Chapter11
1543 Words
The Background Check
: Sebastian's Pov
The bourbon burned going down, but not enough to erase the memory of her taste. Three days since the party. Three days since I'd walked away from her in that study room. Three days of pure hell. A knock on my office door pulled me from my thoughts.
"Come in," I called, setting down my glass.
Edward entered, a manila folder in his hand. My Gamma looked tired, dark circles under his eyes. He'd been working overtime on the investigation I'd ordered.
"Well?" I demanded, gesturing for him to sit.
He dropped the folder on my desk with a heavy thud. "Everything checks out, Alpha. Serenye Hale. Twenty years old. Born in the Eastern Ridge territory. Her parents died in a rogue attack when she was six. Bounced around foster homes until she aged out of the system at eighteen. Worked odd jobs to save money for college. Scholarship student here. No pack affiliation currently."
I opened the folder, scanned the documents. Birth certificate. School records. Employment history. Medical records. Bank statements. Everything is perfectly documented, perfectly normal, perfectly boring.
Too perfect.
"What about gaps?" I asked, flipping through pages. "Inconsistencies?"
Edward shook his head. "None that I could find. Her story is airtight, Alpha. She's exactly who she says she is."
I tossed the folder back on the desk, frustration coiling in my gut. "Then why do my instincts tell me something's wrong?"
"Maybe because you're thinking with your c**k instead of your brain?" Edward suggested carefully.
I shot him a warning look. "Watch it."
He held up his hands. "I'm just saying, Alpha. You haven't been interested in anyone since Luna Eleanor died. Now suddenly, this girl shows up and you can barely function. Maybe your instincts are clouded."
Maybe. But I'd survived wars, assassination attempts, and political coups by trusting my instincts. They'd never steered me wrong before.
"There's something off about her," I insisted, standing and walking to the window. "She's too clean. Too convenient. She shows up, befriends my daughter, and suddenly I can't think straight."
"What are you suggesting? That someone sent her?"
"I don't know." I stared out at the grounds, watching students walk between buildings. "But I intend to find out."
Another knock interrupted us. This one is harder, more confident.
"Alpha Wolfe, you have a visitor," my secretary's voice came through the intercom. "Alpha Marcus Blackwood."
I straightened, surprised. Marcus? Here?
"Send him in."
Edward stood to leave, but I waved him back down. "Stay."
The door opened and Marcus walked in, his presence commanding as always. Tall, built like a warrior, with silver streaking his dark hair and scars crisscrossing his weathered face. We'd fought side by side in the Pack Wars twenty years ago. He'd been my general, my right hand, my most trusted friend.
"Sebastian," he greeted, his voice gravelly from years of barking orders on battlefields.
"Marcus." I clasped his hand firmly. "What brings you to my territory unannounced?"
His grey eyes assessed me with the same tactical precision he'd used to evaluate enemy positions. "Can't an old friend visit?"
"An old friend, yes. An Alpha who swore never to set foot in pack politics again?" I raised an eyebrow. "That requires explanation."
Marcus laughed, the sound rough. "Fair enough. I heard rumors. Wanted to see for myself if they were true."
"What rumors?"
"That the great Alpha King Sebastian Wolfe, the man who turned down dozens of potential mates and marriage alliances, the man who's been celibate for five years out of loyalty to his dead Luna, has finally lost his mind over a college girl."
Edward coughed, trying to hide a laugh. I glared at him before turning back to Marcus.
"The rumor mill is working overtime, I see."
"Is it true?" Marcus moved closer, his nostrils flaring slightly. His expression shifted, sharpened. "You smell like jasmine and roses."
Fuck. Serenye's scent. Still clinging to me days later despite multiple showers. I'd noticed it myself, the way her fragrance had embedded itself in my skin, my clothes, my sheets. Like she'd marked me without even trying.
"And guilt," Marcus added quietly. "You smell like guilt, old friend."
I turned back to the window, unable to meet his knowing gaze. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Bullshit." Marcus came to stand beside me. "I've known you for twenty-five years, Sebastian. I know when you're conflicted. So talk. What's going on?"
Silence stretched between us. Edward remained perfectly still, probably hoping we'd forget he was there.
Finally, I spoke. "There's a girl. Serenye. She's my daughter's friend. My son's ex-mate. And she's, she's,"
"Driving you insane?" Marcus replied.
"That's one way to put it." I ran a hand through my hair. "She showed up a few weeks ago and, ever since, I can't focus. Can't sleep. Can't think about anything except her. It's like she's infected my mind."
"Have you f****d her?"
"No. But I came close. Too close." I gestured to the folder on my desk. "Something about her doesn't add up, Marcus. Her background is spotless. Too spotless. No one has a past that is clean."
Marcus picked up the folder, flipping through it with practiced efficiency. "You think she's a plant? A honey trap?"
"Maybe. I don't know. But if she is, she's the best I've ever seen." I thought about the way she'd looked at me in that study room, the hunger in her eyes, the desperation in her voice. "Either she's a world-class actress or, or,"
"Or your attraction is mutual, and you're paranoid," Marcus finished.
"Which is more dangerous?" I asked honestly.
Marcus set down the folder, his expression thoughtful. "With your enemies? Both. You've made a lot of people angry over the years, Sebastian. Alphas you've defeated. Packs you've absorbed. Rogues you've executed. Any one of them would love to see you brought down."
"That's what I keep thinking. But I had her investigated. Everything checks out."
"Unless someone was very thorough in creating her disguise." Marcus walked to the bar cart, pouring himself a drink without asking. "The best way to hide a lie is to bury it under a mountain of truth."
"So what do I do?" I hated how lost I sounded. How uncertain. I was an Alpha King. I'd never been uncertain a day in my life.
Until her. Marcus downed his drink, then turned to me with a calculating look I recognized. The same look he'd get before proposing a risky battle strategy.
"We test her," he said simply.
"How?"
"We set a trap. See where her loyalties lie." He poured another drink, his mind clearly working through the details. "I'll pretend to be an enemy alpha. Someone interested in overthrowing you. We'll make it look like I'm recruiting allies within your pack. Then we wait to see what she does."
Edward leaned forward. "If she's innocent, she'll do nothing. If she's a spy, she'll try to make contact with whoever sent her."
"And if she warns you," Marcus continued, looking at me, "then you'll know her attraction is real, and she's on your side."
It was clever. Dangerous, but clever. Marcus had always been brilliant at psychological warfare.
"There's risk," I pointed out. "If word gets out that an enemy alpha was in my territory unchallenged, it makes me look weak."
"That's why we control the information," Marcus countered. "Only a handful of people will know I'm here. We'll stage an argument somewhere she can overhear. Make it convincing. Then I'll leave and we will monitor her communications."
I considered it, weighing the pros and cons. My wolf didn't like the idea of using Serenye as a test subject. But my rational mind knew it was necessary. I couldn't afford to be compromised. Too many lives depended on me keeping a clear head.
"Alright," I agreed finally. "But we do this carefully. I don't want her actually in danger."
Marcus smiled. "Since when did you go soft?"
"Since, just set it up, Marcus."
He nodded, then moved to the window. His body went still, focused. "Speaking of your little problem."
I joined him, following his gaze. There. Walking across the courtyard in tight jeans and a sweater that hugged every curve. Serenye. Her dark hair caught the sunlight, making it shine like silk. Even from this distance, I could make out the sway of her hips, the confidence in her stride. My c**k hardened instantly. Traitor.
"She's beautiful," Marcus observed neutrally. "I can see why you're distracted."
"Beautiful and dangerous," I muttered.
"The best ones always are." He turned to face me, his expression serious. "Are you ready for this, Sebastian? Because once we start, there's no going back. You'll have your answer, one way or another."
"And if she betrays me?"
"Then you'll do what you've always done. What you did to every enemy who ever crossed you." Marcus's voice was cold, practical. "You'll eliminate the threat."
The thought of hurting Serenye, of punishing her, made something in my chest constrict painfully. But he was right. I was an Alpha King first. My personal feelings couldn't matter.
"Let's see if your little Omega runs to warn y
ou," Marcus said, still watching her through the window. "Or betrays you."
- Writer
