The sickened luna’s last chance

Chapter 24

Alexander

I followed my Beta into my study, where a man was waiting for us. I recognized the man’immediately as one of the photographers from the press

conference.

“Alpha,” Gabriel said, gesturing to the man, “this guy says a couple came into his tabloid agency to leak the story. He saw them.”

I narrowed my eyes and folded my arms. “Is that so?”

The man nodded. “I–It’s true, Alpha,” he said, wringing his hands. “They came in and spoke to my boss. Well, I didn’t see them, but I did hear them speak.”

“And? Spit it out.”

The photographer fidgeted with his camera strap. “It was an older couple. A man and a woman.”

“An older couple?” I asked, straightening a little. “Did they give names?”

“No, sir. They were careful about that. But I remember what they sounded like.”

“Go on.”

The photographer hesitated. “Well, the man had a deep, gravelly voice. Like he used to smoke. And the woman’s voice was high–pitched, but she drew out her ‘s’s, sort of like a snake.”

I tilted my head slightly, exchanging a glance with Gabriel. The description was vague, but it sounded an awful lot like Sophia’s parents, John and Helen Oxford. Alpha and Luna of Moonshine pack.

John once had a smoking problem, and Helen did speak like that.

But it made no sense. The Oxfords and the pack they led, Moonshine, was a close friend of Ashclaw’s. I’d known John and Helen my entire life. They weren’t the type to do something like this, and even if they were, they had no reason for it in this case. Our packs were allies.

Unless…

Sophia allegedly wanted to break up my marriage to Ella. I always knew she had a crush on me, but perhaps it ran deeper than that.

What if her parents wanted us to get together? Moonshine was a distinguished pack, but they had fallen on hard times over the years. A marriage between our packs would benefit them, just as it had benefited Stormhollow.

do some investigating

Gabriel asked. “Any

photographer shook his head. “No, Sir. I didn’t get a chance to talk to them myself. I just heard them talking to my boss, and when they left, my boss told me to post

go off of for a definitive answer. But it was enough to warrant bringing it up to the

you,” I said. “You can

nodded and

car,” I told Gabriel as soon as we were alone. “I

where the Spring Celebration had been. My lips were still burning, just like

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Chapter 24

bonfire had sat the

Bynfira had been held fast day ago, i lingered there cherry blossoms and vanilla, sweet

That kiss.

and pull me down to her like that, hadn’t expected the surge of desire that shot though

Each step I had taken away from Ella had felt like dragging myself through mud. He was furious with me, em now, begging meth return to our mate’s side and

fall in love with Ella. Not when there was still a chance her pack was involved in my parents‘ deaths. Besides, even if i did want

and the remnants of the bonfire sat in the center of the clearing, although it was nothing

somewhere in this mess had to be evidence–evidence that would either exonerate

with, the one who had been my friend through thick and thin… could Sophia really be capable of doing something like this? Endangering innocent

Was she really that angry that I hadn’t attended the celebration

the contract to the press? None of it made any sense. Even if they wanted a union between

caused the attack at the bonfire. He also said that she knew about the contract first,

it felt like something they would do, but neither did pushing Ella out of a hayloft. And as the days went on, I

circling the bonfire, scanning the ground for anything unusual. Unfortunately, there was nothing around the bonfire.

metallic glinting in the sunlight, half–buried

partially obscured by leaves and dirt. I brushed the debris away, and my heart sank as I recognized the

Sophia’s necklace.

her sixteenth birthday, and she treasured it. For it to be here, at the site where the rogue had

There could be innocent explanations.

no. I recalled that night perfectly; she had been standing near the bonfire when the rogue came. This was too

had fallen off earlier in the day,

turned the pendant over in my hand, I noticed something else; there was dried blood on the clasp. And