Only Nora, Lolita, Gabriel, and Lolita’s uncle had my number.
My fingers hovered over the screen for a second. Then I answered.
“Hello?” I said cautiously.
There was a brief pause on the other end.
Then I heard a voice I hadn’t expected.
A voice that made my whole chest tighten.
“Olivia…”
Lennox.
I froze, my hand trembling slightly.
N
“Please,” he said quickly, his voice soft, almost begging. “Don’t hang up. I won’t bother you again. I just… I just wanted to make sure you got to your destination safely.
My throat tightened. I couldn’t speak.
“We would’ve reached out through the mind link,” he added, his voice cracking slightly. “but… we wanted to hear your voice. Just once.”
My heart ached at his words.
And my wolf whimpered inside me, curling into a ball. Sad. Longing. Conflicted.
I didn’t reply. I couldn’t.
The silence was heavy.
“Please say something.” Another voice which I knew was Louis pleaded.
I sucked a deep breath. “Yes, I have arrived, and I’m fine.”
A moment of silence before Lennox spoke.
“Since you’re okay… we’ll go now,” Lennox said quietly.
And just like that… the call ended.
I slowly lowered the phone from my ear, my hands still shaking slightly.
I shut my eyes, biting my lip hard.
I was supposed to hate them. But right now… I wasn’t sure of anything.
I shook my head.
I needed air.
I needed to get out of this room, out of my thoughts, even if just for a little while. the onts
I slipped on a soft cardigan and headed for the door. My steps were light, almost hesitant, as I walked down the hallway and toward the stairs.
But just as I reached the top of the staircase, I paused.
Voices.
Faint, but familiar.
I tilted my head slightly.
Gabriel.
And… a female voice. Perhaps his sister’s.
“I just need some time,” I heard Gabriel mutter, his voice low and furious.
I couldn’t catch the woman’s reply. It was muffled, like she was standing at an angle I couldn’t see or hear properly from.
Still, something about the way Gabriel said it-low but furious-made something stir inside me.
But then, suddenly, he stopped talking.
He must have noticed me.
His eyes lifted and locked with mine from the bottom of the stairs.
His expression shifted quickly-like I had caught him saying something he didn’t want me to hear.
Lennox’s POV
My beta was giving me a report on the overall performance of the pack. My brothers and I had been absent from pack duties for a long time, and it was still a miracle that things hadn’t fallen apart-aside from a few meetings that required our attention.
I sighed and nodded once Dustin, my personal beta, finished speaking. “Thank you for holding the pack together all this while. You’re truly a good friend.”
Dustin nodded, but before he could respond, the door to the study swung open, and my brothers walked in.
“I’ll take my leave,” Dustin bowed respectfully and left.
As soon as he exited, Levi dropped a file on the desk in front of me.
“My men managed to identify ten people in the pack who can mimic other people’s handwriting. I’ve ordered all of them to be brought in for questioning.”
I stared at the file Levi dropped, the air thick with tension as I opened it and scanned the list of names. None of them were familiar-just random pack members.
I sighed and shut the file. One of these people might be involved, but I was sure someone had paid them. Because, I doubted they had anything to lose by turning us against Olivia. We needed answers.
I turned to Levi. “Get a lie detector. He needs to be present during the interrogations. If any of them lies, we’ll find out.”
Levi gave a firm nod.
Then I looked at Louis. “What about Anita?” I asked. “Any news?”
Louis frowned. “Mother needs to be called to order,” he said, and I raised an eyebrow.
“What happened?”
His frown deepened, barely containing his frustration.
“What did she do this time?” I asked, my tone low and sharp.
**’t Interfere
He exhaled hard. “She’s going around the pack house telling everyone we’ll be father soon… like it’s confirmed Anita is pregnant with our children.”
My eyes narrowed.
“She said what?”
Louis nodded. “And it’s more than talk. She’s been treating Anita like royalty-giving her special treatment. The maids and omegas serve her like she’s already Luna. She spends nearly every hour with Mother. It’s ridiculous.”
I shot to my feet, my chair scraping loudly behind me.
“She needs to be stopped,” I growled. “We let her meddle once, and we all saw what that led to. Never again.”
Without saying another word, I stormed out of the study, my brothers following closely behind.
As we approached Mother’s wing, the scent of jasmine and herbs filled the hallway. Two maids scurried past, avoiding our eyes like they knew what was coming.
I threw the door open.
There she was-Anita, lounging on a cushion, her feet propped up while a maid massaged her with rose oil. Mother sat nearby, sipping tea like she was hosting a queen.
The sight made my blood boil.
“You,” I barked at the maid. “Out. Now.”
The maid scrambled to her feet, bowing over and over before fleeing the room.
I turned to the others lingering near the walls. “Let me make this clear,” I said coldly. “The next maid I find pampering her like this… I’ll have their heads displayed in the training yard.”
Anita’s eyes widened, but she said nothing. My mother raised an eyebrow, clearly unhappy.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.