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“I know as an alpha, that urgency to build bonds with a pack is strong, but it will come. We’ll all be here to help you with that too.” Zeke smiles, clasping my shoulder in comfort.
“I know,” I sigh, some of the weight lifting with their reassurance. “I guess that brings me to the next reason for this meeting.”
I slip my phone out of my pocket, making sure I haven’t missed Sophia’s text. I asked her to let me know as soon as Monte entered Opal Moon because I don’t want him to overhear this.
“I asked Monte to join us. He’ll be here in a few minutes, so we don’t have much time,” I say and launch into the plan for the storage facility.
“So why is Monte coming if we don’t want him to know?” Seline asks. She chews on her bottom lip, glancing at the door as I take another look at my phone. Nothing yet.
“For two reasons,” I explain. “I’m going to give him fake information. The storage facility is only a few miles from where the Langley sleuth lives, so if I tell him we’re going to put surveillance on the pack compound, we’ll be able to see if he takes the bait.”
“Isn’t that dangerous, Sky?” Seline asks, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth as she crosses her arms over her chest. “Is the risk really worth it?”
“Not necessarily. Arsenio and I are going on our own, and we’ll be in our wolf forms so it will be easier to get away if anything does happen,” I counter. “If we see an increased presence of security there compared to last night, we’ll have confirmation that he’s working with the Langleys. It might also let us gauge exactly how many guards they have to spare for when we actually attack, giving us a better guideline for time.”
“It’s risky, but I trust your judgment, babe,” Zeke says, rubbing his hand over my shoulder absentmindedly as though it’s just second nature at this point. “It’s too dangerous to keep Monte around if he’s allied with Aldric too.”
“So we think he’s also working for the bears too? It wasn’t just Axel?” Silas asks, his head tilting to the side in thought.
“I honestly don’t know what to believe anymore, but I wouldn’t put it past him,” I say with a deep sigh. “The fact of the matter is I don’t trust him, and if he could kill my father to gain power, it’s reasonable to believe that he could be working with the bears.”
“What’s the second reason?” Seline asks.
“Monte still needs to think he’s involved,” I explain. “He needs to think that I still trust him, that I still value his opinion. Plus, I also want Zeke to keep an eye on the conversation. He had direct contact with whoever hired him to kill my father. It will give him the opportunity to observe Monte.” I glance at the closet in the corner, where Zeke will hide for the rest of the meeting.
Silas and Seline nod in agreement, and I check my phone just as a text pops up.
Sophia:Monte and Isabella are on their way back to you, Alpha. :)
Skylar:Thanks, Sophia. Let me know if anyone else comes in, please.
I text her back a quick reply, hoping the request won’t make her suspicious.
Sophia:Sure thing. :)
“He’s here,” I say, giving Zeke’s hand a final squeeze before he lets it fall from my shoulder. I stride over to the desk, Silas and Seline taking my cue and following me to the back of the room as Zeke walks to the corner. He opens the small closet there and slides the door closed behind him. We stayed away from the desk before, hoping his scent won’t linger where Monte will be, and if he does notice anything, it could easily be mistaken as Zeke’s scent still clinging to my clothes.
We get in our positions just in time, since a knock comes the moment I take my seat.
“Come in,” I call out, trying to calm my frantic pulse. He’ll be able to sense the panic, and it might just give us away before I’m able to lay the bait.
The door opens immediately and Monte strides into the room with Isabella trailing along behind him. I glance at Silas, and he nods imperceptibly. As the only one at the manor, I’ll need him to find a moment to pull Isabella aside to see if she noticed anything out of the norm with Monte, especially after the meeting today.
“Good morning, Alpha,” Monte says, inclining his head slightly as he lets Isabella pass him and closes the door behind them.
“Good morning, Alpha,” Isabella repeats, bowing deeper than Monte had. She gives a pleasant smile to both Silas and Seline while Monte ignores them and steps closer to my desk.
“Good morning,” I answer, smiling at Isabella. It takes every ounce of strength I have to keep a pleasant expression as I glance at Monte, hoping he doesn’t sense the repugnant sneer that begs to curl my lips instead. “There are some plans you both need to be apprised of.”
I continue to explain the recon mission tonight, telling them we’ll be staking out the bear’s compound instead of the storage facility. I assess every move that Monte makes, hoping to catch the slightest hint of nerves or anger at the plan. His throat bobs, but that’s about the only break in his stern gaze as he takes in the information. That could be construed as anything though. He could even just be thirsty or worried about me taking this risk alone with Arsenio.
“Perhaps I should come with you, Sky,” Monte offers. I scan his face hoping to see something break through his expression, but the most I can make out is concern in his mahogany eyes.
“No, we need as few people in the area as possible. The more people there, the more chance there is to be caught,” I say, giving him a stern look. “Seline and Silas will be on standby in case anything happens. Besides, I need Isabella up to date on her duties as soon as possible. You should be working through the night to make sure we have another lead beta able to step in if we need.”
There. That should make sure he’s not able to interfere himself.
For a second, it looks like he might argue, but instead, he swallows down whatever he was about to say and nods. “Of course, Alpha.”
