Chapter 148 - 0148
Lorelei POV
By the time my eyes finally fluttered open again, the warm afternoon sunlight had long since disappeared, replaced by the deep orange and purple hues of the setting sun. I had actually slept through the entire day.
A few minutes after I woke up, one of the guards stationed outside Kaelen’s chambers must have informed Skye because she returned, pushing a cart filled with freshly prepared dinner. I was so hungry that, for the first time since coming back here, I practically cleared every plate on the cart, leaving only a tiny bite for Skye. Not that she minded in the slightest.
Once I finished eating, Skye quietly handed me the earpiece. It had already been over a day, and I needed to go through everything the bug had recorded.
Maybe it was because I was getting more attached to Kaelen than I’d ever meant to, but I found myself growing more desperate to uncover the truth before it was too late.
After that, I took a long, hot shower in Kaelen’s enormous bathroom, changed into the light silk nightgown Skye had brought me, then slipped the tiny earpiece into my ear and started listening to the backlog of recordings.
Hours went by with absolutely nothing to show for it.
Most of the recordings were useless. It was just random conversations about patrol schedules, guards giving routine reports, or long stretches of silence that had me wondering if the bug had stopped working altogether.
By the time it got late, I had barely made it halfway through the recordings before exhaustion finally caught up with me.
With a quiet sigh, I took the earpiece out, hid it somewhere safe, and ended up falling asleep long before Kaelen came back.
When I woke the next morning, the bed beside me was empty again. Even so, I knew he’d come back sometime during the night. I could still faintly remember his strong arms wrapping around my waist in the dark, pulling me back against the warmth of his chest while I slept.
He must be really busy, I thought as I pushed the covers aside and got ready for the day.
Skye brought my breakfast in a little while later, looking just as cheerful as always. This time, though, I had no appetite whatsoever. No matter how much she nagged and fussed over me, I could only manage the glass of milk she’d brought with the meal.
It tasted even worse than the one Kaelen had given me before.
The metallic taste lingered on my tongue, making my stomach turn, but Skye insisted it was just my fever messing with my taste buds.
After watching me push the food around for several minutes, she finally gave up trying to convince me and shamelessly helped herself to the entire breakfast tray, happily finishing everything I’d barely touched.
Once she had cleared the dishes and left the room, I sat back down on the edge of the bed and slipped the earpiece into my ear again.
Just like the night before, hours crawled by with absolutely nothing useful. It was the same boring patrol updates, meaningless conversations, and long stretches of silence. The more I listened, the more frustrated I became. At this rate, this investigation could drag on for weeks.
I rubbed my aching temple and reached for the earpiece, ready to call it a day when...
"How many girls did you say we had?"
My hand froze halfway to my ear as Hawke’s voice crackled through the recording, making my pulse spike.
A second later, I heard footsteps followed by the faint sound of a door closing.
"Thirteen," an unfamiliar man answered.
My breath caught.
"Thirteen?" Hawke scoffed. "Seriously? That’s it? Why the fuck is it taking so long? We still need more women working this estate, and I haven’t been getting paid shit. It’s not helping that women have, for some reason, been committing even lesser crimes. So what’s the holdup?"
The other man let out a tired sigh before replying. "The neighboring packs tightened their border security after the last rogue attack. It’s become almost impossible to capture more women without getting caught."
Those words sent a cold chill creeping down my spine.
So they really were working with the rogues.
"Are they idiots or what?" Hawke snapped, his voice dripping with irritation. "Why the hell are they wasting time sneaking into heavily guarded packs just to grab women? There are plenty of small villages with barely any protection. Those are the easiest targets. Half the time, no one even bothers looking for them, which makes them perfect to sell off to those Alpha bastards who can’t keep it in their pants."
The moment the word Alpha left his mouth, my blood ran cold.
My heart slammed violently against my ribs as my hands slowly curled into trembling fists. Every horrible possibility I’d been trying to push away came rushing back all at once.
"Aren’t you worried, though?" the other man asked cautiously. "What if the Alpha King finds out? I heard he’s been questioning almost everyone on the estate since yesterday."
Hawke let out a low, arrogant laugh.
"That has nothing to do with us," he said dismissively. "He’s too busy playing house with his new little fling to notice what’s happening right under his nose. Besides, I’ve been running this operation for years, and he hasn’t suspected a damn thing. Why would he suddenly start now?"
He laughed again, and this time the other man joined in with a nervous chuckle.
But I barely heard either of them.
My mind had already latched onto one thing, replaying it over and over until everything else faded into the background.
Kaelen didn’t know.
Kaelen had never been involved in any of this.
A shaky breath escaped me as relief crashed over me so hard my knees gave out beneath me. I sank onto the floor, one hand pressing against my chest as I struggled to steady my breathing.
I hadn’t realized just how crushing the weight on my chest had become until it finally disappeared.
Maya had been wrong.
She must have overheard Hawke talking about the Alpha buyers and assumed he meant the Alpha King.
A laugh almost escaped me.
This was good.
No... this was the best news I could have hoped for.
I could finally tell Kaelen the truth.
I could tell him everything.
I needed to find him.
Right now.
Scrambling to my feet, I stumbled as a fresh wave of soreness shot through my body, but I forced myself to keep moving.
The moment I stepped out of Kaelen’s chambers, Paul and Isaac immediately straightened. They looked like they were about to thank me for convincing Kaelen to spare them from the lashes.
But before either of them could say a word, I blurted out, "Where’s the Alpha?"
Paul blinked at me, clearly caught off guard by the panic in my voice.
"In his office, Miss."
I didn’t wait to hear anything else.
I hurried down the long corridor as fast as my aching body would allow, completely ignoring Paul and Isaac calling after me that the Alpha was in the middle of a private meeting. This was far more important than any meeting. Once Kaelen heard what I’d discovered, I knew he’d understand.
By the time I reached the massive doors to his office, my hands were shaking so badly I could barely lift them.
This was it.
No more secrets.
No more lies.
After this, there would be no turning back.
I drew in a slow, shaky breath and raised my hand to knock, but before my knuckles could touch the wood, the door swung open from the inside.
Instinctively, I looked up, only for the world around me to stop as my gaze locked onto a pair of familiar, piercing blue eyes I hadn’t seen in what felt like a lifetime.
The air caught in my throat, and tears instantly blurred my vision. My lips parted on their own as I whispered,
"Raven...?"
Her eyes widened just as much as mine, clearly just as shocked to see me.
"Lorelei..." she whispered. "What are you...."
But I cut her off, throwing myself into her arms and wrapping her in a tight embrace as the tears I’d been holding back finally spilled over.
"I missed you so much," I sobbed.