Chapter Thirty-Two

The Promise

Elena glared at the door knob. How had Harry sealed the door from within? Was he magical as well? She fumed as she tried to come up with a plan to get him to open the door. How dare he accompany Edgar on a mission to investigate her? Whose side was Harry on anyway?

“Argh!” she half-screamed as she made her way back to her bedroom. She had to come up with a plan fast if she wanted the upper hand in this game she’d started. She’d worked way too hard and come too far to lose it all now. Damn Edgar and his suspicious mind. What kind of magic had he used to lure Harry back to his side? She’d risked her reputation and her image to get close to Harry. Werewolves, it seemed, were just as fickle as human men. They couldn’t remain loyal to woman they claimed they loved even if their lives depended on it. She slammed her bedroom door behind her. Harry would have to leave his bedroom in the morning. "He's such a stupid wolf," she muttered.

How would he avoid her tomorrow?

The next morning dawned clear and bright. Edgar hadn’t come to her bed last night. Elena didn’t care. The less she saw of him the better. It had given her a chance to think, to draw up a foolproof plan, make more calls, and see how far her construction team had gone. This morning she dressed in a skin-tight leather dress that left little to the imagination, and thigh high boots. How would Harry control his hormones when he saw her at breakfast? Elena forced a smile when she saw Edgar and Harry were already eagerly eating their breakfast.

“Good morning, gentlemen” she greeted them, her voice dripping with false sweetness.

Two pairs of eyes widened with genuine surprise. Elena smirked. This was exactly the reaction she was looking for.

“Good morning, Elena,” Edgar greeted first. “It’s lovely to see you at breakfast.”

“Good morning,” Harry muttered, returning to his meal. He piled his plate with bacon and eggs and ignored her as he continued eating.

Elena sat at respectable distance from both men. How ironic, she thought, that she was at the same table as both her Alpha and her lover. Or was it now former lover? She stacked her plate with pancakes, and drizzled syrup over them. For a moment, they ate in silence.

“Are you two fueling up to go out again today?” she asked.

Harry nearly choked on his bacon. Edgar continued eating calmly.

“We will go out if there is a need to,” Edgar said, after a few moments had passed.

“So where did you go yesterday?” Elena asked, taking a delicate bite of pancake.

Harry’s face had drained of all its color.

“Some place that looked like it was a hive of criminal activity,” Edgar replied, “As soon as I have proof of what’s going on there, I’ll be reporting the place to the Elders. I’ve worked hard to maintain peace between the packs in the last few years. I am not about to let some idiot with plans of creating a toxic utopia ruin it all for us.”

Elena froze. Edgar sure had some nerve referring to her project as a toxic utopia. She’d risked her life to build that place. She composed herself quickly. “You shouldn’t judge a place if you don’t have proof of what its core business is.”

“I am pretty confident I’ll have all the proof I need before the end of today,” Edgar assured her.

She wished she could slap his smile right off his face. How dare he threaten her? She made a mental note to phone the leader of the construction project. So far everything was going according to plan. Edgar had nearly ruined everything when he’d learned she was missing—that had complicated things. She’d tried to oversee the construction of the Evening Club but his persistent searching for her had meant she had to come up with another plan to throw him off track. Staging her own attack had been painful, but at least she’d had plenty of time in the hospital to liaise with her team on site. The military training of their army was going well. Recruiting young supernatural creatures who wanted a new start hadn’t been too difficult either. Her project was on track—she didn’t need Edgar’s interference, or Harry’s puny magic.

They ate the rest of their breakfast in silence.

“Excuse me,” Elena said, smiling sweetly at both men.

“Do you have any plans for today?” Edgar asked.

“No. I was thinking of spending the day here, setting up my office and going through my emails.”

Edgar nodded. “That sounds like a wonderful idea.”

“How about you and Harry?” Elena asked. “Do you have any plans for today?”

“I’ll be going out. Harry will continue working from my study,” Edgar said.

Elena flashed Harry a sly smile when their gazes met. She wouldn’t confront him just yet, she decided. She needed something more to dangle over his head, something like the pregnant surrogate Edgar had hidden somewhere safe.

***

Edgar rushed to check on Alia. His gut instinct warned him that Elena was after her. Should he tell her she was in danger? Or should he increase the security at the building? He sighed. He didn’t want to alarm her and jeopardize his baby’s life. Or Alia’s wellbeing. He rushed to Alia’s apartment and rang the doorbell.

Nobody answered.

Edgar panicked. What if Elena had already had her kidnapped? He took a few steps back, and built up his momentum to kick the door down. The door’s hinges loosened after a few kicks. Edgar removed it and place it aside.

“Alia!” he screamed.

A force field of energy flung him out of her apartment in the next instant. “Ouch!” Edgar hit the wall hard outside Alia’s apartment hard. He shot to his feet expecting another attack; instead Alia appeared in the door-less doorway and stared at him, concerned. He tried walking towards her. The force field around her kept him away from her. Edgar groaned in pain.

“Are you okay?” Alia asked.

“Yeah. Please tell your–I mean our—child I’m not the enemy.”

Alia laughed. “Oh. I am so sorry, Edgar. I must have freaked out when you banged on the door. Our child has grown very protective of me.” She patted her belly. “It’s okay, my angel, it’s just your father.”

Angel, Edgar almost scoffed. Did this child want to be the death of him before it was even born?

The force field disappeared. Edgar hobbled inside the apartment. He called one of his contacts to replace the door, then sat on the couch. Alia brought him four packs of ice for his back.

“You would think I was attacked by a pack of wolves,” he told her.

She laughed again. “Well, according to Celine, our baby will be the most powerful werewolf in the history of werewolves.”

“That’s what she predicted while my father was still alive. I had no idea how powerful our child would turn out.” He tried sitting up straighter and groaned again.

“Maybe you should stay here until your back heals,” Alia told him.

It wasn’t such a bad idea. If he stayed he wouldn’t have to worry about Alia and his child all the time.

“That sounds like a good idea,” he said. This way he’d be able to protect Elena from attacking Alia.

His construction team arrived a few minutes later and replaced the door. Edgar asked them to include an extra security gate as well.

He’d do whatever it took to protect his surrogate and unborn baby–even if that meant disclosing everything to the Elders. He made a mental note to ask Harry to arrange a meeting with the Elders the next day. He didn't want to waste any more time. He didn't trust Elena. Who knew what other dangerous tricks she had up her sleeves?

***