Chapter 16

[Evelyn’s POV]

Since that fateful morning when I had officially met Granda Wendy, I could easily say that things around the house had become a lot lighter. I had grown comfortable with most of the staff and they had become rather used to me being around.

Granted it was a small portion of the pack that knew of my existence, it was a decent start. On the bright side, I hadn’t really seen much more of Caroline or Fiona after that initial meeting with Alexander’s Grandmother.

In a way, I was deeply grateful for it. There was no chance I would have been able to get through another embarrassing attack. It was no mystery that my knowledge and insight on certain matters put me in a conflicted position.

I hadn’t meant to come in and step on anyone’s toes. But, at the same time, it was obvious that certain things were going on behind Alexander’s back. As Luna, it was their job to ensure that everything was running smoothly.

I spent most of my days around either Nina or Wendy. If I wasn't being taught the proper dress and etiquette for a Luna, then I was being brought in on the financial affairs within the pack.

It was all very productive, to say the least and I was happy that I wasn’t wasting my days mulling around, doing nothing. However, I wish I could say that things had changed between Alexander and I.

But no. Not really.

He still kept to his private study for most of the day. The only real-time either of us would possibly come together would be for meal times and, of course, at night. By some miracle, I had earned his Grandmother's favor, but it clearly wasn’t enough to earn his complete trust. Or, at the very least, earn his interest. Yep, those damn separate beds still remained distantly apart from each other.

It shouldn't have mattered to me. Truly.

What did I care if my own husband wanted little to do with me in that aspect?

The issue only really bothered me at night. We laid out in our separated beds, trying to find a semblance of sleep from the day’s events. As odd as it seemed, I found myself missing that warm, secure feeling that came from when we slept next to each other.

“Stupid,” I whispered under my breath to myself. “None of it matters.”

God, I wanted to believe that was true. I felt ridiculous thinking about it nonstop. All it did was make me wonder if Alexander felt any different.

Clearly, he doesn’t, Evelyn. Otherwise, he would have mentioned something by now.

It pained me to think that this was what my marriage was going to be in terms of intimacy—or the lack thereof.

If this marriage was going to honestly be treated like a business ordeal, then I figured I ought to at least meet the rest of the pack. Right??

That morning, Alexander was well off on his own business, visiting the pack in their various campsites. I, on the other hand, was just returning from a brief meeting with my previous pack along with Nina. I’d managed to get a hold of those several packets of herbal seeds that I spoke to Wendy about.

I knew that if I was able to deliver them to the packs now, the plants would make it just in time before the winter frost would roll in.

This was my only way of keeping my mind off of Alexander. Working with plants and harvesting their growth to rework for future benefits was what kept my mind occupied.

“Do you think Wendy will still be interested in these?” I asked Nina.

The woman eagerly nodded her head. “Definitely.”

As the two of us headed toward Wendy’s rooms, we were stopped short because of Fiona. An unsettling feeling crept in from the back of my mind. Where the hell had she even come from?

It was as though she’d been waiting for us to head this way.

“Fiona,” I greeted. “Is there something you need?”

I read through her false smile almost immediately. “Alexander reached out to me to inform you that he’d like for you to go and meet him at the camps today.”

My brows lifted in shock. “Really?”

“Yep. He’s meeting with a few of the pack members to discuss some important matters, but he’s looking forward to seeing you.”

I tried to not let my cheeks flush with interest. I turned to face Nina and asked her to make sure those seeds got to Wendy so that they could be arranged and planted.

I was more than glad to see that Wendy’s health had been improving since she started taking the special tea leaves and herbs I prescribed for her. Now she was able to take care of the more intricate tasks than before.

...

Upon my arrival at the camp, I tried glancing around for any sign of Alexander.

But I couldn’t find a single trace of him.

“Perhaps he’s in his private defense quarters,” Fiona suggested.

The two of us headed up to the tent to find it heavily guarded by numerous pack members.

“Excuse me,” I started. “Is Alexander here?”

They all gave me the same dubious, questionable look. “Who’s asking?”

As I expected, Fiona remained silent. I cleared my throat and tried to keep my computer as confident as possible.

“My name is Evelyn. I’m Alexander’s Luna,” I said.

Most, if not all, looked taken aback by this bit of news. I wasn’t sure what to make of it. It’s almost been a full week since Alexander and I had married and still, a majority of the pack wasn’t aware of who I was.

I wasn’t going to lie, it stung.

But the guards were quick to let us pass.

“Are you sure Alexander wants me here?” I asked.

Fiona curtly nodded. “Oh, yes. In fact, he even said that if he wasn’t here by the time you arrived, you should just go in and wait for him. He even said you could straighten up things if you wanted. In fact, why don’t you do that? I’m sure Alexander would be exceedingly grateful.”

I felt deeply suspicious of Fiona’s encouraging words. This was the same girl who tried to sabotage my first meeting with Wendy. She didn’t seem like the kind of person to easily turn over a new leaf.

Nonetheless, I followed her inside and nearly stumbled over my own feet.

Why on earth would Alexander want me to straighten up here? The place was as neat as it possibly could get.

I let out a long breath and slowly examined my surroundings. Nothing looked particularly out of place or even disorganized. Quite the opposite.

Everything looked thoroughly locked up and kept well in its place.

The only thing that appeared strangely out of place was a random notebook that was sitting in the middle of his desk. My guess was that it had come from one of the nearby locked boxes.

“I really shouldn’t be here,” I said to myself. I glanced over at Fiona and gently shook my head. “Are you sure I should be in here? This whole place seems highly confidential?”

Suddenly, I caught something out of the corner of my eye. Fiona had picked up a delicate-looking box that I just had a feeling wasn’t meant to be toyed with.

“What are you doing?” I asked bluntly.

Instead of answering me, she sneered while a devious smile took hold of her mouth. She mumbled something nearly incoherent under her breath.

“...Wrong place...Wrong time...”

Just then, my heart lurched into my throat as she tossed the ornate box to the ground. My eyes were wide in disbelief while an intense sense of worry and fear took over me.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” I blurted out.

So much was wrong with this situation. I turned to leave but at that very moment, Alexander’s booming voice came rushing through.

“Evelyn?”

My heart skipped several beats.