Chapter 25

ELEANOR

I put on clothes and made my way downstairs to the kitchen. The food was already served so I quickly walked inside and took a seat next to Xavier.

Throughout dinner, an uneasy feeling sat heavy in my chest. I still had no idea where my clothes were or who had taken them, but what bothered me most was the lingering doubt about Ivan. Was he really betraying the pack?

When dinner ended, everyone slowly got up and drifted out of the kitchen. Just as Xavier was about to leave, I reached out and grabbed his hand, stopping him in his tracks.

As he turned around, I saw his default annoyed look was replaced with concern.

“Eleanor, are you okay?” he asked me, and it felt strange and nice to hear him ask that.

“Can I speak to you alone?” I asked him.

There was hesitation in his eyes, but he nodded his head.

Xavier walked out of the kitchen, and I followed him. We walked out of the house through the back entrance. Once we were a safe distance away from the house, he turned around to face me.

“What is it, Eleanor?”

“Well, while I was on patrol today, I saw two rogues who were inside our pack borders,” I said. The thought of it made my body stiffen.

Panic flashed across Xavier’s face before it went back to neutral.

“Did they do anything to you?” he asked me.

“No. They were in human form and were talking to each other. They didn’t see me. When they were done talking, they crossed back over the border.”

“Talking? What were they talking about?” Xavier asked me, so I told him everything I heard.

“I think someone inside the pack is helping them,” I said quietly. “But I don’t understand why they’d want to attack us.”

I glanced at Xavier and saw the tension etched into his face.

“This is exactly why we’re trying to form alliances with other packs,” he replied, his voice low but firm. “The rogues aren’t acting at random anymore. These attacks are coordinated. Calculated. And I have a feeling war is coming—sooner than any of us are ready for.”

“Do you know why they are planning to attack?” I asked him, but he shook his head.

“That’s what I’m trying to figure out. We captured a few rogues before. We tried everything to get them to speak, but they wouldn’t utter a single word. And after twenty-four hours of capturing them, they mysteriously died,” he said, and this sent a shiver down my spine.

“How did they die?”

“I don’t know. I wondered if I was too harsh with them.”

“I think they were murdered, Xavier,” I said.

“I had the same thought, but I didn’t have any solid evidence to prove it. Sameul said it wouldn’t have been possible, but it makes sense if someone from inside is helping the rogues. They were probably scared those captured would talk,” Xavier said.

“Have you seen anything odd since you’ve been here?” he asked me.

I froze. Ivan’s face came into my mind. I felt hesitant to share. It was a big accusation, and I didn’t have proof.

“Tell him,” Erica begged.

“Eleanor, you’re not good at hiding what you’re thinking. I can tell you have something to say,” Xavier said.

“Okay, but I don’t have solid proof. I feel like Ivan is up to something. He was in no-man’s land earlier today and when I first met him, he smelled a bit like rotten eggs,” I told him and Xavier arched an eyebrow at me.

I felt much lighter after sharing my suspicions with Xavier. I wasn’t on edge anymore. A secure feeling washed over me, and it felt like he would take care of everything.

“Thank you for your honesty. I will keep an eye on him,” Xavier promised when I nodded my head. “Let’s head inside. It’s getting cold out here,” Xavier suggested.

***

We stayed up pretty late last night, and it was difficult for me to get up and go to work, but I had to leave because I had a lot of paperwork waiting for me.

I paid a morning visit to the bakery, and while walking back to the pack house I saw Ivan’s car pull up in the driveway.

As he got out of the car I yelled, “Ivan!”

He turned to look at me. I felt guilt in my stomach thinking about telling Xavier about him. But if there was something going on, then he needed to know.

“I expected to see you at the bakery this morning,” I said.

“I went to meet a friend in the human town,” he answered.

A breeze blew past us, and I got a whiff of a foreign scent from him…a rogue scent.

“Oh, okay. our mother said you went out on pack business.”

“Yeah, I had some pack work, and later, I met a friend of mine,” he said, but there was a tremble in his voice.

“Are you hiding something from me, Ivan?” I asked him, but he shook his head, and a nervous smile appeared on his face.

“Forget about that. What are you doing now?” he asked me.

“Nothing. I was just heading to my office to finish some paperwork.”

“Great. Any chance you can spare some time for a coffee with me now?” he asked, making me arch an eyebrow.

“At the pack house,” he added.

“Sure,” I responded, and both of us walked into the pack house.

As we entered the kitchen, Ivan got us both a steaming cup of cappuccino, and we took a seat outside in the garden.

“How are things between you and Beta Costa?”

“Well, he hasn’t slept with Jade again, so I guess that’s new,” I said before an awkward silence engulfed us. Something seriously felt off with Ivan. He avoided eye contact with me, and he looked uncomfortable.

~I really hope he’s not behind these rogue attacks.~

“Excuse me.” Both Ivan and I looked up to see Benjamin standing in front of our table. “Shall I take the cups?” he asked, and I nodded my head.

As he walked away, I turned around and saw an angry look on Ivan’s face.

“Why are you glaring at him?”

“It’s nothing. I was just wondering how he got on cleaning duties inside the pack house,” he answered, and this made me confused.

“He’s an omega, so it kind of makes sense, right?” I asked him.

“Normally, yes. But Xavier requested his work be done outside of the pack house a while back. Anyway, I gotta go. Thanks for the coffee Ellie.”

Ivan walked out back to his car, and I went up to work.

BETA XAVIER

Frustrated, I shoved the papers off my desk and stood up, walking over to the window in an attempt to calm myself.

~How did the rogues disappear without a trace?~

~Knock, knock.~

“What is it!” I yelled, and the door opened. I turned around to see one of my trackers walk into my office.

“Beta Costa, the last team of trackers just came back to the pack,” he informed me as I walked toward the minibar and poured myself a drink.

“Did they find anything?”

“Yes, Beta Costa.”

I was anxious. We’d been searching for days to find information on the kidnapped girl. Any sort of clue.

“What is it?” I asked him.

He walked toward me with a plastic bag in his hand and dropped it on my desk. I placed my drink on the table and opened the bag. A small piece of fabric was inside. It looked like it was torn from a dress.

“This has the scent of the girl that went missing, Beta Costa. We found it past our border.”

“This is a good lead. So now we know the direction they went, right?”

“That’s the problem. It was by the river. When we crossed the river, it was like they vanished into thin air. Their scent was nowhere to be found,” he said.

~Shit!~

~Ping.~

I took my phone to see that I had gotten a message from Elizabeth.

“You can leave. I will see what can be done,” I told the tracker.

He bowed to me before he walked out of my office.

Elizabeth

I found the location of the girl you’re looking for. I will mail it to you soon.

Finally.