My Fated Alpha's Cruel Game (Elena and Marcus) novel Chapter 173

Chapter 173: Chapter 173 Moonlit Kiss

Dawn’s POV

Corbin tracked me down after that interrogation they put me through about the failed mission. Relief washed over me when he confirmed what I already suspected - they didn’t think I was involved in whatever went wrong out there. Still, I couldn’t shake the curiosity about who they actually suspected was feeding information to the wolves.

The Captain himself told me he never doubted my loyalty. Growing up on this base finally worked in my favor for once.

Corbin spent the better part of an hour reassuring me that my career wasn’t over because our mission went sideways. What really helped ease my anxiety was learning that ours wasn’t the only operation that failed recently. Several teams had arrived at their targets to find empty compounds and abandoned territories.

At least I wasn’t cursed. Two failed missions in a row had me questioning whether I was cut out for this life, despite everyone telling me I was one of the most promising Hunters to come through this base in years.

That’s what Corbin believed anyway, and he’d trained more Hunters than anyone else here.

After Corbin finished his pep talk, I headed straight to the training room where Asher, Nico, and Koa were already deep into their workout routine. I grabbed some weights and joined them, letting the familiar burn in my muscles distract me from everything else.

We hadn’t been training long when Talia sauntered into the room, her shirt deliberately rolled up to expose her toned stomach. She moved with the kind of confidence that demanded attention from every guy in the vicinity.

"Hey boys, I need someone to spot me on the free weights over there," she purred, running her fingers along one of the support beams. "Any volunteers?"

The three guys exchanged glances that lasted a beat too long before Nico stepped forward, ever the gentleman.

"Sure thing. Let’s get you set up."

I watched them walk away, Talia’s hips swaying just a little too much for a casual workout session.

"Everything okay over there?" Asher asked, noticing my distraction.

"Yeah, just processing some things," I replied, adjusting my grip on the barbell.

"You know I’m here if you need to talk through whatever’s bothering you."

"I appreciate that. It’s more about the mission than anything personal."

"That was rough, but we’ll get them next time," Asher said with conviction. "They can’t stay one step ahead of us forever."

"Exactly," Koa chimed in between reps. "These wolves think they’re clever, but they’ll slip up eventually."

Something nagged at me though, something I couldn’t quite put into words. "I feel like I still need to prove myself around here. I know they’ve seen me train, they know what I’m capable of, but lately everything feels off."

Asher and Koa shared another one of those quick glances, the kind they thought I wouldn’t catch.

"What do you mean by off?" Asher’s voice carried a note of concern that made me look up from my weights.

"Like I’m not quite myself anymore. It’s hard to explain - almost like something’s shifting inside me that I can’t control."

Before either of them could respond, another girl appeared asking Koa for help with her form. I rolled my eyes as he immediately abandoned his workout to assist the suddenly helpless trainee.

The pattern was becoming ridiculous. These women transformed into damsels in distress the moment they spotted Asher, Nico, or Koa in the training room. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

"Let’s get out of here before the whole female population of the base decides they need personal training sessions," Asher muttered, clearly as annoyed as I was.

We spent the next few hours working on tactical drills in one of the outdoor training areas before heading to dinner. The rest of the evening passed in routine - shower, gear maintenance, and the usual banter in the bunkhouse.

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