Chapter 47 Breathe In
Elara ran to Adrian's room and found him still sleeping peacefully, but the window was cracked open and cold air filtered through.
She slammed it shut and locked it, then grabbed Adrian and carried him to her own room, locking that door too before calling Kai.
"Someone was in Adrian's room," she said the moment he answered. "They took a photo of him sleeping and sent it to me."
"I'm on my way," Kai said and she heard him running.
He arrived two minutes later with four guards, and they searched both rooms finding the window lock had been picked from outside.
"How did they get past perimeter security?" Kai demanded.
"We don't know Alpha," one guard said. "The cameras show nothing unusual."
"Then check them again," Kai ordered. "Someone got close enough to this residence to pick a lock and photograph a child, I want to know how."
The guards left and Kai turned to Elara who was sitting on her bed holding Adrian.
"Show me the messages," he said.
Elara handed him her phone and watched his face darken as he read the threats.
"This is escalating," he said. "First the man in the alley, now someone inside our home."
"We need to leave," Elara said. "Tonight, before whoever this is makes another move."
"Where would we go?" Kai asked. "They found us at the cabin, they found us here, they'll find us anywhere."
"Then we fight back," Elara said. "We find out who's threatening us and we stop them."
"How?" Kai asked. "We don't even know who sent these messages."
"The photo was taken inside Adrian's room," Elara said. "Which means someone on staff or someone with access to staff areas."
"That's eighty people," Kai said. "We can't investigate everyone."
"Then we narrow it down," Elara said. "Who knew about the bloodline claim before I filed it?"
"Me, you, Maya, Liam, and the pack lawyer who prepared the paperwork," Kai said.
"And whoever they told," Elara added. "Plus anyone who overheard us discussing it."
"So basically anyone in the pack," Kai said.
"This isn't helping," Elara said.
Kai's phone rang and he answered, his expression shifting to alarm. "When? How many? I'm on my way."
He ended the call. "There's been an incident at the northern border, someone set fire to the guard station."
"Is anyone hurt?" Elara asked.
"Three guards with smoke inhalation," Kai said. "But the fire destroyed security equipment covering that section of the border."
"That's not a coincidence," Elara said. "Someone's creating blind spots."
"Which means they're planning something bigger," Kai finished. "I need to go deal with this, will you be okay here?"
"No, but go anyway," Elara said. "I'll stay in this room with the door locked."
Kai left and Elara sat there with Adrian, her mind racing through everything that had happened in the past forty-eight hours.
Derek's territorial challenge, Darius's threats through proxies, the photo taken inside their home, now a fire at the border—it was all connected somehow but she couldn't see the pattern.
Her phone buzzed with a call from Maya. "Are you watching the news?"
"No, why?" Elara asked.
"Turn it on," Maya said. "Channel seven."
Elara grabbed the remote and turned on the TV to find a news report showing footage of Mandivus Swathi's prison transport.
"—escaped during transfer this morning when the vehicle was ambushed by armed assailants," the reporter said. "Authorities are conducting a manhunt but Swathi is considered extremely dangerous and should not be approached."
Elara felt the room spin because Mandivus was free, and the first thing he'd do is come after Adrian.
"How is this possible?" she asked Maya.
"Inside help," Maya said. "Had to be, that kind of ambush requires planning and information about the transport route."
"Who would help him escape?" Elara asked.
"Someone who wants chaos in Crescent Falls," Maya said. "Or someone who needs Mandivus for something specific."
"Like killing me and Adrian," Elara said.
"That's one possibility," Maya agreed. "Listen, Liam and I are coming back tonight, don't go anywhere alone until we get there."
"I'm not going anywhere period," Elara said. "Someone broke into Adrian's room and photographed him."
"What?" Maya's voice sharpened. "When?"
"Tonight, while Kai was in his office," Elara said. "They sent me threats about the bloodline claim."
"Elara, you need to get out of that house right now," Maya said. "If someone on staff is working against you, staying there is suicide."
"Kai thinks the same thing," Elara said. "But everywhere we go, they find us."
"Then you stop running and start hunting," Maya said. "Find out who's behind this before they make their next move."
"How?" Elara asked.
"Start with the photo," Maya said. "Check the metadata, see if you can trace what device it came from."
Elara pulled up the photo on her phone and checked its properties, finding GPS coordinates embedded in the file.
"It shows coordinates," she said.
"Where?" Maya asked.
Elara typed them into a search engine. "The Alpha residence, third floor east wing."
"That's the guest quarters," Maya said. "Who's staying there?"
"I don't know," Elara admitted. "Kai handles guest accommodations."
"Find out," Maya said. "And be careful, whoever took that photo is close."
Elara ended the call and considered her options—wake Adrian and risk moving him through potentially hostile territory, or investigate the guest quarters while he slept.
She decided on a third option, calling the one person she'd been trying to avoid.
Elena Morrison answered on the second ring. "Didn't expect to hear from you."
"I need help," Elara said. "Someone's threatening Adrian and I think they're staying in the Alpha residence."
"What do you need?" Elena asked without hesitation.
"Guest records for the past week," Elara said. "Anyone staying in the third-floor east wing."
"Give me ten minutes," Elena said.