Lahat ng Kabanata ng Stuck Between Two Alpha Heir’s: Kabanata 161 - Kabanata 170

Piper told herself she needed air.That was the excuse.The greenhouse sat at the far edge of campus, tucked behind the science wing and half-hidden by climbing ivy. Most students forgot it existed unless they had a botany elective or a deadline looming. Piper had neither.She just needed space.The class door creaked softly as she pushed it open. Warm air wrapped around her instantly, thick with the scent of wet soil and something faintly floral, jasmine, maybe.Late afternoon sunlight poured through the glass ceiling, filtered and golden, casting soft shadows of leaves against the tiled floor.The hum of the heater vibrated faintly beneath the quiet. Water dripped in steady intervals from the small stone fountain near the centre.Beyond the glass panes, distant campus noise blurred into a muted murmur of voices, a car door slamming, laughter carried by the wind, but inside, everything felt insulated.Her wolf stirred immediately.Every rustle of leaves. Every shift of air. Her heart

Piper didn’t remember crossing the greenhouse floor.One second she was in his arms.The next thing she was outside, the door slamming behind her like it could shut out what had just happened.It couldn’t.Her lips still burned.Her skin still felt too tight.Her wolf was not ashamed.That was the problem.Campus noise swelled around her, laughter, distant chatter, someone arguing near the parking lot and it all sounded far away, like she was underwater.She spotted Ember near the walkway that led toward the main gates. Of course, she was in the middle of a small circle of girls, hands moving animatedly as she told a story.Piper didn’t slow down.“Excuse me,” she murmured to the girls, not waiting for space before she slipped between them and grabbed Ember’s elbow.The girls blinked, startled.Ember stumbled. “Whoa!! Pip?”“Come with me.”“Right now? I’m literally in the middle of…”“Now.”Something in Piper’s eyes must’ve shifted because Ember’s protest died halfway. She shot the gi

Cecil doesn’t sleep.She lies in the dark staring at the ceiling, counting the seconds between passing headlights outside her window.Every time she closes her eyes, she sees Scarlett’s face.Not angry, just disappointed and that was worse. Her phone vibrates at 2:13 a.m.One message.Scarlett: Come.No greeting. No context.Cecil jumped out of bed and was out of her room in minutes.Scarlett’s office is colder tonight. The lights are brighter too. Less forgiving.Scarlett doesn’t look up when Cecil enters.“You were given a simple task three days ago,” she says calmly, reviewing something on her tablet.Cecil stands still. “I told you I would handle it.”Scarlett finally looks up.“And yet,” she says, voice smooth as glass, “she’s still breathing. Still asking questions. Still doing things she shouldn’t.”Cecil’s jaw tightens.“She hasn't gotten close enough to matter.”Scarlett’s eyebrow lifts slightly, “You don’t get to decide that.”Silence. The air feels thin.Scarlett sets the t

The words blur for a second.Piper blinks hard and forces herself to read more slowly.The file isn’t a full report. It looks like an internal memo. Unformatted. Rough. Not meant for public release.Case ID: M-441Subject: Toxicology irregularity flagged during post-mortem reviewHer heart pounds. She scrolls.Trace compound detected: Aconitum derivative (commonly referred to as wolfbane).Her throat closes. A line beneath it:Initial classification: External toxin exposureThen, her stomach drops. No explanation. No reasoning. Just a timestamp.02:14 AM — Flag entered02:22 AM — Override approvedEight minutes. Eight minutes and five years to erase poison from his body.Her thumb scrolls again.Financial Liaison: Quinn HoldingsHer vision tunnels. Quinn. Archie’s family. Not “suspected.” Not “responsible.” Just… present. Involved enough to be listed.The screen dims slightly from inactivity. She doesn’t move. The quad noise rushes back in waves, laughter, chatter, someone yelling abo

Piper pushed open the door slowly, her hand trembling slightly as it hovered over the knob. The room was empty.A single chair sat by the window, its wooden arms polished and worn in all the right places. Sunlight streamed in, casting long shadows across the floor.A teacup rested on the table, half-filled, the faint smell of lavender clinging to the air. But the old woman, where was she?“Excuse me,” Piper called softly, her voice almost swallowed by the quiet. She hesitated, then repeated it a little louder. “Hello?”A nurse appeared from the far corner, straightening her uniform. “Oh, you’re looking for Mrs Woodsen?" she asked kindly. “She’s in the garden. Tends to the roses most mornings.”Piper’s heart skipped. The garden. Of course. Somehow, knowing the old woman was just outside made everything feel closer and yet further away. She held the locket under her shirt as if it were a lifeline, a key to a door she didn’t yet understand.“Thank you,” Piper told the nurse who acknowled