Chapter 36: She’s Thriving There
Chapter 36: She’s Thriving There
(Alexander’s POV)
I leaned back in my chair, fingertips tapping rhythmically on the mahogany desk in my office. Jason sat scross from me, his usually composed face tense and lined with frustration. The aggravation in the room was almost palpable Mason, my wolf, growled softly in the recesses of my mind, his
grewing at my control
An urgent mindink from Deniel Winger interrupted my thoughts, immediately tightening the knot of irritation in my chest
“Alpha Alexander Daniel’s voice was sharp, his frustration barely contained. “My Beta scouts just returned from observation” He sounded as if he was trying not to snarl outright. “They confirmed in Scarlett. She’s there. That seaside mansion”
I sat bolt upright, my spine stiff as steel. “She’s there? What do you mean by that?” My voice was low and controlled, though Mason rumbled with
rage in the background
Daniel’s mental voice reverberated through my head, laced with anger and disbelief. “She’s been seen coming and going frequently Moving
confidently like she owns the damn place. No hesitation, no secrecy. She’s practically flaunting it
Flaunting it. The words sent a dangerous current of heat through me. Mason let out a guttural snart. “And you’re sure about this?” nanded. gripping the edges of my desk so hard my knuckles turned white
“As sure as a wolf’s nose, Alpha, Daniel spat, his fury bubbling into his tone. “It’s infuriating. She’s–she’s thriving there! While Grace is here suffering. your supposed mate in carrying on like she doesn’t have a care in the world!”
I slammed my hand against the desk, the loud ck reverberating through the quiet office. “What else? What did they observe? Speak, Daniel-
everything you know I barked, needing more information
Daniel hesitated. I could feel his wolf, barely held back, pacing behind the link. There’s something else he admitted begrudgingly. That territory- Scarlett couldn’t have acquired it with her own means. It’s too protected, too exclusive. She must have formed an alliance. With someone powerful.
Someone we don’t know”
The weight of his words settled in the room like a heavy stone. Mason growled again, his restless pacing mirroring my own fury. The image of that Alpha–his overwhelming presence, his condescending gaze–flashed across my vision.
“Have you discerned anything about her supposed ally? I demanded, my tone like ice
“No,” Daniel admitted with clear frustration. “But you’ve seen what we’re dealing with Scarlett is no longer some lone wolf. She has resources- resources we cart touch it’s like she’s untouchable now, untethered to anyone but herself!
The thought of Scarlett, confident and thriving amidst everything while Grace lay wasting away in the sacred chamber, roiled my blood. Mason’s
anger intensified, his snarls overlapping my own thoughts
“10 deal with it,” I snapped, cutting the link abruptly. “Damn her.”
I turned to Jason, who had been listening to my side of the conversation. His lips pressed into a tight line, his brow furrowed deeply.
“We need more information I told him venomously “Scarlett’s only prospering because she’s hiding behind someone. Figure out who it is
names I don’t care where you need to pull the strings–find them. Now!
Jason nodded wordlessly, his face pale but determined, before leaving the office with swift, measured steps.
The sacred healing chamber was quieter than before, but the silence wasn’t comforting-it was suffocating Grace lay on the sacred stone and the flicker of faint candlelight, her body rigid against the silver threaded restraints. Her breathing was shallow, labored. The visible silver veins across her
skin had worsened, spiraling outward like deadly vines. The sight of it churned a sense of helplessness deep within my chest
Sarah stood nearby, wringing her hands together in silent auciety. Her eyes darted to me as I entered the room, desperation etched into her pale
expression.
“Alexander,” she started, stepping forward as if I alone could offer a solution. Please. It’s getting worse. You can hear it–feel it the barely responds
to the healers anymore” Her voice cracked on the last word, and she clenched her trembling hands tighter
Chapter 36. She’s Thriving There
I moved to Grace’s side, staring down at her fragile frame. Her wolf flickered weakly beneath her skin, struggling against the toxic silver corruption. Hernul soft beauty was nowhere to be seen–only the painful aftermath of this wretched poison
Stett hasn’t answered a single mindlink,” Sarah continued, her frustration bleeding into her words. “Not to me, not to the healers. Even her own
brother is blocked!”
I said nothing, fingers tightening around the edge of the stone platform as I watched Grace wince in her fitful sleep. Every whimper made Mason pace angrily within me, but no amount of power could undo what we faced now. Mason growled louder, restless and agonizingly furious
Jason appeared at the chamber’s entrance, his shadowed expression giving me only more bad news, “Alpha,” he said quietly, his tone almost apologetic. There’s no trace of Hazel. She’s gone–off–grid. Everyone we’ve reached claims they’ve heard nothing.”
I breathed through clenched teeth. My frustration had reached its peak, but there was nowhere to direct it, no immediate solution in sight.
Victoria was waiting for me in the main hall of the Amber packhouse. The air seemed colder the moment I stepped inside, as if the weight of her disappointment thickened it. Her penetrating gaze found mine instantly, and the sharp look in her eyes told me this would not be a pleasant exchange.
“Alexander,” she began coolly, though the undertone of reproach in her voice was impossible to miss. “What, exactly, are you achieving here? Our pack crumbles under its burdens, and you stand as though nothing is slipping through your fingers.”
“Don’t start with me, Mother,” I gritted out, already too drained to entertain her scathing remarks,
But Victona wasn’t one to relent. Her heels clacked against the floor as she moved closer, her presence commanding. “You’ve lost control over Scarlett. She mocks you from her new throne–her seaside sanctuary–while the Northern Territory Council grows restless. And Grace?”
My expression hardened. The mention of the Council, coupled with Grace’s fragile state, struck a deep nerve.
“I am handing it,” I said through clenched teeth, though the words felt hollow even to me.
“Handling it?” Victoria’s scoff was sharp, cutting. “You’re drowning, Alexander. The Council sees it. I see it. But do you?” Her eyes bored into mine,
seeking the answer I couldn’t give
I held her gaze for a long moment before finally speaking. “There’s more to this than you know I said slowly, deliberately. “Scarlett isn’t acting alone anymore. She’s protected. Supported.
Victoria’s brows lifted slightly, her gaze sharpening. “By whom?”
My hesitation was brief. “A shadow,” I said bitterly. “An Alpha with.“I faltered, my pride stinging. “Unnatural power. He was at her house. He
dominated the space, Victoria. I could feel it.”
To my growing irritation, the faintest flicker of recognition crossed her face. She masked it quickly, but it was enough to make Mason snarl.
“You know something,” accused, stepping closer. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“Focus on Grace,” she said cryptically deflecting smoothly. “Whatever alliance Scarlett has forged, it doesn’t change her position. It’s her resources
that matter most now.”
And then she dropped the final weight upon my shoulders
“The Shadow Pack has acquired exclusive control over vast healing resources in our territory, Victoria revealed curtly “Resources that could decide
Grace’s fate.”
The air seemed to freeze in my lungs. My thoughts stilled entirely. The Shadow Pack. Scarlett.
“So,” I whispered, my anger curling dangerously low in my tone. “This was her doing.”
Another torturous cry rippled through the pack bond as Grace’s agony echoed all around. It twisted my chest, a sharp reminder of all that bung in the balance.
