Episode5
1367 Words
Elaine's pov
For the first time since my rebirth, I felt the thrill of being on the edge of something big.
‘No one can ever know that I killed someone?’
Loretta had murdered someone. But who?
I turned to Jake who still hadn't said anything else since then.
He was leaning against the stone archway near the garden's entrance, arms crossed, eyes shadowed. I'm the dim glow of the lantern. He looked exactly the same as he always did — calm and unaffected like he hadn't just overheard a confession of murder.
And it frustrated me.
“You're really going to pretend like you didn't hear that?” I asked.
“Hear what?” he replied, unmoving.
I chuffed out a breath. “Don't play dumb.”
“I'm not!” He replied in a lazy voice. “But if I was, it would be a hell of a lot safer than getting involved in something that isn't my business.”
“Not your business?”
Jake heaved a sigh and pinched the skin between his eyelids. “I'm not popular, Lady Aurora. I don't have connections. I don't have people to back me up. But what I do have is common sense and I'd rather not have someone threatening me or putting a knife to my throat because I decided to play hero.”
For a second, I just stared at him.
Then I scoffed, shaking my head. “You're the Beta of the SilverMoon. You should at least have a sense of justice or something.”
Jake's jaws tightened, but he didn't say anything.
“How could you…” I froze midway when I suddenly remembered the betrayal — Damien's betrayal, Loretta's lies, the hands that hit me, the voices that told me I deserved it. The moment I realized I was going to die and the moment I swore that if I got another chance, I wouldn't let history repeat itself.
I wouldn't let the truth stay buried.
Not again.
“If you're going to chicken out, fine.” I hissed. “I'll do it alone.”
I turned, ready to leave when he suddenly moved and caught my wrist.
In one swift motion, Jake pulled me against him, our bodies close, out breaths mingling in the cool July air.
“Fine.” He whispered behind my ear. “I'll do it. I'll… I'll help you.”
I blinked at him, surprised.
His grip didn't loosen. “Not because you told me to but because it's for the greater good.”
For a moment, neither of us spoke then slowly, my lips curled into a smile. “Good. Then we'll work together.”
Jake chuckled, his deep voice vibrating against my back. “You're going to be a pain in my ass, aren't you?”
“Absolutely.”
It started small.
Following Loretta, watching her closely, digging into things that didn't quite add up and the deeper they went, the more the cracks in Loretta's perfect image began to show.
She wasn't who she had claimed to be.
Her past didn't align at all.
Her stories didn't add up at all.
And when Jake and I finally got our first real lead, my heart pounded with thrill.
We were going to expose something far, far worse.
I ran my manicured fingers over the rim of my glass. Across from mer was Jake, leaning against his seat, his gaze holding mine.
“You really want to do this?” He asked, uncertain.
I took a sip of my drink, letting the alcohol settle in my throat before replying. “I don't have a choice.”
“Of course.” He said, dryly.
Our meetings had become routine – bars, cafes, anywhere else that wouldn't draw attention.
And each time we met, I noticed things about Jake.
He'd brush his fingers over mine when he was worried. During a conversation, he'd reach out and tuck a stray hair from my face. It was dangerous. So each time, I'd force myself to pull away. To push his hands off. I needed to remind myself that attraction was a distraction because distractions get people killed.
I leaned in and laid out the final steps of our plan and when I was done, Jake leaned back and scoffed.
“Dear Goddess,” he said. “You're obsessed, Aurora.”
I had told him he could call me “Aurora”
“I'm not obsessed. I'm focused.”
“No. Even better, you're consumed.”
I forced a smile. “That's the same thing.”
Jake wanted to say something but he pursed his lips instead.
He rose to his feet and dropped a few dollars on the table. “Let's get this over with then.”
We arrived at the warehouse just in time.
While we were at the bar we had sent an anonymous text to Loretta to come meet us here and she was early.
She had arrived in a black BMV and stepped out with the grace of a Chihuahua. Even here, in the middle of nowhere, she acted like she dominated.
Loretta's brows creased with disdain as she looked between us. “What the heck is this?”
I stepped forward. “I know who you are.”
Loretta laughed a soft, disbelieving laugh. “Do you?”
I smirked. “You were never supposed to be here, were you, Loretta?”
Loretta scoffed. “What?”
I continued, not paying mind to her shocked expression. “You had another pack, another Alpha. You married him because you were obsessed with power. But then he died…of unnatural causes.”
Loretta scoffed again. “That's nonsense! What are you talking a —”
I cut her off mid-sentence. “With your ex-husband gone, you found another target — Alpha Damien.”
“Excuse me?” Loretta whispered.
I laughed. “So you came here to SilverMoon and you played the role of a poor Omega to get the favour of poor, Alpha Damien. And when you realized there was someone...”
Something cracked in my throat and I nearly choked on my words. That “someone” was me.
“And when you realized there was someone standing in your way, you did what you do best,” I smiled. “You eliminated the competition.”
Loretta's face remained unreadable, but I saw it — fear. “I don't know what you're talking about.”
Jake, who had been quiet the entire time, spoke up. “Still lying, Loretta. We have proof.”
He stepped up and tossed a brown envelope on the dusty floor. “Check your story again, Loretta.”
Loretta hesitated for a moment before she knew it down to pick up the pictures.
Her eyes circled in shock as she flipped through the contents – photos, documents and a flashdrive.
Her face paled at the items in her hands. They were evidence. Evidence against her.
“You stupid b***h!” She dropped the fake innocent act and brought on claws. “You think you can stop me?!”
“We already have.” Jake said, pulling out his phone and turning the screen to Loretta, the red recording light blinking.
Silence followed and Loretta broke it with a loud and shaky laugh.
“Wow. I knew there was something about you when you first came here, Aurora!” She said with a breathless hiss.
I laughed. “Aww. Observant much?”
Loretta took a step forward. “You cannot bring me down, Aurora!”
“You think?” My eyebrows rose in intrigue.
Loretta's lips quivered and she ran her hand through her hair. “I… I have a proposal.”
“Hell. No!” Jake yelled.
“Yeah,” I crossed my arms over my chest. “You're in no position to negotiate.”
I knew Loretta and knew how dangerous she could get. But I also knew that a desperate woman was the most dangerous and unpredictable.
“You have nothing to say to convince me, Loretta. You're going to burn in hell,” I smiled. “And I've got a matchbox to send you right to it.”
- Writer
