Marvin’s response left Aldrich profoundly shocked. “I must have something wrong with my ears…” His wise mind had already analyzed countless possibilities, but it boiled down to Alisa insulting Marvin with words, or painting a more sinister picture of her, a crafty Alisa revealing her plans to destroy the interview event and deliberately provoking Marvin to stop her at all costs, wanting to consume her to ensure she wouldn’t spill any secrets. But Aldrich couldn’t fathom why Marvin’s frenzy was due to himself!
He couldn’t understand why he would have any dirty secrets, and he was astonished at Marvin’s defense of him. Aldrich straightened his posture again, rapidly thinking. “Humans with dark intentions can become extremely cunning and evil. Perhaps you were deceived by Alisa.”
“Aldrich, can you please stop being so self-righteous? I’m not as stupid as you imagine!”
“Then tell me, what does Alisa have on you?” Aldrich’s lips curled into a cold smile. He was confident he had no vulnerabilities for Alisa to exploit.
Marvin’s chest heaved, and he stood up, his gaze complex as he watched Aldrich pace back and forth. He scrutinized Aldrich until he asked a shocking question. “Did you sleep with her?”
This was taking the joke to a galactic scale! Was Marvin’s brain reduced to a submissive deer being pursued by wolves? Did his human brain cells turn into single-celled organisms when he transformed into a wolf?
Aldrich felt his face might split open from astonishment. Not to mention his years of chastity and lack of scandal, he put all his energy into work. Didn’t Marvin realize how much desire he would need to have a relationship with Alisa, considering her identity?
He thought his silence was the best answer to Marvin, but it only made him more anxious, more convinced that Aldrich was cheating on Maggie.
Marvin angrily pushed him into the bookshelf. “Speak up, Aldrich Barrett! Did you try to force Alisa into a relationship?”
Aldrich’s brain was almost frying. He shouldn’t have personally questioned Marvin; he should have let Charlie present the investigation report directly. He stifled the absurdity inside but couldn’t help a sneering smile. “Me and Alisa? Or me forcing her? Marvin, I take back what I said earlier about you still being my brother.”
“If I knew you’d react this way, daring to do but not admitting it, an unfaithful brother, I’d rather not!”
“Would you believe it?”
“I know every detail of your nights together!”
“Shut up! Don’t let your voice pollute my ears!”
“You’re the coward. I should have let those filthy bed photos scatter into the living room when the sports car burst into the interview event, exposing you as a cheating wolf, facing the condemnation of the entire BlueMoon Pack. You should have fallen to the lowest depths.”
Aldrich caught the crucial point. “Bed photos? You easily believed that?”
“I wanted to believe those photos were manipulated, but Aldrich, the intimate pictures of you forcing Alisa had no signs of alteration, even the capture time was between two and three in the morning. How can I trust you?”
“No… I haven’t done anything with Alisa.” Aldrich felt profound exhaustion and perplexity for the first time.
“You’re still trying to defend yourself…”
Reaching the peak of sorrow rendered Marvin powerless. He deflated like a balloon and let go of his grip on Aldrich, who was pushed against the bookshelf. “Growing up in the shadow of your halo, all the wolves mocked me. Alisa believed I could never be like you, but I didn’t care because… I took pride in being associated with you. I respected you, like I did Father…”
So, when the out-of-control sports car crashed through the gate, baskets were flattened, and the shocked cries of the werewolf crowd rang out, the first thing that should have burst out of the car was the malicious Alisa, aggressively throwing a stack of intimate bed photos of Aldrich and her out of the car window.
Dirty bed photos would spread throughout the hall. The interview team rushed forward to pick up the photos, resulting in insults, contempt, arguments, and chaos. Aldrich would be stained with the label of infidelity, a deadly blow for a contestant in the race for Wolf King. Even if he later clarified, it would still be brought up by malicious wolves to repeatedly attack him.
But at that moment, Marvin thought Aldrich would die-not physically but spiritually. Marvin knew deeply how strong Aldrich’s sense of responsibility was. He engraved the moral compass and spiritual righteousness of the Barrett family into his soul. He strived for the family’s honor throughout his life, with strict determination.
If a prominent, wholeheartedly dedicated leader like Aldrich were to be brought down by dirty sexual scandals, it would be a complete breakdown. Aldrich could heroically die in battle, but not by being bitten uselessly by a dark serpent. That would be a tremendous disgrace and regret.
Marvin, at that moment, only wanted to protect his brother. He transformed into a rough gray wolf, opened his massive jaws, and did his utmost to devour the flying photos, hiding all the evidence in the darkness.
Everything turned into a farcical act where Marvin, as the villain, defended his brother. The werewolves who protected their brother were now criminals, currently being questioned and challenged by their own brothers.
Aldrich saw the weight and complexity in Marvin’s eyes. He hadn’t felt this warm current pass through his heart since his mother’s death. Just moments ago, he had thought Marvin had gone mad, but now it was clear that Marvin was fighting to preserve his position.
He steadied his emotions. “Marvin, listen to me. I haven’t betrayed Maggie. But I do want to say thank you for what you did.”
“The photos aren’t fake.”
“Yes, I did act inappropriately close to Alisa, but it wasn’t sexual.”
Marvin recounted with disappointment, “By the bedside, you held Alisa’s wrist, kissed her, and embraced her from behind, covering her mouth…”
“Yes, but there’s a misunderstanding there.” Aldrich confirmed that Marvin was describing the night when he received a notification from Charlie and rushed to the Moonlit Forest. As he went downstairs, Alisa impersonated Maggie’s appearance. He immediately saw through her disguise, warning her by gripping her wrist. As for the act of embracing her from behind and covering her mouth, it was to avoid any misunderstanding with Maggie, who suddenly descended from upstairs. The appearance of the bed should have been an illusion created by the backrest of the sofa.
“She’s a very scheming woman. I thought I could evade her advances and present a stern stance to get rid of her. But I never expected her real intention was to secretly take these photos… I don’t know what else she might do.”
Aldrich explained everything to Marvin, who was relieved yet infuriated. “Expose her true colors and kick her out of Barrett Manor!”
“Aldrich, this is like driving a dagger into Maggie’s heart!” Aldrich disagreed; he remained rational.
“Maggie is different from Alisa. She is kind and reasonable.”
“It’s precisely because they are different that emotionally sensitive Maggie is more vulnerable to harm. Knowing her own sister has treated her like this, her emotions will undoubtedly be low, and it’s harmful for both her and the child.”
“Do you mean if we expose it, the harm disappears?” Marvin angrily sat back by the window. “I can’t stand being in Barrett Manor with Alisa!”
He was afraid that the wolf within him might attack Alisa again when it was quiet at night or when there were no other werewolves present. After all, wolves have a unique and enduring psychological drive to pursue and hunt prey they have failed to capture before.