Chapter 44

Elena

I took Lucas with me when I exited the hospital. There was a black car with tinted windows waiting outside, and the Beta held the door for me as we both got inside. I shuffled over to the far window seat as Lucas shut the door and the car immediately began to pull away from the curb,

It was one of those luxury cars that could be customized, and this one looked expensive. There were two benches in the back seating area, facing each other. Lucas and I were looking forward, and across from us sat Jaxon and a large Beta guard next to him.

The Beta looked like he could be made of clay, expressionless and motionless behind dark sunglasses. His nostrils flared as he took in our scent, the only sign of life we could see. Jaxon was looking right at me, that signature lop-sided smirk played across his mouth.

“Fancy meeting you here, snow bunny,” he said, “I hope your mother is recovering well.”

His emphasis on the word ‘mother’ made my skin crawl, and I knew he was baiting me. I knew it would be a waste of time to question how he knew about there illness, and just accepted that this man might always be a half-step ahead of me. Which is why I had to keep him on my side.

“I hear things have gotten quite steamy between us,” he said, hissing the adjective and making sure Lucas was listening. “It was news to my ears— I hope you don’t take it too harshly when I say that if we were intimate together the experience was clearly…not memorable.”

“You’ll just have to stick with your fantasies then, won’t you?” I said with a jab of my own. “We both know I remain faithful to my husband, and it benefits both of us to keep the peace. Now, have you had your fun? You sounded urgent on the phone, and I don’t have all day to be joy-riding around with you and yours.”

I nodded my head in the direction of his Beta. The man remained still except for a single twitch of his pinky finger from where his hand rested on his thigh. I was wary of that one, but still felt safe in the fact that Jaxon couldn’t afford to harm me. It was nice to take advantage of the unspoken Luna Immunity.

“Very well,” he said, shifting in his seat as he reached into his pocket inside his jacket. “My visit to the north was fruitful, and I thought you should hear it directly from my lips to yours.”

His words were like a trigger, pulling my eyes to his slightly open mouth.

Well-played.

I looked back to his eyes, my impatience meeting his immature amusement.

“And?”

“The Silverclaws are a wily Pack— if a Pack is what you could call them,” his eyes went up to the ceiling of the car as he contemplated the northern wolves. “More Rogue than Pack, and all a bit shiftier around the eyes than I might want from those I’d align myself with. And that’s coming from me.”

I understood his point. Even Jaxon would admit that he got into some shady business over the years. If he found another Pack’s behavior unorthodox, it was saying a lot.

“They let you in?”

“It took some convincing,” he shrugged in contrast to his words, “but between your prisoner's papers and my winning charm, I was granted an audience with the Alpha.”

I inhaled sharply through my nose. Lucas tightened and loosened the fist that rested on his leg.

“Who is he?”

“He told me his name was Grima,” Jaxon said, “but I cannot be certain that wasn’t an alias. Many cult leaders find different names, or ‘receive’ them from the goddess or whatever they believed in their cracked little brains.”

He looked like he had the impulse to spit, but refrained to protect the upholstery of his vehicle.

“And Natalie?” I asked, my voice cracking over the syllables. “Did they say she was there?”

A genuine smile appeared, making him more handsome and chivalrous than I’d ever seen before. Joy brought out the truth in us all, and I was among the few with whom Jaxon would share his.

“See for yourself.”

Jaxon handed me a piece of paper that turned out to be a photograph. It was clearly taken on a cellphone, but the picture quality was clear.

In the photo was a woman bending over beanstalks in a community garden, a child strapped to her back.

It was Natalie.

Tiffany

The room was full of shadows, only a single lightbulb hanging from the ceiling. Underneath that bulb was a single chair, and in that chair was a woman in peril.

Tiffany’s wrists and ankles were strapped to the chair, and she knew better than to fight against them. Even with her strength prowess, she knew it was futile to resist her fate as it stood.

Only one other person was in the room, but Tiffany imagined others might be watching from outside. Her teeth ground together in defiance. She would not let them see her sweat. If she could only make him listen, see her perspective. she might get out of this without too much damage to her life and reputation.

“This room hasn’t been used in years,” Killian said from the corner of the small chamber. “Not many people even know it exists, and you won’t find it on any floor plan.”

The captive woman was still.

“Supposedly my great-great-grandfather had some questionable habits,” the Alpha added, “and needed something off the books. I found my way in here as a child and got locked in, couldn’t get out for hours. My mother then declared it off limits, emptied it, and it’s been collecting dust ever since.”

Killian walked slowly in a circle around his Beta. Tiffany’s eyes attempted to follow his path, revealing panic when he was behind her and out of sight. He came back around and stopped right in front of her.

“Maybe I should thank you, for giving me a reason to return to this hallowed place,” he said with a detached smile. “It is good to stay in touch with the ancestors, with the traditions we pass on and those we keep hidden. Because no matter how good the secret, the truth will always come out.”

He leaned down, his breath warm on her face. “Do you have any truths you’d like to confess to these listening walls?”

Suddenly her breath and voice sputtered, as if she had been gagged and silenced and now able to speak again. There was no gag, only the powerful mind control of an Alpha over his Beta.

“Please, Killian,” Tiffany’s voice was raspy and desperate, “I only did what I thought was best. I was looking out for you, for us— the whole Pack!”

“By tearing down my reputation by outing an adulterous Luna?” Killian’s patience was waning. “How does that help me or the strength of the Pack? How does leaking a photo, any photo, to the press make me trust you, regardless of whatever backward intentions you may have?”

“It was a mistake!” Tiffany’s voice was pitching upwards, shrill off the bare walls surrounding her. “Elena is so secretive, always up to something, I thought I was helping you see the truth about her.”

“But to the press, Tiffany!” There was a touch of sadness, betrayal, in Killian’s voice. “You should have come to me, let us handle this in our own way as a team.”

“I should have, I know that,” Tiffany was pulling against her restraints, almost moving the chair forward across the floor as she struggled. “It will never happen again, I promise. I will personally apologize to the Luna.”

Killian shook his head, his eyes on the ground.

“It is too late, Tiffany,” he said, not happy with what he had to do next. “You have compromised the campaign and the safety of my family. I have no choice but to sentence you accordingly.”

“No,” Tiffany said quietly, the color drawing form her face. “No!”

The second word barely left her lips before her body convulsed in pain.

Killian’s face was hardened with sorrow as he stripped his Beta of her rank and status.