Forever in the Past and Forever in the Future
Chapter 133

Chapter 1

Lenora's POV

The bold letters of the unopened email sear into my eyes. The subject line reads: 'Operation Goddess: Weekly Update'. A lump of anxiety settles in my chest as I read it over and over. My finger hovers on the mouse button, but I can't bring myself to open it. I hate that this assignment has turned into such a shit show.

There is a knock on my office door, giving me an excuse to ignore the email.

"Come in," I call out, looking at the door.

Musu peaks her head in. "Hello Beta. D-did you watch the video?"

I sigh and roll my eyes. She is not who I was hoping to see, "Not yet. How bad is it?"

"Mmm, pretty disturbing. Mind if I sit?"

"Might as well." I shake my head and turn the computer screen, so we can both see, while she sits in the chair across from me. I open the dreaded email and click on the attachment.

A black and white surveillance video pops up and starts to play.

Aman approaches an ATM. While he is completing his transaction, a petite woman wearing a trench coat with designer stilettos queues up behind him. She hides her face using a large floppy hat and dark sunglasses. He appears to be reviewing his receipt when she pulls out an ornamental dagger.

Without warning, she grabs his chin with her wolf's claws extended. With one swift movement, she slices his neck from ear to ear. Blood sprays out as she pulls the startled mant o the ground. He feebly struggles against her, but she waves her hand over his face and appears to say something out loud. His hands fall helplessly to the side as he becomes paralyzed. He stares at her, his eyes wide with fear. She quickly looks around, then straddles his chest, partially obscuring our view, but it is clear she is digging the knife into his face. When she stands up, she puts something small into the pocket of her trench coat. She then drags the man's body out of frame and the video cuts off.

"Musu, if you say what I think you're about to say, we have a real problem on our hands," I look at her with alarm.

"They found the corpse in the alley next to the bank," Musu states knowingly. "She cut his left eye out. She also sliced open his abdomen and took part of his liver...umm...and his heart."

"Fuck," I swear under my breath, "Yeah, we definitely have a problem."

I tap my fingers on the desk, still looking at the computer screen. I should be furious, screaming for revenge. There is no way it's a coincidence, but there's just no way it's real.

"Beta," she looks at me sympathetically, "I didn't want to believe it either. The video is from last April. I received it from one of my contacts earlier this week. I had our tech team review the video ten times. They confirmed it. That knife has been missing for over six years until yesterday."

I lean back in my chair and take a calming breath, "This stays between you and me for now, Musu."

"Yes, Beta," she stands up. "The rest of the report is basically the same as always, but something seems to be ramping up. They are getting more brazen with their actions."

I don't say anything. I just nod, looking off into the distance.

Musu stands in front of the desk for a moment, "Permission to speak informally, Beta?"

"Of course, Musu, you're one of my best friends. You can always speak candidly with me." I soften my tone and turn my gaze to her.

"Lenora, please don't wait too long to speak to Alpha Bronx. We may need to consider additional protection for him. And knowing him, it will take convincing. I also have to keep all this a secret from Marco. It's not fair to him. Especially if he is expected to keep Luna Kas safe."

"I understand. I know how difficult it is to keep secrets from your mate. Milo has to do it all the time with me. Give me forty-eight hours. I will speak to my brother and Kas sooner than later and figure out what to do." 1

"Thank you, Beta. Is there anything else I can do before I go home?"

"Yeah, can you turn back time to before all this started?" I try to smile at her.

"If I could, I would, Beta," she chuckles dryly and shakes her head, "Have a good night."

As she closes the door, I lean forward, letting my forehead hit the desk with a frustrated groan. I don't know how I'm going to tell my Luna more bad news. Kas Mason is the sweetest Luna the Blood River pack could have ever imagined and the best mate my brother Bronx could have ever lucked out on. She doesn't deserve to hear that her sister murdered someone.

"We need to keep Bronx safe, Lenora," my wolf, Justice, states stoically.

"Don't worry, Justice. We will keep him and Kas both safe. I just have to figure out how to tell him about this in a way that won't have him going off the walls."

"Protect Bronx to protect the Luna," she huffs and cuts off our link. She isn't a wolf of many words, but it seems like she could have given me a bit more detail on this one.