Kael’s POV
All of us returned home. It felt like everything was at peace finally, but I wasn’t sure how long this peace would last. After lunch, when Eira and Raven were napping, we had the chance to discuss things.
Lucian told us about what he and Eira had talked about last night, and how she finally opened up about that incident.
"That day, why was Alice there? Why wasn’t she home?" I asked Lucian.
"We were busy even after Alpha training, learning new things by your side, and Mom was working late in the hospital," Lucian answered. "We didn’t know how she ended up there. And then we all were busy with our revenge, and the police had the culprit who killed her and betrayed our pack by colluding with Keiren..."
I understood what he was trying to say. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮
"The last call Alice got was from Keiren," Rafe said. "I managed to dig into her mobile more, though it’s entirely destroyed. He must have had something on her to be able to call her out, and she left without even telling anyone, despite knowing Keiren was our enemy."
"That Keiren surely had something against Eira and Alice to make them do what he wanted," Jason commented coldly. "The bastard did it and we didn’t even know."
"We need to find out what he used to blackmail them," I concluded, then looked at Lucian. "Will you be able to ask Eira about her video with that bastard?"
"Last night I wanted to... but..." he sighed. "I’ll try again when the moment is right."
I hummed and asked Rafe, "What else did you find in both their mobiles?"
"Call history, which was normal except for those last calls," Rafe answered. "And chat history... it’s not recoverable except for a few regular messages those two shared normally." Rafe smirked and looked at Roman. "Lucky bastard was included in the chat."
Before Rafe could say anything more, Lucian and Jason gave him a warning gaze. "No need to share my sister’s private messages about some bastard she fell for."
Rafe chuckled. "I thought you would like to know what your sister talked about. Want me to..."
"Fuck off!" Jason warned. "Let it be private unless it’s something that can help us solve the mystery of the past."
"Alright," Rafe replied in a lazy tone, but turned to Roman again, "She cursed you a lot for bullying Eira, but then, she cursed herself for falling for you as well."
Roman could say nothing in his defence.
While Lucian warned, "Want me to shut that mouth of yours?"
Rafe smirked. "Go ahead if you dare."
"Meet me later," Lucian said.
"Alright!" Roman interrupted them and asked trying to divert the attention from Alice liked him. "Was there anything about the guy, I mean Eira’s boyfriend? Who’s he? They talked about it once when we went to their home the next day of the Moon festival."
There was silence for a while before Rafe said, "There’s no mention of it. Maybe Eira didn’t tell Alice who that guy was either."
"Are you sure?" Roman asked, not believing him entirely.
Rafe simply hummed. "As I have been told, I am not going to look into those girls’ private matters."
"Never mind," Roman said. "Now she is with us, doesn’t matter who the bastard was."
Once more there was a silence, which I broke.
"Back to the matter," I instructed. "Now we are more certain that Sophia was involved. So, I need to find out who had drugged them. Alice—of course Keiren drugged her—but Eira, she was home. Either she was drugged at home, or she was drugged on the way by Sophia."
"If I calculate the time needed for the drug to take effect and to travel from her home to that place, given the quantity found in her blood test, I can conclude she had that drug while leaving home or just after leaving home when she met Sophia."
"So her grandparents and Sophia, both are under suspicion now," I said.
"We have Sophia, but those old hags..." Jason said. "Only if we could get them as well."
"No need to be in a hurry," I said in a strict tone. "The priority is to secure Raven’s safety. As for those two, we will get them soon. They can’t keep hiding for long after losing the precious thing they were hiding for the past six years."
"Making Sophia talk will work as well," Roman said. "How long will it take for that bitch to come out?"
"There’s still time," I told him. "We can’t do everything at the same time. Be patient. We don’t want her to die before she answers us."
"She can’t die," Rafe said. "Absolutely can’t."
All of us looked at him with questioning gazes.
"The bitch I sold in exchange for a DNA sample of that bastard of RavenClaw pack — is this bitch only," he answered.
Lucian asked, "You sold her to...?"
"What use does she have for us after she reveals everything?" Rafe’s red eyes turned wickedly darker. "So I thought to put her to some good use, exactly the way she deserves."
The smirk on his lips widened, which told us he truly had set her up straight for hell.
"When are we getting the DNA sample?" I asked.
Wants to meet me? That came as a surprise.
I reached the guest room at security.
A black luxury car was parked nearby. The bitch was living in luxury while she had almost ruined her kids. I wondered what she was here for.
The guards guided me to the room and I told them to wait outside.
Inside, a sickly older woman sat in a chair. Layla Ashborn.
Though weak, she wore luxury clothes, a designer handbag rested on the table, and a thick layer of makeup and dark lipstick — matching her red dress — hid her sickly ugliness.
She was in the hospital, and from how weak she looked compared to the famous pack beauty she used to be, I could tell she was seriously ill.
Was she here to show regret for what she did to her kids? If that was the case, it meant she still had some shame left in her. If not, then she would be kicked out for sure.
She looked at me as if I owed her something. That arrogance on her face was still the same.
"What are you here for?" I asked.
"You have my son tied to you, and you ask me why I am here?" she said, letting out a mocking chuckle.
"He wasn’t your son anymore the day you sold him to those monsters," I countered.
"That’s my kid I raised inside my body and gave birth to with painstaking effort, so I have all the right over him," she said smugly, "and don’t forget, he is pureblood Alpha, because his father had I, a pureblood she-wolf to give birth for him. If he wasn’t Alpha, would you have made him your mate brother? You should thank me for giving him birth and adding to your strength."
I looked at her for a moment in silence and said calmly, "Alright. Thank you for giving birth to my brother. What else?"
"I heard you got a pureblood for you five brothers," she said without a tinge of hesitation.
My jaw clenched as I tried to suppress my anger. If not for Roman’s mother, I would have snapped her head out from her shoulder.
"She is my mate, and I warn you to be careful with your words," I warned calmly.
She chuckled, "Of course I won’t disrespect your mate, Alpha Kael," she said, "But your mate, that means she is my son’s mate as well and I have a right over her," she smirked, "Isn’t it?"
"So?" I asked, wanting to know where she was heading to.
If it was something that angered me, I was going to rid Roman of his mother right here.

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