“Shite…” Maeve whispered and then cleared her throat. “Yer a bit early, Alice. You should have sent word. I’d of had a room made ready for you.”
“Oh, really?” Alice asked, tilting her head to the side with a smile. “But, if I had done that, you would have been expecting me… where is the fun in that?”
Maeve let out a nervous chuckle and nodded.
“Spose that’s true,” she replied. “I know how much you like yer games.”
Alice chuckled.
“Oh, Mavie…” she sighed. “You haven’t ever seen me play games.”
Maeve took a breath and swallowed. Lower her eyes from Alice’s gaze.
Ashleigh looked toward the door hoping that Caleb had stayed asleep.
Alice turned her eyes to Ashleigh.
“Ashleigh,” Alice called. “I’m surprised to see you. I was scheduled to arrive the day after tomorrow, but you weren’t due until two days after that.”
Ashleigh took a deep breath and straightened her back, turning to face Alice confidently. The situation was dangerous. She couldn’t let Alice know about Caleb, not yet. But to shift away the suspicion, Ashleigh needed to keep up appearances as though nothing had changed.
“And I’m surprised to hear you admit to being surprised by something, Alice,” Ashleigh said sarcastically. “Losing your touch?”
Alice held Ashleigh’s gaze. She narrowed her eyes, and Ashleigh swallowed, suddenly feeling like she was being watched by a hungry predator.
Alice’s smile grew, and her eyes sparkled with something mischievous.
“Curiouser and curiouser…” Alice whispered, taking another step toward Ashleigh.
Ashleigh unconsciously shifted to block the door. It was barely a movement, but enough to be caught by Alice.
Her heart was beginning to pump harder. Ashleigh focused on slowing it down, on keeping calm. She took a deep breath and crossed her arms with an irritated sigh.
“I had some extra time on my hands,” she growled. “Isn’t Axel the one always telling me I need a vacation? I finally took his advice.”
Alice tilted her head.
“Really?” she asked.
Ashleigh nodded.
“Strange…” Alice smiled. “Your schedule was quite full the last I checked.”
“Are you keeping tabs on me?” Ashleigh asked with a growl.
“Wasn’t it only moments ago that you were surprised to find me surprised?” Alice chuckled.
“You’ve always been too interested in other people’s business,” Ashleigh replied quietly, looking away from Alice.
“Isn’t that why you wanted me to return to work?” Alice grinned.
Ashleigh sighed.
“Alice, I came here for personal reasons,” she said. “Whatever those are, I don’t have to report that to you. You are not my Luna.”
“No, I’m not,” Alice said. “But you are a representative for all the packs in our territory. So, when you don’t show up for work, we’re going to have questions.”
Ashleigh furrowed her brow. She hadn’t been lying when she said she had time available. She had explicitly built extra days into her schedule to allow for traveling between packs and possibly running into trouble.
Alice could see the confusion on Ashleigh’s face. She sighed.
“Alpha Rosen,” Alice said. “You were meant to meet her a week ago but didn’t show up.”
It was true the day that Caleb had surfaced in the lake, Ashleigh was supposed to have been meeting with another Alpha in the region. But even before she had found him, she had already decided she wasn’t going to the meeting.
The truth was, Ashleigh was at the tavern nearby to drink until she couldn’t think straight anymore. The day she had called Leshy in the forest was the hardest in several years. She had fallen back into the pain of her loss and was struggling to find her way out of it.
But then Caleb returned.
Ashleigh took a deep breath.
ραΠdαsΝοvεl ƈοm “You’re right. I didn’t go,” she said. “But I sent someone in my place. The meeting wasn’t canceled or ignored.”
“It’s unlike you to let others do your work,” Alice replied.
“People change,” Ashleigh sighed.
“Not that much,” Alice replied, the smile remained on her face, but in her voice, it was gone.
Ashleigh looked up, meeting Alice’s eyes.
Maeve looked between the two women. She could feel the tension growing between them. Ashleigh was desperate to keep her secret, and Alice was suspicious of what she was hiding.
Maeve stepped toward Alice, placing herself between the two women, slightly blocking Ashleigh.
“I was the one that attended in Ashleigh’s place,” Maeve said, smiling at Alice, “did Alpha Rosen have any complaints?”
“Complaints?” Alice smiled at Maeve, “I trained you myself. How could there be any complaints?”
“So then… no problems, right?” Maeve said.
“You did well, Maeve,” Alice said. “But the problem is, you were not assigned that meeting.”
“What’s the big deal?” Ashleigh asked. “It was a basic check-in. You already said she did fine, and there were no complaints, so why are you making an issue of this?”
Alice touched Maeve’s elbow, signaling her to step aside, but Maeve hesitated.
“It’s okay,” Ashleigh whispered, touching Maeve’s back.
Alice let out a gentle scoff and smiled as Maeve stepped aside.
“Ashleigh, your personal life is your own,” Alice began with a far less cordial tone than before, “what you do… when, where, who… I could care less.”
“Good, then we understand each oth—”
“But,” Alice interrupted, “you asked me…. No... you begged me… to take Maeve under my wing and train her.”
Ashleigh furrowed her brow.
“What does that—” she began to ask.
“Maeve,” Alice interrupted Ashleigh’s question.
Maeve looked at her.
“Yes?”
“Is Ashleigh lying to me?” Alice asked, keeping her eyes locked on Ashleigh.
Maeve swallowed. She looked at Ashleigh and back at Alice as she considered what to say and how to say it.
“She… is here for personal reasons…” Maeve replied carefully. “That’s true.”
Alice let out a slow breath, closing her eyes. After a moment, she swallowed and opened her eyes before taking another step toward Ashleigh.
“Half-truths and misdirection.…” Alice whispered. She clenched her jaw as her eyes grew bright with anger. “Is this what we agreed to?”
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