Reuben POV
“It’s my happy place. I could spend days there just watching the gentle ripples of water.”
The second half of our journey had taken a friendlier tone. Evelyn was telling me about the lake house she used to stay at when she was a child, how she goes there regularly still with Rex and Elspeth.
I kept glancing her way. I couldn’t help it, she had the cutest look on her face as she described her fondest memories.
“Once things have calmed down I plan to take the kids again, maybe get them swimming in the lake. I learnt to swim from a young age. I think it’s good for kids to swim. Maybe you could join us?” She turns to me with a hopeful look to her eyes and a small smile.
“I’d like that. I haven’t been swimming in years.”
“Then you’ll have to come, the kids would like that.”
The SatNav instructs me to turn off the main road, down a side road towards what seems to be a derelict farm building in the distance. As we continue to drive closer, we could make out the old hay store building along with a barn that seemed to have had better days. Half the roof was missing either from windy weather or just from age and lack of upkeep.
“Is this it?” Evelyn quietly asks looking around for any signs of humans. I know it, because I am doing the same.
“Yeah!”
“Look, that’s a pack car. That’s what Donnie took.” She points me to a car parked by a farm gate. I pull in next to it and turn off the engine. I see Evelyn place her phone in her
hand so I decide to leave mine here. My men have a trace on it, if anything happens they’ll be able to find the car at least. Just in case this is a trap, at least they’ll know our last location.
We both exit the car at the same time. I wanted to hold her hand, to keep her next to me, tucked into my arm. But she was an alpha and I would let her lead this, if I could. Just keep a watchful eye out for danger.
She had surpassed my father’s life work in four years, she was an alpha to be respected. We walk side by side, but as we reach the barn my wolf pushes my legs forward so that I reach it before her.
I open the barn door, blocking her view, not really expecting what to find. Even for day time and with half the roof missing, it was gloomy in here. The barn hadn’t been used in years. By the way it had been built, there was high wooden ceiling beams that casted shadows into the corners.
“Donnie!” Evelyn gasps out from behind me with relief as she takes a step in, walking around me. “Alphas!” Donnie greets us both with a nod. He gives a whistle and I take a step closer to Evelyn as a male walks out of the shadows.
He looked tired, like he’d been fighting his entire life. He had greying hair, a black beard that had specs of silver and a gold heavy chain around his neck. He was wearing an odd patterned polo which I’m assuming was meant to be designer and blue jeans.
“Alphas?” He looks back at Donnie perplexed.
“A female alpha? Now I understand…” He scoffs before pulling out a cigarette and lighting it. I could already smell that he was a rogue and he was automatically used to lighting a cigarette to hide his rogue scent. It was a sour scent, like milk churning on itself.
“Understand what?” I scowl my eyes at him as I release a little bit of my aura causing him to twitch from discomfort. I keep my full King aura under wraps for now. He didn’t need to know exactly who I was.
He was a rogue which meant he only did what was best by him. Which meant we couldn’t trust him.
“Steady on, I’d like some assurance first.”
“Such as?” Evelyn raises her eyebrow at him. She was keeping her aura back which was confusing him because mine was only increasing. Especially by the way his eyes were creeping up her legs like a dirty old pervert.
“I want out! Which means money. He keeps his eyes on Evelyn which I don’t appreciate. “How much?” I snarl, forcing his eyes to turn to me as the most immediate threat.
“And land…to start a new life.”
“Don’t push it.” I seethe through gritted teeth, my hands clenched into fists down by my side.
“I also want to remain anonymous.” He requests.
“Then what you tell us had better be good!” Evelyn blasts out from frustration. I could kiss her. She starts to release her aura, letting this piece of shit know she wasn’t willing to be fucked about.
He pulls a piece of paper out of his jeans pocket and hands it out to me. On it is an amount of money and bank account details, an anonymous account. No name, just an account number and sort code.
“I’ll pay it. You have my word!” I don’t have my phone but I would pay it to him, my word was gold.
“The last time I heard from her, she was recruiting more rogues.”
“Rogues?” Evelyn asks.
“Yes rogues, you know hired wolves, muscle for sale. When you aren’t part of a pack you have to make money somehow.”
“And rogues actually do that? Why not just find work with humans?” She asks finding the notion bizarre in today’s shifter society. I knew what she meant, many rogues would go into construction work but some still liked the thrill of using their wolves openly.
“We have to make money somehow my darling.”
“Why are you telling us this?” I snap, annoyed that he has referred to Evelyn as his. She was my Evelyn, nobody else’s.
“I’m done, I want out. She’s gone fucking crazy. She was always odd but now…I don’t know..something has changed.”
“You’ve worked for her a lot of times?” Evelyn asks.
“Darling, I was one of her main man!” He winks at her.
I can see her mind working, her thoughts processing quickly before her lips start moving. I’m too far away to cover her mouth with my hand. I know what she is going to say next.
“Then tell me, the Silver Moon pack… were you apart of that?” She takes a step closer to him, her breathing hitched, her hands clenched into tiny balls down past her hips.
“Silver Moon you say? Let me think. Oh yes, the royal emblem sword. That was a nice touch. But I told her it was a step too far. She made it too personal, a way of it linking back to her.” He has the audacity to chuckle and I can see Evelyn being tipped over the edge by his reaction. He had no remorse whatsoever.
“You helped her destroy the pack?” She seethes out.
In my peripheral vision I could see Evelyn’s body starting to tremble as she asked the question. I didn’t want her to hear the answer. I wanted to pick her up in my arms and rush out of here with her. She had already been through enough, did she need to be face to face with the person that played a leading role in the death of her parent’s. The death of her pack members?
He wouldn’t shut up, he wouldn’t stop and read the atmosphere in the barn. Even Donnie had taken a step closer to him. How many lives did he try to save that day? How many loved ones did he lose?
“That the Silver Moon pack and her mate’s pack was my finest work.” He proudly declares before my anger gets the better of me and I grip his throat.
