The Alpha's Regret: Return Of The Betrayed Luna

Chapter 68: Chapter 68 Back At Square One

As soon as Levi sent the assistant back with the old doctor, he overheard the healer and the doctor begin questioning the assistant about what had happened. With Levi’s permission to speak openly, the assistant recounted everything honestly. His detailed explanation made both the old doctor and the healer exchange a grave look—they realized the situation was even more serious than they had initially thought.

The fact that Levi had already interrogated the assistant signaled that he was aware of far more than he was letting on. It became clear to them that they didn’t need to investigate further or poke around for information. All they had to do now was stay in their lane and avoid getting involved—any interference on their part could make matters worse.

After that, Levi headed straight to Zion’s office, where the Alpha was already waiting. Zion sat behind his mahogany desk, elbows resting on the surface, fingers interlaced, and his chin propped against the back of his hands. He looked serious, deep in thought—but beneath that calm demeanor, there was a visible trace of worry.

Levi gave a sharp knock on the door to announce his arrival.”Alpha, I’ve arrived,” he said.

Zion glanced up and nodded, prompting Levi to quietly close the door behind him. As Levi made his way toward the couch, Zion stood from his seat and followed, pouring himself a glass of water before sitting down.

”How did the investigation go? Did you find anything?” Zion asked, his tone seemingly casual. But the tension in his shoulders told Levi otherwise—he was clearly more anxious than he let on.

Levi watched Zion closely before finally breaking the silence.”Alpha Zion, what will you do... if Luna Addison was framed?”

The question hit Zion like a punch to the gut. His breath caught in his throat. What would he do if Addison had been wrongly accused?

The truth was—he had already suspected it. That was why he sent Levi to investigate in the first place. But hearing the possibility spoken aloud made the guilt twist even deeper in his chest.

His mind flashed back to that moment—when he found Addison lying in a pool of blood at the foot of the stairs. Hadn’t he pushed her in that moment, out of fear and anger? It might’ve felt like a light shove to him, but for someone already injured... How much pain had he added to her suffering? Had he broken a bone? Reopened a wound?

His throat tightened. He reached for his glass of water, but his hand trembled. After a moment, he quietly withdrew it, unable to steady himself.

”I know you believe Addison—my mate—is innocent. And so do I,” Zion said quietly. ”If we can prove she was framed, we’ll have the upper hand. Whoever did this... they will be punished.”

He paused, then lifted his gaze to meet Levi’s with quiet resolve.”That includes me,” he added. ”If I wronged her, I’ll accept whatever punishment she sees fit—when she comes back.”

His voice faltered near the end, barely above a whisper. It wasn’t just guilt lacing his tone—it was fear. Fear that Addison might never return to him. Fear that he may never get the chance to make things right.

Levi didn’t respond to Zion’s statement with a nod or word. Instead, he drew a slow, steady breath before speaking.

”Unfortunately, all our leads have gone cold. The trail ended with the omega attendant you executed in the dungeon—and with Beta Greg, who has since vanished. While the deceased omega was involved in questionable acts, there’s no direct evidence linking any of it to Miss Claire. At best, we can assume this was Beta Greg’s doing, possibly to secure the Luna position for Miss Claire.”

He paused briefly, then added with measured tone, ”But we can’t rule out the possibility that Miss Claire orchestrated everything from the start.”

Levi went on to relay the conversation he had overheard between the old pack doctor and the healer, as well as the assistant’s testimony, laying out everything he had learned so far.

Zion’s gaze was unreadable as he silently processed the information. The scheme pointed in one direction: either Greg or Claire, or both, had their eyes set on the Luna position. Addison was simply in the way.

Whether they were working together or separately, one thing was certain: neither of them was entirely innocent. Beta Greg’s involvement was clear through his direct actions, but Claire... Claire remained untouchable. There was no concrete evidence tying her to the conspiracy. On the surface, she even appeared to be the victim—her trusted omega had allegedly conspired to harm her unborn child, who was now dead.

At the same time, looking at it from another perspective, Claire’s pup might have been an obstacle rather than a safeguard. If word got out that the child wasn’t Zion’s, the pack could turn against her—labeling her a fraud, or worse, a woman who bore another man’s child while seeking the Luna position in the Midnight River Pack. Even if her carefully cultivated persona didn’t completely collapse, its credibility would be severely damaged. That wasn’t a risk Claire could afford.

But if Claire truly orchestrated the entire scheme, wouldn’t that mean she was cruel enough to sacrifice even her own child? Bringing Addison to the top of the stairs, knowing what would happen... it would mean she was willing to fall too—literally and figuratively—to pull off the deception.

It seemed too twisted, too inhuman. No wolf, no mother, would willingly kill her own pup. The more Zion considered the possibility, the more unthinkable it seemed. And just like that, the theory was discarded.

But that left him back at square one—without a single solid lead.

Zion’s frustration deepened. He was out of leads—and worse, he had accidentally killed the one person who might have held the key to everything: the omega. Whether she had acted under Greg’s orders or someone else’s, Zion could have forced the truth from her using his authority as Alpha. Unless, of course, she had been silenced—either assassinated to keep her quiet or bound by a curse that would kill her if she spoke. Those were the only scenarios in which she couldn’t be compelled to talk.

But now, Zion hadn’t even gotten the chance.

And if he hadn’t lost control and killed her, he might have extracted the truth—and it likely would have pointed straight to the two people they already suspected. Claire didn’t have the resources to hire an assassin or seek out a dark witch. Even if the Midnight River Pack respected her, it wasn’t enough for anyone to betray their own kind by silencing one of their own. That went against the image Claire had carefully built.

What Claire did manage, however, was turning the pack’s dislike of Addison into a weapon. She didn’t need to give direct orders—the omega and others had willingly acted against Addison out of their own resentment. But asking them to hurt a fellow pack members? That was a different story entirely. It wasn’t something Claire could have orchestrated without breaking the very illusion she had worked so hard to maintain.

The room fell into a heavy silence. Both men had run out of ideas—and out of immediate actions to take.