Chapter 26: Two Weeks Away

Adeline stared down at the Pack Records that were laid across the laps of her parents and Clyde. Everyone that was related to the pack, in one way or another, had their name, date of birth, and status written down on the yellowing pages. Most of the wolves that had their names written down were still active members, but every now and then, a name would either be crossed out or would have the letters 'DGW' written beside it.

Disgraced Wolf.

The wolves that had 'DGW' written beside their names, were wolves that had been chased from the pack. They had done something so inexcusable, that even their own family had turned their backs on them. They were either rogue now, traveling through the vast territories that were full of death and war, or they were dead.

Criminals. The wolves that were disgraced were criminals, but Adeline still wondered what they had done, and what they had become. Family was one of the most important things in a Lupis's eyes, but Adeline couldn't even imagine being disowned.

It could destroy even the sanest of wolves.

"Have you found any leads so far?" The Oracle asked, her tiny body leaning back against the loveseat she and her mate were perched on. Desmond's arm was slung behind his Oracle's head, his fingers running through her curly hair. The wolf's body was reclined back in the seat, and his long legs were stretched out in front of him, but his posturing didn't fool anyone. Desmond's eery green eyes were trained on Adeline; never wavering from her willowy body. Blue orbs coated in ice met green ones in a silent dare.

Adeline dared him to continue to stare at her, to continue to watch her; and Desmond challenged back with a dare of his own. He wasn't afraid to put her down like a rabid mutt should she make a wrong move.

"Oh, cut out that crap right now, you overgrown, flea-infested mutts!" Sasha snapped, lightly slapping the back of her mate's head.

"Adeline," her mother said in warning.

"Sorry." Adeline murmured, resettling her eyes right over his shoulder.

By moving her eyes to the side and not dropping them, she hadn't submitted to him.

Even subconsciously, she knew that she was a higher rank than he was. The alpha blood wouldn't allow her to submit to a lesser wolf.

"No immediate leads," Dillon answered the Oracle's question. "But we have some suspicions."

It seemed like every eyebrow in the room rose at the Alpha's words. Adeline was pretty certain that even the warriors stationed outside were listening closely now.

"What suspicions? Who?" Clyde, the Southern Beta, inquired. He was wearing his usual attire; a black leather jacket with a white undershirt, black jeans, and black leather boots, but his hair had gotten shorter since the last time she had seen him. It was nearly shaved down to the scalp now. The buzzed hair and black clothing didn't do much justice to his onyx eyes.

He was dark and deadly.

Death reincarnated.

Dillon flipped through a few pages as he heaved in a breath before releasing it. "I have a few enforcers travel past Coven Grounds about three times a year, so I am going to talk to them when they return. And, I am going talk to..." His voice trailed off, it was as if his mouth was reluctant to release the words. "Clint. I need to speak with my Delta."

Adeline's lips dropped down into a frown. Clint? How could that walking mountain have anything to do with the curse? As far as she knew, he didn't know anyone that wasn't a wolf, and even that was limited. Clint, her father's delta, was standoffish, silent, and preferred solitude over the company of others. He usually hid in his suite or deep in the forest surrounding the mansion, and whenever someone tried to connect with him, bond with him... he just turned those dull, frozen amber eyes on them and said nothing.

If she didn't know any better... she'd say he looked sad.

"Him? Why?" Sasha started. The Oracle's mate removed the arm from behind her head and wrapped it around Sasha's slim waist; plastering her to his side.

Adeline's mother cleared her throat, "I think it's best if we reserve this conversation for later." Her eyes sliced over to Adeline with a pointed gaze.

The blue-eyed she-wolf didn't miss the pointed look, nor did she miss the slight nod Sasha gave the Luna in understanding.

Did they truly believe that they couldn't discuss it with her? What could she do with the information anyway? Go gossip about it with her friends?

She was kinda missing the latter... Not that she cared.

They could keep that information from her. She didn't care; she'd be gone anyways... soon.

Silence descended in the library and it was so suffocating that all Adeline wanted to do was leave. She didn't like being surrounded by so many people, especially when the Beast was becoming increasingly more powerful and bold.

Adeline slid her palms along her thighs, wiping the moisture from her flesh.

Looking to her right, her eyes landed on her mother. Alexandra's hair was loosely braided down the length of her back, and dark bags hung under her dark eyes, but... somehow, she was still regal and beautiful. Everything in Alexandra screamed authority and dominance, but those who knew her, knew that she was also fair in her rule.

Adeline tore her eyes away from her mother to look down at the pack records in her father's lap.

She frowned, her eyebrows drawing together.

Every name was either crossed out or had 'DGW' written beside it. Every name beside one.

Clyde Amole.

A little, long forgotten memory wiggled into her conscience, shaking the dust off of its unsubstantiated form.

"Where are Uncle Clyde's mommy and daddy?" A seven-year-old Adeline asked, her innocent doe eyes staring up at her mama.

Alexandra smiled warmly before turning to her mate, flashing him a look of question. She knew that it was a touchy subject, especially with Dillon, but she couldn't bring herself to shoot down her daughter's question.

A simple dip of her mate's chin told her that he was comfortable with telling their daughter.

But Alexandra wasn't going to tell their daughter the whole story of their beta's past... it was too graphic. She was going to twist some of it around to make it more seven-year-old friendly.

The Luna patted her daughter's hand gently, "Your uncle's parents used to run this pack before your daddy and I took it over. Your uncle's parents weren't very nice to him or their pack, so when your daddy and I heard about it, we came in and helped them. When we were helping them, your uncle's parents passed away, leaving him here with us."

Adeline's mouth opened, revealing a missing front tooth, "How did they die?"

Her parents exchanged another shared look before they both shook their heads.

Adeline never got the answer to that question... But she didn't need the answer.

It was a 'kill or be killed' kind of life.

"Oh... Adeline," her father said, glancing down at the watch hugging his wrist. "When was the last time you were dosed? It's nearly nine."

She was injected with wolfsbane at three P.M., so it has been almost six hours since she was last poisoned. She needed a dosage about every seven hours, so now was a good time to leave.

Her room had never been as appealing as it was now.

Her safe haven... but also her prison.

Just before she could open her mouth to respond, a deep voice answered for her; much to her dismay. "I can take her."

Finnian. That damned Western Beta.

Turning in her seat, her eyes took in the brown eyed, brown haired male. Lupises were stunningly beautiful to mortals... but Finnian was average when it came other wolves. Most wolves had eye colors that were different than their hair color, and if they did have the same colored eyes and hair, then the eyes were usually lighter or darker in shade. But Finnian's hair and eyes were the same exact shade of hazel-brown. Most other male wolves were ridiculously muscled and built like football players, but Finnian was built more like a swimmer. He had a nice face, he really did, but his nose was slightly tilted to the right, probably due to it being broken at one point. He wasn't ugly, but he wasn't the most attractive wolf there was.

But it was the spark of life in those average eyes that caught her attention. They burned with emotions, emotions that Adeline hadn't felt in a long, long time. Those seemingly average eyes burned like embers... like wood engulfed in flames.

Flames of life.

Her father nodded his head once, his blue eyes staring into Finnian's; a show of dominance. The beta dropped his eyes to Dillon's shoulder and slightly bared his neck in submission. "Yes. Please escort my daughter to her room and get the vial of Wolfsbane from the basement. They're in the cupboards inside of the cell."

A growl slipped from Adeline's father.

"We love you," her mother whispered in her ear. "See you in the morning."

"Love you too." She choked out.

Adeline quickly stood up before her mother could say anything more. Walking over to the male with a poorly concealed grin, Adeline straight up passed him and slipped out of the room.

Her body was heavy with fatigue and her skin was clammy as she made her way to her suite, the now silent male trailing after her.

I am going to sleep for hours, she thought with a slow yawn.

She was so tired.

Tired of everything.

????

They all watched as she left. Their hearts were heavy as they watched the young girl practically flee the room. Nostrils flared as her sickly scent washed past them.

Desmond's voice was strained. "When's her birthday."

"In two weeks." Alexandra numbly answered.

"She doesn't have a lot of time." Sasha's voice was soft... mournful. "And we don't have any leads. We have no clue who cursed her."

Dillon's voice took on an emotion that Sasha had never heard from him. It was utter hopelessness and sorrow, but there was also a hint of anger lacing the edges. "We know."

Silence descended upon the library once again, but before it could drive everyone to their own suite, Desmond cleared his throat.

"Clint." He started. "Why is Clint of interest?"

Dillon straightened in his seat, his fingers threaded through his mates'. "He has a relationship with a bruja. A bruja that can hold a grudge for an eternity."

"What did you do?" Sasha asked.

Alexandra's face shifted with disgust. "There was a time, long ago, that we allowed witches to join our pack. But they could only join if they were mated to one of our own. Lydia tried to join our pack through our delta, but we didn't allow her too. They aren't mates."

"So she might've cursed your daughter because you didn't allow her to join your pack?" Sasha's eyes were practically glowing in the dim light.

"Yes, but that's not the main reason. My mate and I think that the largest reason she might've cursed our daughter is because we stopped their relationship. Or at least tried too."