My Fated Alpha's Cruel Game (Elena and Marcus) novel Chapter 273

Chapter 273: Chapter 273 Seeds of Doubt

Briar’s POV

Ruth wastes no time with pleasantries when she enters my office.

The door clicks shut behind her with finality, and she places a thick manila folder on my desk without bothering to take a seat. Her shoulders are rigid, spine straight as steel. The kind of posture that screams trouble before a single word gets spoken.

"They’ve begun spreading their poison," she announces.

No need to specify who. We both understand the game being played here. Stories don’t just materialize from thin air. Someone plants the seeds, tends them carefully, helps them flourish in shadowy corners where truth gets murky.

She flips open the folder and rotates it toward me.

The contents make my stomach clench. Screenshots from private message boards. Transcribed conversations from closed forums. Fragments of discussions where people speak just vaguely enough to maintain plausible deniability while still making their point crystal clear. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

Briar’s judgment is clouded.

She’s gotten too involved.

Personal feelings are affecting her decisions.

She can’t be objective anymore.

Nothing direct. Nothing they could be called out for specifically. No single statement bold enough to drag into the open and dissect. Just a persistent whisper campaign, the same suggestions repeated until they start feeling like established fact to anyone not paying close attention to the source.

"They’re not making direct accusations," Ruth continues, her voice carefully neutral. "They’re sowing seeds of uncertainty. Allowing others to draw their own conclusions."

My ribcage contracts around my lungs.

Rage ignites white-hot behind my sternum, sudden and fierce enough that my wolf responds instantly, hackles rising at an invisible threat. For a heartbeat, the urge to lash out overwhelms everything else. To find whoever started this and make them understand the consequences. To tear apart their careful web of innuendo with bare hands.

Instead, I hold perfectly still.

One breath. Another. Measured and intentional. I feel the fury condense rather than fade, heat folding in on itself until it becomes something sharp and controlled. Anger is a weapon I can’t afford to swing wildly.

"How widespread is this?" I ask.

"Widespread enough," Ruth replies grimly. "Not universal, but it’s reached the circles that count."

I absorb this information with a slight nod. The rage still burns beneath my skin, but it’s contained now. Focused. Potentially lethal in the right circumstances.

"They’re hoping for a reaction," I observe. "Something they can point to as proof."

"Exactly."

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