Dear Alpha - This Is My Revenge

Chapter One ~TATIANA~    "Your attention is required at the palace immediately, healer!" The guard burst into the ward where I was tending to a wounded wolf.   "What happened?" I asked him quickly. "Is it something serious, I am attending to a..."  "What happened?" He cut in harshly. "We should be asking you that! The Alpha is on the verge of death, spitting dark blood and you are here, tending to a mere bruise? You really have a death wish!"   More guards filtered into the room before I could even utter a word.   "What are you waiting for? Seize the murderer!" He barked and my body stiffened. Strong arms immediately grabbed me.   "What are you doing? What exactly is going on? I am your Luna and pack healer! How dare you treat me like this?"   All my words fell on deaf ears as they dragged me out of the ward roughly. I was taken to the palace where the elders and some prominent pack members were already gathered.   I was thrown right into the centre with hard and glares piercing through me from all directions. Shivers ran down my spine as disdain stained their expressions.   "I... I don't understand. What is going on?" I blurted. "Why is everyone here?"  No one uttered a word to me. It was almost like I was talking to myself but the malice and hatred in the air thickened with each passing second.   Footsteps echoed through the room, drawing all attention to the stairs where the old Luna gracefully descended. I hurried over to her as soon as she reached the foot of the stairs.   "Greetings, Luna," I bowed. "The guards dragged me from the pack hospital. They said..." A slap met me across the face before I could even finish the words.   The sound echoed through the hall, sharp and humiliating.  My head snapped to the side, pain blooming across my cheek as I staggered back a step. A metallic taste filled my mouth.  “Silence!” the old Luna snapped, her eyes blazing with a fury I had never seen directed at me before. “Do not greet me as though you are still worthy of respect.”  I clutched my burning cheek, shock freezing me in place. “Luna… I don’t understand. What have I done?”  Her lips curled in disgust. “You poisoned him.”  The words slammed into me harder than the slap.  “I—what?” I shook my head violently. “No. That’s impossible. I would never...”  “Enough of the lies!” an elder roared, slamming his staff against the marble floor. “The Alpha is dying. Dark blood spills from his mouth, his veins are blackening, and you were the last one to tend to him last night!”  My breath hitched. Jacob? Spitting blood? Dying? That... That couldn't be right. He was perfectly fine when I left him this morning. His condition was improving!  “No! That's impossible. Yes, I treated him but only for exhaustion and a deep wound from the border attack last night. I gave him nothing poisonous. I swear it on the Moon Goddess! I have no reason to poison my own husband!”  "Oh so I am a liar now?" Her eyes darkened in a way that made me flinch. My stomach twisted hard in panic as my heart pounded against my ribcage.   "No! I need to see him! Where is my husband? What happened to him?" I yelled, trying to run up the stairs but a hand fisted my hair, dragging me back aggressively. The Luna shoved me to the floor.   I hit the floor with a thud and pain shot through my sides.   "The audacity of you to demand to see him after what you have done?" She barked. "Do you have any idea how much blood he has lost already? My son is pale and barely breathing and you stand here pretending to be innocent?” she finished coldly.  I struggled to push myself up, my palms scraping against the marble floor. “I am not pretending,” I said hoarsely. “If he is losing blood, then something is wrong. Something unnatural. Let me see him. Please. I can help him.”  A cruel laugh rippled through the elders. “Help him?” one of them scoffed. “You’ve helped enough.”  The old Luna raised a hand, silencing them. She stepped closer, towering over me despite her age. “You forget your place, Tatiana,” she said softly, dangerously. “You were brought into this pack because my son trusted you. Even though you were just a wolfless tramp, he loved you. He was ready to go against his entire pack because of you! And this is how you repay him?”  Tears blurred my vision. “I love him,” I whispered. “I would die for him.”  “Oh you will die," she said coldly. "I'm not about to lose my son because of you! Guards, seize her!"  They moved in a blink of an eye, grabbing both my hands in a crushing grip.   "Let go of me!" I struggled against them but it was pointless. Tears gathered in my eyes as I met the Luna's eyes. "Please.... I'm willing to do whatever you want, just let me see him please. I am his wife! I deserve to know his condition at least."   My demand caused an uproar in the halls.   "The audacity of this woman!"   "She should be stoned to death!"   "What right does she have to see the Alpha?!"  A shoe hit me in the head first, then another was hurled angrily at me and before I could even blink, it was chaos.   The hall exploded.  More objects came flying. A goblet, something hard that clipped my shoulder and sent a sharp jolt of pain down my arm. I cried out as the guards struggled to keep me upright, their grips tightening as the crowd surged forward, rage spilling over like a broken dam.  “Kill her!” “Poisoner!” “She deserves worse than death!”  Someone spat at my feet.  Another elder raised his staff as if to strike me himself.  I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing for the blow that would surely come.  “ENOUGH!”  The roar cracked through the hall like thunder.  Silence slammed down so abruptly it made my ears ring.  Every head snapped toward the staircase.  A man staggered into view, supported by two guards, his weight sagging between them, his steps unsteady, his skin deathly pale.  Jacob.  My heart stopped. Oh goddess! How... How could this be...  “Jacob!” I screamed, struggling violently against the guards. “Jacob, look at me! I’m here!”  His lips were bloodless, dark veins faintly visible beneath his skin, just like they had described. A smear of black-red stained the corner of his mouth. But his eyes, those pale blue eyes found me instantly.  “T-Tatiana…” he rasped.  The sound of his voice broke something inside me. I struggled to break free and get to him but they wouldn't let me go.   The old Luna spun around, horror flashing across her face. “What are you doing out of bed?! You shouldn’t be standing!”  “I heard… shouting,” Jacob said weakly, his gaze never leaving mine. “I heard… her name.”  He took a shaky step forward and nearly collapsed. The guards holding him tightened their grip.  “She poisoned you!” the old Luna cried. “This woman tried to kill you!”  Jacob frowned faintly, confusion creasing his brow. “Poison?” he repeated. Then he shook his head slowly. “No… that’s not right... She... She..."  His body convulsed and he spat out more blood. Everyone panic as his body crumbled. I managed to break free and ran to him.   I grabbed his hand desperately, my heart beating wildly in my chest. His pulse was very weak.   "We need to flush the poison out. He needs a transfusion quickly, there's no blood left in him!" I yelled in panic. "Quick, take him to the royal ward, we have to save him, please..."  "You vicious woman..." The Luna started but I screamed at her instead.   "If we don't move now, he's going to die! Do you want that?!"  The guards turned to her for confirmation and reluctantly, she signalled them to do as I said.   They moved him quickly, his body limp between them as they rushed down the corridor toward the royal ward. I ran alongside, my skirts soaked with his blood, my hands shaking as I pressed against his chest, trying to keep him breathing.  “Stay with me, Jacob,” I begged, my voice breaking. “Please… stay with me.”  The doors burst open and they laid him on the bed. The healers froze the moment they saw him—ashen skin, blackened veins, barely-there pulse.  "Throw her in the dungeons!" The Luna ordered. "She's not needed here."   “No... wait!” I stumbled after them, my knees shaking as tears streamed down my cheeks. “I need to stay with him. I’m the healer. I’m his wife!”  “Silence,” the old Luna snapped, following closely behind. “You’ve done enough.”  His chest barely moved now, lips tinged dark, his skin cold to the touch. I rushed forward instinctively, only to be yanked back again.  “Don’t touch him,” an elder barked. “Who knows what you’ll do next.”  My hands curled into fists, nails biting into my palms. “You’re wasting time,” I said, panic clawing up my throat. “He needs blood. His body is rejecting itself... his blood is corrupted. If we don’t act now, he will die.”  “And whose fault is that?” the Luna fired.   "I didn't do anything!" I fired back. "Why would I want to kill him?"  One of the healers checked his pulse, face pale. “She’s right about one thing,” he said reluctantly. “He needs a transfusion. Immediately.”  The Luna turned sharply. “From who?”  The healer hesitated. “We already tested the warriors on standby earlier. None are compatible enough. His bloodline is… particular.”  "I do not share the same blood with him either," the Luna blurred in panic. Then her gaze snapped to me.  The room went silent.  “No,” I said immediately, stepping back. “You can’t be serious.”  “You share a bond,” the Luna said slowly. “Your blood will work.”  My heart slammed violently against my ribs. “I—I can’t,” I said, shaking my head. “I’m not in a condition to...”  “Lies!” an elder cut in. “More excuses!”  “I’m telling the truth,” I insisted. “Forcing a transfusion could...”  “Could what?” the Luna demanded. “Kill you?” Her lips curled. “That would be fitting.”  A murmur of agreement rippled through the room.  I stared at them in disbelief. “You think I poisoned him, yet you want my blood in his body?” I laughed shakily. “Do you hear yourselves?”  “If you refuse,” the Luna said calmly, “then you admit your guilt.”  The words hit me hard.  “I—what?”  “An innocent woman would do anything to save her mate,” she continued. “If you truly loved him, you wouldn’t hesitate.”  “That’s not fair,” I whispered. “You’re twisting this.”  “You’re stalling,” an elder snapped. “Because you know what you did.”  Jacob let out a weak, broken sound from the bed.  My head snapped toward him. His eyes were half-open now, unfocused, his breathing shallow and uneven.  “T-Tia…” he murmured.  My resolve crumbled seeing him like that. The thought of losing my husband made my heart ache.   “I’ll do it,” I said hoarsely. “But it has to be done properly. Slowly. Let me guide the...”  “No,” the Luna interrupted. “You don’t give orders here.”  She turned to the guards. “Restrain her.”  Fear shot through me. “Wait...what? No! You can’t...”  They seized me again, forcing me into a chair beside the bed. I struggled wildly, panic exploding in my chest.  “Stop it!” I cried. “This is dangerous! You don’t know how much...”  “If you die,” the Luna said coolly, “then perhaps the Moon Goddess has judged you guilty.”  Leather straps bit into my wrists as they bound me down. My breathing turned frantic.  “This won’t save him,” I said desperately. “You’re doing this wrong!”  No one bothered to listen to my pleas. A healer approached with trembling hands, avoiding my eyes.  “Do it,” the Luna ordered.  The needle pierced my skin.  I gasped sharply, tears spilling as my blood began to flow through the tube toward Jacob.  “See?” an elder sneered. “She bleeds just fine.”  My head spun almost immediately.  “Slow it,” I begged. “Please... you’re taking too much.”  “Keep going,” the Luna said. “He needs more.”  I clenched my jaw, pain and dizziness crashing over me in waves as the room blurred.  "Please... My baby..." I muttered weakly. "Your endangering my baby..."  The statement immediately caught the attention of the healers.   "You're pregnant, Luna?" The head healer asked in panic and I nodded weakly. She gasped, turning to the old Luna in panic.   "We have to stop the transfusion, Luna. She is pregnant and..."  The Luna burst into a cruel laugh, cutting her short. "This worthless wrench pregnant? Are you stupid or what? My son has been married to her for five years and there hasn't even been one miscarriage! How is it possible that she suddenly got pregnant now that she needs her husband?"   "But Luna..."  "Enough! She is a murderer and a liar! She put my son in this condition and she must pay for it! You must save my son! I don't care if you have to drain every last drop of blood from her!"