Liam ground his teeth as he waited for Shane to stumble into the dark corner where he was waiting.
The drug his pack member put in his drink had already begun to take effect. Liam should have been proud that he was about to corner Shane, but for some reason unknown to him, he was pissed off.
"We've got the information about the anonymous allies of crimson. We have their names, positions, and most importantly their pack names." James said, slipping out of the shadows.
Liam grunted and nodded his head, but his eyes were fixed on the drunk Shane. Who had stumbled into another table, creating a commotion.
"There's something else you should know," James said tentatively,
Liam raised an eyebrow and briefly glanced at James.
"I can sense the worry in your voice, what is the problem?"
"They have come to a unanimous decision to kill you here. From what we gathered, you shouldn't leave Crimson alive."
Liam sniggered,
"Then I shall not sign the treaty tomorrow. But why are you worried isn't that why we came here in the first place? This is the perfect excuse we need to burn Crimson to the ground. What's even more interesting is that we now have info about our enemies and we can easily hunt them too,"
James exhaled audibly and his shoulders slumped,
"I expected an outburst, Alpha."
Liam smirked, his eyes still fixated on Shane.
Now he understood the cause of his fury. It annoyed him that he had to leave Nicole. Especially after the mere sight of her, plus her scent had aroused him greatly.
He wanted her and he wanted her immediately. He couldn't wait to get over his crazy obsession with her. Now that her mate and alpha had fallen into his claws, there was no way she wouldn't go home with him.
Images of him thrusting into her and the walls, counter, his bedroom, and everywhere flashed through his mind making his cock twitch. He was going to fuck her brains out until he became tired of her and then he'll be free from the curse.
"I know. I knew about the impending assassination before now." He quipped.
"Interesting," James mused, stroking his beard.
Liam had been silently following Nicole and trying to get her alone with him when he heard the discussions about his supposed assassination.
It will not be the first or the last time someone had thrown a party for him and tried to kill him at the same person. To him, it was very normal.
"There is no magic to it. I found out when I was stalking his Luna. Alas, look at the brave villainous Alpha who's supposed to kill me tonight. He looks pretty indisposed and is making ridicule of himself before his people. How would he kill me now?" Liam mocked,
James chuckled,
"Then we should prepare for battle tonight. I'll prepare the warriors and troops hiding at Crimson's borders. We'll strike once the party's over."
"No. Prepare them for tomorrow, this changes things as well as gives me an upper hand for something that I want. Now I am more driven to take his Luna by force and make him watch his pack crumble. And when I'm done with her, I'll throw her back to him and destroy his pack."
James stared at him with a puzzled expression, then shrugged.
"Anything you say, Alpha."
With that James quietly slipped out of his presence.
Liam waited until the hall had cleared out and Shane was on his own, mumbling to himself before approaching him.
"If it isn't the Great Alpha of Dark Moon, Liam Hallows himself, the great beast, the one whom all the alphas are terrified of." Shane slurred.
Liam smiled selfishly in the way a predictor looks at his prey.
"And you run a wonderful pack, Shane. I love what you've done with the place,"
Shane busts out laughing,
"To what do I owe this pleasure? Liam, why are you really here? We all know that you are very intentional and you do not stumble into places for no reason."
Grinning, Liam took a seat close to him.
"No werewolf is an island Shane, as powerful as I am I'm still in need of allies and an ally is what I seek in Crimson. Yet, I'm curious, because as much as Crimson has been neutral, it seems you picked the side of the pack I'd just destroyed. Rumors had it that you sent in troops, weapons, aid, and even food to them."
Shane's eyes became as wide as saucers.
"W-what?" He blubbered, his fear oozed out of his and sated Liam's nerves.
Liam laughed and patted his shoulder,
"It's alright buddy because your reception to me and my crew was so wonderful, I'm giving you the benefit of doubt. I know you're not stupid."
Shane gulped and nodded.
"S-S-so, you will sign the treaty tomorrow?"
"Let's leave tomorrow for tomorrow. I'm here to discuss other things with you. I see that you have a mate and I'm very curious because I thought we had similar tastes. You don't look like a man that will just pick a mate out of the blues. Tell me about it,"
Shane sighed relievedly and slumped into his chair. He seemed to sober up and his eyes flashed with a thought. He scanned the room before patting Liam's shoulder.
"Let's go somewhere private and discuss. The walls, they say, have ears and we don't want critical information getting into the wrong hands."
Liam shrugged, allowing Shane to lead him to the so-called quiet place, knowing quite well that it was an ambush.
As they walked in what resembled companionable silence Liam wondered what Shane was capable of.
Was he going to poison him, turn around to attack him? What? How was he intending to get rid of him?
The first thing Liam noted the moment he stepped into Shane's pack house was that Nicole's scent was extremely prominent in it. Her scent seemed to permeate every corner and room in the packhouse. It drove his wolf nuts.
He let out a barely audible growl. Thoughts of Nicole swarmed his subconscious, making it very difficult for him to think clearly.
His wolf wanted to rip off Shane's head, go in search of her and have her.
Every step, every inhale and exhale, every turn and bend made things a lot more difficult for him.
Shane was yapping about something and telling him of crimson's history, but he could barely make out the words.
He tousled his hair in frustration and tugged the ends of it.
"Here we are," Shane slurred, pushing open the door to his study.
"Interesting decor," Liam commented, surveying the redwood and oak that were the main features of the study. At least, Nicole's scent was barely inside it.
Shane's eyes glowed with pride and victory as he shut the door.
"What'd you like to drink?" Shane asked, staggering to the mini-bar.
Liam shrugged,
So he picks poison. He said to himself.
"Honestly, I'm full, but I'll have anything you're having."
Shane paused and swerved around,
"Yeah, you're right. It's overrated. Please make yourself comfortable. You wanted to know about my Luna right?"
Liam nodded slowly and sat on a comfy sofa, while Shane sat on his desk.
"It's a hilarious story. I'm still shocked that it happened in the first place."
"Oh yeah?"
Shane laughed hysterically, banging his fists on his desk.
"That bitch walks around like she's one proper princess when she's not even Luna material."
Liam's eyes widened in surprise but he quickly put on a blank expression.
"She isn't your mate?"
"Hell no! My mate gotta be better than that! The moon goddess knows my taste. She wouldn't play a cruel game with me."
"Oh?"
Liam tilted his head and narrowed his eyes at Shane in confusion.
"She thinks I'm her mate. I mean she feels the connection to me, but I don't feel the same." Shane continued
"I see, but how'd this happen?"
The wheels in Liam's head were turning.
"The bitches parents are lone wolves and came to me for help in the past. I asked them to join Crimson, so whatever they owed me would be scrapped off but they were stubborn as hell and promised to pay. Years went by and they couldn't pay. You know lone wolves are broke as hell and crazy. When the time I gave them expired, I came for my payment and those heartless people tossed their daughter to me in exchange for their freedom."
Liam's heart panged,
He unconsciously thought of how the betrayal would have affected Nicole.
"They're shameless I tell you. They couldn't bear to become my omegas so they threw in their daughter. She's bound to me until their debt is cleared."
"How much is it? How much has she paid?"
Shane laughs derisively,
"It's not a lot. If her parents worked as omegas they would have been set free a long time ago. But now, Nicole can never work to pay me because she's Luna. You know how it goes, everything a Luna does is for the pack and cannot be counted as repayment."
"How'd she become Luna if you're not mates?"
Shane chuckled,
"That's the most interesting and annoying part. I brought her back here and did the ceremonial marking to bind her to me as a slave. As I said, the moment she repays her debt, she's free. But immediately after I marked her, she declared that I was her mate before the whole Pack.
I was enraged. Things became very complicated. The pack members believed her because her voice said that she didn't lie and I'd brought her home with me. The rest is history,"
"How then can she pay you?"
"The bitch is content with being Luna and Crimson loves her," Shane laughed, "but the moment I find my real mate, I'm putting her back in her place to work and pay off her debt. The other way is to bring the money they're owing and pay it upfront,"
Liam nodded slowly, doing his best to hide his glee. Shane had no idea that he'd just delivered himself into his hands. Now he had everything he needed to destroy Shane.
In a few minutes, Shane slumped. The drug had taken complete effect.
Liam sighed,
If not for his plans for Nicole, he would have just ripped out Shane's heart.
After a while, he excused himself and went to bed.