CHAPTER 72: THE ROOM WHERE IT HAPPENS

BO

I unlocked the door and stepped out of the Luna’s quarters. My legs felt steady now, steadier than they had been all morning. Having a plan did that for me. It grounded me. It kept everything quiet inside my head.

The corridors were alive the moment I entered them. Wolves hurried through the hall, their steps sharp and tense. Voices whispered in corners. I heard bits of conversation float past me, each one laced with fear. The poisoning. The Grand Luna. The prisoners.

No one looked at me directly, but I felt their eyes slip over me as I walked. People always watched when they were scared. I kept my chin low and moved with purpose.

I reached my quarters, slipped inside and locked the door. The sound was crisp. It settled something deep in my chest. I stood still for a moment, listening. Nothing. Good. I was alone.

I crossed the room, grabbed the side of my bed frame and dragged it out of place. The wood scraped over stone and filled the room. I had done this enough times that my muscles moved without thought. Sweat never gathered. My breath never hitched.

There it was.

I crouched and slid my fingers under the loose floorboard. It lifted with a soft sigh of dust. Beneath it sat the box. Plain. Forgettable. The kind of thing no one would look at twice. People expected secrets to look dramatic. That made them easy to hide.

I set the box on the floor beside me. My hands were calm now. My pulse steady. I opened the lid.

The colors inside always struck me. Soft greens. Murky reds. Clear liquids that caught the light. Pills pressed in familiar shapes. Every item had a history. A purpose. A design. This was the work of many years. My quiet study. My careful bought craft.

Alchemized poison never lied. It did exactly what it was made to do. It was simple. Elegant. Predictable. The slow acting ones the witch madewere my favorites. They had taken down Luna Morrigan piece by piece. Gradual, almost gentle, like her body had given up on its own.

But others moved fast. They took minutes. Sometimes seconds.

I reached for a pill the color of dried parchment. Small. Round. A quick killer. I held it near the window and watched the light skim over its surface. It looked innocent.

I turned it between my fingers.

Poisoning Kayden directly was foolish. They would look at everyone who delivered his meals. Everyone who guarded him. Everyone who had been near him. I would be on that list before the ink dried on their report. That path was suicide.

I needed something cleaner. A death that pointed away from me. A story they could accept without digging too deep.

A lone culprit. Cornered. Afraid. Choosing death instead of capture.

People liked simple stories. They offered comfort.

I felt the pill crumble a little under my thumb. Its texture was soft, like chalk. Easy to break apart. Easy to slip into anything.

An idea bloomed. It spread through me slow, then settled firm.

I stood and walked to the desk. I pulled out a plain sheet of paper. Nothing special. No crest. No seal.

I sat and picked up my pen. I waited until the right voice filled my thoughts.

What would Alpha Aldric say? How could I make his voice my own?

I let myself breathe once. Then I lowered the pen to the page and began to write.

’Do not worry. Alpha Aldric has a plan to save you tomorrow. He told me he’s returning to Skollrend. Stay strong. Do not speak. Destroy this paper after reading. Swallow it if you have to. Do whatever it takes to make sure no one finds it. Our goals cannot be compromised any further.’

I read it over. It sounded good. Reassuring but urgent. The kind of message someone might send to keep their accomplice calm.

I picked up the pill and started rubbing it against the paper. The chalk-like substance left a fine powder on the surface. I rubbed harder. Made sure it coated the entire sheet. Both sides.

The paper took on a nice sheen. Almost glossy. Like it had been treated with something.

Perfect.

Anyone who put it in their mouth to swallow it... I could only pity them.

Kayden would read the note. He would believe it came from me talking with Aldric. It would settle his heart and then he would do exactly what the note said. He would destroy it.

He would swallow it.

And then he would die.

They would find him dead in his cell. They would search for clues. Maybe they would find traces of the alchemised poison. Maybe they would not. But that didn’t matter. What did matter was that it would not be found in the food or water which could be traced back and it would look like he had taken his own life. Like he had chosen death over betrayal.

A dead end.

I folded the paper carefully. Made sure not to touch the treated surfaces too much with my bare skin. I wrapped it in a clean cloth and tucked it into my pocket.

Then I put everything back in the box. Closed the lid. Lowered it into the floor. Replaced the floorboard. Pushed the bed back into place.

Everything looked normal again.

I stood there for a moment. Stared at the bed. At the floor. At the spot where my secrets were buried.

Now I just needed to find a way to get to Kayden without being suspicious.

I left my quarters and locked the door behind me. The hallways were still busy. Still full of whispers and hurried footsteps.

I needed to wash my hands. Even though I had been careful I could not risk any trace of the poison. I also needed to eat. My stomach was grumbling. Loud enough that I could feel it twisting inside me.

Then I remembered. The dish. The food I had made. It was still in the Luna’s quarters.

I turned and headed back toward the suite. My mind was already working through the next steps. How to get to Kayden. How to slip him the note. How to make it look natural.

When I reached the Luna’s quarters I knocked. Waited.

This time there was an answer. I heard footsteps inside and the door opened.

Fia stood there. She looked tired. Her face was pale. There were dark circles under her eyes.

I let my face shift. Let the distress show. Let my eyes go wide.

"Is it true, Luna Fia?" I asked. My voice came out higher than usual. Breathless.

"It is all true," she said.

"I am horrified," I said. I brought my hand to my chest. Pressed it there like I was trying to steady my heart.

"So am I," she said.

"I brought you a light snack but you weren’t around and then I heard the horrid news."

Fia looked at the food on the table and said; "Thank you, But I cannot eat. I have to be somewhere."

"Where are you going?" I asked.

She looked at me for a moment. Then she sighed.

"I just came to take a breather and wash my face," she said. "I and the healers are heading to the dungeons to help the Omegas and Sentinels."

My heart jumped with glee. The dungeons. She was going to the dungeons.

"Help them?" I asked.

"Cian burned them with wolfsbane juice," she said.

Something cold washed over me. Wolfsbane juice. That was brutal. That was torture.

Kayden had taken that. He had taken that and he did not spill. He kept his mouth shut.

I felt something like pride. Brief and strange. But also fear. Because that meant he was scared. Scared enough to endure that kind of pain rather than talk.

He was scared that if he spoke then and there his life would be over. That also meant that the punishments would only get worse.

There was only so much a man could take before he broke completely. Before he became a bitch.

I had to do this. I had to do it now.

And here was my opportunity. Like someone had just dropped it in my lap.

"I should come too, Luna Fia," I said quickly.

She shook her head. "No. I know you want to help. But it is best we keep it small. We are already working with trusted servants. Who knows who else is in on it?"

"I am a trusted servant too," I said. I let my voice crack. Let the emotion bleed through. "I get chills just hearing about it."

I paused. Let my eyes fill with tears. They came easily. I had practiced this enough times.

"I have friends there too," I said. My voice was barely above a whisper now. "Friends that I know in my bones are innocent. I do not want them to suffer needlessly or die if I can help."

A tear slid down my cheek. I did not wipe it away.

"Forgive me, Luna Fia," I said. "But we are both Omegas. We know how weak our immune system is. If we can help them, should we not?"

She stared at me. Her expression was hard to read. I could see her thinking. Weighing my words.

I held my breath.

Finally she nodded.

"Okay," she said. "But stay close by so I can vouch for you."

"Of course," I said. Relief flooded through me. I let it show on my face. Let her see how grateful I was.

"Let us go then," she said.

I followed her out of the suite. My hand went to my pocket. To the folded cloth. To the note hidden inside.

I had what I needed. I had access.

Now I just had to wait for the right moment.

We walked through the corridors together. Fia moved with purpose. Her shoulders were set. Her jaw was tight. She looked like someone on a mission.

It was cute to see the puppet believe she had no strings.

Nonetheless, I stayed close behind her. I kept my face worried. I made an active effort to keep my hands clasped in front of me.

But inside I was smiling.

This was going to work. I was going to fix this. I was going to make sure nothing traced back to Aldric. Nothing traced back to me.

Kayden would die. The investigation would hit a wall. And I would still be here. Still trusted. Still invisible. While Alpha Cian poured hate to Fia when he came to learn that Kayden was his person of interest and that gold mine ended up dead shortly after her meddling hands decided to be something she was not.

We descended the stairs toward the dungeons. The air grew colder. Damper. The stone walls pressed in on both sides.

I could hear voices below. Low and pained. The sound of suffering.

Oh, to be a fly on the wall when the dominoes started to fall.