Chapter 106: Chapter 106

“Wow, that was an absolute disaster,” Sven huffed, raising an eyebrow at me as he took a long sip from his glass. He seemed completely calm. That’s when I realized we weren’t alone. The girl who had touched my hand leaped to his side, putting a protective arm around his leg. She looked at me with hazel eyes, through hair the same color as Sven’s. I stared at her open-mouthed for a few seconds, still sprawled on the carpet.

“She did quite well for the first time, didn’t she?” came a cold, serene female voice as she analyzed me.

I got up from the floor and finally noticed the woman sitting in the armchair. She wore a tight black dress, but looked professional with her short heels and her impeccable shoulder-length cut. Her eyes were a warm shade of brown, despite the cautious look on her face.

“Yes, that could be said,” Sven nodded, agreeing with whoever this woman was. Before I could yell at her, he turned his attention back to me. He tapped a nail against the rim of his glass, maintaining a steady rhythm as he spoke. “I really had no idea how little you knew until today. I could have avoided all this mess if I had known sooner.”

“Known in advance?” I scoffed. “If it hasn’t gone unnoticed, I’m trying to escape from this damn hotel with my companions. David has officially declared me his prisoner. Things have already gone to hell, and I don’t have time to stick around while you tell me the important truth I should have known days ago!”

“We have a few minutes, which will have to be enough,” she replied, her tone so tense that I held back my retort for a few seconds. “Amber has made sure to let your partner know that you’ll catch up with them if they manage to get out of the hotel.”

I looked at the girl who stared fearlessly into my eyes and waved at me. She glanced at Sven, a question burning in her eyes. He gave me a single look before nodding and placing a hand on her shoulder.

“I’m Amber, and I’m a white wolf too,” she smiled at me, her baby teeth missing. “I brought you here! I can go anywhere I want, but Dad doesn’t like to let me do it most of the time.”

I raised an eyebrow at Sven, whose gaze hardened. He brought Amber back to his side and took another long sip.

“Everyone always thought the game was Maurice’s thing, but he had no more skill than a child in an arcade,” Sven grimaced, but continued uninterrupted. “I was one of those you said was just sitting while David crawled in the dark.” Sven made a face, but continued. “But as you can see, I’ve been crawling in the dark too, getting my hands dirty. As you can see, we both have a lot to fight for. I’m not foolish; forming an alliance with you means risking a lot. I’m not someone to trust easily, but you’re the first person I’ve encountered who stands a chance against him. I knew it that night when you took Maurice Evans’ life.”

Part of me wanted to deny it. I didn’t consider myself a killer, but at the same time, I was aware that I had killed those men. Even with all my promises, I knew I would do it again if it meant saving the people I loved.

“So, it’s you who wants an alliance with me and my companions?” I asked, unable to avoid looking at Amber. Clearly, she was a white wolf, Sven’s daughter. I was curious to know who the woman sitting in the chair was.

“Deborah is my beta, a white wolf as well,” Thomas said, catching how my eyes had shifted toward the woman.

I’m sure my surprise was obvious as it crossed my face. The twins had briefly told me that the Beta position was almost always given to a man. The rules banning women from taking high-ranking positions had been abolished nearly sixty years ago, but still, none had been chosen.

“Against my better judgment, he’s trusting you,” Deborah frowned at me, tapping her manicured nails on the armrest of the chair. Leaning forward, I could sense the protective aura emanating from her. It was my gift to sense emotions that prevented me from taking offense at this last moment. “The information he’s giving you could destroy thirty years of work. If you betray him, or let this slip through your fingers, your abilities might kill me, but you’ll fall with me.”

“She’s quite abrasive; it’s her favorite quality,” Thomas shrugged, causing Deborah to let out a dry snort.

“What I need to know is that we’re on the same side, fully. Both of you clearly know what I want. At first, it was my freedom. I just wanted to be left alone, but now it’s become so much more than that,” I grimaced, gritting my teeth as David Zoe’s smug face wandered through my mind. “I don’t know the full extent of what David is doing, but it has to come to an end. I want all the white wolves to be free and every ounce of corruption eradicated from the High Council.”

“So young for so many aspirations,” Deborah murmured, her brown eyes fixed on my face.

“Yes, well, human life wasn’t working out too well for me. Turns out, I’m doing better here,” I retorted sharply, my words as cutting as steel.

“Then you’ll find out we’re on the same page, Sussan,” Thomas said firmly, bringing my attention back to the present. I could only sense a flicker of fear behind his cold wall of indifference. Whatever he was about to tell me really meant a lot to him and his pack. “You have some kind of alliance with Nicolas Zoe, so I assume you know something about what he’s doing. Am I right?”

It wasn’t exactly an alliance, I meant to say. We tolerated each other more for the sake of getting things done at both ends. Truth be told, having Nicolas Zoe as an ally could change everything, but he was too under his father’s control to break free.

“You’re right,” I nodded, opting for simplicity over anything else.

“He’s responsible for bringing the wolves to the borders of their lands; that’s the most he can achieve without being caught. I transport those wolves to my own territory and provide them with everything they need to start a new life. They’re allowed to leave if they wish, but most decide to stay,” Thomas said slowly, as if he wanted me to remember every detail. He looked at Deborah and offered her a friendly smile, which made me wonder if she was a white wolf too. “Doing this has given me powerful allies. Those who’ve dreamed of the arrival of someone like you, those who are tired of hiding and are ready to fight.”

“That’s where they’ve all been going,” I laughed in disbelief.

“I’m not the only one with white wolves at my disposal, though those in my pack work for me willingly,” Thomas said grimly, his eyes turning to stone. “David and Jason have white wolves within their borders. That’s how David discovered your activities. I couldn’t understand how he’d done it. I watched the security footage almost a hundred times, but then I found it. There’s a rumor that David possesses a white wolf who can see your memories through touch. It so happened that he was here today, just steps away from you on your way to the council room.”

Thomas promised to stay in touch with us at some point, although he hadn’t given me an idea of his methods.

I had given the twins an address to go to, a safe house where I would be waiting for them. We needed to stay out of sight for a few days, allowing David’s troops to disperse as they moved farther and farther away. Then, we’d leave the safe house and go back home.

Sven was right; alliances were risky business. He was entrusting me with his pack’s truth, and I trusted he wouldn’t send me into a room full of David’s soldiers.

“She can only transport to places she’s been before. She doesn’t need to wander around the place, but a simple foot in the door will let her roam freely,” Thomas explained. “Staying at the safe house will give us a constant connection until you must venture back with your pack. From there, we’ll figure out something else.”

It was hard to doubt him when Amber took my hand in hers and smiled at me. Her childlike innocence was untainted by the harsh world we lived in. After seeing that flicker of tenderness in her eyes, I knew he had protected her well all these years.

“Are you ready?” Amber whispered, smiling at me.

“I think so,” I nodded, returning her smile.

The hotel room around me twisted and warped before transforming into something entirely different. The Persian rug turned into a white, unkempt one, and the old couch elongated into a modern-looking sectional. The brick fireplace against the wall was replaced with a long bar that stretched across the wall. Decanters and bottles of expensive liquor remained unopened on the shelves.

The scent of stale air freshener and cleaner hung in the air, telling me someone had been here recently to tidy the place up.

I stood by a panel on the wall, housing at least ten light switches. After a few attempts, I managed to turn on the lights. Ten circular lights protruded from the ceiling, bathing the room and making me shiver.

I descended two flights of stairs to where the sectional was and sank into it. It was surprisingly comfortable given its flat appearance, but it did nothing to ease the nerves gathering in my stomach.

Waiting was the worst part of all this. I’d rather be with Liam and Ethan, fighting whoever was keeping us from leaving. It would be worth it to know they were safe, that Aly and everyone else was too.

I turned on the television mounted on the wall and flipped through to hear some noise. Within the silence, I could hear every creak and movement in the house. I contemplated picking up the tablet and gave in when my curiosity won.

There was no password when I swiped up. The screen lit up as the tablet unlocked, revealing nearly twenty different screens. Live video feeds from various parts of the house popped up, including one of me sitting on the living room couch.

I clicked on one that showed the long driveway, nearly enveloped by trees. The next tab held a map, with a small section circled in red. I dryly laughed at the screen. It wasn’t much farther from the hotel, probably just a couple of hours away.

If they were in wolf form, they’d get there quite quickly, assuming no one was injured. From there, my thoughts continued to darken. I focused my attention on the tablet, using it as a desperate distraction.

The last tab was on the internet and looked like some kind of news channel’s website. Boldly at the top was a catchy headline, followed by a lengthy paragraph. I refreshed the page and almost dropped the tablet.

It slipped through my loosened grip as an image of me flashed on the screen. It wasn’t just one, but a whole gallery of them. Me pressed against Ethan in the council room, a look of anger on my face. Another where I was at the podium, mouth agape as I rejected the three offers.

I felt strangely invaded, but I couldn’t help reading the paragraph below the photo gallery. It described exactly what I had feared. That I was dangerous, a powerful white wolf on the loose. Fleeing from the High Council for acts of betrayal. David Zoe had almost declared war on us, all without making a formal statement.

I scrolled past the news article, trying to force the numbers to stop swimming behind my eyes. The remaining members of the High Council were offering a significant reward for my capture, alive, not dead.

Sven was doing his part, staying in the shadows to keep his own operation safe.

I rested the tablet on the table and stared at the screens as they showed me various rooms in the house. Only one camera interested me, the one that led directly to the safe house. With the TV playing in the background, I looked at the tablet and waited for my companions to find their way back to me.