Five Alphas Kneel for Me (Isabella) novel Chapter 577

Chapter 577.

I later learned Wendy had actually gone through with it. She’d knelt and begged Susan, all for Lola.

What Wendy didn’t realize, though, was that Lola had already woken up after being admitted to her healing den.

Meanwhile, Lola had buried herself under the furs. I knew her well enough to guess she wasn’t about to accept her exile from the pack, not when there was a chance to claw her way back from becoming an Omega.

For her, there was only one path left.

Lola contacted some Howlnet nodes and somehow got permission for them to enter her healing den.

After a period of careful staging and preparation, she was ready to put on her show.

I watched the Howlnet transmission, seeing Lola in a thin shift, her face a carefully cultivated pale, a moon–essence transfusion line prominent in her arm. She looked weak and utterly pitiful, a stark contrast to the venom I knew she harbored. Her wolf was likely tucked away, feigning submission to enhance the ruse.

Her eyes welled, and silent tears began to track down her pale cheeks, not a sound breaking the tragic tableau she’d constructed.

“I’m truly sorry for all the trouble I’ve caused,” Lola said, her voice thin and wavering.“But I only ever wanted to help those poor pups. I genuinely believed my mother shared the same compassionate heart…”

A reporter, playing right into her hands, immediately jumped on the implication.“So, are you suggesting someone put you up to this?”

On the screen, I watched Lola give a faint nod, then bury her face in her hands, her voice trembling with manufactured sorrow.“I’m just an ordinary she–wolf,” she choked out, “How could I possibly understand anything about den fortifications or pack tributes? My mother handled everything. I never, not for a second, wanted to hurt those pups… If I’d known it would come to this, I’d rather it was

me who died… I…” Her words trailed off into dramatic sobs.

I could see the chroniclers understood her intent, and a flicker of disdain crossed their faces at her blatant attempt to deflect blame. But their instructions from the Pack Council were clear: whatever Lola said, it had to be reported.

Lola completely absolved herself, shifting every last shred of responsibility onto Wendy.

After the chroniclers left, I saw her on screen, her arms wrapped tightly around herself, shrinking into a tiny ball.

I knew Wendy was on her way back to the healing den, clutching the tributes she’d bartered her dignity for, intending to pay Lola’s Blood–Core stabilization fees. It was at that exact moment, I learned, that she saw Lola’s Howlnet interview. The sheer injustice of it made my head swim. I could almost feel the world hum to a deafening silence around her, rendering everything else incomprehensible.

I imagined the dizzying spin she must have felt, the earth falling out from under her, as if her entire world–her very pack–was collapsing!

I could almost hear her silent question: How could the pup she was willing to give everything for have turned into this?

Lola, how could she do this to her?

Wendy, I learned, somehow stumbled into the healing den, so dazed by what she’d seen that she didn’t even remember to close the heavy oak door gently.

As the door clicked open, Lola, already on edge, suddenly sprang up from the furs.

With the untreated bruising still in her brain, the sudden, violent jolt clearly sent a wave of dizziness and nausea through her. Her wolf whimpered in the back of her mind, weakened by the strain.

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< Chapter 577.

Before, I would have rushed to her side, pulled her into a hug, and started comforting her.

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But now, as I watched the agony contort her face, I felt nothing. No flicker of an old impulse. My wolf remained cold and detached, watching the predator fail.

I even suspected her current weakness, her fragility, might all be an act.

After all, she’d had enough strength to face the Howlnet chroniclers. She hadn’t seemed all that unwell then.

It took Lola a moment to recover, her breath coming in ragged gasps.

Only then did her eyes find mine, and she noticed the terrible expression on my face.

A flicker of alarm crossed her features, her pheromones souring with fear, but it vanished quickly, replaced almost instantly by that familiar, fragile, pitiful mask.

“Mom, what’s wrong?”

“What’s wrong with me?” Wendy said, forcing a smile that was more a grimace than anything else.“While I was out there on my knees, begging people for help, my own pup was stabbing me in the back!”

After hearing that, I watched Lola’s body give an involuntary tremor.

I could tell from her face that even though she must have known this secret wouldn’t hold forever, she hadn’t expected Wendy to find

out so quickly.

“Mom, please, just listen to me…”

Then, Wendy suddenly rushed to the bedside, her hands latching onto Lola’s shoulders.“How could you do this to me! Haven’t I been good enough for you? For you, I even knelt and begged the person I despise most in this world!* Her voice fractured, tears streaming, a raw, desperate sound.“For you, I’d do anything…”

I watched Lola, her voice laced with a dangerous calm, as she tried to reason with her mother. “Mom, be rational. In this situation, do you want both of us to go down? One of us has to be saved. Someone has to step up and take all the blame! You’re old already; if you’re ruined, you’re ruined. But my life is just beginning! I can’t have a stain on my record!”

It was chilling to see Lola’s ‘patience‘ with Wendy, a she–wolf she clearly saw as useless now. She was practically begging her to take the

fall.

“Mom, I’ll be a good daughter to you from now on, I promise. Please… just do this one last thing for me. Take all the blame.”

Wendy stumbled backward, hitting the stone wall with a dull thud.

I saw her eyes fix on Lola’s face, a face that bore an uncanny resemblance to Adrian’s. A look of bone–deep horror dawned on Wendy’s features; a realization so profound it seemed to chill her to the core.

It was in that moment, I understood, that Wendy finally saw Lola for what she truly was: utterly selfish.

The hatred radiating from her was palpable, her pheromones thick with the scent of a dying bond.

I could almost hear the thoughts screaming in Wendy’s head: She had abandoned her own son, destroyed her pack standing, all for this utterly self–serving monster!

She was just-

-the biggest fool in the entire world!

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A sudden, choked laugh tore from Wendy’s throat, slicing through the air.“It’s not about my agreement anymore, it’s-”

Meng

Suddenly, a sharp knock rattled the healing den door. A serious male voice boomed from the other side, the voice of an Alpha in service

to the law.

A voice cut through the tension. “You two are Wendy and Lola, right?”

Wendy and Lola’s faces tightened instantly.

I just knew whoever was coming for them now couldn’t be good.

I watched, barely breathing, as their faces drained of color, already knowing this couldn’t be good. Just then, a group of Pack Enforcers, their leather armor crisp and formal, strode into the healing den. Their expressions were grim, their sharp eyes sweeping over Wendy and Lola, and I felt a cold knot tighten in my stomach.

The lead Enforcer, a stern–faced she–wolf with dark hair pulled back severely, held up her crest of authority. Her voice, when she finally spoke, was a chilling cut through the sudden, heavy silence in the room.

“Wendy, you’re suspected of involvement in a major Pack Tribute fraud case. We need you to come with us.”

A low hum seemed to reverberate through Wendy’s skull, or perhaps it was just the sound of her world imploding, before her gaze snapped to Lola.

I watched Lola turn away from Wendy, her gaze fixed stubbornly on the window, pretending she hadn’t seen anything at all. Her wolf

retreated into total silence.

Wendy’s expression hardened, a desolate resignation settling over her features. She was clearly heartbroken by Lola’s coldness, but it was as if she’d reached a point where she refused to let it sting anymore.

So, just as the Enforcer reached for the silver–lined shackles, Wendy snapped, “She’s the director of the Lola Children’s Aid Center! When things go south, she’s the one who’s responsible! Every penny of that embezzled tribute landed right in her account. Even if I’m guilty, she’s the mastermind!”

Lola, who had heard the Enforcer’s chilling accusation against Wendy, spun around, her eyes wide with utter disbelief.

The shock on Lola’s face quickly curdled into a furious, silent accusation. I could almost hear the thought screaming in her mind: That idiot Wendy, how could she have betrayed the blood–line at the last minute?

But the lead Enforcer ignored their escalating drama. I watched him pull out a parchment document, unfold it with a crisp snap, and extend it toward Wendy.

“We’ve investigated thoroughly,” the Enforcer stated, his voice devoid of warmth.“The legal representative for this project is you.”

I pictured Wendy’s eyes widening in shock.

She, who had trusted Selene implicitly, wouldn’t have known that Selene had already betrayed her long before everything went south. I certainly wouldn’t have seen it coming.

I imagined her turning to look at Selene again.

And I pictured her seeing Selene let out a huge sigh of relief, a faint smile playing on her lips!

It must have been then, for the first time, that Wendy realized the pup she’d watched grow up, the one she’d spoiled since birth, was truly terrifying. I knew that feeling all too well.

Selene, I realized, had apparently used Wendy’s name to register the company from the very beginning, using her identity to handle all the dirty dealings within the pack.

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< Chapter 577.

If things went south, it would be Wendy taking the fall, while Selene walked away scot–free. It was a classic Selene move.

What a pup Wendy had raised, I thought bitterly.

But then, Wendy smiled.

“You’re underestimating Isabella,” Wendy said, her voice sharp with a finality she hadn’t possessed moments before.

“It’s not about whether I’ll take the fall for you anymore. It’s about-“She paused, letting the weight of her next words hang in the air.“It’s about whether Isabella wants to let you go!”

The words were barely out of her mouth when I saw the silver shackles click around her wrists.

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Just then, another Enforcer stepped forward, a second pair of silver shackles in hand, and moved towards Lola.“Lola,” he stated, his voice firm, “you are suspected of ancestral lore theft and defrauding vast sums of tribute through a pack project. We are now arresting

you in accordance with the Ancient Covenant.”

Wendy, listening to the charges, burst into a harsh, triumphant laugh.

Yes. That was my style. My wolf finally let out a low, satisfied purr.

< Chapter 578.