Chapter 15

[Evelyn’s POV]

Once more the room fell silent.

I wasn’t even sure Alexander knew what to say. Surely, he was as shocked as me. Between the two of us, I was certain we both thought that it was going to take a lot more than a single conversation for Wendy to feel so obliged to want to work together.

Caroline looked as though someone had the audacity to slap her across the face. For a brief second, I was mildly nervous to turn my head to look at her. But she was quick to recover from her bout of shock.

An amused smile curved her painted lips while a mocking laughter filled the air.

“Grandma Wendy, you can’t possibly place such an important task on someone like Evelyn,” she said briskly. “How could she possibly understand the dynamics of a pack’s financials?”

I hadn’t missed the sharp, bitter tone of her voice as she spoke my name. It was fairly obvious that whatever line of possible friendship the two of us could have had was just severed due to Wendy’s decision.

Alexander cleared his throat and finally spoke amongst the growing tension. He slightly turned his head to glance at me.

“Evelyn, do you feel comfortable taking on this responsibility with Grandma Wendy?” he asked. “Do you think this is something that you can handle?”

Even though my reputation of being considered a ‘wild child’, they still considered me to be ineligible and uneducated when it comes to matters such as these. This shouldn’t have come as any real surprise. Although I aided Liam in the rebuilding of his pack’s trading networks, it prompted me to work through the pack’s finances as well.

No doubt Liam kept this all hidden, not wanting the world to know that he was incapable of running his own pack’s business.

I knew that if I were to go through the files Alexander was handed just moments ago, I would very likely understand the information listed there.

I lifted my eyes to meet Alexander’s expectant gaze. “May I take a look at the ledger first?”

“Of course.”

Wendy nodded her head and reached into the small table beside her, pulling out a thick leather-bound ledger with the Kingston Family crest stamped on the cover.

Caroline grew quiet and dismissive.

I graciously accepted the book and flipped it open to the latest record. It appeared that one of the surrounding defense walls had been damaged and needed to be replaced. The cost was listed very clearly beside it; however, as I was looking below to see all the necessary charges that were made to cover the damage, I quickly discovered that the totals weren’t adding up.

I went back in the ledger history to find that the same entry had been made, regarding the same costs. Those numbers weren’t adding up either.

How interesting...

It seemed like someone had been siphoning money out of the accounts and hiding it under false projects.

This time, when I had glanced up I noticed that both Caroline and Fiona were doing everything in their power to appear inconspicuous as humanly possible.

“There are a few accounts in here that aren’t adding up,” I said. “It says here that the pack spent a significant amount of money to repair a wall.”

Caroline let out an indignant breath and nearly rolled her eyes. “Yes, general maintenance.v Surely, even coming from a small pack you understand that.”

Fiona cackled under her breath.

“You see, I inquired about the issue myself and was told that only the finest brick and rock were to be used along with the finest craftsmen. The repairs took three months.”

I merely hummed in response to her condescending words.

“That doesn’t excuse the unreasonable prices that are marked down in here,” I stated. “Even using the finest stone isn’t worth nearly half of the money that’s been spent on these projects. And nor would a 100-meter long wall take three months to repair.”

Alexander and Caroline were practically gaping at my unexpected intel on the situation. Wendy called out for one of the staff members.

“Find Katherine. Bring her here.”

According to Grandma Wendy, Katherine was responsible for revising the ledger. If anyone was able to make sense of the transactions that had been made, it was her. Right as she arrived with a worried look on her face, she was handed the ledger to review her own work.

Her cheeks gradually turned a deep shade of red. “Oh, my...I...I don’t know how these mistakes could have happened. Or at least gone unnoticed.”

Katherine excused herself to take the time to rework the numbers and double-check the receipts. Throughout the whole ordeal, Wendy never lost the enthusiastic glint in her eyes.

“Evelyn, I have every belief that you’re going to make a wonderful Luna. I could tell from the moment I heard of your so-called reputation,” she said with a smile. “And I am more than prepared to teach you how. Anyone could look beautiful, but understanding and empathizing with the people in this pack is what’s truly important.”

Caroline’s features were tense with both anger and embarrassment.

I took the chance to reach into my bag and pull out a few of the gifts I had privately packed for this occasion. Knowing that Wendy hasn’t been doing well, I made sure to grab a few different variations of herbs and tea leaves that would surely help her.

“These were grown specially from my pack,” I said gently. We’ve been cultivating these types of plants for generations. Anytime someone in the pack would fall ill, it’s the first thing that they’re given to help them get better.”

“How sweet.”

“I’m afraid I’m going to have to deny such an unknown remedy,” Fiona tutted, snidely. “Lose herbs such as these...There’s no telling how hygienic they are.”

I was about to defend the accusation but was swiftly interrupted by Wendy.

“I insist on trying them then,” she said.

She called for an immediate tea service and handed me back the tea leaves so I could begin to steep them in the small pot. After a few minutes, I poured her a cup of tea and carefully handed it over.

Wendy took numerous sips. “This is very nice.”

Already there was a noticeable difference in her voice from the clear way she sounded. Alexander looked marveled and purely relieved.

“You sound so much better,” he claimed.

“If you like, I’d be more than happy to plant these types of herbs in the gardens here,” I offered. “The plants take about 1-2 months to grow, so it won’t take too long for the pack to benefit from them.”

Wendy was very pleased and from where I was sitting, I could see Alexander was giving me an appraising look himself.

[Third-Person POV]

When Fiona had first joined the MoonStone Pack, she had believed in the likelihood that it would one day lead to her becoming Luna. However, when Alexander’s accident occurred, she’d lost all interest.

Today, she’d dressed up to make Samantha look and feel inferior in comparison. But instead, she found herself outshone by the ‘wild child’, Evelyn.

It was practically laughable.

And if that wasn’t bad enough, she’s been mocked and out-shined in her own field. Fiona couldn't stand the humiliation.

She was determined to see Evelyn suffer and be thrown out of the pack. Caroline stole a glance at the younger woman and leaned in close to speak.

“I trust you to be able to deal with this new Luna,” she sneered.

The two continued their hushed plotting down the corridor, determined to see Evelyn’s place in MoonStone Pack to be short-lived.