Alpha’s Hybrid Cinderella
Chapter 47

I didn't trust Evan to leave my sight for even a minute. I stayed with him in the Dark Moon pack house for three days, never leaving the room where we stayed together except to get food. The only moments he escaped my direct observation was when he went to

wash up, but even then I checked on him every few minutes, too anxious to relax while he was gone.

He was angry. He was so angry it prickled to be near him, like pressing myself to a wall of thorns. He didn't mean to intimidate me, but when I caught him staring at the wall from the armchair or when I woke up in the middle of the night to replace him sitting up and glaring at the window, the thick miasma of his rage threatened to drown me.

It had always been hard to read his thoughts clearly when he was like this. That wall of pure hostility, hatred, revenge, and rage formed a shell around his mind, keeping me out. Or maybe it was more that they flooded his mind so much from bottom to top that it all spilled out, pushing me away from reading what lay underneath.

Sometimes, he called Peelle, but their conversations over the phone were always clipped and professional. Evan had never advertised how close they were, but he was alone except for my company, and times like these, he usually let the cold facade drop at least a little. But not anymore. It was like Peelle had now become simply a soldier, albeit an elite soldier, no longer on close enough terms to call each other with familiarity. Three times I heard Peelle call him 'Alpha' over the phone. I couldn't remember the last time he'd done that when they were in private.

This was all because of the hidden traitor. There were no clues as to whose identity it was, even though there were scores of werewolves combing the entire city looking for the slightest hints as to what had happened to Osborn. I knew even less than they did, being cooped up in the pack house and Evan refusing to tell me anything of it, but from what I could tell, the difference wasn't that significant. Whoever had attacked and killed Osborn knew what they were doing, and they knew how to stay hidden, too.

On the third night, Evan finally fell into a true sleep. I had managed to get some banshee weed tea into him, which he had rejected the previous nights, and now he slumbered after an initial fitful hour that I'd stroked his forehead and hair through. I was tired too, but more than the exhaustion, the anxiety weighed so heavy I couldn't bear to sleep. I slid out of bed, moving carefully to keep from waking him, and left the room with my phone in hand.

It was half-past three in the morning. Normally, everyone would be asleep and I would never think to wake anyone with a call in the middle of the night, but these were strange times, weren't they? I texted Peelle to see if he was awake. A second later, the phone buzzed, and I hastily answered it to silence the vibration.

"Peelle?"

"How's he doing?"

"He's asleep. I got him to take some tea. The banshee weed here is strong so I managed to pick some fresh ones."

"But when he's awake?"

I sighed. "He'll be okay... I think. He has to be."

"He's a ticking bomb. I don't know how I'm going to be able to keep him from going crazy. We're doing everything we can, but it's like the enemy knows us inside out. No traces. No weak points. Or more like - they know where we have so many weak points that they can blend in perfectly."

"You and Evan still think it's a traitor, someone who's in the Scarlet pack."

"Has to be. Dark Moon was the first suspect because there might be a few rebels who have a bone to pick, since... well. You know. But at the risk of making him sound even more cruel, this is why Evan has his policy of wiping out all resistance, so there won't be anyone left to take revenge."

My stomach turned. So there wouldn't be anyone to take revenge, Peelle said... the way Evan had come back to haunt the Scarlet pack by returning himself, and killing the previous Alpha?

But now wasn't the time to be horrified by the past. What was done was done. The problem was Osborn's killer, or killers, and when they would strike again.

Everyone knew it. This was only the beginning. They wouldn't stop merely at the interim Alpha placed at the head of the conquered Dark Moon pack. This was a declaration of war, a warning to Evan that they were coming. Or that they were already here... "But that's the thing," Peelle continued. "The Scarlet pack has expanded so much over the last several years since Evan took over. There's no way we'll be able to sort through everyone in time before more bodies turn up. And if they know us as well as I think they do, they'll fool us anyway. I need results, fast. Before Evan goes crazy and lets loose on..."

"Everyone," I finished. "Even the ones who don't deserve it."

"He's my friend. He's a powerful Alpha, the best fighter I've ever seen in my life. And he's a good friend who'll never betray you, loyal to the end... but I can't say he's a good man. He knows that too. We have to keep him from going over the edge." "I know."

"You stopped him the other day, by the main road when he ran out in front of us. That was pure luck that we got to him in time, but when we did, you calmed him down. That's what you have to do. Keep doing it, okay?"

"I will. And you have to take care of yourself. It's you out there by yourself now, with Evan staying behind. Please, don't ever..."

"Hey, don't worry. I'm not alone. I've got Deltas at my side, always. I know it sounds scary, but to be honest... you're the one who needs to be careful."

"Me? I'm not a threat to them."

"They killed Osborn because he was getting close with his snooping, probably, but that's not the only reason. Think about it. Evan brought you with him all the way to this city. And now he won't even let you leave his side. This isn't only about threats - it's about them looking for ways to prove they can get to him."

I swallowed. Neither Peelle nor Evan had said it aloud, that... whoever had killed Osborn had dirtied his corpse after the evil act. But I had heard the thoughts in their minds and knew about it nonetheless. That had been pure insult, a horrific jeering taunt meant to enrage.

And now I was the one in danger? I was the next in line for them to use against Evan, something to set off his fury once more?

I would never let that happen. I would protect Evan to the end. And if that meant I had to protect myself too, so no one could use me against him, that was exactly what I was going to do.

"Peelle. When is Osborn's funeral?"

"Well... technically, it's not right to do it without Evan's permission. But I don't think it's a good idea to bring it up to him now."

"Do it. I'll take care of Evan, you make the arrangements."

"Wait-"

"Osborn had a mate, didn't he?" I asked softly. "I heard one of the girls in the staff crying about it. Her cousin knows the family."

There was a long silence.

"Yeah. He had a mate."

"Isn't this prolonging her suffering a little too much? If the investigating team has gotten all they can from the body, let's put him to rest. His mate must be in agony right now. Evan will understand."

"... Damn it, Claudia. You make me feel like a crap person."

"You're not crap. You're looking out for Evan. And I'm doing it too, I'm just doing it in the way that only I can. So trust me, and let's get it done."

Peelle sighed. I wasn't sure if he was going to accept my offer or reject it. He had been on edge ever since the factory incident and although he was Evan's closest companion - besides me, I thought with a jolt - even he had been tip-toeing around the Scarlet pack Alpha like a low-ranking Delta werewolf.

But if there was anyone I could put my faith in, it was him. He believed in Evan, just like I did.

"All right, Claudia. But don't ask what happened if this blows up in our faces."

"Evan will understand. I'll break it to him and tell him he doesn't need to do anything except appear for the funeral. You can take care of the rest, right?"

"Yeah. I can." He sighed again. "Evan is lucky to have you."

"We're all lucky to have each other."