Chapter 107
Chapter 107
a stood among the trees with her father again, her arms wrapped tightly around herself as though the chill in the air had seeped beneath her skin.
She hated these meetings. She hated the secrecy of them, hated the way her father’s sharp eyes bore into her whenever she came back with answers he didn’t like. Tonight was no different. Gerald was waiting, and he was clearly frustrated.
“What’s going on in the pack house?” GeralMayd asked, his voice low. “Tell me, Maya. What are Alpha Alexander and Luna Faye up to?”
Maya hesitated, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. She wished she had something that would satisfy him, something that would stop the edge in his voice from turning into rage. But there was nothing. Not really.
“Nothing,” she finally said, her voice small. “Nothing’s going on. They just… they went out together today. That’s all.”
The moment the words left her lips, she knew they were the wrong ones. Gerald’s face twisted, anger flashing in his eyes.
“Together?” he spat, the word laced with disgust. “He took her out? After everything? After letting her walk free like she hasn’t betrayed him already?” He said, even though he knew deep down the whole thing was cooked up.
“Alexander is weak. Weak! An Alpha who doesn’t even deserve the title. How can he still stand by her side after everything. After what we put in motion? It wasn’t enough that he let her out of the dungeon and dragged his feet on the trial, now he lets her walk freely? Freely!” He turned on Maya, his voice rising. “She’s supposed to be a prisoner. A traitor. An enemy inside the walls of that pack house. And yet…” He broke off, shaking his head as though words couldn’t capture the insult.
Maya flinched at the anger in his tone, but she forced herself to speak. “I told you, father. I told you this might not work. Planting the ring in her purse…it was only ever going to work with the pack. They believe it. They look at her differently now. But Alexander? He’s not fooled, he’s on her side, Father. As long as he’s standing beside her, nothing you do will stick. You can’t take her from him that easily.”
The truth hung in the air, bitter and undeniable, but Gerald refused to hear it. He spun on her, eyes narrowing to slits. “Shut your mouth.”
Maya pressed her lips together. He hated being reminded of his failures, hated being told he couldn’t bend things to his will. But she couldn’t help it, she was tired. Tired of being dragged
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into his schemes, tired of living with the fear that one day she would slip and all of this would come crashing down on her head.
Gerald’s fists clenched and unclenched as he paced. His anger was a storm building, and Maya could feel the tension already. This wasn’t how he planned things. It wasn’t how it was supposed to go. And the fact that Alexander’s loyalty to Faye remained unshaken only made
it worse.
“Maybe you should just let this go,” Maya said softly, almost pleading. “It’s not working the way you thought it would. And if they find out…”
“Find out?” Gerald cut her off. “You sound like a fool. You think Alexander and his precious Luna scare me? You think their suspicions would stop me?” He stepped closer, his shadow looming over her, his eyes cold. “Don’t be stupid, Maya.”
Her chest tightened. She hated when he looked at her like that, like she was nothing more than a tool to be used, a pawn in a game she had never wanted to play. “I’m just saying,” she whispered, “I don’t like how this is going. I’m scared of what might happen if they ever discover the truth. You keep pushing, Father, and one day…”
“Enough.” The word cracked.
He stared at her for a long moment, and in that silence Maya’s pulse hammered in her ears. She thought…hoped…that maybe he would let it drop, just this once. But then his mouth curled into a sneer.
“What about Bella?” he demanded. “What is she doing to speed things up on her end? Or does she think just sending me a picture of the ring was enough? If this plan isn’t moving as fast as it should, why hasn’t she done more? She lives under the same roof as them, with express access to Alexander himself. She could…should…find a way to turn his head, to make him see things more clearly. What good is she if she can’t even manage that?”
Maya’s stomach turned. She had never liked Bella…never trusted the way she smiled. And hearing her father speak about her like this only deepened her unease. Bella and Gerald working together was something to worry about.
Sometimes, Maya wondered if they had any limits left.
“I would call Bella to discuss a thing or two, but right now isn’t a good time. There’s too much tension and someone might be listening,” Gerald said.
Maya briefly wondered how he knew all that yet still took the risk of calling her out here to give him updates.
As if Gerald heard her thought, he simply waved his hand. “Just go. And you better be ready
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