Alpha's Regret After Putting Me In Jail novel Chapter 190

Summary for Chapter 190: Alpha's Regret After Putting Me In Jail

Chapter 190 – A Turning Point in Alpha's Regret After Putting Me In Jail by Free Collection

In this chapter of Alpha's Regret After Putting Me In Jail, Free Collection introduces major changes to the story. Chapter 190 shifts the narrative tone, revealing secrets, advancing character arcs, and increasing stakes within the Alpha genre.

Chapter 190: A Familiar Sting (Celeste’s POV)

Chapter 190: A Familiar Sting (Celeste’s POV)

I stood frozen in the doorway as Alexander carried Scarlett away. His ice–blue eyes had pierced through me with that familiar look of cold judgment. The same look he’d given me

four years ago.

Back then, I had been desperate, pleading for someone to believe me about the sacred moon crystal. I hadn’t broken it–Scarlett had. But Alexander had silenced me with that single, damning glance. It was the moment I realized I was completely alone.

My silver–scarred wolf whined softly inside me, the memory reopening wounds I thought had scarred over. How deeply I had trusted him then. How completely I had believed he would

stand by me, defend me, see through the lies.

But he hadn’t. And now, history was repeating itself.

I brushed my fingers against the wall to steady myself. The cold stone grounded me, reminding me where I was. Not in the past. Not in that terrible moment when my world collapsed. Yet the sting felt just as fresh.

The sound of hurried footsteps pulled me from my thoughts. Lucas stormed back into the room, his golden eyes blazing with fury.

“What is wrong with you?” he snarled, his wolf surging beneath his skin. “Is this how you repay

Scarlett for trying to help you?”

I stared at him blankly. “Help me?”

“She’s been soaked to the bone in the sacred moon pool!” Lucas shouted, advancing toward

1. me. Without warning, he shoved me against the wall, his hands rough against my shoulders.

“She spent days picking out moon–blessed jewelry for you, trying to make you presentable for the gathering!”

His wolf bristled aggressively, the scent of his anger filling the room. I didn’t flinch.

“I didn’t push her into the pool,” I said evenly. “She lost her balance when I released her hand.”

“Liar!” he spat, inches from my face. “Always taking your anger out on Scarlett when she’s done nothing but try to welcome you back!”

I said nothing, knowing from bitter experience that defending myself was pointless. Lucas had already decided what happened.

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Chapter 190: A Familiar Sting (C…

“If anything happens to her,” he hissed, “if she catches silver–fever from that pool water, there will be consequences. Grandmother won’t be able to protect you this time.”

With that threat hanging in the air, he spun on his heel and stormed out, presumably to check

on his precious sister.

I remained in the moonlit courtyard, completely alone. Tears welled in my violet eyes despite my best efforts to suppress them.

Nothing had changed. Four years ago, they had all protected Scarlett. Four years later, they

still sided with her without question, without even hearing my side.

I took a deep, steadying breath. The cold night air filled my lungs, helping me regain control. I had survived four years in Moon Shadow Prison, enduring silver chains and isolation. I could

certainly survive this.

I had just started walking back toward my quarters when I noticed a small figure cautiously approaching from the shadows. Nina’s silver–gray eyes gleamed in the moonlight, her lithe

form moving silently across the courtyard.

She looked around carefully, ensuring we were alone before rushing to my side.

“Miss Celeste! Are you alright?” she whispered urgently, her wolf radiating concern. “I saw

Alexander and Lucas leave. Did they threaten you?”

Her loyalty touched me in ways I couldn’t express. After everything–after being abandoned by family, by friends, by pack–having someone genuinely care about my wellbeing felt like a rare

treasure.

“I’m fine, Nina,” I assured her, straightening my shoulders. “No one intimidates me anymore.

Not Lucas, not Alexander. Those days are over.”

Nina’s eyes tracked to the door Lucas had stormed through. “Scarlett looked like a drowned rat when they carried her past the kitchens,” she observed with barely concealed satisfaction. “And Lucas’s face was all swollen on one side. Was that your doing?”

Despite myself, I felt a small smile tug at my lips. “I did slap him rather hard.”

Nina’s face lit up with vindictive delight. “Good! The arrogant pup deserves far worse!”

Her enthusiasm faltered slightly as she glanced nervously around the courtyard. “But we should return to our quarters. Lucas may come back looking for you, and in his current

mood…”

She didn’t finish the thought, but she didn’t need to. Lucas’s temper had always been volatile,

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Chapter 190 A Familiar Sting (C…

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and now he had power to back his rage.

“You’re right,” I agreed, allowing her to lead me away.

Nina checked around corners before pulling me down corridors, as if we were escaping enemy territory rather than navigating our own pack house. Her caution would have seemed

excessive once, but I knew better now.

I let myself be guided, keenly aware of one significant difference from four years ago–I was

no longer truly alone.

Back in my quarters, I found the ceremonial clothes and jewelry Scarlett had selected laid out on my bed. The gown was admittedly beautiful–midnight blue with silver thread woven into intricate pack symbols. The moon–blessed jewelry gleamed in the lamplight, clearly

expensive.

But I had no desire to touch any of it. Everything Scarlett gave came with hidden cost, hidden

intent. These gifts were no different.

“Pack these up and return them,” I instructed Nina.

She nodded, carefully folding the gown. “I suspected you wouldn’t want them.”

Before we could finish, a sharp knock interrupted us. A beta pack messenger stood at the

door, his expression carefully neutral.

“Miss Celeste,” he announced formally, “Alpha James has summoned you to the main hall

immediately.”

I exchanged a glance with Nina. We both knew what this meant. The consequences Lucas

had threatened were about to materialize.

“Very well,” I said, squaring my shoulders. I refused to show fear.

The main hall of the Winter Pack house was imposing by design. Stone columns rose to a

vaulted ceiling adorned with pack symbols. Moonlight streamed through high windows,

casting long shadows across the marble floor.

The scene that awaited me was exactly as I’d anticipated. Scarlett sat huddled in a chair, wrapped in thick blankets, looking utterly pitiful with her wet hair and pale face. Alpha James stood tall and stern, his wolf’s dominance filling the room like a physical presence. Lucas scowled from beside his sister, his wolf still bristling with anger.

Victoria, however, approached me with unexpected gentleness. Her wolf radiated maternal concern as she reached for my hands.

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Chapter 190: A Familiar Sting (C…

“Celeste,” she said softly, “this has gone on long enough. Just apologize to Scarlett so we can

put an end to this unpleasantness.”

I stared at her in disbelief. Even now, she played this charade of concerned mother while asking me to apologize for something I hadn’t done.

“Apologize for what exactly?” I asked, my voice deliberately calm.

Victoria’s eyes flickered uneasily to Alpha James. “For pushing Scarlett into the sacred moon

pool. She could have been seriously injured.”

I pulled my hands from her grasp. “I didn’t push her.”

Alpha James erupted at my denial, his Alpha aura surging through the room like a tidal wave.

Lesser wolves would have dropped to their knees under the pressure. I remained standing.

“Enough!” he roared, pointing to Scarlett’s shivering form. “Look at what you’ve done! She’s

soaked to the bone in sacred waters that could harm her wolf!”

I met his gaze without flinching. “Scarlett fell into the pool on her own, Alpha. I merely

released her hand when she grabbed me.”

“You’re lying,” Alpha James growled. “Alexander witnessed you push her.”

Of course he would claim that. Alexander, ever the protector of Scarlett, would naturally twist

the truth to favor her.

“Have you forgotten your own words, Alpha?” I asked, my voice steady despite the anger building inside me. “Before the Alpha King himself, you declared I wasn’t a Winter. You

renounced all pack ties to me.”

I took a deliberate step forward. “By your own declaration, I am not part of this pack. I bear no Winter pack mark. By what right do you enforce pack laws on me now?”

My words hung in the air, sharper than any claw. Alpha James’s eyes widened slightly, caught in the trap of his own previous statements.

Lucas stepped forward, inserting himself between us. His golden eyes flashed dangerously.

“Always using the past as an excuse,” he spat. “Have you forgotten your own crimes? The sacred moon crystal you broke years ago?”

His words cut deeper than he knew, reopening the very wound that had sent me to Moon Shadow Prison.

“You took Scarlett’s place for fourteen years,” Lucas continued, his voice rising. “You enjoyed

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our pack’s protection, our name, our resources. The least you could do is bear the blame now!” The accusation pierced my heart like silver. After everything I’d endured in prison, after the years of torture and isolation, he still believed I deserved more punishment.

I refused to let him see how deeply his words wounded me. Instead, I met his gaze with cold

indifference

“You’re the one bringing up the past, Lucas,” I replied coolly. “Not me.”

I turned back to Alpha James. “I will say this once more. I did not push Scarlett. She grabbed my arm, and I released her grip. The rest was her own clumsiness.”

I looked at Scarlett, huddled in her blankets. “Or perhaps deliberate dramatics.”

Lucas lunged forward, his restraint finally snapping. “How dare you-”

Victoria intervened, catching her son’s arm before he could reach me. Her wolf whined with distress as she physically restrained him.

“Lucas, please!” she begged. “Violence solves nothing!”

“Look at her!” Lucas shouted, gesturing wildly in my direction. “Standing there with that arrogant expression! No remorse, no respect! She needs to be punished!”

Alpha James nodded grimly. “She does. Last time, your grandmother’s intervention saved your from consequences, Celeste. This time, punishment is unavoidable.”

Victoria turned to me, her green eyes pleading. “Celeste, please. Just apologize. Don’t provoke your father’s wrath.”

I looked at her–really looked at her. Beneath the performance, beneath the facade of the perfect Luna supporting her mate’s decision, I detected genuine concern. Some small part of her still worried for me, still remembered the daughter she had raised for fourteen years.

But it wasn’t enough. It never had been.

I turned back to Alpha James, my resolve hardening.

“You told the Alpha King I wasn’t a Winter,” I stated flatly. “You cannot have it both ways, Alpha. Either I am part of this pack and deserving of fair treatment, or I am not part of this pack and beyond your authority to punish.”

Alpha James’s face darkened with rage. His wolf surged forward, radiating aggressive dominance that made the very air feel heavy.

“I raised you for fourteen years,” he growled, his voice dangerously low. “Fed you, clothed you,

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Chapter 190: A Familiar Sting (C…

protected you. You owe me respect, if nothing else.”

I met his furious gaze with cold detachment.

“My debt has already been repaid,” I replied evenly. “Just as Lucas said–repaid during my four years of silver chain torture in Moon Shadow Prison.”

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