mean—" He stumbled backward until his shoulders hit the stone wall. His neck tilted involuntarily, exposing his throat in a submissive gesture as old as our species.

I released more of Valdor's presence, letting the Alpha pressure fill the room like a physical weight. Cornelius's knees buckled slightly. "I don't have time for games," I said softly, each word precise. "Tell me exactly what arrangement you made with Silas Crowe."

Father's voice cut through from behind Cornelius, measured and cold. "Consider carefully, Elder. If you refuse to cooperate, we'll present this matter before the full council as suspected treason. The penalty for that is considerably worse than anything my son might do to you tonight."

Cornelius crumpled. The words spilled from him in a rush—how Silas had approached him nearly two years ago with an offer to "collaborate," how the man had access to smuggling routes that could generate substantial profit for very little risk. How Cornelius, already resentful of the Vane family's progressive politics, had been easy to tempt.

"The money was good," he babbled. "And when Silas offered to help... discourage that girl from thinking she belonged among us, I saw no harm in it. She's wolfless, for moon's sake! An embarrassment to your bloodline!"

"Careful," Father warned, but I'd already moved, my hand closing around Cornelius's throat—not squeezing, not yet, but the threat implicit.

"Keep talking," I suggested. "What else did you give him?"

"Information!" The word came out strangled. "About academy schedules, your movements, security rotations—but only what he needed for the smuggling routes! I swear I never authorized contact with enemy packs!"

I released him, letting him collapse against the wall as he gasped for breath. "Show me the correspondence."

With shaking hands, Cornelius produced a bundle of letters from inside his coat. I leafed through them rapidly, noting the dates—the earliest was indeed from two years ago. Most dealt with logistics of moving contraband goods, though several contained detailed reports about the academy and my activities. The most recent three, however, made my blood run cold.

*"The full moon approaches. Keep the council distracted."*

*"Our mutual friends are interested in the special project. Substantial payment for cooperation."*

*"Everything proceeds as planned. The girl suspects nothing."*

"What is the 'full moon plan'?" I demanded, shoving the letters in his face.

"I don't know!" Cornelius looked genuinely terrified now. "I thought he meant to humiliate her somehow, to make her fail the evaluation publicly. He never told me specifics!"

"You didn't think to verify the plan before conspiring with him?" I cut him off, disgust making my voice harsh.

"I..." Cornelius swallowed. "I just want the outcome. I didn't ask too many questions."

Greed and prejudice—a predictable combination. I turned to Father. "I've heard enough."

What followed was swift and efficient. By Father's authority as clan Alpha and mine as his heir, we stripped Cornelius of his elder title and remanded him to house arrest at a remote family property. Father would inform the council that Cornelius was taking a medical leave due to ill health—nothing to alarm the other elders or tip off anyone else who might be involved.

When the guards had finally hauled the disgraced elder away, Father poured two fingers of whiskey into a glass and handed it to me. I drank it in one burning swallow.

"The bluff worked," he observed.

"Because there was truth behind it." I set the glass down harder than necessary. "Silas disappeared three days ago. He's been monitoring Eileen, and whatever he's planning involves the full moon—which is two weeks away."

"Then you'd better get back to the border." Father gripped my shoulder, a rare gesture of physical affection. "I'll deploy our guard to support you if needed. And son?" He waited until I met his eyes. "Keep your mate safe. That's your first priority."

"Always." The word came out as close to a growl as human vocal cords allowed.

I felt Eileen through the bond then—a flutter of anxiety quickly suppressed, her attempt not to burden me with her worry. My chest tightened. Two weeks. Whatever Silas was planning, it would happen at the full moon, and I would be there to stop it.

Valdor's snarl echoed in my mind: *Protect. Defend. Kill anyone who threatens our mate and cub.*

For once, I was in complete agreement with my wolf.