Chapter 39 Sage's Interrogation (Sage POV)
The holding cell they put me in was different from Rowan's. Smaller. Colder. No cot, just a metal bench bolted to the wall. No window. Just a single fluorescent light that buzzed with a frequency that made my teeth ache.
I'd been sitting here for maybe three hours when the door finally opened.
All three of them. Garrett Hale. Catherine Reyes. David Kimura. My uncle.
The three Alphas, coming personally to interrogate one confused, stupid Silvercrest wolf who'd helped a killer frame her best friend.
I stood automatically… pack instinct, respect for authority… then sat back down when Garrett gestured curtly. They didn't sit. Just stood in a semicircle between me and the door, blocking any exit, radiating the kind of power that made my wolf want to bare her throat and whimper.
Except my wolf barely existed. Years of failed shifts had made her small, weak, unreliable. Right now she was curled up tight inside my chest, terrified.
"Sage Kimura." My uncle spoke first. His voice was gentle, which somehow made it worse. Anger I could have handled. Disappointment was crushing. "You admitted in the Eclipse Chamber to drugging Rowan Ashford and providing her with additional suppressants given to you by Julian Cross. Is that correct?"
"Yes." My voice came out hoarse. I'd been crying on and off since they locked me in here. "Yes, that's correct."
"Walk us through every interaction you had with Julian Cross," Garrett said. Not gentle. Cold. Precise. "Every meeting, every conversation, every piece of information he gave you. Start from the beginning."
I took a shaky breath. "He approached me about a month before the Harvest Moon party. I was in the library, studying. He just... appeared. Sat down across from me like we'd known each other forever."
"What did he say?" Catherine asked.
"He said he was a visiting researcher. European pack exchange program. Studying human-wolf dynamics at American academies. He showed me an ID… looked official, university seal, his photo. I didn't think to verify it."
"Why would you?" David said quietly. "He was convincing."
"He asked about my classes. My pack. How I was adjusting to Thornhaven. Normal stuff. Then he asked about Rowan." I closed my eyes, remembering that first conversation. How natural it had felt. How nice it was to have someone actually interested in what I had to say. "He said he'd noticed her in the student directory. Said it was unusual for a human to be at a wolf academy on full scholarship. Asked if I knew her."
"And you told him?" Garrett pressed.
"I told him we were roommates. Best friends. That she was great but sometimes struggled to fit in because she was human. That I tried to help her navigate pack dynamics since she didn't have the instinct for it."
Catherine made a note on her tablet. "When did he first mention her being in danger?"
"The second meeting. A week later. He asked to talk privately, said he had concerns about student safety protocols. We met at the old boathouse… " I gave them the exact location, " …and he told me he'd been reviewing academy records for his research. Said he'd found anomalies in Rowan's file. Sealed medical documents. Anonymous scholarship funding. Gaps in her early history."
"He had access to sealed files?" Garrett's eyes narrowed.
"He said he had research permissions. Clearance from the administration. I believed him because..." Because I was an idiot. Because I wanted to feel important. "Because he was so calm about it. Matter-of-fact. Like it was completely normal for him to have that information."
"What did he tell you about Rowan?" David asked.
"That she wasn't entirely human. That she had latent lycanthropic traits that had been suppressed since infancy. That pack leadership knew… " I looked at all three Alphas, " …and that they planned to eliminate her before she manifested because she was a threat to the power structure."
Silence. Heavy. Accusatory.
"And you believed him," Catherine said flatly.
"I believed him because it made sense!" The words burst out of me. "Rowan had always been different. Had instincts she shouldn't have. Could read pack dynamics better than most wolves. Sometimes her eyes would reflect light wrong, just for a second. I'd noticed things over the years, little things, but never put them together until Julian pointed them out."
"What else did he tell you?" Garrett demanded.
"That there was a way to help her. To trigger her wolf safely, let her manifest without pack leadership knowing until it was too late to stop. He said if her Turning was already in progress, they couldn't justify killing her without exposing their own involvement in suppressing her in the first place."
I pulled my knees up to my chest, made myself smaller.
"He gave me something. A small vial of clear liquid. Said to put it in her drink at the next big social event. That it would lower her inhibitions, help her relax, and gently jumpstart the Turning process. He said it was harmless. Said it would just speed up what was already supposed to happen."
"But it wasn't harmless," Catherine said.
"No. It knocked her out completely. Made her black out for eight hours. I didn't know it would do that. I swear I didn't know."
"What about the blue pills?" David's voice stayed gentle. Like he was talking to a frightened child. Which, I guess, I was. "The ones you tried to give her in the holding cell."
"Julian contacted me after Tyler's murder. Sent a message through the burner phone he'd given me… " I recited the number from memory, watched them all write it down, " …saying Rowan was in danger. That the trial was rigged. That pack leadership would execute her to cover up Project Chimera. He said the pills would help her complete the Turning safely, give her control so she wouldn't be vulnerable."
"And you tried to give them to her without questioning what was in them," Garrett said.
"I questioned him!" My voice cracked. "I asked what they were, if they were safe, why she needed them. He said they were a stabilizing formula. That her Turning was incomplete and dangerous. That she could die or go feral without them. He said… "
I stopped. Couldn't continue.
"He said what?" Catherine pressed.
"He said I was her only real friend. That everyone else would abandon her. That I was the only one who could save her." Tears started falling again. "He said I mattered. That what I did mattered. And I... I wanted that to be true."
The admission hung in the air, pathetic and honest.
"Where is he now?" Garrett asked. "Where does Julian hide when he's not on campus?"
"The warehouse." I gave them the address. "Off Route 7, about fifteen minutes from campus. Old industrial building, abandoned for years. We met there twice. He said it was secure, that no one went there anymore."
"Did you see his living space? Personal effects? Computer equipment?"
"No. We always met in the main room, ground floor. He said the upper levels were unstable, dangerous. I never questioned it."
More notes. More exchanged glances between Alphas.
"The burner phone," David said. "Do you still have it?"
"Guards took it when they arrested me. Should be in evidence."
"Did Julian ever call you? Or only text?"
"Only texts. Short ones. Meet here. Use this. Don't tell anyone." I laughed bitterly. "He was careful. Never left a voice trail. Never said anything in writing that could actually prove he was manipulating me. Just... suggestions. Gentle guidance. Making me think I was choosing to help."
"When was your last contact with him?" Catherine asked.
"Three days ago. The night before the trial. He texted saying Rowan's Turning was nearly complete. That the full moon would either kill her or finish the transformation. That if I cared about her, I'd make sure she had the stabilizing pills."
"And you tried to bring them to her," Garrett said. "But she refused."
"She figured it out." My voice dropped to a whisper. "She asked me to describe Julian. And when I did, I saw it in her face. Recognition. Horror. She knew who he really was even before the trial revealed it."
"Did Julian ever mention other suppressed students?" David asked. "Hannah Kimura? The others on his list?"
"No. He only ever talked about Rowan. About protecting her. About making sure she survived what pack leadership had done to her."
"Did he mention the Concordance ceremony? Any plans for… "
"No." I cut Catherine off. "He never mentioned the Concordance. Never talked about exposing Project Chimera publicly. Never said anything about other attacks or forced awakenings. Just Rowan. Everything was about Rowan."
The three Alphas exchanged looks. Some silent communication I wasn't privy to.
"She's telling the truth," David said quietly. "He compartmentalized. Only told her what he needed her to know. She was a tool, not a confidant."
The word hit like a slap. Tool. That's all I'd been. A useful idiot who thought she was a hero.
Garrett pulled out his phone, sent a quick text. "Security teams are heading to the warehouse now. We'll search it thoroughly."
"You won't find anything," I said. Hollow. "He's too smart. He wouldn't leave evidence. He wouldn't actually trust me with his real location."
"You don't know that," Catherine said.
"Yes I do." I looked up at her. "Because he played me perfectly. Fed me exactly enough information to do what he needed, never enough to actually stop him. I was his puppet. A way to keep Rowan confused and vulnerable while he orchestrated everything else."
"You couldn't have known," David tried.
"I should have known!" I slammed my fist against the wall. Pain shot up my arm. Worth it. "Rowan suspected. She questioned the pills. She asked about Julian. She wanted to verify everything. And I got defensive. I chose to believe a stranger over my best friend because my ego couldn't handle admitting I'd been wrong."
"Sage… "
"I helped frame her for murder." My voice broke completely. "I drugged her. I tried to drug her again. I enabled every single thing Julian did. Tyler Morrison is dead because I gave Rowan that drink. Professor Hendricks is dead because Julian needed to keep the conspiracy covered up. Guard Carter is dead because this is all escalating. And it's my fault."
"It's Julian's fault," Garrett said firmly. "He's the killer. You're a victim of his manipulation."
"I'm an accomplice." I met his eyes. "And I need to face consequences for that."
Silence fell. The three Alphas looked at each other again.
Finally, David spoke. "You'll remain in custody until after the Concordance. We'll determine appropriate punishment once this immediate crisis is resolved. For now, your cooperation is noted. If Julian contacts you again… "
"He won't." I was certain of that. "He doesn't need me anymore. He got what he wanted. Rowan's Turning is complete. The trial exposed Project Chimera. The suppressed students are awakening. I'm useless to him now."
"Nevertheless," Catherine said, "the burner phone will remain active. If he does reach out, you'll notify us immediately."
"Yes, Alpha." Automatic. Submissive.
They turned to leave.
"Uncle David?" I called out.
He paused. Looked back.
"I'm sorry. For everything. For dishonoring Silvercrest. For being weak. For…
"You're not weak." His voice was gentle again. "You were lonely and manipulated by someone who's had a decade to perfect the art of exploitation. That's not weakness. That's being human. Or wolf. Same thing, really."
He left.
The door closed.
I sat alone in the buzzing fluorescent light, waiting for word from the warehouse search team.
Waiting to learn that Julian had, once again, been three steps ahead of everyone.
Waiting to face the truth that I'd helped destroy my best friend's life and there was nothing I could do to fix it.
Two hours later, the door opened again. Just Garrett this time.
His expression told me everything I needed to know.
"Empty," I said. Not a question.
"Empty," he confirmed. "The warehouse was cleared out days ago. No personal effects. No equipment. Just dust and rat droppings. He hasn't been there in at least a week."
"He knew you'd search it."
"He knew you'd give us the location. Yes." Garrett studied me. "You were right. He never trusted you with anything that mattered. You were a useful tool and nothing more."
I nodded. Expected that. Still hurt.
"For what it's worth," Garrett said, surprising me, "I believe you didn't understand what he was doing. I believe you thought you were helping. That doesn't excuse your actions, but it does explain them."
"Is that supposed to make me feel better?"
"No. It's supposed to help you understand the difference between malice and stupidity. You're guilty of the latter, not the former." He moved toward the door. "We'll find Julian. We'll stop whatever he has planned for the Concordance. And when this is over, you'll face consequences proportional to your actual crimes, not the ones Julian committed using you as a weapon."
He left.