Sold To The Billionaire Alpha
Chapter 44

Fox

Watching the Marys was boring me out of my mind. I remained invisible the entire time but I half-wished I could appear to them and get kicked out. That was how bored I was. The Marys’ schedule consisted of spending hours perfecting their hair and makeup before they went to the mall where they bought more hair and makeup products which they would try at home that night.

They lived in twin townhouses next-door to each other and had a horror-movie-worthy shrine to Orion in both of them. I made sure to take pictures of the shrines. I wondered if I should hit send immediately or wait until I met with him in person to preface the pictures with some more information. The shrine was basically just pictures of the Alpha clipped from magazines along with a few Polaroids they had taken themselves. They had pasted themselves into the photos that they weren’t in naturally.

I was not sure how they could be best friends and both be obsessed with the same guy. Obviously, they could not both have him. I found some torn pictures of Perseus in a waste paper basket. I surmised that one of the Marys must have been fixated on Perseus instead until he married Rose at which time she switched to Orion. I wondered if that had caused any friction between them.

They had not discussed anything of the slightest importance over the past two days. I had one more day of this nonsense before I could return to Orion to report my replaceings or lack thereof. The shrine was certainly incriminating. It indicated motive but there was no actual evidence of plans to harm Orchid or disrupt her relationship with Orion in any way.

“Mary-Beth,” said Mary-Sue.

“Yes, Mary-Sue,” said Mary-Beth.

Was I being payed enough for this s**t?

“Today should be the day,” said Mary-Sue vaguely. “Shouldn’t it?”

I raised my eyebrows. I was levitating, hovering just above the dining table, sitting cross-legged in midair like I was about to meditate.

“Ah!” Chimed Mary-Beth. “Yes,” she chuckled.

“How will we know the outcome?” Asked Mary-Sue.

“Well, from Luna Orla of course,” drawled Mary-Beth.

Aha!

“Should we bother her?” Asked Mary-Sue, scrunching up her face.

They exchanged a long glance.

“Yes,” they said in unison excitedly.

They both rushed for the landline. Mary-Beth got there first and dialled a number. I could hear it ringing. I amplified my own hearing with a simple spell. I turned in midair to face them as they crouched over the phone.

“What is it?” Hissed a voice impatiently.

“Luna Orla, we’re sorry to disturb you…” began Mary-Sue.

There was an exasperated sigh on the other end.

“We just want to know how everything went,” said Mary-Beth gently.

“Not well,” said Orla, lowering her voice.

“But we’re sure that we…” began Mary-Beth.

“Hush!” Barked Orla. “Don’t speak of it. What’s done is done.”

“So it didn’t go according to plan?” Asked Mary-Sue, furrowing her brow in confusion.

“It did but they seem doubtful. They did not accept it like I thought they would,” said Orla, deliberately trying to be vague in case she was overheard.

“If they redo…” began Mary-Beth.

“Be quiet!” snarled Orla. “There are eyes and ears everywhere.”

“In the mansion?” Asked Mary-Sue.

“Of course in the mansion. Where else?” Said Orla, sighing.

“There could be spies afoot everywhere,” whispered Mary-Sue nodding with a grave expression on her face.

“Who would want to spy on you?” Said Orla condescendingly.

The Marys frowned. I had been under the impression that the Marys and Orla got along but perhaps they just shared a common enemy. They were not a solid group at all. Orla clearly thought them daft and they seemed a bit afraid of her.

“What more can we do?” Asked Mary-Beth anxiously.

“If you’re serious about safeguarding your future, you’ll need to do more than just tampering with…” began Orla.

She stopped suddenly as though listening to something on her end.

“My son is coming,” whispered Orla fiercely.

“More like what?” Asked Mary-Beth desperately.

“Please tell us!” Implored Mary-Sue.

“He’s here. He’s upset,” grumbled Orla.

There was a click as she hung up the phone. That had been the most ambiguous exchange I had witnessed in a while. Nothing seemed to have been said directly or resolved. It was time to do this the Fox way. Tricky, effective and fun. I smirked. I dropped down lightly onto the table, making a soft thud whilst still invisible. I hoped the Marys were superstitious.

“What was that?” Exclaimed Mary-Sue.

“Relax, it’s nothing,” said Mary-Beth impatiently.

I walked over to the opposite end of the table and jumped lightly onto the floor, making the floor boards creek. Mary-Sue jumped, spilling some of her wine onto Mary-Beth.

“What’s the matter?” Demanded Mary-Beth, annoyed with her spooked friend.

“Something weird is going on,” mumbled Mary-Sue. “I feel a presence!” She said ominously.

“I told you not to watch The Conjuring. Human realm movies are surprisingly terrifying, Mary-Sue, but they’re not real!” Barked Mary-Beth just as I grabbed a fistful of the table cloth and pulled it out from under the cutlery and place settings in one graceful sweep, leaving the items in place on the bare wood while the cloth fell to the floor. The Marys were stunned silent. After a tense silence, they both began screaming at the top of their lungs and attempting to run from the room whilst practically trampling over each other as they scrambled through the narrow doorway. I had to stifle my laughter. I felt guilty for how much I was enjoying this.

Mary-Sue hid under the bed in one of the guest bedrooms while Mary-Beth hid in the wardrobe, shutting the door behind her. I walked into the room, still invisible, making my steps heavy on purpose. I could hear Mary-Sue whimpering under the bed. I stomped on the floor near her hiding place. She shrieked and scurried out from under the bed and into the same wardrobe as her friend. They momentarily fought, engaging in a tug of war over the wardrobe door. Mary-Sue wanted to come in but Mary-Beth was trying to keep her out.

“Only one of us should hide in here,” hissed Mary-Beth but Mary-Sue ripped the door open, squashed herself into the wardrobe and shut the door with the two of them inside. I snapped my fingers magically locking them inside the wardrobe. Perhaps, I would not even need truth serum for these two. They heard the sound of the wardrobe locking.

“Was the key outside in the wardrobe door?” Asked Mary-Beth frantically.

“I don’t know,” whined Mary-Sue.

“You should have checked!” Screeched Mary-Beth.

“Silence,” I hissed.

They were silent. I disguised my voice with magic going for the whispery hoarse voice of an old woman. I threw in a hacking cough for theatrics. After a fake coughing fit, I spoke in my new voice.

“Someone in the wardrobe is a liar!” I hissed.

“Luna Orla made me do it!” Squeaked Mary-Sue.

“Shut up!” Screamed Mary-Beth.

“Who are you?” Demanded Mary-Beth.

I thought for a moment. I had been so bored these past two days. I wanted to really go for the dramatic. Besides, the more unbelievable the story, the less likely they were to share it. It would make them seem not credible.

“I am the woman who lives in the walls,” I whispered slowly.

I could hear Mary-Sue sniffling and I actually felt a little guilty. The guilt was mixed in with pride though. I deserved a movie role. As myself though. Not as an old scary woman.

“Are you a ghost?” Whispered Mary-Beth.

“After I answer a question, you must answer one,” I hissed, coughing a little at the end.

“What question?” Said Mary-Beth to Mary-Sue.

“She answered who are you…so it’s our turn…” whimpered Mary-Sue.

“What did you tamper with?” I croaked.

“The paternity samples,” blurted out Mary-Sue.

“SHUT UP!” Screamed Mary-Beth.

I was no fool. Sure, I was pretending to be an ancient ghost but these were modern times. I had my cellphone out, recording this whole ghostly conversation.

“Why do you want to know that?” Snapped Mary-Beth, her voice shaky but more powerful than before.

“I want to know who to drag to hell,” I said ominously.

Silence. Yeah, I definitely had a mean-streak.

“If you want to be spared, give me another name,” I rasped.

I knew these clowns did not work alone. I assumed they had fixed the paternity test to say that Talus was not Orchid’s father. A father from a powerful family like the Hawthornes (no matter how much of a drunkard he was) would help solidify her place in werewolf high society. The Hawthornes were especially well-liked.

“Or…” began Mary-Sue before I heard a huge thud and a shriek.

“Mavis Burnside,” said Mary-Beth.

Who the f**k was that? A doctor? Would a doctor really risk his or her medical license for this crap? Someone had risked something. A doctor, nurse, lab personnel or even a courier transporting the samples.

Before I could ask anything else, my tie pin lit up. It was a tiny sleeping gold fox. When there was trouble, he opened his eyes. They were green, amber or red depending on the situation. My little fox had glowing red eyes today. s**t! I teleported so fast I forgot to let the Marys out of the wardrobe. Someone would come looking for them. They had a housekeeper who worked alternating days.

I appeared in Orion’s office, looking at him expectantly. He sniffed the air and turned to my direction with a confused expression. Oh! I was still invisible. Orion had a great nose. I had placed a spell on myself to cover my scent and it had certainly worked on the Marys though they were not the best examples. I stiffened. I felt strange. I turned around slowly. A young woman with flawless mocha coloured skin was clutching my fox ornament and looking right at me with wide eyes.

“You can see me?” I asked.

“Oh, hi, Fox, I can smell you,” said Orion.

“No, not you,” I said dismissively. “Sorry, Alpha,” I added respectfully.

“You!” I said pointedly, marching towards the young woman.

She stared at me.

“Yeah, of course,” she mumbled, confused.

She seemed exceedingly nervous. She dropped the fox and it broke. She squeaked in surprise.

“Oh no! I’m so sorry,” she cried.

I snapped my fingers and the fox reassembled perfectly without any cracks. I levitated it back up into her hands. She looked at me in shock. I grinned. She smiled back.

“I’m Fox,” I said simply.

“Bisa,” she said.

“Adorable, I have an emergency,” said Orion moving his hand towards me, still not able to see me.

I let my invisibility spell dissipate.

“There you are,” sighed Orion in relief.

“Tada!” I exclaimed.

Bisa clapped enthusiastically. She was cute. I met her gaze and my heart leapt a little. Oh no! I frowned. I turned away from her. I wasn’t going through that again. Magic was my only mistress. I’d been through enough. Even though I was no longer facing her, I was highly aware of her every movement. It was such a strange but pleasant feeling to be so connected to someone, but she was a stranger. She was a she-wolf, wasn’t she? How could she have a strange hold on me if she wielded no magic?

“Fox, are you listening?” Asked Orion dryly.

Had he been talking? Sorry readers. I focussed on being a reliable narrator. The readers deserved the full story. Bisa had moved closer to me. She was mere inches away. I smiled slightly.

“Fox!” Snapped Orion.

s**t!

“Um, I…I have a question,” I said.

I actually did. Orion stared at me.

“What did you and your Mom talk about just now?” I asked.

“What?” Said Orion.

“I was at the one of the Marys’ houses and they were on the phone with Orla checking up on some plan they had cooked up together,” I admitted.

Orion looked like that was what he had been afraid of.

“And then your Mom rushed to end the conversation because she said her son was coming,” I explained.

“I haven’t gone to her chambers today,” said Orion with a shrug.

“Strange,” I said.

“No,” said Bisa.

I turned around. She was cute but I didn’t like being disagreed with. I was the expert wizard here.

“What do you mean no?” I asked, annoyed.

“It’s not strange,” she said simply, playing with the fox in her hands. “Luna Orla has two sons,” she said pointedly. “Maybe it was just Perseus,” she said with a shrug.

Oh. That was so simple it was brilliant.

“That was what I meant. I was getting to that,” I said.

She giggled. “Sure you were,” she said.

“Perseus and Mom aren’t the closest so I’ll replace out what they talked about from him. It must have been important. Neither of us would visit her chambers unless we absolutely had to,” said Orion, leaning against his desk.

Mother of the year right there.

“The paternity tests said that Orchid is not Talus’ daughter. She’s devastated. The last time she was this way, she did something…” began Orion, pausing.

Bisa fidgeted nervously.

“She won’t again,” said Bisa suddenly.

“We can only hope,” said Orion.

I did not press them for details.

“I have her magic pick-me-up right here!” I exclaimed, taking out my phone and pressing play on the voice recording.

They listened to my raspy ghost voice interrogating the frightened Marys. They heard them admit to tampering with the paternity samples after which they implicated Mavis Burnside.

Orion snarled, his eyes turning black.

“That b***h!” Growled Bisa uncharacteristically, slamming her hand against the wall.

Orion and I looked at her, shocked. I had only known her for five minutes but she seemed more of the sweet type not the anger management type.

“I’m sorry,” she apologised instantly. “But Mavis Burnside is a b***h,” she said calmly. “And I really like Luna Orchid.”

Orion smiled.

“Does this b***h work in the mansion?” I asked serenely.

“I can take you to her,” said Bisa.

“Who is she?” Asked Orion, his eyes still black.

“A lazy lab technician,” said Bisa.

“And a total b***h,” I added.

Bisa swatted me playfully.

“I’ll throw her in the dungeons in a minute,” said Orion. “I have to tell Orchid first. I don’t want her to be sad a moment longer,” he said, rushing out of his office and practically running down the hallway.

Bisa and I kept up with him, following him right into his bedroom. An anxious Rose was wringing her hands sitting near the empty bed. She stood up when she saw Orion.

“Before you get worried, I can explain,” said Rose, putting her palms up.

“Where’s Orchid?” Demanded Orion, his voice more animal than man in that moment.

“She wanted to clear her head so she went for a walk in the human realm. She said you allowed her to do that just earlier today,” said Rose breathlessly.

“Who went with her? Talus?” Asked Orion.

Rose looked at the Alpha with wide frightened eyes.

“Who went with her, Rose? I let her go this morning with Talus,” said Orion, his volume rising.

“I’m so sorry,” said Rose. “I…”

Orion inhaled deeply. He turned swiftly and sharply on his heel and marched out of the room. Bisa and I continued to follow him.

“Are we going to interrogate Mavis?” Asked Bisa gently.

“Finding Orchid takes precedence,” said Orion curtly.

Orion stopped at a door and banged on it. No answer.

“TALUS!” Roared Orion, making the hallway shake.

The chandeliers overhead were in danger of crashing down on us. Talus appeared in the doorway, rubbing his red eyes. He looked a mess. This was probably Orchid’s Dad.

“Play the recording for him,” ordered Orion.

I did as he said. Talus listened to Marys revealing how they had tampered with the paternity test samples. Talus looked dumbfounded.

“Does this mean…she’s…she’s my little girl?” He asked hopefully.

I smiled.

“Most likely. Magnus will have the repeat test results ready for us as soon as he can,” said Orion. “We need to go look for Orchid. Rose said she went to the Human Realm to clear her head.”

“Oh,” said Talus, nodding. He grabbed his jacket.

“I’ve never gotten the…tour you got this morning…about where she grew up,” revealed Orion. “Can you show me where she might be? The places she showed you this morning?”

“Gladly,” said Talus, nodding eagerly.

Orion had a squad of warriors combing the mansion looking for Orchid in case she had returned or had not actually left. He took another squad with him and Talus. Bisa and I were still following him as he descended to the dungeons.

“Fox,” said Orion, coming to a sudden stop. “Go with Bisa and interrogate Mavis Burnside in the meanwhile. Ensure she does not leave the premises. If…if my mother is named as truly being involved, do nothing. I will see to her myself,” said Orion gravely.

He disappeared through the swirling portal.

“Weren’t you in Gregoire?” Asked Bisa curiously, nodding towards the portal.

I nodded.

“And you came back without passing through the portal?” She asked.

I smirked.

“I’m a wizard,” I said simply.

“All wizards can travel to different realms without portals?” She asked. “That can’t be. Could you imagine the chaos that would cause?”

“No, you’re right. It’s a rare gift,” I said.

Thinking about the inter-realm portals I was able to make made me sick to my stomach. I recalled the last time I had used an inter-realm portal before this. There had been so much b***d. I held onto her though. Red hair and dark red b***d, everywhere. A horned creature growled nearby. I snapped myself out of it.

“Fox,” said Bisa, alarmed.

She was holding me by my shoulders. I had stumbled a little. She was helping to hold me up. We locked eyes.

“It’s ok,” she said softly.

I stared at her. I nodded.

“Let’s go talk to Mavis Burnside,” I suggested.

Orion

I was livid. The Marys were plotting against my sweet Orchid. They had already caused her pain by tampering with those results. If anything had befallen her, there would be hell to pay. I could not help but feel guilty. I was so worried that Orchid would bring harm to herself like the last time she was this upset. Back then, I had used the Marys to make her jealous. I had brought them into our lives. I had unwittingly involved them in our relationship. I had foolishly pitted them against Orchid, hoping to inspire some jealousy for them and passion for me within her. They must have thought they could actually oust Orchid or something. Why else would they plot against her? They were sadly mistaken. I looked at the rows of colossal mansions with their well-manicured front lawns. I spotted the Caro House. My eyes fell on the Marys’ townhouses.

“Is everything ok?” Asked Talus anxiously.

“You and I will go looking for Orchid while the warriors take care of something,” I decided.

It was an Alpha’s job to delegate tasks. I had a feeling the culprits behind falsifying the DNA test results would all slip away as soon as possible. I hoped Fox and Bisa would tie up Mavis Burnside if necessary. I would save my mother for last if she was implicated in all this. A lump formed in my throat. I supposed the little boy in me hoped that she was somehow not a part of this although all signs pointed to yes.

“What do you need us to do, Alpha?” Asked the burly squad leader dutifully.

My eyes narrowed as I looked at the twin townhouses near the end of the well-to-do street.

“Arrest Mary-Beth Conway and Mary-Sue Walcott on charges of tampering with evidence and conspiracy against the Luna,” I ordered.