Chapter 139 Aligned Suspicions
Lucian's POV
After Briar left, I sat alone. That man looked like Ash—not imagination, but real. The recognition I'd felt seeing Daniel Thorne at the board meeting suddenly made sense. I needed to investigate.
Next morning I found Margaret, head custodian with thirty years at Sterling. She was at the warehouse supervising deliveries.
"Mr. Kincaid," she said, surprised to see me in such an unglamorous location. "Is something wrong?"
"I need information about something that happened about twenty-three years ago," I said directly, because Margaret appreciated honesty. "A child, possibly connected to someone in upper management."
Her expression shifted immediately, wariness replacing surprise. She glanced around, making sure we were alone, then sighed heavily. "There was talk back then about Daniel. His wife gave birth at Full Moon Emergency Center, but something went terribly wrong during the delivery."
My hands clenched at my sides. "What happened?"
"Someone injected her with a drug that triggered her wolf side during labor," Margaret said quietly, her voice carrying old anger. "She went feral, attacked the medical staff. They had to sedate her heavily. In the chaos, a nurse took the baby and supposedly disposed of it in the medical waste incinerator. But one of the orderlies told me years later that he saw that nurse throw something in the dumpster outside instead. Said it looked like she couldn't go through with burning a living child."
Ice flooded my veins. "And the family?"
"Daniel told his wife the baby died in the fire," Margaret continued, her voice heavy with old sorrow. "She spent weeks searching the hospital, completely broken, but he kept insisting their son was dead."
I drove home in a daze, my thoughts churning through implications. Daniel had a son who would be exactly Ash's age now. Back in my apartment, I went straight to my study and pulled out a whiteboard, marking it with a single notation: 48 hours. That was how long I'd give Daniel to take the bait I was about to set.
The Sterling Pharmaceuticals board meeting that afternoon was routine until Dominic announced my next assignment.
"Lucian, you'll fly to London next week," Dominic said, not looking up from his tablet. "Vincent is considering major investments in Seattle biotech. You'll meet with him personally."
Every head in the room turned toward me. This was the kind of opportunity that could secure millions in funding.
"No," I said flatly.
The room went silent. Dominic's head snapped up, his eyes narrowing dangerously. "What did you say?"
"I said no. Ash is being discharged next week. I need to be here."
"You're refusing a critical business meeting because of that stray you picked up?" Dominic's voice dripped with contempt.
I stood slowly, deliberately, letting my chair scrape harshly against the polished floor. Around the table, several board members flinched as my Alpha presence filled the room, heavy and threatening.
"I'm going to say this one final time," I said, my voice dropping to something cold and dangerous. "Ash is not a stray. He's my brother, and if you insult him again, you'll find out exactly how far I'm willing to go to protect him."
The air crackled with tension. I turned to my secretary, deliberately raising my voice. "Schedule Ash's discharge for next Wednesday, ten a.m. Make sure everything's ready."
From the corner of my eye, I watched Daniel Thorne. His expression remained carefully neutral, but his hands betrayed him, fingers crushing the financial report he held until the paper creased and tore.
---
Briar's POV
Eric burst into my office late that afternoon without knocking, his usual casual demeanor replaced by barely contained excitement.
He announced, dropping a folder on my desk. "Vincent is coming to Seattle to evaluate investment opportunities in biotech and pharmaceuticals."
I looked up from my laptop, my heart immediately kicking into a faster rhythm. Vincent Ashford was legendary in investment circles.
"Sterling Pharmaceuticals is on his list," Eric said, his expression turning serious. "But so are we. Vance Botanicals made the cut, Briar."
I sat back in my chair, my mind racing through implications. This was the opportunity I'd been working toward, the chance to secure the kind of funding that would let us expand beyond Seattle. But it also meant going head-to-head with Sterling Pharmaceuticals, with Lucian's family.
"We're competing," I said finally. "We've come too far to back down now."
My phone buzzed with a text message. I glanced down and saw Oscar's name.
Oscar: [Castellan family dinner tonight. Maya's bringing a friend home—someone from the Sterling family.]
A second message followed immediately.
Oscar: [You should come.]
I stared at the messages for a long moment: [What time?]
Oscar: [Six p.m.]
Oscar arrived exactly, opening the passenger door for me with practiced grace. "Thank you for coming," he said as I settled into the leather seat. "I should warn you—my mother will probably assume we're dating. I apologize in advance for anything embarrassing she might say."
At a red light, Oscar turned to look at me, his expression thoughtful. "I'm more worried about how someone else might react to seeing us together," he said carefully.
I knew exactly who he meant. "If you're talking about Lucian, he doesn't get a say in who I spend time with."
"Doesn't he?" Oscar asked gently.
The light turned green before I had to answer.
Castellan Manor rose from the darkness like something out of a Gothic novel, all stone walls and arched windows glowing with warm light. My heels clicked against the cobblestone path as Oscar guided me from the front entrance around to the back gardens. The walk took nearly ten minutes.
Just as we rounded the final corner, two small figures came racing toward us.
"Uncle Oscar!" they shrieked in unison, nearly bowling him over.
Oscar crouched down to catch them both, laughing. "Careful, you two. We have a guest."
The little boy, maybe seven years old, looked up at me with bright curious eyes. "Is this Uncle Oscar's girlfriend?"
"Great-grandma was watching from the upstairs window earlier," the girl added helpfully. "Maya brought someone too, but that guy looked really unhappy."
The moment we stepped inside, a woman descended the curved staircase with practiced grace. Elara was striking—deep brown hair with subtle silver streaks, amber eyes that missed nothing.
Her gaze landed on me, and her entire face lit up.
"Oh, Oscar," she breathed, sweeping past her son to take both my hands in hers. "She's lovely. Come sit, dear."
Elara settled me on a plush sofa and immediately began pouring tea. "You know," she said, her eyes twinkling, "Oscar's been alone far too long. And friends can become so much more with time, don't you think? Why, I could be holding grandbabies within a year if things progress nicely—"
The sound of footsteps in the hallway cut her off mid-sentence. Maya's laugh echoed through the space, followed by a deeper male voice responding to something she'd said.
I turned toward the doorway just as they entered, and the entire world seemed to stop.
Lucian stood framed in the entrance, his expression shifting from polite social mask to complete shock as his eyes locked on mine.