Chapter Forty-two
Faelen’s POV
I thought we were finished, but it turned out there was more. Raven’s smirk faded as she glanced around, her eyes narrowing.
She turned to face me and spoke in a low whisper. “Alpha Zodd has allies in Steeprock. They helped me sneak here.” She paused, looking at me up and down before she continued. “But you already suspected that, didn’t you?”
I didn’t respond, my throat tightening as the reality of the situation became clearer to me every second.
Steeprock’s presence here wasn’t a coincidence. They had a plan, and I was part of it, whether I liked it or not.
“What have you learned?” Raven asked, her voice sharp and expectant.
I hesitated. My heart raced as my mind flashed back to everything I had discovered since my arrival.
But should I trust her with it? I had no choice.
For now, she was my only link back to my pack, to completing the mission I had started months ago. I took a deep breath and began.
“Howle Wulf is probably on the verge of war,” I whispered, glancing around again to make sure no one was listening to us. “They’ve found gold near the border with Steeprock. A lot of it.”
Raven’s eyes widened slightly, her interest piqued.
“But it’s more complicated than that,” I continued. “Both packs are claiming the land where the gold was found. Steeprock says it’s within their territory, but Howle Wulf thinks otherwise. They’ve been sending men to mine it in secret, but…” I paused, unsure if I should reveal the rest.
Raven’s eyes narrowed. “But what?”
I swallowed, then went on. “Steeprock pack slaughtered the workers. All of them. It was an ambush, and no one made it back alive. They wanted to make sure Hunter’s pack couldn’t take the gold, and I think it was a move to provoke war.”
Raven listened carefully, her lips pressed into a thin line as I continued.
“Caleb… Hunter’s beta… sent spies into Steeprock to confirm it was their doing. They’re trying to figure out if the attack was sanctioned by their Alpha, or if it was rogue wolves acting on their own. I don’t know the outcome yet, but I’ll find out soon.”
I watched as Raven processed everything I’d said, her mind working quickly. For a moment, she didn’t speak, she just stared into the darkness behind me.
Finally, she met my gaze again, her expression unreadable. “You’ve done well,” she murmured, though there was something in her tone that made me uneasy. “This could tip the scales in our favor. Alpha Zodd will want to know everything.”
My heart pounded harder, guilt creeping in as I thought about Hunter, about everything I was doing behind his back. But I had no choice… I had to keep going.
“And what about you?” I asked quietly. “What are you going to do?”
Raven’s smirk returned, but it was colder now, less amused. “I told you. I’m here to take back the information you have gathered. That’s what I’ll do.”
But something about her felt off, as if there was more to her story than she was revealing.
“Continue gathering more.” She continued. “Especially about their defenses, their weaknesses. That’s where Zodd’s real interest is.”
Her words settled in me like some heavy load on my chest. My mission had always been clear to me… get information, report back.
But now, with every word she spoke, it felt like the stakes were higher than I had ever imagined. And the deeper I went, the more confused I became.
What was Alpha Zodd truly planning? Was this about the gold? Or something far more dangerous?
I opened my mouth, my thoughts crashing over each other. “Raven, there’s something else.”
She raised an eyebrow, clearly curious but impatient, her body already leaning back, ready to slip into the shadows and disappear again.
“I overheard something,” I continued, feeling a knot tighten in my stomach. “Hunter’s Beta mentioned that the Steeprocks are planning to start a war with them. But he also said they’d be stupid to do it alone, and that it means Steeprock must be backed by another pack. Do you know if that’s true? And if so, which pack could that be?”
For a moment, Raven’s expression froze, and then the smirk returned, sharper this time, like a blade. “Your job, Faelen,” she said slowly, stepping closer, “is to provide information, not ask questions.”
Her words stung at me, but I clenched my jaw, swallowing back the frustration and confusion spinning inside me.
Raven’s eyes shifted with amusement, as if she could see the trouble beneath my composed exterior.
“Let me make one thing clear,” she continued, her voice dropping to a whisper. “You don’t need to worry about anything else. You only need to worry about doing your job.”
I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could, she took a step back.
“We’ll talk more soon,” she whispered. “Be ready. I’ll be back in a week. Make sure you have more information by then.”
She took another step back, fading into the darkness. And just like that, she was gone.
I stood there for a moment, frozen, the cold still biting at my skin. Her words echoed in my mind, filling me with more confusion.
What did Zodd really want? Why wouldn’t she answer me? And who was this mysterious ally behind the scenes?
I pressed my hands against my arms, trying to warm myself, but the cold I felt wasn’t just from the night air, I knew.
It was from the realization that I was caught in a game far more dangerous than I had realized. And I had no idea the full story of it.
Turning back toward the mansion, I took a deep breath, my thoughts spinning. I had a week. A week to find more information, to keep playing my role.
But I suspected it was also for me to make up my on where my own loyalties truly lay.
Something told me Raven wasn’t here just to take whatever info I had back. That I was also being watched to make sure that I was doing my job.
It made sense that way.
I shook myself out of the chain of thoughts and forced my feet to move. I needed to get back to the servants’ quarters before someone noticed I was gone.
As I made my way back inside, I couldn’t shake the feeling that time was running out… and faster than I had anticipated.
My heart was still racing as I slipped through the hallways, the quarters was still silent except for the occasional creak of wood beneath my feet.
When I finally reached my room, I pressed my back against the door after closing it, letting out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding.
My head was a mess.
It was my job to spy on Hunter and his pack, and to send back information to Belladonna, but everything felt more complicated now.
I crossed the room, the silence almost too loud for me, and sat on the edge of my bed. My fingers fiddled with the blanket as my mind, still filled with thoughts, raced on.
Hunter hadn’t called for me throughout the day, and despite everything, I had wanted him to… almost needed him to.
Beyond my control, I had craved the safety I felt in his presence, the warmth of his arms around me, even though I knew what I was doing was wrong.
And now Raven wanted more… information on the pack’s defenses and weaknesses specifically.
I knew I could get it, but everything I learned made me feel like I was betraying him more and more. It wasn’t just a mission anymore. It had become personal.
I looked out the window, the moon was now barely visible behind clouds. Everything felt like a storm gathering… both outside and inside me.
The pack, the potential war, Hunter, everything … my heart thudded in my chest, heavy with guilt.
Was I just a pawn in something bigger than I could see in whatever Alpha Zodd was really planning?
I thought back to what I’d overheard Caleb say about Steeprock being foolish to start a war unless they had powerful backing.
Was that really true? And I couldn’t help but wondered what pack could be working with them to take on Howle Wulf?
But more importantly, why wouldn’t Raven tell me?
The questions piled up in my head, suffocating me as I lay back on the bed, staring at the ceiling.
I was stuck between two worlds… my pack and Hunter’s, even though it was clear to me where I belonged. And I had no idea what to think.
I turned on my side in the bed, pulling the blankets up to my chin, the cold still clinging to me.
Tomorrow, I would have to continue pretending. Pretending to be the loyal maid and to being indifferent when I saw Hunter, even though my heart ached to be near him.
And I would have to keep gathering information, playing this dangerous game for as long as I was needed to… Or as long as I could.