h4Chapter 85: Chapter 85: THE ART OF WAR/h4

    strongMAEVE/strongstrong’S POV/strong

    Perhaps it had fallen behind the shelves?

    I dropped to my hands and knees and craned my neck to have a good look behind the shelves. It was futile.

    There was nothing. Not in drawers, or shelves, or anywhere!

    It took everything not to sweep everything off thete Alpha’s desk in frustration. My heart raced, agitation blistering in my blood.

    This was disappointing. I had high hopes for this ce.

    If it wasn’t with Lydia, or with Roderick—where could it be? Surely Roderick wouldn’t hand over such incriminating material to Ivan.

    Inasmuch as I hated to admit it, Ivan and Roderick were two different men. Roderick was sewn from the same ugly cloth as Lydia, but somehow Ivan was untouched by the worst of their evils.

    And I was certain they wouldn’t want Ivan to learn that their precious pack and throne was built on blood and corruption.

    So where the fuck could it be? I wasn’t supposed to be in Ash Creek for this long!

    When Alpha Roderick had been alive, he had spent a lot of free time right here in this room. He’d read for hours.

    Other times, he would have his head bent over the desk, writing on several pages of scrolls.

    The fact that the ck Book wasn’t being kept here grated on my nerves.

    My irritation grew by the second.

    Maybe I just had to search Ivan’s study next to strike out the possibilities—he was a man full of surprises after all. Each time I thought I knew him enough, he’d pull a wildcard on me.

    To search the study, I needed toe up with a n to get rid of him. At least for a few hours.

    Perhaps he and Asha could go out on another bonding trip. Goddess, what was I turning into?

    But that was the only guaranteed way to buy me a couple of hours uninterrupted in his study.

    I could only hope that he left the study open. I also needed to prepare a convincing story, just in case someone walked in on my search.

    This was exhausting. How long would I need to keep doing this? How long would I have to keep lying to Asha?

    How long would I have to carry this constant ache in my chest? I needed Devon—why wasn’t he talking to me?

    Feeling resigned, I released a heavy sigh and made my way out of thete Alpha’s study. On my way out, I snagged a random book off the shelf.

    I was careful in shutting the door behind, but the second I turned, all the air drained from my lungs.

    Standing over at the corner, addressing a guard sternly, was... Francis.

    At my appearance, his head shifted slightly to the side—but before he could fully catch my form, I speed-walked, turning fast and aiming for a sprint once I was out of sight.

    But the Goddess didn’t grant me such mercy.

    "Maeve?" came the Beta’s curious voice.

    I had half the mind to sprint in that second, heart pounding. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. But Francis’s steps were already approaching, and I froze in ce.

    Goddess.

    "Maeve..." he repeated, stopping right behind me. "What are you doing up here? This is a restricted floor. Everyone has been summoned to the throne room."

    Slowly, I turned, already wearing a stic, overly-sweetened smile.

    "And yet here you are."

    His brows twitched slightly, eyes observing me—then shifted to the book in my hand.

    "What..." he shook his head slightly, raising his eyes back to mine again. "What are you doing with that book? Did you... did you go into thete Alpha’s study?"

    My heart raced—fingers going cold. But despite myself, I managed to maintain my pearly smile.

    "Well, yes—I was looking for a book on..." My eyes darted quickly to the book. "On The Art of War?" Oh fucking hell.

    Francis’s eyes narrowed then. "In thete Alpha’s study?"

    "Yes."

    That sharp, calctive gaze never left mine—and the life nearly left me when, after a stretch of torturous silence, he took a step closer and whispered:

    "I know exactly what you are, Maeve."

    My chest squeezed tight. For a moment, I forgot how to breathe.

    The air in the corridor had thinned to nothing, and all I could hear was the slow drag of my heartbeat, pounding heavier and heavier.

    "I beg your pardon?" I tilted my head, forcing a smirk to hide the sudden ice in my veins. "You’ll have to be clearer than that, Francis. Last I checked, I’m a woman holding a book. Unless the Council started branding readers as criminals?"

    His eyes didn’t share in my humor—if anything, they hardened further, deadlier. A chill ran up my spine.

    "You think this is a game, Maeve? That you can bat thoseshes and talk circles around me? Do you think I am Ivan—so easily swayed by your charms and express nudity?" He took another step forward, his voice lowering, burning with a mix of fury and pain. "I told you in confidence, Maeve. I shared Ash Creek’s biggest secret with you for one night. One damned night, because I thought you deserved to know the truth about the man you used to love and the bloodline from which your sones. And then, what do we have? Rumors spreading like fire through the castle, whispers of the Rabid Wolf—the guards, the maids, even the fucking Council muttering that Ash Creek’s Alpha is a madman. And conveniently, just so conveniently, a witness to back it all up."

    My throat went dry. I swallowed hard. I stilled my almost trembling fingers around the book.

    Then, with a scoff, I began: "Are you implying—"

    "I’m not implying," he snapped, fists clenched at his sides. Hisposure was slipping, the benevolent Beta mask he so loved to wear shredding away to reveal a man who, in this moment, might be my enemy. "I’m telling you. You are the only person I told. You are the only person who was new to this information. You are the only person with ties to the witness. And suddenly Nina stands in front of the Council, hand on the Moonstone, spewing absolute terrible lies about Ivan ripping through animals in the woods—and... the most interesting part is that the damned stone stayed blue. How did you pull that off?"

    At that, my brows crinkled—my carefully perfected mask shifting for just a second.

    Nina had... lied?