Chapter 7

I snuck down the hallway, looking for the weapons room that Robin had shown me earlier. I found it at the end of the hallway and quietly creeped in after making sure that was no soul in sight.

I browsed the shelves, looking for something in particular. I found it sitting pretty in the midst of some pretty daggers. A bottle of cyanide.

I smiled gleefully as I grabbed the small bottle, taking with it a small dagger with intricate design and a pretty emerald gem on the handle. I pocketed the dagger.

I went over the plan in my head. I had bought a blueberry muffin earlier in the market, something I know Caelum couldn't resist.

My ears scanned for noises as I carefully used a needle to withdraw the cyanide. My heart was beating incredibly fast as I slowly inserted the cyanide into the muffin. 

A part of me was screaming that it was wrong but this was something I had to do.

Once I had finished, I quickly replaced the bottle of cyanide and silently, I made my way out of the weapons room, carefully closing the door behind me.

“What are you doing?" A voice asked behind me. The triumphant smile dancing on my lips froze as I felt my heart skip multiple rhythms. I faltered when I saw who the voice belonged to.

It was the man with the pretty heterochromic eyes. I was beginning to think he was just a figment of my imagination. 

“You! I knew I saw you earlier." Indignation made my voice rise in volume. He cocked his head in amusement.

“Who said you didn't?" He asked simply, his mismatched eyes twinkling with mirth.

“W-well, you vanished so I thought…..” I trailed off, my cheeks burning in mortification. A thought suddenly occured to me.

“Wait, are you hiding from Caelum? Are you one of his victims? That sick bastard” I asked in concern. The poor thing was probably so terrified.

He rolled his eyes. Rude, I thought.

“I'm that sick bastard's second in command. Beta Soren by name.” His lips curled up in a smirk. He looked so familiar.

“Do I know you from somewhere?” I asked, searching my memories from where I had seen him. Was it back in the cage?

" Nope." He answered lightly, his expression didn't change but somehow, I knew he wasn't telling the whole truth. I eyed him suspiciously.

“Do you want to tell me what you were doing in the weapons room?" His tone was still light but I got the underlying toneof authority under it.

My mind was working overtime to find a lie. “N-nothing much, I just was just curious about it. Robin showed me the door earlier but there wasn't time to come in.” My words came out in a rush.

He hummed contemplatively and I felt a bead of sweat roll down my spine.

“What?" I asked, defensively.

" It's nice to know that you're such a bad liar.” Amusement coated his words.

“H-hoa dare you accuse me of lying?" I tried to sound indignant. More beads of sweat formed on my forehead. Is it me or is it getting hot in here, I thought.

“Next time you lie, try not to sweat too much. Fine, don't tell me, I'll find out anyways. I always do.” His tone was jovial but his eyes held a warning.

I swallowed nervously, my heart stopping for a moment.

“Nice to meet you, Wren." He bared his teeth in a terrifying grin, his canines looked longer than normal. He pivoted on his heel and walked away. I cleaned the sweat that had gathered on my forehead.

Who knew hot guys could be so terrifying? Astrid whimpered.

I hurried down the hallway, hoping not to be caught by anyone else. I really wasn't expecting to see beta Soren, I mean I know for a fact that Caelum was on training grounds. Most of the pack members were.

Aren't betas supposed to be trailing behind their alphas like puppies? I thought. It wasn't good that he had seen me, it would help him easily pinpoint me as the culprit. I was hoping to be long gone by then.

I stopped by Caelum's office, leaning my ears on the door to catch movement inside. Once I was satisfied that there was none, I took a Bobby pin out of my hair and wiggled it into the lock.

I didn't know what I was doing, I hadn't picked a lock before but I hoped to the moon goddess that it worked. Surprisingly, it did.

I walked silently into the room, closing the door behind me with a silent thud. My eyes roamed the space curiously and I barely resisted the urge to snoop around Caelum's office.

I dropped the muffin on the table and wrote out a note to identify who it was for. I really hoped he didn't still remember my handwriting. 

Once I had placed everything in order, I hightailed it out of there. My heart was beating furiously and I still couldn't believe that I had done that.

 A part of me wanted to go back for the muffin but then I remember how my mother's head rolled on the ground. I didn't look back.

Caelum's POV

“Make sure to leave no stone unturned, I want this man found as soon as possible.” I ordered Soren as we entered the office. I was satisfied with training today, it gave me some time to get my thoughts in order.

There was a lingering smell of chocolate in the air. Wren, I thought. She had been in here recently.

 My eyes narrowed in suspicious. She was the one who picked my lock. I had noticed that it was damaged before I came into the room.

I stopped walking abruptly when I got to my table. There, lying innocently on the table, was a blueberry muffin wrapped in a covering that was bright blue with red hearts on it. I picked up the note attached to it.

“For the alpha." I read aloud. There was no name, did mate think we wouldn't be able to recognize her handwriting? Xyler scoffed.

 I think she was banking on the 13 years that we hadn't seen her. I replied him, absent-mindedly thumbing the edge of the note.

I pick up the muffin and brought it to my nose. Bingo.

“Cyanide." I murmured, amusedly. Of course, she would try to poison me with a muffin, she knew about my sweet tooth. 

Most people wouldn't be smiling about almost being poisoned and killed but I was glad that my mate remembered something about me.

“I think now is the time to tell you that I caught her sneaking around the weapons room. Poison, really? You've got your hands full with this one.” He laughed.

" I know.” I grinned back at him.

" She's a really bad liar by the way. She was sweating real bad when I caught her and I hadn't said a word yet.” He continued, bending down to peer at the muffin. I hummed absent-mindedly.

"Trash it." I said to him and made my way to my window.

“Your first present from your mate?" He gasped in mock outrage. I sent him the driest look I could muster, he left the office in bouts of laughter. I allowed the smile I had been fighting to come out.

Unknown POV

“Hey Leslie." I greeted the girl that had caused a ruckus in the hall earlier. By the way she jumped, I could tell that I startled her.

" Oh, it's you. What are you doing here?” She rolled her eyes.

“Well, I thought you'd still be feeling bad about earlier so I brought you a muffin.” I handed her a blueberry muffin wrapped with a bright blue wrapper with red hearts on it. Digging through the trash hadn't been fun.

“Thanks" she smiled at me.

“No problem, eat it all." I smiled, my smile turned wicked as I watched her take a bite of the poisoned muffin.

One down, lots to go….