<i>474 </i>
Third Person’s POV
Adide slowly turned her head, looking at Skye like she was witnessing a total dipshit.
“Maybe in your world, everything is a curse,” she said tly. “Or mayb around yourself, and that’s why you see bad luck everywhere you loo.
rissa’s face darkened immediately.
<b>+5 </b><b>Free </b>Goins
just carrying one
“Today is a day for celebration. Why are you bringing up dead people from the Bloodmoon Pack? If you can’t say something positive, keep your mouth shut and watch the show.”
Hera felt a wave of relief wash over her. Finally, she wasn’t the only one getting roasted today.
Feeling a little smug, she turned to Skye.
“So, I heard Alpha Howell is in bad shape? Like, can’t–even–get–out–of–bed bad? Maybe I should send our family doctor over to Silverlight to check him out.”
“No! No need!” Luna Skye waved her hands frantically, her panic visible.
“He’s–he’s much better now. He just needs his rest.”
A collective ripple of suspicion went through the group. Skye’s reaction was way too intense. Was Howell really just “sick,” or was there something else going on that they didn’t know about?
Adide gave Skye onest cold look before turning her attention back to the stage.
Alpha Howell skipping the biggest night of the year… yeah, something was definitely up.
Inside the ck sedan leaving the Pce, the privacy partition slid view.
up
ing off the driver’s
Adide leaned her head on Lance’s shoulder and brought up the Silverlight situation.
Lance’s brow furrowed. He recalled Caldwell’stest intel brief: since the treason case, the Silverlight Pack had been eerily quiet–dead quiet.
Supposedly, Alpha Howell spent every waking hour locked inside his packhouse.
ckout Caldwell had kept his best scouts on both the Blue Abyss and Silverlight packs, but the logs showed Howell had only left his house three times in months–each time to get
<b>Jan </b>15
drunk at a private club before disappearing from the radar again.
A
<b>+5 </b>Free Coins
“There’s a possibility,” Lance said, his eyes sharpening like a predator locking onto its prey in the dark. “Howell isn’t sick at all. He’s already left the capital.”
“Left the capital?” Adide sat up straight. “But our scouts have been watching the ce…”
“Even tigers nap, Adide. Especially when they’re watching a fox,” La
ted.
“Our guys have watched him act like a pathetic drunk for months. Naturally, they gotcent. If Howell put on a disguise and used heavy–duty scent suppressants to mask his pheromones, those young scouts might not have recognized him.”
“If he really bailed at a critical time like this, where would he go?” Adide asked, a knot of unease tightening in her chest.
“Let’s get back to the house first.” Lance squeezed her hand, his mind already moving the pieces on the board.
He had a theory, but he needed hard data to back it up.
The ckthorn estate was buzzing tonight.
While Lance and Adide were stuck at the stiff royal banquet, the rest of the pack had been throwing a rager.
A bunch of Frostfang werewolves had evene over to celebrate the New Year.
Cedric hadn’t made it back; the Paharis had called to say that since Lance and Adide were at the Pce, it would be too lonely for the boy at the estate. He was staying with them to celebrate with a literal pack of other cubs.
When Lance and Adide pulled up, they were greeted by a roaring firece and the sound of people actually having a good time.
Adide was in a great mood and feeling generous.
She pulled out a thick stack of cash and started handing out bonuses to everyone she saw. The ce erupted in cheers.
Lance ducked into the upstairs study with Caldwell and Craig–Adide knew they were going to talk shop about Howell, so she stayed downstairs in the living room.
Compared to the fake, suffocating social climb at the Pce, the entertainment <i>at </i>ckthorn was a hell of a lot better.
<b>11:12 </b><b>Thu </b><b>Jan </b><b>15 </b>
Avery, young and hungry for some extra cash, jumped into the middle of the room.
“Watch out! This is a move I spent three years perfecting in the Shadow Peaks!”
Heunched into a disy of high–impactbat drills, earning a round of apuse.
Adideughed and handed him two thousand dors on the spot.
Ralph, the head butler, decided he wanted in on the action.
“Move over! I’m performing ‘Vows Under the Moonlight‘!”
8929
s
It turns out the Moon Goddess is fair: she gave Ralph elite management skills and absolutely zero musical talent.
His singing was a straight–up biohazard–off–key, cracking, and hitting high notes that sounded like a marmot getting its tail stepped on.
Everyone was howling withughter.
Someone yelled over the noise, “Oh, Goddess! My ears! Ralph, you owe me for the emotional trauma!”
Ralph didn’t care. He was feeling himself.
He nned on one song but ended up doing three.
Paisley wasughing so hard her stomach hurt, tears streaming down her face as she slumped onto the sofa.
“Stop… help… Adide, make him stop, my eardrums are about to rupture!”
The omegas had their own hidden talents, too.
Some did trick knife throwing, others did speed climbing, and one of the “35–second freestyle mopping” routine.
ers even did a
Paisley rubbed her sore jaw.
“These guys… theirpetitive streaks are insane when there’s a bonus on the line.”
Avery, having already banked two grand, wasn’t done yet. He puffed out his chest and stepped forward again.
“Luna Adide! Can I go again? I’ve got something even crazier!”
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<strong>Olivia Harris</strong> is an emerging author celebrated for her captivating romantic and steamy novels. With a talent for crafting deep emotional connections and fiery chemistry between her characters, Olivia’s stories offer readers an escape into worlds filled with passion, intrigue, and heart-stopping drama.