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In a sprawling estate known as the Magnolia estate, it stood as one of the largest properties owned by the Demetriou family in Dunecliff city. Access inside the estate was as difficult to obtain as a coveted invitation to an exclusive gala– probably even worse than that.
Only a select few were granted entry; either workers of the Demetriou family, or someone related to them by bond or blood.
Inside one of the mansion's grand chambers, Rafael was seated on a lofty stool in his wine cellar. He puffed out smoke from his lips and pressed the mouth of his cigar to the iron plate on the counter's surface.
This was his third indulgence, and his iridescent orbs held some sort of restrain, as if he was forcing himself to stay put and not do something as a result of his fucked up emotions.
"Shit!" He cursed, unable to comprehend how long he'd be able to withstand the torture of not seeing his fateful mate. His wolf was not so patient with him either, and so far, the damn thing was giving him the silent treatment after his constant refusal to claim her… not yet, at least not now, not when he's messed up and made her more frightened of him.
He chugged the wine in his wine glass to soothe his burning nerves, and a knock on the door made him pause for a moment. Irritation registered in his eyebrows, and he kept the wine glass aside before instructing.
"Come in."
When the door opened, four of his assassins dressed in black stepped in. They lowered their heads respectfully at their alpha before exchanging glances, using their eyes to inquire about who would step forth and deliver the news to him.
Rafael simply poured himself another drink, barely sparing his assassins a glance while he patiently waited for them to make a decision and let him in on how the mission went.
"Alpha." The bravest amongst them stepped forward and lowered his head in deference. "We did as you've instructed. We scoured the city, and we found the culprit who chased after the… lady…future Luna." he corrected himself hastily, "but there is a huge problem."
Rafael's gaze finally shifted, his head cocking to the side as he observed his four most talented assassins. They involuntarily retreated at the sight of his piercing eyes, apprehensive of what that ominous look depicted, and they somehow lost the ability to speak further.
Whether he would take actions against them depended entirely on their success; he had explicitly warned them against returning empty-handed if they failed to apprehend the one responsible for chasing his mate with a car, but even when that happened to be not the case, fortunately, the problem was still a very disturbing one.
"What?" Rafael demanded, his voice cutting through the tension, and it prompted a swift response from one of his assassins.
"The culprit is the gamma of our pack." he disclosed, and the temperature in the room plummeted to an icy 60 degrees. It was a bone-chilling aura their Alpha characteristically exuded when something catches him unaware— something he specifically wasn't prepared to hear.
Rafael's eyebrows furrowed into a deep frown. "My gamma?"
They nodded solemnly as their Alpha rose from his seat. Without hesitation, he stormed out of his wine cellar, his fury palpable. His assassins didn't need to inquire about his destination, because from the molten fury in his eyes, they could as well bid their gamma a farewell for daring to target the future Luna.
Within the mansion was an underground prison. It had been constructed specifically to host their enemies and extract crucial information through means of coercion if necessary. Yet, Rafael never imagined he would find his own gamma incarcerated within his own stronghold.
Someone was stationed at the entrance, and when he noticed the Alpha, he instantly moved aside.
When the cell doors opened, Rafael entered, and the door closed behind him. A single barely lit lightbulb illuminated the environment with an eerie glow, and at the center of the space, a man was tied to a chair with silver chains.
His head was dipped low, with beads of sweat dotting his eyebrows. Silvers are known to debilitate a werewolf's strength, and rather than inflicting too much damage on their gamma, since the Alpha never gave them permission to do so, they had him restrained with the silver chains, weakening him in place.
As though he sensed a formidable presence in front of him, the gamma lifted his head slowly. However, when his gaze met the penetrating stare of his Alpha, he froze instantaneously. It was as though he were the mouse finally cornered by the big bad cat, helpless before the inevitable confrontation even began.
He exclaimed. "Alpha?!"
Two of Rafael's assassins had escorted him to the underground prison, and they stepped into the cell. One of them quickly brought a chair over, and Rafael took his seat.
"Alpha?!" The gamma was still yet to recover from his shock, "Alpha is here?! But the pack said–"
Rafael raised his hand, and his gamma's lips clamped shut. The fear in his eyes was palpable, and he dared not speak after registering the annoyance settling on his Alpha's countenance.
The brooding silence between them stretched, and Rafael finally popped the question. "Gamma Davis, what brings you to Dunecliff?"
"Alpha I…"
"Let's ignore the fact that you tried to harm my Luna for now. Gamma Davis, what exactly are you doing in Dunecliff?" The irritation in his Alpha's voice grew as he repeated, and Davis could feel his heart hammering erratically in his ears.
"You were supposed to stay in Aleyska, overseeing pack duties alongside my Beta." Rafael rubbed his forehead and exasperated. "Your presence here constitutes your first error as my gamma, and you've further compounded it by defying my orders. Who authorized your presence here??"
"Ultima." Davis finally disclosed, shaking his head shamefully, "he… he said he had a mission for me in Dunecliff."
"What mission?"
"He didn't deliberate on it, he just told me to eliminate the Luna of the crescent moon pack!" he confessed, lowering his head, "it was discovered that Alpha Bernard had children before he died. His children could become future Luna's and Alpha's of a pack, so he sent me to eliminate the girl first. I didn't know… I didn't know she was going to be our Luna! I swear if I did–"
"Late Alpha Bernard has children?"
His gamma nodded, "yes. When he moved away from Aleyska to Dunecliff with his children, he used the name Zendelle to conceal their identities. It was traced back that Zendelle used to be the name of Alpha Bernard's grandfather, so no one would suspect that the twins were his blood. Ultima said there was a chance that the late Alpha Bernard's daughter would be born with a Luna wolf, and how it was necessary that such a prophecy should not come to pass, but he said nothing more."
His gamma didn't hesitate to reveal all the information that was shared with him by Ultima. But what Rafael didn't expect to hear at all was his Luna being a part of the Crescent moon pack.
"My Luna is from the crescent moon pack??"
His face paled when the discovery sank in, and it almost felt like someone had shot his heart with a bullet. The air around them grew suffocating, and Rafael rose to his feet in haste, shaking his head in mental denial.
It couldn't be.
If his mate was from the crescent moon pack then…No! This couldn't possibly be!!
His Luna couldn't possibly come from a pack that ruthlessly betrayed his family. How did he miss this information??
"Robin." Rafael uttered the name of the assassin behind him.
"Yes, Alpha?"
"Make the necessary preparation for my trip to Aleyska, I'll be leaving in two days."