Chapter Four
RUE
When I returned to Kael's, I was exhausted- physically, mentally, emotionally. I felt like I had nothing left to give.
Kael was waiting for me. "How did it go?"
I shook my head, my voice hollow. "I didn't. She... she's not the person I thought she was."
Kael said nothing. He just reached out, pulling me into his arms. And for the first time in what felt like forever, I let myself lean on someone else. His embrace was strong, steady, and for as long as it lasted, I felt safe.
But then,
everything shifted again.
The next morning, he left to find information about the necklace. And while he was gone, a letter arrived for me. It was simple and the handwriting was unfamiliar, but the words sent a chill down my spine.
"Flee from Kael. He’s not what you think."
I stared at the letter, confusion settling in my mind. Kael... dangerous? That couldn’t be right. He had been nothing but kind, nothing but loyal. I wanted to believe that. I 'needed' to believe that.
Shaking my head, I crumpled the letter and tossed it aside. Whoever had sent it was trying to mess with me, trying to turn me against the one person I had left. I wasn't going anywhere. Not without the truth.
Kael returned late in the evening, looking so serious as he walked through the door. I could tell by the way his jaw was set that he had learned something important.
My heart raced as I sat up from the couch where I'd been waiting. "Did you find anything?" My voice was barely steady. I'd been on the edge since I received that strange letter warning me about Kael, but I pushed it aside. I needed to know the truth about the necklace, about everything.
Kael nodded, his eyes locking onto mine. "Yeah, I found out who the necklace belongs to."
I stood up, crossing my arms tightly over my chest. I didn't like the way he was looking at me, like whatever he was about to say was going to change everything. "Whose is it?"
He took a deep breath, then spoke the words that knocked the wind out of me. "It belongs to the Alpha of the Moonswine Pack."
My mind went blank for a second as I tried to make sense of it, not realising I'd been staring into space, and right at him. That didn't make sense. "What? That can't be right," I muttered, shaking my head. "I've never had any contact with him. Why would he... why would he do this to me?"
His face softened a little, but there was no comfort in his eyes. "I didn't think it made sense either, but I looked into it. That necklace- it's something all Moonswine Alphas were. There's no mistake."
I felt sick. My stomach twisted In knots and my legs felt weak. I sank back down onto the couch, trying to breathe through the wave of nausea that hit me. "But... why? Why would the Alpha target me? I've never crossed him, never even met him!"
Kael sat down across from me, looking grim. "That's what I've been trying to figure out. But there's more, Rue. I found something else."
Another wave of dread ran over me. He hesitated for a moment, then leaned forward.
"Jessica... she's not who you think she is." "What do you mean? Jessica’s just..
She was my friend. She betrayed me, but-"
"She's not just anyone," Kael interrupted.
"Jessica is the sister of the Moonswine Alpha." My blood ran cold at his words. "No... that can't be right. I would've known that."
But even as I said it, doubt crept in.
Jessica had always been a little secretive, never talking much about her family. But to be the sister of an Alpha... and not just any Alpha, but the Alpha of the Moonswine Pack?
Kael’s face was hard, unyielding. "It's true, Rue. She played you. Your friendship with her- it was all part of a plan. A plan to take over the BloodFang Pack."
I couldn't breathe. The room felt like it was spinning around me as Kael's words sank in. "What are you saying? Jessica... She was using me?"
He nodded, his jaw tight. "From the very beginning. She planned it all- your first meeting. It was all part of her scheme."
My head was spinning, memories flashing through my mind. I remembered the first time I met Jessica. It had been during a hunt, deep in the forest. I was tracking a deer when I heard something- someone- crying. When I followed the sound, I found a wounded Jessica, huddled near a tree, looking scared and lost. I'd thought she was helpless, a victim of some attack. We'd bonded that day, or at least I 'thought' we had. She'd seemed genuine, so kind. I'd brought her back to my Pack, given her a place to stay, and a friend to lean on. But now... not it was all crashing down around me.
"She used me... she planned it all from the start?"
His eyes softened, but he didn't sugarcoat the truth. "Yes. It was all a setup. She wanted to gain your trust, get close to you. And when the time was right, she betrayed you. She sacrificed you, Rue. She handed you over to Cassie to gain favour. All to help her brother take over your Pack."
Another surge of intense rage hit me, nearly knocking me off my feet. Jessica... the girl I'd trusted with my life, the girl I'd considered a sister, had used me. Not only had she lied to me, but she had also delivered me to Cassie like I was nothing more than a pawn.
"I'm going to kill her... I'm going to tear the flesh off her bones."
"I get that you're angry-"
"Angry?" I snapped. "I trusted her! I brought her into my home, my life! And she- she set me up to be raped, to be humiliated in front of the entire Pack! She’s going to pay for this.”