Chapter 34 34
Élodie POV
“That could have gone worse,” Alpha Quentin muttered, releasing a long breath as though he’d been holding it since Damien stepped foot on our land.
“What exactly does he know?” He gestured for me to walk beside him along the garden path that circled the front of his home.
“Only that Aurélie is alive,” I said quietly. “He doesn’t know she’s the Alpha.”
The moment Simon and I returned from the Darkvale pack, we had given him every detail. I told him Aurélie had once been the Luna of the Bloodnight pack, though we believed she’d died years ago. None of us had expected this.
“Alpha, would you like a refreshment out here?” one of the household staff—Florence, her red hair blazing under the sun asked politely.
“No, thank you, Florence.” He sank onto a wooden bench, fatigue softening his expression. “I need to do the boundary rounds soon.”
“Let me take care of that, Alpha. I’ll report back to Simon. You should rest.” I offered before he could get up again. For all his reputation, Quentin was a kind, gentle man. He’d taken me in completely when I transferred from Bloodnight fought for Simon to keep me, even. With no children of his own, I knew he hoped Simon would one day inherit the role.
“Thank you, Élodie.” A crease formed between his brows. “I’m worried it will come back to bite us that we knew Aurélie was the Alpha and didn’t disclose it.”
“Maybe,” I admitted, “but we’ll handle that when the time comes. Perhaps we should send a gift? Something in goodwill. We could even send Florence to help the Bloodnight Alpha household while I’m away. They still haven’t replaced me. It would look like an act of peace, and although she’d be too far for the pack link to work, she could keep an eye on things without technically being a spy.”
“Only if Florence is truly willing,” he murmured, rubbing his temples. “I won’t have her uncomfortable on my account.”
He was exhausted, even if the outside world still saw him as the untouchable Alpha of the Saint Wolf pack. Packs often had two faces the one shown to the world, and the one lived quietly behind closed doors.
“Perhaps I should withdraw from the Darkvale alliance altogether,” he mused, watching a few birds peck at the lawn.
“Whatever you think is best, Alpha.”
Days Later
Everything remained eerily quiet between the Bloodnight and Darkvale packs. No signs of escalation. No retaliation. No declarations of war.
Florence had agreed to go, though reluctantly she insisted she’d only stay a month. She’d heard the stories about the Bloodnight Luna. I had to correct her quickly.
“Geneviève isn’t the Luna,” I’d said. “She only behaves like she is. And yes… keep your guard up.”
Geneviève had despised me from the beginning. She’d accused me of petty nonsense breaking ornaments, misplacing items hoping to provoke Damien into punishing me. But he never had. Not after Aurélie left. He wore the mask of a leader, but I knew the truth. He hadn’t been whole since the day she vanished.
It had been a week since Florence arrived there, and she messaged me earlier claiming she was ready to poison Geneviève’s food. Half joking, half sincere. Poor Denise had apparently cried upon meeting her relief, fear, or exhaustion, who knew.
I jogged across the pack square toward the beta house Simon and I shared, the children’s play equipment at the center blurring past. Sweat clung to my skin. I hadn’t trained much back at Bloodnight household duties consumed everything. But once I joined Saint Wolf, Simon had thrown me straight into training. Hard training. Brutal training. Harder than any other woman. Because I wasn’t just a warrior I was his wife, his beta.
“Élodie… where are you?”
Simon’s voice burst into my mind, thick with panic.
“Just reaching home. Why? What’s wrong?”
“Get inside. Now. Lock the doors and don’t come out until I return.” His tone was clipped, frantic.
“What happened?”
“The Darkvale pack has put the alliance on alert they’ve been attacked.”