Xena''s POV
"What?" 1 stared at William inplete shock, my heart nearly stopping in my chest. I never imagined the Alpha would dig this deep-this wasn''t just a background check, it was obsessive surveince.
"Yes, it''s a copy of an IQ test, looks like you took it when you were seven," William confirmed through our mind link. He was right. I had taken that test back then, a memory buried so deep I''d almost forgotten it, yet here it was, casually excavated by someone else.
"What else is in there?" I asked, my voice trembling slightly through our connection, both terrified and desperate to know more.
"There''s a family tree with everyone''s position and stuff.",
"He keeps all this in a filing cab?" I needed to confirm, horrified by the dedication to collecting this information. This wasn''t just interest-it felt like the prelude to something more controlling
"It was locked. Your folder isn''t that interesting, just basic stuff," William replied, sounding like he''d moved on to look through other items
"I know we have time, but keep looking," I urged him, trying to mask the conflict between my uneasiness and burning curiosity.
After a brief pause, William''s voice returned. "He has a file on Alpha Wiley."
My heart rate instantly elerated. "What does it say?"
"There''s a family tree for him too, but some names are cked out.
"Take a picture," I said quickly, a strange feeling of dread washing over me. Why would certain names be redacted? What secrets were being hidden?
"He knows that pack inside out. Member count, territory size, even their pack house. God! He even knows their border patrol
routes."
"Are you serious?" I gasped, a chill running down my spine. "He must have an insider to know all that."
"I know. Doesn''t say how long he''s had this information though," William seemed to be talking more to himself than to me.
The vans pulled up again. I nced at my watch-they''d returned three minutes faster thanst time. Pack members stood up, preparing to board. We were getting closer to finishing, which gave me a small sense of relief. Ama and Luna Kestrel were busy assigning vehicles. Once the paperwork was signed again, the vans departed,
Luna Kestrel and Ama stood watching the vehicles disappear, then Luna Kestrel turned and began walking toward the pack house.
My heart jumped, panic instantly gripping me. "Ama," I said urgently through our mind link. "Keep her talking, don''t let her go inside the pack house. I''ll exinter."
"Okay,” Ama responded without hesitation,pletely in sync with me. She grabbed Luna Kestrel''s hand and asked about ns for my luna ceremony, immediately capturing her attention.,
I exhaled in relief. "Find anything else?" I asked William.
"I took pictures of some budget stuff, but nothing stands out. Hisputer is
password protected and turned off, so I can''t ess that."
Don''t Poke the Luna
Xena''s POV
"What?" 1 stared at William inplete shock, my heart nearly stopping in my chest. I never imagined the Alpha would dig this deep-this wasn''t just a background check, it was obsessive surveince.
"Yes, it''s a copy of an IQ test, looks like you took it when you were seven, William confirmed through our mind link. He was right. I had taken that test back then, a memory buried so deep I''d almost forgotten it, yet here it was, casually excavated by someone else.
"What else is in there?" I asked, my voice trembling slightly through our connection, both terrified and desperate to know more.
"There''s a family tree with everyone''s position and stuff."
''He keeps all this in a filing cab?" I needed to confirm, horrified by the dedication to collecting this information. This wasn''t just interest-it felt ke the prelude to something more controlling.
"It was locked. Your folder isn''t that interesting, just basic stuff," William replied, sounding like he''d moved on to look through other items,
"I know we have time, but keep looking," I urged him, trying to mask the conflict between my uneasiness and burning curiosity.
After a brief pause, William''s voice returned. "He has a file on Alpha Wiley."
My heart rate instantly elerated. "What does it say?"
"There''s a family tree for him too, but some names are cked out."
"Take a picture," I said quickly, a strange feeling of dread washing over me. Why would certain names be redacted? What secrets were being hidden?
"He knows that pack inside out. Member count, territory size, even their pack house. God! He even knows their border patrol
routes."
"Are you serious?" I gasped, a chill running down my spine. "He must have an insider to know all that."
"I know. Doesn''t say how long he''s had this information though," William seemed to be talking more to himself than to me.
The vans pulled up again. I nced at my watch-they''d returned three minutes faster thanst time. Pack members stood up, preparing to board. We were getting closer to finishing, which gave me a small sense of relief. Ama and Luna Kestrel were busy assigning vehicles. Once the paperwork was signed again, the vans departed.
Luna Kestrel and Ama stood watching the vehicles disappear, then Luna Kestrel turned and began walking toward the pack house.
My heart jumped, panic instantly gripping me. "Ama," I said urgently through our mind link. "Keep her talking, don''t let her go inside the pack house. I''ll exinter."
"Okay, Ama responded without hesitation,pletely in sync with me. She grabbed Luna Kestrel''s hand and asked about ns for my luna ceremony, immediately capturing her attention.
I exhaled in relief. "Find anything else?" I asked William.
"I took pictures of some budget stuff, but nothing stands put. Hisputer is password protected and turned that."
I can''t ess
Frustration bubbled up inside me. "Anything on the floor like a trap oor or something?"
William didn''t respond immediately, but I could hear him moving things around. ''I''m looking, but I really don''t see much," he finally said after several minute
"X! Ama''s urgent voice came through our link. I quickly turned to see Luna Kestrel standing up and Ama ncing anxiously in my
direction.
"Get out! William, get out!" Imanded through our mind link.
"Shit!" William cursed. I heard the sound of drawers closing as he tried to put everything back in order.
I assessed Luna Kestrel''s distance from the office. "You still have time. I assured
him.
Suddenly, the sound of books and papers falling to the floor echoed through our connection. I flinched. "What happened?" I asked urgently, my heart ting even faster.
William didn''t answere, just kept repeating "Fuck" under his breath. Watching Luna Kestrel getting closer to the office, I realized we were running out of time. My palms were sweating. "I need to think of something."
I stood up instinctively and walked toward Luna Kestrel. I moved slowly, stopping when I was only a few feet away from her.
Just as I was about to call out to her, William appeared from around the corner. "Oh! Luna Kestrel! You startled me!" he managed to greet her. I immediately backed away, pretending nothing had happened.
"My apologies, Luna Kestrel. I was just using the restroom."
"You''ve been in there for a while. Is everything okay?” she asked, concern in her
voice.
"My stomach''s upset. I don''t think lunch agreed with me."
"Is that why you and Ryder switched?" Luna Kestrel questioned.
"Yeah, we didn''t want to risk me shitting my pants while we were out there,"
William replied, taking one for the team.
"It has nothing to do with Xena telling Ryder to go and leave you behind?" Her words made anger re inside me.
"What exactly are you asking, Luna? Are you suggesting I was too scared to go,
or what?" William sounded equally irritated.
"Oh no, I just wanted to know why you two switched ces. Xena is in such a delicate emotional state right now. I''m concerned about her health."
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