Elena’s POV
The morning routine felt automatic as I guided the children downstairs and prepared their breakfast. After getting everyone ready, I drove Seraphina and the twins to school before heading into town to my office.
Piper sat at her usual spot behind the reception desk, greeting me with a warm smile as I walked through the front door.
She approached with my stack of messages, and I settled behind my desk to review who had attempted to reach me overnight.
My computer hummed to life as I opened my email inbox and began scrolling through the endless list of correspondence.
Most messages contained routine requests from pack members seeking job transfers or addressing the typical administrative matters that required my attention throughout the territory.
A substantial pile of invoices demanded payment, so I retrieved the corporate credit card designated exclusively for pack expenses and methodically settled each outstanding bill to ensure our accounts remained current. However, maintaining focus had become increasingly challenging lately.
"Hey Mom." Caleb’s voice interrupted my concentration as he entered my office.
"Hello there. What brings you here? I assumed you would have accompanied your father today." I replied.
"No. I told him I would remain here with you instead." He answered.
"I hardly require supervision. You should understand that better than anyone." I stated.
"You’ve seemed unusually preoccupied recently. I simply wanted to ensure someone stayed at the pack consistently so you would have support available whenever needed." Caleb explained.
"Your concern means everything to me. However, if you have obligations elsewhere, please attend to them. You don’t need to monitor my every move. Maya serves that purpose adequately." I responded.
"I understand that completely. Still, she lacks our family connection and wasn’t present during Briar’s disappearance." Caleb countered.
I carefully opened the correspondence, unable to recognize either the distinctive handwriting or the mysterious wax seal adorning the envelope’s back.
The message read: Elena, I am aware of your search for Briar. I possess knowledge that she remains alive and currently resides among the hunters. Her situation has become perilous. I understand your true identity and her genuine nature. Unfortunately, she remains completely unaware. She knows nothing of her real background. My knowledge stems from being her closest friend and conducting thorough research into her origins. Meet me tonight in the woodland area beyond your southern territorial boundary. Arrive at midnight. Come without accompaniment or I will not appear. I assure you this represents no deception. She faces serious trouble and must recover her authentic memories.
The letter concluded abruptly without any signature or identifying information. Despite the anonymity, the author clearly possessed extensive knowledge about our circumstances.
I recognized this couldn’t possibly be mere coincidence, and meeting this mysterious person at midnight had become absolutely necessary.
Perhaps I had promised Caleb that I wouldn’t act impulsively, but that commitment was made before receiving this critical correspondence.
I had no choice but to respond to this summons. If Briar faced any form of danger or found herself trapped in a threatening situation, I would extract her from it immediately.
That singular objective consumed my thoughts completely at this moment.

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