CHAPTER 132

CHAPTER 132
Agatha’s POV

I heard them. I heard the Alphas talking in the study. I did not mean to. The door was open a little and the light spilled into the hallway. I was supposed to be sweeping. I was supposed to be invisible. But their words reached me like a cold wind.

“Find her family,” Adonis said.

“We must prove we care,” Dante said.

“Start the search tomorrow,” Knox said.

My chest tightened, I couldn't hold it in. They were planning to help Autumn find her family. They wanted to surprise her. They wanted to show her they cared.

I felt sick. They thought they could fix everything with a surprise. They thought a ring, a name, a few papers would make Autumn forgive them. They thought their guilt could buy her back.

They were fools. I had lived with those fools for years. I saw how they treated her like dust when I manipulated them. They never changed when it mattered. They only changed when they felt guilty. Then they put on a costume of regret. It looked pretty on them, but it did not last.

And me? I had nothing. I had lost everything. I had been pushed into darkness. I had been blamed and punished and laughed at. I had been left to rot. They think I will clap when they hand Autumn a name and a place.

Never. I stopped sweeping. The brush fell from my hand and hit the floor with a little sound. I decided then that I would not let them win. If Autumn found her family and left, everything would fall apart for me. She would be gone. The one person I could use as a thorn in their side would be gone. They would be happy and safe. And me? I would be still the loser. I had to stop that.

I remembered the man I worked for. He was not someone in the pack. He was not a friend. He was a powerful hand in the dark. He gave orders and I did what he wanted. He had helped me before when I needed a way out. He fed my plan sometimes. He never asked questions about feelings. He only wanted results.

I had stayed careful with him. I did what he asked and I took what he gave. I kept my head down, and he kept me afloat. He had a cold voice, but it did the work. He has men everywhere. He could move, hide and silence things.

Now I needed him again. He already got close to me in the past few years. He promised me a great reward to do something for him which I declined before. But I changed my mind. 

I sent him a message through one of the spies in the mansion. Those idiots wouldn't know they had a lot of their pack members replaced. I was told to meet him at night and I was so happy he answered me almost immediately. I walked in the rain and the cold, past the guards. I managed to get out because I wanted to make everyone pay including the servants who used to laugh at me. I kept my hood up and my face low.

I reached the small house by the river in the pack where his men met. The door was heavy and the light inside was dim. I pushed it open and stepped in. The man sat in the back, his face hidden under his hat. He waved his hand like he had been waiting. I have never been able to see his face. 

“You’re late,” he said, his voice sounded cold as always.

“No,” I answered. “I was exactly on time. It's raining out there.”

He clicked his tongue and looked at me. “You always make things dramatic, Agatha. Sit.”

I sat across from him and I did not hide my hands. I wanted him to see I had nothing hidden. He watched me with small cold eyes.

“You look angry,” he said.

“Do you think I would be happy?” I snapped. “They are trying to play at goodness. They will hand Autumn a family and she will leave. They will leave me where I am. So I want to stop them. Why does she deserve to be happy?”

He leaned back and let out a small laugh. “So you come to me to break their party?”

“Yes.” My voice was low but steady. “Help me stop them. Make sure Autumn never finds her family. I want them to lose everything. If Autumn is gone, they have nothing to show for their guilt. They will be empty again. I will enjoy watching them fail.”

I could see his eyes lit a little. He liked the sound of failure. He liked plans that moved packs and changed power. He had a hunger for that.

“You know what I do,” he said slowly. “I do not work for free. What will you give me?”

There wasn't anything I could give to him. He was the one helping me more than I could for now. He already tried to get me revenge and that was good enough but it was still a failure. But I thought of the twins he had always wanted me to do for him that I refused. 

“You told me the last time that you wanted documents,” I said. I did not smile. I knew what he wanted. “You want pack plans, war maps, lists of debts, names of loyal men. You want to know how the Alphas move and plan. You want the keys to everything.”

He tapped his finger on the table. “If I get those things, I can move fast. I can press stones and break lines. I can push the Alphas out of their posts. I can make the pack weak. I can make them pay for everything. In exchange, I will make sure Autumn’s path is blocked. I will make sure no evidence links back to Agatha. I will clear your name and make the Alphas look like fools.”

I felt a cold thrill. It sounded like everything I wanted.

“What else do you need from me?” I asked.

“Get me what I asked,” he said. “Secret files, inner plans, the maps of patrol lines, the lists of who answers to whom and the documents that show which brothers trust which men. Bring them to me and I will send men to ruin their trail. I will make sure Autumn receives nothing but broken lies. You will not be a scapegoat. You will be useful.”

He paused and the room held its breath.

“And you?” he asked finally. “Do you obey me, Agatha? If I ask you to burn the pack house gate, will you do it without thinking about your pride?”

My chest tightened. I knew what he asked for. He wanted the keys to their walls and their secrets. He wanted me to betray them so deeply that no one could trust me again. I used to stop myself from doing it because I thought I could stay with them. But I didn't have a place with them anymore, why should I try?

“Yes,” I said.

“Good,” he murmured. “Then we have a deal.”

Autumn, I'm going to make your life more miserable than ever. It's your fault that I'm in this situation and I will never forgive you or give you a chance to be happy. You don't deserve to be happy. 

“And one more thing,” he said. “I want you to be very careful with what you're doing. One mistake can lead to all my years of planning getting ruined.”

No one wants to ruin their life more than me. Why would I do anything that will make me get suspected? They already hates me a lot and don't want anything to do with me which is why I want to mess up the plans. 

“Done,” I said. “I will bring you everything.”

He nodded and slid a small black card across the table. On it was a symbol I had only seen in shadows. It was like a key. He wrote a single word on the back. It held a place and a time.

“You have three days,” he said. “If you fail, I will not protect you. If you succeed, I will sit back and watch them fall.”

I picked up the card. It was cold. The rain was still going strong. I felt anger pull tight in my chest, but also a thin thread of fear. I had to be careful. If I failed, the pack would tear me apart. If I succeeded, I might finally be free. 

I squeezed the card till my knuckles ached. My mind was already working. Where were the archives? Who held the keys? Who trusted who? I had once been close enough to see small things. But I knew things better than Autumn at least. There was still a time when they trusted me so I would use this information to find what I want.