Claimed By The Enemy Alpha

Wrong Monster

"I didn't know you knew my son," Dario said, breaking the silence as his eyes shifted from Julian back to me.

"I don't," I replied, keeping my voice even despite the pounding in my head. "We just got acquainted."

He didn't believe it, I could tell by the look in his eyes.

But before Dario could say anything else, Julien cleared his throat. The tension in the room was visible in his posture, his eyes moving between his father and me. "I will excuse myself," Julien said, his voice tight. He turned and left, closing the door behind him.

Dario watched him go, his expression unreadable, before he turned his attention back to me. I moved away from my desk, walking over to the large glass window that overlooked the city streets below.

The morning traffic was in full swing, but looking at the distant horizon helped me focus past the pain in my gums.

"Is there anything I can do for you, Dario?" I asked, staring out at the city. "You have been showing up a lot quite frequently."

I heard his footsteps on the carpet as he crossed the room. Dario walked to stand beside me, his gaze also fixed on the view outside. "Actually, yes," he said, his tone measured. "I wanted to speak with you without the watchful eyes of your husband."

I knew that already, but why. I was sure he doesn't have anything on me, if he did I would have been locked up in a cage underground.

I hummed, turning my body to face him directly and crossed my arms over my chest, prompting him to go ahead with whatever he came to say.

Dario cleared his throat, staring deep into my eyes. "I would like to know more about your husband."

My eyes narrowed as I looked up at him. "Know more?" I repeated the words back to him, already exhausted by this conversation, and my headache only seemed to be increasing the more he spoke.

The lack of blood was making it harder to maintain my composure, and his presence was only draining my remaining patience.

"Your marriage was a little bit sudden wouldn't you say?" Dario asked, his eyes scanning my face.

A loud sigh escaped my lips, I just couldn't help it, it has been one thing after another this morning. I turned my head back to look out the window. Of course our marriage was sudden but he doesn't fully know the extent of it and I was not going to complicate things more by answering his questions. Rather I would use this means to find out what he really wanted, underneath it all.

"What do you want, Dario? Why the sudden interest in my husband?" I asked, keeping my tone a little defensive.

"I assure you, this is not sudden," he replied. "We have been watching Mr. Winchester closely for a while now. Given his reclusive background, and his sudden rise to power we the A.S.A simply wants clarity as to who he really is. How exactly did you meet Mr. Winchester, and how long have you known him?"

I did not answer his question outright. Rather I let his words sit in my head, analyzing everything he just said.

They were suspicious of William and not me, the thought almost made me smile. Now this was interesting.

A sudden surge of satisfaction rose in my chest and I wanted to laugh at the absolute irony of the situation, but I strictly controlled my facial muscles. I also had to play my part so as not to give away any suspicion.

I made sure he saw the frown on my face as I pretended to ponder on his words. “Are you…acussing my husband of not being human?”

“Nothing of that nature,” he lied through his teeth. “Like I said, we simply want to know who he is.”

So why do you go talk to him then. I wanted to say but I knew William wouldn't give them a moment of his time. They wanted to use me to get to him, and maybe this was what I needed to finally be free from him.

I turned back toward the window, "We met through mutual business associates," I lied smoothly. "I have known William for about two years. Our decision to finalize our arrangement was entirely based on securing and combining our enterprises. You know how these things are?" I added.

Dario nodded repeatedly, "I do. If you notice any abnormal movements, or if he attempts to restructure your assets in a way that seems unusual, I expect you to notify me immediately."

This was the leverage I needed. If I cooperated, I could turn all this against William and use the A.S.A to dismantle his hold over me without getting my own hands dirty.

But this could only work if I do it right, I could still be a suspect in all of this. And this might just be a mess to get close to me.

"I will keep my eyes open," I said, giving him a slow nod. "If I see any abnormality you will be the first to know."

Before Dario could respond, a firm knock sounded on the wood paneling of my office door. The latch clicked, and the door swung open.

Yui stepped into the room with a tablet gripped tightly in her hand. She took two steps forward before freezing completely in her tracks as her gaze landed on Dario standing beside me.

Her eyes widened slightly, and she pulled the tablet closer to her chest. "I apologized. I did not know you had someone in here with you." She muttered, “I can come back later.” Yui turned toward the door but my voice stopped her.

"It is quite alright," I said, gesturing toward the desk to signal her inside. "Mr. Ken was just leaving."

Dario looked at Yui, then turned his gaze back to me. He gave a single nod of acknowledgment. "We will speak again soon," he said. Then walked past Yui without another word, stepping out into the main lobby and closing the door behind him.