210 Blood and Betrayal
+ Paints)
Mara
After updating Lucian about the clean-out, I headed for Steel Corp. He took it better than I expected, calm, almost too calm, but I was grateful. We didn’t need any more surprises. I chose the mini coupe for the drive. Small. Fast. Easy to weave through the city without drawing attention.
When I arrived, the military presence outside Steel Corp was a wall of control and intimidation. A line of stone-faced soldiers, locked and loaded. I paused behind the wheel, staring at them. The image dragged up bitter memories, of deserters, of ground we’d lost. Of how this family, my family, was slowly bleeding out while Chase kept striking with precision.
He had the upper hand. Always. He knew our faces, our movements, our vulnerabilities. Meanwhile, we had scraps, only what he allowed us to know. That imbalance chilled me to the bone.
I stepped out, tossing my keys to the valet without a word, and made my way inside. The lobby was a hive of tension. People gathered in tight, frightened clumps. Soldiers barked orders, their grip rough, their patience thin. I didn’t spare them a glance. Not out of cruelty, out of necessity. This wasn’t the moment for softness. It was time to root out betrayal. I needed answers. Fast. There were too many suspects, too many shadows. I’d likely need help from the other Alphas to get through the questioning, but before that, I had to speak to the workers.
I’d never used a mind link on this scale before. I wasn’t even sure I could. I wasn’t an Alpha. But I had no other choice. Closing my eyes, I reached, tried to feel the room, feel the minds. It was like pushing my thoughts through molasses. My skull throbbed with pressure. Then, a faint click, connection. I latched onto it.
“You’re being held,” I said through the link, my voice echoing across the mental thread, “because of a brutal financial assault committed against Steel Corp this morning.”
The mental backlash hit like a sonic boom. Shock. Fear. Confusion. So many voices all reacting at once, it shattered through my head like glass. I gasped, hands flying to my ears, but the noise was internal, vibrating through my bones.
I forced one more message through.
“Our accounts were hacked. Liquid assets are gone.”
The collective gasp made me flinch again. Then the flood of mental noise became unbearable. I snapped the link, severing the connection.
Blood. Warm. Wet. I touched my nose and ears. Red smeared across my fingertips. I’d gone too far. My body wasn’t built
for this, not this kind of strain.
But I wouldn’t crumble here. Not in front of soldiers or workers or anyone else watching.
I straightened my spine, pushed through the pain, and headed for the elevator. Inside, shielded by cold metal and silence, I let my back hit the wall. My vision blurred. My heart pounded like it was trying to break free from my chest.
What the f**k was I thinking?
Never again. I would never do that again.
When the doors opened, I walked out as if nothing had happened. Composed. Focused. Every step a refusal to show
weakness.
Alice was waiting outside my office. Beside her, a young man, about my age, watched me closely.
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< 210 Blood and Betrayal
I gave a curt nod and invited them in. Before stepping inside, I turned to Mary and quietly thanked her. She smiled softly and nodded, her eyes knowing.
The war wasn’t just out there, it was inside these walls now. And it had already started.
I went straight to my desk, motioning for Alice and her guest to take a seat. My head still throbbed from the mind-link backlash, but I pushed the pain aside. There was no room for weakness, not now.
“Luna Mara,” Alice began, gesturing toward the man beside her, “this is Mark Westberge. He’s an underground hacker. I noticed your IT department isn’t… up to par. I hired someone I trust to get the job done right.”
I glanced at the man. Mid-twenties, sharp eyes, hands still fidgeting from the rush of the work. He didn’t speak, just
nodded.
“Thank you, Mrs. McBride,” I said, keeping my tone neutral. “So, what’s our next move?”
Alice smiled faintly. “He’s already done it. While we waited.”
That caught me off guard. “Already?”
She nodded. Mark looked to her again, clearly preferring she do the talking.
“He traced the stolen funds. A portion of it, scattered across forty-nine personal accounts here on Mooncrest Island. But the rest, far more, was funneled into pack accounts in Mistwood.”
I frowned, trying to follow. “I don’t understand. What do packs in Mistwood have to do with this?”
Alice straightened, ready to clarify. “Every pack maintains a central bank account, a collective purse, essentially. It helps them fund internal operations. Now, these specific packs, Goldenpeak, Kentville, Cape, Vale, Riverfall, and Silvergate, recently opened new accounts in Mistwood. Each one received exactly one million credits this morning. The transfers came from a company called Cains and Whales Limited. That’s where the rest of the stolen Steel Corp funds went.”
I leaned forward. “Forget the forty-nine local accounts, I already know those. But the packs? That’s what I need. Can you
give me their names?”
She nodded. “Goldenpeak, Kentville, Cape, Vale, Riverfall, and Silvergate.”
The names hit like small hammers. Not the most powerful packs on the island. If anything, they’d always been struggling, quiet, desperate. Vulnerable. And someone had just handed them a fortune.
Bribes.
That’s what this was.
“Do we know if they had help from someone inside?” I asked. My voice was tight now. Controlled, but edged with rising
anger.
Alice hesitated. Her eyes flicked to Mark, then back to me. She was weighing something, maybe loyalty, maybe fear.
“Don’t sugarcoat it,” I said, voice low. “Give it to me straight.”
She nodded, her jaw tightening. The truth was coming, and I wasn’t sure I was ready for it.
