Chapter 2

Victor Sinclair

“Clean this mess up,” I snapped at the waiter, my voice smooth as silk even though red wine dripped down my collar.

Amelia’s emerald eyes were still wide with shock, but I leaned in and brushed my lips against her cheek, letting my fingers linger on her arm.

“Darling, give me a moment. This is just a little misunderstanding. I’ll be right back.”

She nodded obediently, just how I liked it.

“Please don’t take long. I’m worried about you. She is crazy.”

Amelia’s eyes welled with tears as she spoke.

“Don’t worry about me, my love. No one hits me and gets away with it,” I assured her.

I straightened my jacket and walked away from the table like I owned the entire restaurant.

The moment I walked into the hallway, I noticed was empty and cold it was. “She is gone...Damn it..“

Before I could turn back, I spotted a small black device on the floor.

I picked it up and flipped it open.

The initials “C.B.” were engraved on it. The style in which it was written was exactly like how Clara would write it. I had seen how she always wrote initials on things she claimed she loved most.

"Yes, even though I was using her..I was very observant. No one can judge a guy for trying while getting free sex.“ I smirked.

I knew right away it was Clara’s tiny camera. She always had a thing for photography. A silly little dream I was determined to crush soon.

My pulse quickened at the sight of it.

“What if she recorded that scene in the restaurant?” I thought. “I’ll have to find out.”

I closed the little camera and slipped it into my pocket.

I stepped into a private alcove, pulled out my phone, and connected the camera.

The screen lit up with dozen of files...There were photos, videos and all secret High-profile affairs, dirty business deals, politicians in compromising positions… all neatly organized.

It looked like months of work. Infact it was enough to ruin lives if anyone ever traced them back to her.

I had read and seen most of these stories on that chaotic little blog which landed powerful men into bankruptcy. I enjoyed watching her sacrifice her all to me and her dying pathetic mother... She had real potential to be just as wealthy as I am, too bad I wasn't generous enough to let her prosper.

And then, a slow smile curved my lips.

“Clara Bennett, you clever little thing.”

I thought of her tired face after long nights cleaning my apartment. The way she happily handed over her savings whenever I complained about being “broke.”

All the he free favours and free body. It was always nice to use a naive and helpess girl, it saved me from the stress of actually providing anything at all. All I had to do is play my cards right.

She had been so useful and so eager to please.

And now Amelia Hart, with her family fortune and connections, had appeared at that charity gala last week like a gift from the universe.

We clicked instantly.

Why settle for scraps when I could have the whole feast funding my scientific projects?

But Clara… she still had one last use.

I slipped my antique pocket watch from my vest, clicking it open.

Inside, tucked behind the gears, was a small tuft of coarse silver-black fur.

It didn’t belong to any known animal.

My team and I had run thousands of tests on it, but we still had no leads.

I ran my thumb over it gently.

“Werewolf,” I murmured under my breath, almost fondly. “The most dangerous specimen in the world.”

My mind raced.

For years, I had kept the project buried deep.

The labs and secret experiments that not even the government knew about.

We needed the perfect subject. Someone strong enough to survive what we had planned.

Someone like Ryder West. I had always suspected him. He fit every description of an Alpha.

And that night... that faithful night years ago... when I almost caught a glimpse of the monsterous beast shifting under a full moon, I couldn't get close enough, but at least I had some little evidence left behind....

This fur.... Even though he cleaned all his tracks, clean as a ghost. I had my suspensions on him.

He was the only one in those streets that night, he was the only one I saw shirtless with glowing eyes.

Even after I felt like it was all a dream later, I knew my mind couldn't play tricks on me.

I closed the watch with a soft click and pulled out my phone again.

John answered on the first ring.

“John,” I said calmly, my voice low and pleasant, “I need you to do something for me. Quietly.”

“Sir?”

“Clara Bennett just left the restaurant. Follow her. Don’t scare her off yet, but make sure we know where she goes tonight.”

I paused, letting the silence stretch.

“She’s far more talented than I gave her credit for. If she can dig up this many secrets without anyone noticing… she might be exactly what we need.”

John cleared his throat.

“And if she resists?”

A soft chuckle escaped me.

“She won’t have a choice. Instruct Thunder to take her mother from her residence and bring her to the secret location. I should meet you there with both of them.”

I glanced back toward the dining room where Amelia waited, then down at the camera in my hand.

“Ryder West has hidden long enough,” I said softly into the phone, my tone almost affectionate. “And Clara Bennett is going to deliver him to us… whether she wants to or not.”