ke''s POV


    I spun away from the window, caught off guard by the fire in his eyes. Even against the stark white sheets, his defiance burned brighter than his pale face.


    "Know what?"


    Lucas pushed himself up on his elbows. "Why Ava hasn''t shown up. Not once. His fingers twisted in the sheets. "Can''t pick up her scent anywhere. She hasn''t set foot in this room, has she?"


    I sank down beside his bed, the stic chair creaking under my weight. ''Kid, you just survived a dangerous shift gone wrong. You need to rest, not worry about-


    ''She''s my trainer!" Lucas cut me off, his voice cracking. "Since when does Ava bail on me? Never. Not once. His chin jutted out. "You kicked her cut, didn''t you?


    I shouldn''t have been surprised. The boy spent more hours with Ava than anyone-her scent probably felt as familiar as mine by now. What caught me off guard wasn''t that he noticed her absence, but how much it clearly gutted him.


    "Look, I had to think about your safety first," I said, keeping my voice steady. "That catalyst-"


    "Wasn''t her fault!" Lucas jerked upright, his eyes shing wolf-gold. "You never even let her exin! I saw your face, Dad. Right before everything went ck... His voice dropped. "You''d already made up your mind."


    Bull''s-eye. The kid might as well have stabbed me. He wasn''t wrong-I hadn''t given Ava a chance to defend herself, too busy ying protective Alpha dad.


    I rubbed my jaw, suddenly feeling the stubble of sleepless nights. "It''s not that simple. That adult catalyst could''ve killed you. I couldn''t risk-


    "You made the wrong call," Lucas said tly. "Ava would never hurt me. Ever." His fingers dug into the nket. "The other trainers just shuffle through exercises because they''re terrified of you. Ava''s the only one who actually sees me. And now she''s gone because you threw her under the bus."


    Each wordnded like a sucker punch. I''d been trapped between impossible choices: my son''s safety versus the nagging feeling I''d royally screwed up with


    Ava.


    Lucas, when my kid nearly dies, I don''t have the luxury of-*


    "I took the catalyst myself!" The words exploded from him, bouncing off the sterile walls.


    I froze, sure I''d misheard. "You what?"


    His chin trembled, but his gaze never wavered. "Wanted to feel what a real shift was like. Prove I wasn''t just some baby wolf." He swallowed hard. "Swiped your office key while you were on a call. I''m the one who brought that bottle to training."


    My brain short-circuited. "Do you have any idea-" My voice cracked. "Lucas, you could''ve died."


    "I know I screwed up!" His eyes welled up. "But it''s on me, not Ava. She didn''t have a clue." He swiped angrily at a tear. "You can''t punish her because I was stupid!"


    I stared at my son''s face-a perfect mirror of his mother''s stubborn chin and my temper-and felt my chest crack open. I''d wronged Ava. Stripped her position. Frozen her out without a single question. All because I panicked.


    ''Why keep this to yourself all week?" I asked, the words scraping my throat raw.


    Lucas dropped his gaze to his hands. "Didn''t want you to look at me like that. His voice went small. "But losing Ava hurts worse than disappointing you. She''s the only one who... gets me."


    The silence between us felt heavier than Alphamand. I reached for his hand, his pulse fluttering against my fingers like a trapped bird. The kid was willing to take the fall for Ava-a courage that twisted my heart with both pride and pain.


    Third Person POV


    ke stalked to the window, hackles raised beneath his skin. His Alpha senses screamed that Lucas was hiding something-but his son never lied. Not once in seven years.


    "Alpha King... Tyler''s mindlink buzzed in his head like an angry ho.


    ''We''ve got something on the catalyst situation."


    "What is it?" ke replied mentally, shooting a sideways nce at Lucas, who hunched over, knuckles white against the sheets.


    Tyler''s voice carried a hard edge. "We caught the real culprit. That warrior who first reported Lucas''s ident? Found the adult catalyst stash in her quarters. She cracked under questioning-admitted slipping it into his drink. Wanted to ''save'' him and get promoted."


    ke''s pulse hammered in his throat. "That''s impossible..."


    "Got her confession, sir, Cold, hard evidence."


    ke''s fist clenched involuntarily, veins standing out against his skin. “Bring her to judgment. I''ll handle this personally."


    "On it."


    The mindlink snapped shut, and ke turned slowly toward his son, feeling like the floor had shifted beneath him. Lucas''s lie suddenly clicked into ce like the final tumbler in a lock.


    ''Care to exin why you lied to me?" ke asked, his voice deliberately gentle. Lucas nced up, a muscle twitching in his jaw. "Didn''t lie."


    "Cut the crap, Lucas," ke said, crossing back to the bed. "A warrior switched your catalyst. Not you."


    Lucas''s eyes widenedically. "What? Why would anyone want to-


    "That''s not your problem. She''s been caught and will face consequences." ke studied his son''s face, seeing the truth finally surface. "But you weren''t covering for her. You were protecting Ava."


    Lucas stared at his hands, twisting his fingers together, unable to meet his father''s eyes.


    "Not cool to lie to me, kiddo," ke said, his tone a mix of disappointment and something softer.


    "I just..." Lucas''s voice cracked. "I couldn''t let her take the fall. If I said it was me, you''d just ground me or whatever. But Ava?" A tear slid down his cheek. ''She''s got nobody in her corner. Dad''s in prison, mom''s a wreck, and now you..."


    He sniffled, swiping at his nose with his sleeve. "She''s not just some trainer to me. Sometimes she''s like... like what I imagine having a mom would feel like. Other times she trains me hard like you would." His eyes, so much like his mother''s, locked onto ke''s.


    ke sat with the weight of his son''s words, a hollow feeling spreading through his chest. Lucas had been willing to shoulder me to protect someone he cared


    about a rare kind of loyalty he couldn''t help but respect.


    "You''d really take the heat for her?" ke asked quietly.


    Lucas nodded without hesitation. "She''s pack now, isn''t she? Pack protects each other."


    The simplicity of his son''s worldview hit ke like a punch to the gut. In his rush to protect Lucas, he''d coldly condemned Ava without a second thought. The memory of her wounded eyes as she''d walked away-and that ripping sensation in his own chest-shed through his mind.


    "What you did was brave,'' ke said, choosing his words carefully. "But also dangerous. I need the truth to keep everyone safe."


    "Will you bring her back?" Lucas asked, hope brightening his voice for the first time in days.