Reclaimed By My Alpha (Natalia and Andrei) novel Chapter 282

Chapter 282

Lilith’s POV

I knew that knife, I lanew it better than I knew how many stones were on the ceiling of my cell and how many tick marks I’d scratched into the walls.

It was his knife.

And if Andrei had that knife, then it meant that the man who used to own it was dead. Really, truly dead this time, not just missing or captured or hiding somewhere like I’d been telling myself for the past six years.

I couldn’t stay in this cell. I couldn’t just sit here and let his body rot somewhere in the forest. I had to find him -or rather, what was left of him–and give him a proper burial.

But the only way I could find him was if I made it to the old encampment and discovered where he went after he left. And the only way I could do that was if I got out of this fucking cell.

Jaw clenching, I walked over to the cell door and gripped the bars, looking down the corridor. Two guards were stationed at the entrance to the detention block, but they looked bored. One was picking his teeth with his pinky fingernail, and the other was half–asleep leaning against the wall.

“Guard,” I called out in a lilting voice, “could I get some water? And maybe something to eat?”

The tooth picking guard looked up. “You just had dinner an hour ago.”

“I know, but I’m not feeling well. The interrogation earlier…” I let my words trail off and tried to look as pathetic as possible.

The guard sighed and muttered something to his partner, then walked down the corridor toward me. “What’s wrong with you now?”

“My stomach. I think I might be sick.” I clutched my midsection and doubled over slightly. “Could you just get me some bread or something? Anything to settle it?”

He rolled his eyes but unlocked a small panel in the cell door to pass through a piece of stale bread. As he did, I leaned closer to the bars.

“Henry, you have to get me out of here.”

The guard–Henry, one of the few remaining in Moonshadow who might actually listen to me–went very still. His eyes flicked up to meet mine, and I gripped his hand tight.

“Please,” I mouthed. It was a risky ask, one that could potentially get me in severe trouble, but I had to try.

Henry glanced back at his partner, who was still dozing against the wall, then looked at me again. His jaw was clenched, and for a moment I thought he was going to refuse. Then he gave the smallest possible nod.

“Eat the bread,” he said gruffly, loud enough for the other guard to hear. “It’ll help with your stomach.”

I took the bread and retreated to my cot, my heart hammering wildly against the inside of my ribcage. Henry owed me. Big time. Years ago, when he’d been caught stealing money from the pack vault, I’d covered for him. Lied to Alexander and took the blame for the missing cash under the condition that he paid me back in some way

Chopine 282

+25 Bonus

or another should I need it. 2

If there was one thing I’d learned from my years in the company of rogues, it was that it was always ideal to have someone around who owed you something.

Now it was time to collect on what I was owed.

I waited. And waited. Eventually, the sunlight peeking in through the small window in my cell faded, replaced by pale moonlight. I began to lose hope.

But then the other guard’s breathing eventually evened out into soft snores. Henry paced the corridor a few times, checking to make sure his partner was really asleep, then made his way back to my cell.

“You’ve got five minutes,” he whispered as he unlocked the door. “There’s a service tunnel behind the kitchens that leads to the outer perimeter. But if you get caught—”

“I was never here,” I said, slipping past him into the corridor. “You never saw me. You fell asleep on duty and when you woke up, the cell was empty.”

Henry nodded grimly. “Five minutes, Lilith. That’s all I can give you before I have to raise the alarm.”

I could do it in five minutes. I was already moving, my bare feet silent on the stone floors. The detention block was in the lower levels of the compound, and I’d memorized the layout during my time here. Left at the first intersection, straight down the main corridor, then right toward the service areas.

The kitchens were empty this time of night. I found the service tunnel Henry had mentioned–a narrow passage that the maintenance workers used to access the outer walls without going through the main compound.

It was tight, barely wide enough for one person, and completely dark. I felt my way along the rough stone walls, trying not to think about spiders or rats or anything else that might be lurking in here with me.

The tunnel seemed to go on forever. My knees were scraped from crawling over loose stones, and my hands were bleeding from feeling my way along the walls. But finally, finally, I saw a faint glow of moonlight ahead.

The tunnel opened onto a small gully outside the compound walls. I crawled out and took a deep breath of fresh air, then looked around to get my bearings.

I was on the eastern side of the compound, maybe half a mile from the main gates. Perfect. No one would expect me to go this direction.

The real encampment was about two hours away on foot, hidden in a series of caves in the hills that was actually south of Moonshadow territory, not north like I’d told Andrei. I’d spent five years there after the rogues first took me, before I’d finally had no choice but to return to normal civilization.

I’d never have told Andrei where it really was.

By now, the alarms had begun to sound behind me. They were looking for me. I shifted and started to run before they could find me.

After an hour of running in wolf form, I found it. The cave entrance was exactly where I remembered it, concealed behind a rockfall that looked natural but had actually been carefully arranged. I squeezed through the gap and into the tunnel beyond.

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