Chapter 240
Elara’s POV
“Are you done talking to that prisoner? Did you get the location of that bomb?” The leader’s voice cut through the air, sharp with urgency.
My eyes narrowed as I stepped forward, my body tense, trying to control the rising fury in my chest. “That prisoner is dead. Murdered.” My words were cold, clipped.
“What?!” The leader’s face twisted with panic, his hands shaking as he gestured toward the prison, “Impossible! This place is heavily guarded. Paperwork, permits–everything is checked at the entrance-”
“Forget your damn permits!” I interrupted him, grabbing his shoulder in a tight grip. “A guard came out about a minute ago. Where did he go?”
He pointed, his hand unsteady. “He went that way. But I checked his permit… he’s clean—”
“Enough with the paperwork!” Dario growled from behind me. His voice was a low rumble of frustration. Before the leader could respond, he shifted, his body swelling into a massive Lycan. I barely had time to react before I, too, shifted–my wolf taking control, eager for the chase.
We tore down the mountain road, the wind whipping past us, but I could still hear the leader shouting behind us. His voice faded, irrelevant now.
“Blood…” Dario’s voice was rough, catching my attention. “There’s a scent up ahead.”
I nodded sharply, my heightened senses picking up the scent that made my stomach churn. “That’s him. Keep moving!” I urged, pushing my body faster.
The full moon hung above us, casting an eerie glow over the rough terrain. Our fur ruffled in the cold wind, and our paws slapped the ground with a steady rhythm. The hunt was on, and the prey was getting closer.
Up ahead, I saw him. The killer. He was stumbling, desperate, his footsteps uneven as he tried to flee.
Dario and I closed in, relentless, a mere blur in the night as we chased him down. His breaths were ragged, but we were faster. Much faster.
The edge of the mountain loomed ahead, and the killer’s panic surged. He skidded to a halt, spinning around to face us. Fear was written all over his face, and I couldn’t suppress a smirk. He was cornered.
“Hand it over. The stuff you took from the prisoner’s pocket.” Dario’s voice was calm, but there was a deadly undertone to it as he stepped closer, his fangs gleaming in the moonlight.
The killer’s eyes flickered to the phone in his hand, a sick grin curling his lips. “You mean this?” he taunted, holding it up, as if it was nothing.
I couldn’t stand his smugness. “Who hired you to do this job?” I snapped, my voice tight with anger. “Give us a name, and the phone. Now.”
The killer laughed bitterly, his breath misting in the cold air. “You think you’ll spare me? Not a chance.”
9:20 Thu, Sep 11
Chapter 240
“No,” Dario’s voice was icy, “we’ll make sure you suffer. But it looks like you’re asking for a fight.”
With a growl that echoed through the night, Dario lunged at him.”
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The killer shifted, his body contorting as he matched Dario’s ferocity. The fight erupted between them, a brutal clash of power, fangs, and claws.
I circled the fight, watching, my eyes fixed on the phone the killer still gripped in his hand. He was fighting with everything he had, but I knew Dario was stronger. The real danger wasn’t the fight–it was the phone. We needed that evidence.
With a powerful strike, Dario knocked the killer to the ground, pinning him. “Who sent you?” he roared, his voice raw with anger. “Was it Amara? Just give us a name!”
Blood dripped from the killer’s mouth, his grin still twisted as he muttered, “You’ll never know…”
In a desperate move, he flung his arm, sending the phone flying into the air.
“NO!” Dario’s voice cracked with fury. He lunged forward, but the phone was already plummeting over the cliff.
Without thinking, I dove after it, my wolf instincts taking over. The wind howled in my ears as I tumbled through the air, my eyes locked on the phone that glinted in the darkness below. With a swift, calculated motion, I caught it between my jaws just before it vanished into the abyss.
The wind whipped against my fur as I twisted, trying to find a way to stop my fall. My paws scrabbled against the rocky cliff, but the sheer drop was too much. I slid, the sharp rocks cutting at my legs as I teetered on the edge. The abyss seemed to stretch endlessly below me.
“ELARA!” Dario’s voice rang out, panic lacing his tone. He reached the edge, leaning over, his hand outstretched. “Give me your paw!”
I growled in frustration. “How am I supposed to-” My words cut off as I clung to the cliffside, my legs useless as I struggled to climb. I couldn’t move up. I couldn’t—
“Wait for me!” Dario’s voice was firm. He shifted back into his Lycan form, descending the cliff with ease, his legs built for this kind of movement. With an urgent grip, he reached me, his powerful hands grabbing the scruff of my neck and hauling me back onto solid ground.
I shifted back to human form, gasping for breath, the phone still clutched in my hand. My heart pounded in my chest, adrenaline flooding my system.
“Th–thank you…” I managed to say, still catching my breath.
Dario waved it off, his expression grim as he turned to the body of the killer. He lay motionless, cold, his body. barely hanging on to life. “He killed himself,” Dario muttered darkly. “Mercenaries like him… they do this when they know they’ve failed. No one will ever know who hired him now.”
I stood up, brushing off the dust and shaking my head. “It’s Amara. She orchestrated all of this. But don’t worry. We have the phone now.”
9:20 Thu, Sep 11
Chapter 240
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Dario’s eyes flicked to the device in my hand. “Let’s see what’s on it. There has to be something.”
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I scrolled through the phone, my fingers moving quickly. But nothing stood out–no messages, no call logs. Then I stumbled upon something: an app I’d never seen before.
Dario’s breath caught. “I know this app… It’s used for shopping on the Deep Web. You can buy anything in there.”
I tapped on the app, my pulse quickening as I scrolled through the encrypted chats. There it was–messages between the restaurant owner and an anonymous seller. The seller had sold him a poison, one designed to kill Lycans, disguised as an allergy. The two had even discussed how to label the poisoned food to avoid confusion.
I showed Dario, my fingers trembling slightly as I read aloud. “This… this is it. Amara wanted Nora dead. She couldn’t do it herself, so she used this guy, the restaurant owner. And she knew exactly when he’d do it.”
Dario’s hands clenched into fists, his anger palpable. “She used a deep web seller to get rid of him… All this time, we thought it was a tragic accident.”
I looked at the phone, the final piece of the puzzle falling into place. “We’ve got everything we need to expose her.”
Dario’s face twisted with hatred. “Amara will pay for this.”
I stood tall, my gaze icy. “She won’t get away with it. Not this time.”
We turned, ready to confront her–but first, we needed to decode the rest of the phone. A plan was already forming in my mind.
“Let’s go,” I said, my voice steady.
And then, as if on cue, the doors to the Dining Hall flew open.
Everyone froze as Elara and I stepped inside, covered in dirt and blood, our clothes ragged. Dorian’s eyes narrowed when he saw us, his gaze flicking between the two of us.
“Did you go hunting at this hour?” he asked, his tone laced with sarcasm and something darker. “You should’ve invited me along.”
I kept my expression neutral as he leaned in, his voice dropping. “I know you left without my permission. Explain yourself–now.”
My smile was cold as I met his gaze. “Let’s just say… things are about to get interesting.”
And so the next chapter began.
