Chapter 8

OCTAVIA

As Vanessa and I walked back to the pack house, the air around us felt lighter.

Don't get me wrong, I still didn't trust her, not even close. As far as I was concerned, she was still very much a suspect and someone I needed to be careful around. But at least it didn't feel like I was betraying myself just by talking to her anymore.

She had made me laugh a few times on the tour, and I was starting to think maybe—just maybe—she wasn’t so bad. I mean, she was still bad, but maybe not as much as I believed at first.

“So... what did you think about the tour, Octavia?” Vanessa asked, as if reading my mind.

I nodded. “It was nice.”

She frowned. “Wait, just nice? At least admit it was worth it like I promised you it would be, Octavia. Come on.”

I sighed, mentally rolling my eyes even as I nodded. “Fine. It was worth it, Vanessa. I enjoyed it.”

Her eyes lit up, and she actually bumped the air, causing me to frown in confusion.

How can one person have so much happiness inside of them? Was that even real?

No wonder Zara said she smells too happy. She really does.

As we entered the pack house building, I couldn’t stop my eyes from darting to her as we walked. Despite being too happy for me to comfortably be around, she had me kind of curious. I couldn’t help but wonder if such happiness actually exists in this cruel world of ours.

Walking side by side with Vanessa, I found myself actually paying attention to the pack house for the first time since I arrived.

Maybe it was the rush of yesterday and this morning, being brought in, questioned, and overwhelmed, but I hadn’t really looked at it. Not properly. But now, as we passed through the arching doorway and stepped into the front hall, I caught my breath.

The interior was as stunning as the exterior, or at least what part of it I had been able to see when I stepped out with Vanessa earlier.

The interior, though, was quite something, with polished marble floors and huge chandeliers that hung from the high ceiling. Everything looked sleek, modern, and timeless at the same time, like money and power had touched every corner of this place without making it gaudy.

Paintings hung in polished frames, some I assumed were of past Alphas, and others of what looked like Shadow Crescent territory: mountains, rivers, waterfalls, mist-covered forests.

It wasn’t just beautiful. It was almost intimidating.

I’d grown up in a pack house too, but this was nothing like that. This felt like stepping into a palace.

Vanessa glanced at me with a knowing smile. “Yeah. It hits different when you’re actually looking, huh?”

I gave a soft laugh, rubbing my arms. “Yeah... I didn’t really notice all this yesterday... or this morning, for that matter.”

She nodded, her eyes scanning the hall with casual familiarity. “Most people don’t at first. Especially not when Alpha Dorian’s staring you down like a punishment.”

I chuckled awkwardly but said nothing.

Vanessa led me past the main staircase and down a wide corridor. “Anyway, it’s lunch hour. That means a lot of the pack members are already at the dining hall. We’ll eat there.”

“Wait, like... with many people?” I asked, suddenly unsure if I was ready to be seen by that many people.

“Yup,” she said cheerfully. “Well, as many as would rather eat with friends than alone, which includes me. But don’t worry, Octavia. I’ll be your shield if anyone’s got an attitude.”

As soon as we turned the hallway corner, I stopped in my tracks when my eyes landed on Alpha Dorian.

He was standing there, speaking with a man with broad shoulders in a workout uniform. As soon as he noticed us, he fell silent. His eyes flicked to Vanessa, and then briefly to me. I straightened my posture without thinking.

Vanessa bowed her head. “Alpha,” she greeted respectfully.

I didn’t say a word. Instead, I held his gaze. I tilted my chin just a little, let my eyes linger on his face for a second longer than necessary.

I wasn’t trying to be obvious, just enough for him to remember this moment later, even after he left. I wanted something that would hold his attention, to make him curious, maybe even wonder why I looked at him that way.

It was easier to start that way, little by little, until you had them exactly where you wanted them.

It was a slow and gradual process, but it was also the most effective of them all.

Dorian’s expression didn’t change, which didn’t surprise me.

Well, it did, but not as much as it should have, not after the experience I had with him yesterday. He was like ice: unmoved and unreadable. And it annoyed me to no end.

“I need the training schedule for the new trainees by evening,” he said to the man standing with him. “And make sure the north perimeter is reinforced. The patrols are getting sloppy, and I don't like it. Any form of slacking will not be tolerated. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, Alpha,” the man answered with a respectful bow.

“Good. You may leave,” he said, and the man bowed once more before walking away.

Dorian turned to Vanessa. “How are you, Vanessa?” he asked, surprising me.

I didn’t know he actually cared about how people were doing. I was supposed to be a victim and he hasn't even cared enough to ask how I was healing from the "trauma"

“I’m fine, thank you, Alpha,” Vanessa replied with a bow.

Dorian glanced at me from the corner of his eye before turning back to Vanessa. “Where are you two coming from?”

“Uh... everywhere, Alpha,” Vanessa answered. “I figured Octavia needed to get out a little for some air, so I took her out to give her a tour of the pack.”

“Is that so?” Dorian said coldly, his eyes slowly shifting back to me. For a long moment, he held my gaze.

He didn’t say anything, but he wouldn’t look away.

I didn’t look away either. I held his gaze the same way he held mine, but there was something in his—an intensity that I highly doubt mine could ever have.

It was like he was staring right through me, into my soul, and it made me slightly uncomfortable. What was he looking at? What did he see?