Revenge on Alpha Damien

Chapter Four- Wolfsbane

I rummaged through the storage room, relying on my keen sense of smell to locate the wolfsbane. The earthy, bitter scent was familiar to me, but as I thought about it, a wave of anxiety washed over me. If I could easily fish out the wolfsbane by scent, wouldn’t it be just as easy for Alpha Damien to detect it if it was mixed into his food? After all, he was the Alpha, and his senses were far sharper than mine. I was merely the offspring of an Alpha, not one in my own right.

The realization made my heart sink. I felt tears prick at the corners of my eyes. The idea of using wolfsbane had seemed brilliant at first, a clever plan to execute my revenge. But now it felt like a cruel twist of fate, as if the moon goddess were testing me—measuring my resilience, my determination to follow through on this quest for vengeance. Was I truly up to the challenge?

I had to figure something out, one way or another. My fingers finally brushed against the cool glass of a bottle perched precariously on the top shelf. I reached for it, my heart racing as I clutched it tightly in my hands. But just as I was about to leave, I halted abruptly at the door.

If I took the entire bottle, suspicion would surely arise. Wolfsbane was occasionally used in training, and it might even be needed tomorrow morning. I couldn’t risk drawing attention to myself.

Frantically, I scanned the room for an empty container. It was a tense search, but after what felt like an eternity, I found a small jar tucked away in a corner. Carefully, I poured a portion of the wolfsbane into it, sealing it tightly before I slipped the container into the pocket of my hoodie. My heart raced with both excitement and dread as I exited the storage room.

As I made my way back home, I passed through the pack house, where the party was still in full swing. Laughter and music echoed around me, a stark contrast to the turmoil in my mind. Thankfully, Caleb didn’t stop me this time. I appreciated that he let me slip away without questioning my whereabouts. The fewer people involved in my plans, the better.

When I finally got to my room, I found my aunt Mary and Zane seated on the couch, engrossed in a movie. Zane was cuddled up against Aunt Mary, their faces illuminated by the flickering light of the TV. They didn’t notice me until I sat down on the couch beside them.

“Mia! Where did you go?” she asked, a hint of concern in her voice.

I shrugged, crafting a casual response. “There’s a small get-together at the pack house. I thought I would stay, but it just wasn’t my scene, especially since Betty couldn’t make it.” It felt like the perfect cover story, and I felt a surge of relief knowing that Caleb could back me up if needed, he was a witness apparently.

“Oh, well… it’s good to know you tried, Mia. Maybe with time, you’ll get used to things like that,” she said, offering me a small smile. I returned it, but guilt twisted in my stomach. I didn’t enjoy lying to her, but I had no choice. If she found out about my revenge plan, after I had promised her I wouldn’t pursue it, she would freak out.

“Also, I forgot to tell you earlier, but Josh is coming back tomorrow,” she informed me, her eyes shining with excitement.

“Oh, that’s good! Will he be staying longer this time?” I asked, genuinely curious. Josh was her mate, and he spent most of his time in the human communities, dealing with business matters owned by the pack. They had mated when I turned eighteen, but they hadn’t had children yet. Sometimes, I wondered if it was because of my brother and me. Maybe they thought it would be too much of a burden to care for us and a child at the same time.

“Yeah, I think so. He’s on a two-month break,” she replied, her voice warm with anticipation. “Would you like to join us for the movie?”

“I’m good, thanks. I need to get to bed early for training again. I don’t want Landon to complain about anything else,” I said, forcing a smile. “Goodnight, Aunt Mary. Goodnight, Zane.”

“Goodnight!” they both chorused, their voices fading as I made my way to my room.

Once I locked the door behind me, I released a lengthy sigh. I pulled the small container of wolfsbane from my pocket, relieved that Aunt Mary hadn’t caught a whiff of its scent. Now came the real challenge: how was I going to mask the scent so I could slip it into Damien’s food? And how would I even get close enough to his food to do it? Time was running out, and I needed to think quickly.

I rushed over to my computer, searching through the history book we received when we graduated from school. Maybe I should have focused more in class; perhaps then I would have learned a way to mask the scent. But what if there truly was no way around it? What if the wolfsbane’s scent was too potent, too distinctive for any werewolf to miss, no matter how cleverly I tried to conceal it?

After what felt like hours of searching, I found nothing. There was no possible way to mask the scent of wolfsbane without drawing the attention of the werewolves, unless the contents were still in a sealed bottle. But getting the bottle directly into Damien’s system was a different story altogether. How I wished it were that easy!

As dawn broke, I felt a sense of desperation creeping in. My plan to use wolfsbane to kill Damien was proving to be fruitless. I wanted to scream or cry, but I couldn’t afford to show weakness. I was deeply frustrated, yet I couldn’t vent my anger; it would only cloud my judgment. Something had to work. How could I let this opportunity slip through my fingers, a chance given to me by the moon goddess herself? My parents’ spirits would mock me, and I could almost feel the goddess's disappointment. She had set the stage for my revenge, and all that was left for me was to plan and execute it. Yet, here I was, stuck on how to carry out my plan.

I pushed myself off the bed and headed straight to the bathroom. I needed to prepare for training, to steel myself for the challenges ahead. I would figure something out along the way. Whether anyone liked it or not, Alpha Damien would be dead during the mate dance ceremony.