The Investigation
1304 Words
Lyra’s Pov
Damon finds the connection three days later, and it leads somewhere we didn't expect.
The war room was tense. Maps covered the long table. Photos of the dead rogues from the attack were pinned to boards.
Theron's inner circle was already gathered around the table when we arrived. Damon, two trusted enforcers I recognized but did not know well, and two senior advisors who leaned in close over the evidence talking low among themselves.
I sat beside Theron and my hand rested on his thigh under the table. He had not wanted me here, but I had insisted. This was about me. I needed to be part of figuring out who had tried to take me.
Damon pointed to a report. "Bodies of the rogues were examined. Belongings searched. The trail leads to a rogue network operating out of neutral territory. They are hired muscles, nothing more."
Theron’s hand tightened under mine. "Funding?"
"Comes from somewhere with resources," Damon said. He looked down at the papers in his hand for a moment before continuing. "The payment came through shell accounts, but I traced it back."
The room went quiet. Damon looked up, face grim. "Crescent Hollow Pack."
My stomach dropped. My former pack. The place I had grown up in, the place I had been so relieved to leave behind. They had put a bounty on me. I felt sick, the kind of sick that starts in your chest and spreads down into your hands.
Theron's rage was immediate. His voice came out low and dangerous. "Marcus?"
Damon shook his head. "Not directly. Someone in Crescent Hollow with access to pack funds large enough to cover this. "
The realization hit me like a punch. "Helena. My stepmother."
It made too much sense. Helena had hated me since the day she married my father. She saw me as a threat to Ivy's future.
Theron’s eyes burned. "Why now? You are gone. You are not their problem anymore."
"Because I succeeded," I said, voice steady even though my hands shook. "I'm Luna of the Northern Territory. That gives my father status, connections, leverage Helena can use for her own daughter. But if I die, Ivy could potentially be offered as a replacement bride to fill the gap I left behind." It was twisted, ugly logic, but it tracked exactly with everything I knew about her ambition.
The room stayed silent. Theron’s fury filled the space. I could feel it through the bond, hot and protective. He wanted to burn everything down.
Theron stood up, pacing. "We march on Crescent Hollow immediately. Destroy Helena."
I stood too, stopping him. "We need proof. Accusations without evidence make us look paranoid and reckless. "
Damon agreed. "We need her to incriminate herself. Get it on record, get it confirmed, then move."
The plan formed quickly. I would go back to Crescent Hollow under the excuse of a visit. I would wear a wire, the kind of hidden tech packs used for delicate operations like this, and try to get Helena talking until she said something she could not take back.
Theron absolutely refused. "Send you into danger? No."
"She will not hurt me directly," I said. "It would be too obvious, too easy to trace back to her. But she will brag if she thinks she is safe. People like Helena cannot help themselves once they believe they have won."
"I do not care how good the logic is. You are not going."
I pulled the Luna card. "I am Luna. I can make executive decisions for pack welfare, and this falls under that"
Theron's fury was visible. His hands fisted at his sides. "Do not do this."
"It is a smart play," I said. " And you know it is."
The standoff between us was intense. The Council watched. Finally Theron gave in. "Fine. But I am coming. And if she so much as looks at you wrong, I am ripping her apart with my bare hands."
Two days later, we traveled to Crescent Hollow. The convoy of Northern Territory vehicles was a show of force. Black cars, armed warriors, the power of the North on full display. I sat beside Theron. I was nervous. I had not been back since the wedding.
Theron's hand found mine and gripped tight. “Say the word and we turn around. Right now.“
"No," I said. "I need to do this."
Memories flooded me as we approached the pack lands. Derek's betrayal in front of the whole pack. The humiliation of standing there exposed and rejected. Running into the forest that same night. How much had changed in two months.
Crescent Hollow looked smaller, weaker than I remembered. The Northern Territory's power made everything else seem diminished. Pack members came out to see the convoy, eyes wide with shock and awe. I was Luna now, returning in a kind of triumph I never could have imagined for myself two months ago, despite everything that had happened to get me here.
Marcus came out to greet us formally at the pack house, uncomfortable. He saw my confidence and Theron's possessive stance beside me and seemed to shrink slightly under it. "Alpha Blackridge. Welcome to Crescent Hollow."
Theron's cold courtesy was perfect. "Thank you for hosting us."
Marcus turned to me. "You look well, daughter."
"I am well, father."
The awkward family reunion continued when Helena and Ivy appeared. Helena's warmth was thick and entirely fake. "Lyra! So wonderful to see you!" She came toward me with her arms already out like we were close, like none of the last two months had happened.
Ivy's jealousy was barely concealed. I had succeeded where she had failed. Derek was visible in the background, looking miserable, and from what I had heard his bond with Ivy had turned into something closer to a punishment than a marriage. Theron's low growl when Derek looked at me made me place my hand on his arm, calming him.
Helena suggested a private family dinner, just the Winters. Theron’s response was immediate. "I will not leave my mate's side."
Helena's smile tightened. "Of course. Alpha is welcome."
In the guest quarters that evening, Theron checked the wire hidden inside my necklace for what felt like the tenth time, adjusting it, testing it, making sure it would not slip. "I will be right outside the door," he said.
"She will not confess with you there," I reminded him gently. "She is careful around you. She will only loosen up if she thinks it is just family."
"I do not care. I am not leaving you alone with her."
We found a compromise. He would stay close by, just out of sight, and Damon would monitor the audio feed from another room nearby. I prepared mentally, thinking how to get Helena to brag without making it obvious. Theron pulled me in for a kiss. "If anything feels wrong, you run. Promise me."
"I promise."
The kiss was for luck. For courage. It was time for dinner.
I walked into that dining room wearing a wire and a Luna's confidence, and Helena smiled at me like a shark that had just spotted prey. She had no idea I was the one hunting her.
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