Chapter 67 Take Care, Toby
Ellis: Mae mentioned that Greenfield is selecting pack members to return to the States with Martin.
The second message from Ellis brought a frown to Damian's forehead.
Greenfield Pack was the most giant pack in Europe. Ellis' new mate Mae was the daughter of Greenfield Pack's Alpha. Martin's alliance with this pack might be due to his knowledge of Mae being Ellis' mate – something Ellis hadn't publicly announced. But the issue was, conventionally, if two packs formed an alliance through a pack member's marriage, it was usually announced after the wedding. Yet, Martin had chosen to ally with Greenfield Pack before the Luna Ceremony, and even when it was in his trip to Europe.
If Martin was returning from Europe with allies from the Greenfield Pack, along with the Wilton Family's pack members, then even if his Moon Halo Pack members were formidable fighters, Damian had little confidence they could overcome Martin and Uncle Victor; unless he secured the support of the branch packs of Golden Moon Pack through obtaining the Upper Moon Rings.
Thinking of this, Damian tightened his grip on his phone, noticing three dots appearing at the top of the screen, indicating that Ellis was still typing.
The chat interface's top right corner reminded Damian that Ellis was in the Golden Moon Pack's pack house. Damian also checked Mae's location – she was in an apartment downtown. It surprised Damian that they weren't together.
It was approaching 2:30 AM. Ellis choosing to send encrypted messages at this hour hinted that something might have happened to him.
Just as Damian was considering asking if Ellis was safe, a third message arrived from Ellis.
Ellis quoted the initial notification about Martin's alliance with Greenfield and then said: "This message was relayed to me by Mae half an hour ago. Her brother Asher is a candidate for the Alpha position in the Greenfield Pack. But since he's against war and aggression, he might be replaced."
Damian: Does he have other siblings? What was the purpose of him telling Mae this info?
Ellis: He has two brothers. You can find out the specifics and reasons from Mae when you're back in LA.
Ellis: I can't chat for too long.
Ellis: Carl has begun to watch me closely.
Damian stared at the dancing three dots on the screen, worried about Ellis' safety. He was about to ask if Ellis was okay when it seemed like Ellis anticipated his question and quickly sent another message.
Ellis: Don't worry, Toby, I'm fine for now. But I have to stop private contact with you.
Damian: I'll find a way to see you, El.
Ellis: No. Don't come to the pack house. It's dangerous now.
Damian: What happened?
Ellis: Be careful. I guess Alicia might not be betraying you. She could be manipulated by Martin.
Ellis: Take care, Toby.
After receiving this message, Damian's phone screen displayed two alerts – "\[Ellis\] Signal Lost" and "\[Ellis\] Location Lost."
The app he'd been using to communicate with Ellis had been developed by him for Moon Halo Pack's use. The server was his private one, and all information passed through it was encrypted. Even if the app were deleted, he could still trace the phone's location, unless the phone was completely destroyed.
Now, Ellis sent him messages at 2 a.m. and then destroyed his phone. This meant that whatever monitoring Beta Carl had on Ellis had gone beyond just tracking his movements and the people he interacted with.
Thinking about his brother, his only trusted kin from the Wilton family, being possibly in danger, Damian clenched his fist, trying to contain the anger rising from his suspicions.
"A bit pungent..."
Damian heard a mutter from beside him and turned to see Alicia lying next to him.
Right! Damian remembered that the deodorant spray on him had worn off. Alicia could smell the acrid scent emanating from him when he was angry.
She rolled onto her side, curling up into a ball – a sleeping position that showed insecurity. Her hand was resting on her lower abdomen. Her coppery-gold hair was strewn on the dark gray bedsheet, like a layer of golden sand.
He looked at his phone with the last two messages from Ellis, then turned his gaze to Alicia's sleeping profile. He sighed and pushed the hair stuck to her cheek away, whispering softly, "I told you before, he's not a kindly old man."
After murmuring these words, Damian resisted the exhaustion accumulated from two sleepless nights, stood up, and headed to the bathroom. Only two hours later, as the sky started to lighten, signaling the impending sunrise, Damian emerged from the bathroom and lay back down, pulling Alicia into his arms, and drifted off to sleep.
The next morning at around 10 AM, Alicia woke up groggily. When she saw the blond man lying beside her, she couldn't help but scream loudly.