apter 43
That irritated me more than I wanted to admit. It was short–sighted. It was stupid. It was also exactly the kind of power play I had expected from Elena’s father.
The Alliance Summit wasn’t just a formality–it was a negotiation. One that would set the course for every pack in the region. It would have been in both our interests to hammer out some details privately before the Council forced something neither of us wanted.
And yet, he had turned me down outright.
I tapped a finger against my desk, my mind already turning over the possibilities.
Maybe I should pretend I never received the message. Maybe I should go to Moonstone
anyway, force a conversation that needed to happen.
Because one way or another, this wasn’t over.
And I wasn’t going to let Moonstone shut me out.
ELENA
The estate was quieter than usual.
Too quiet.
It had been nearly a full day since I had realized Maggie, Carly, and Erin were gone. Since Chad and the maid had found me outside my father’s office, their expressions tense, their
words measured.
The three rogues I had invited into my home–trusted–had disappeared in the middle of the night.
And my father had his own thoughts about why.
“They left on their own,” he said, his tone firm. “You invited outsiders into our pack, Elena. And now they’re gone. Don’t be naïve about what that means.”
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I sat stiffly in the chair across from him, my hands clenched in my lap. “They wouldn’t have just left without telling me.”
“They wouldn’t have told you if they didn’t want you to know,” he countered.
I gritted my teeth. “You think they stole from us.
My father exhaled, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I think they weren’t loyal to us to begin with. You may trust them, but that doesn’t mean you should have.”
I stared at him, my stomach twisting.
He was wrong.
Maggie wouldn’t betray me.
Carly and Erin wouldn’t betray me.
But something had happened.
And I was going to find out what.
3
***
I found Logan in the west gardens, standing beneath the sprawling archway of ivy–covered
stone. He was always here when he wanted quiet, when he wanted to think.
When he saw me, he smiled. “Elena.”
I hesitated. I didn’t want to talk about my engagement. Didn’t want to talk about the party I
never asked for.
I wanted answers.
“The Alliance Summit,” I said, skipping the pleasantries. “What do you know about the rogué attacks?”
Logan’s smile faded slightly. “That’s a broad question.”
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I folded my arms. “Then let’s narrow it down. Do you know who’s behind it?”
He hesitated. A fraction of a second. But I caught it.
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He exhaled, schooling his expression into something neutral. “No one knows for certain.
That’s why the Summit is happening. To get ahead of it.”
I knew Logan better than almost anyone. I had spent my childhood with him, had trusted
him before I had even known what it meant to trust someone.
I had never known him to be reckless. Never known him to lie to me. But I also knew when
he was holding something back.
And right now, he was hiding something.
My heartbeat quickened. “You’ll be there, right?”
Logan nodded. “My pack may be small, but we have valuable resources. I’ll be representing
them at the Summit.”
I studied him carefully. A day ago, I wouldn’t have thought twice about his answer.
But after what Aiden had said about him–about Logan feeling more like a brother than a
father–And after seeing that boy in my memories who wasn’t Logan- Something inside
me twisted.
He was too careful in the way he spoke.
Too measured. As if he knew more than he was willing to tell me.
I inhaled deeply, forcing my expression to remain neutral. “It’ll be good to have you there,” I said carefully.
And it would be.
Because I needed to find out what Logan wasn’t telling me.
And the Alliance Summit was the perfect place to start.
