The Alpha's Prize
Chapter 23: Snooping

Cain POV:

I rounded my desk and sat in my chair; Ryder entered my office and closed the door beforeapproaching my desk.

I glared at him for interrupting my moment with Freja. “You better have a damn good reason fordisturbing me,” I said in a low and dangerous tone.

His eyes flicked around the room, avoiding my stare. “I apologize for interrupting, sir, but it's aboutCalyx. I overheard him speaking with Samara about joining him.”

My eyes widened and confusion wrapped around me. Samara had always been loyal to me, and tothink that she was conspiring with my brother to kill my mate and me, threw me for a loop. I shookmy head, refusing to believe this. “No, that can't be right Ryder, she would never do something likethat. Samara has always been a loyal pack member.”

Ryder sighed heavily. “I know, sir, she has been an upstanding pack member, but I heard Calyx tellher to meet him later today to discuss the plans.” So he Informed me, regret lacing his tone.

I was taken aback by this new information; first, my own brother and now other members of mypack were conspiring against Freja and me to take us out and kill us. My head was spinning witheverything, and I could not comprehend it all entirely. I pinched the bridge of my nose as I tried tothink of my next move and how to handle this shit show of a situation, as my father would. TakingFreja out tonight was probably a bad idea, but if something happened to either of us, I didn't wantto waste this valuable time we had left together and show her the man she deserves

I stood from my chair and started to pace the room. “I want you to get a few of your most trustedmen together and have the men follow them both, don't tell them why; just instruct them to followSamara and Calyx. Freja and I will be going out tonight, and I don’t want anyone to replace out. Anydetails of importance you discover, notify me immediately, understood?”

Ryder nodded his head “Yes, Alpha, understood. Will you be taking any men with you tonight?”

I wondered for a moment if I should, but aside from Ryder and Freja, who could, I trust right now?“No, it will just be us two.”

He was silent for a moment; I could tell Ryder was against this, especially with the threat lingeringaround us at this time, but he wouldn't dare go against my wishes or orders. So, he just noddedreluctantly. “Be safe, Alpha and I'll report if needed.”

“Thank you, Ryder.” He then straightened himself and left my office, leaving me there with mynever-ending thoughts.

Freja POV:

I left Cain's office and went to replace Samara, hoping she had found something out or gotten in withCalyx. As I walked down the hall, I was abruptly grabbed and yanked into a dark room. I started tothrash around, trying to free myself and was about to scream for Cain when a hand was claspedover my mouth “Shh, don't scream, it's me, Samara.” She whispered before removing her hand andreleasing me. I whipped around to see that it was Samara and was instantly relieved. For a moment,I had thought this was it, and I was about to die. With everything going on lately, I am constantly onedge.

I smacked her arm “Fuck Samara, you scared the shit out of me.” I scolded her.

Samara gave me a remorseful expression. “Sorry, I didn't mean to, but I have some news. So, Calyxoverheard me talking about you to some other pack members, about how I wish you would justdisappear, that I don't like you and so on. He pulled me aside and asked me if I would like to joinhim in getting rid of you. Of course, I said yes, and he told me to meet him later today to discuss hisplans and things in further detail.” She told me, a little excited about things.

I chuckled lightly at her, glad that I had someone I could trust to help me with all of this. “That'sgreat, Samara, but are you sure you are ok with doing this?” I asked, a little concerned regarding hersafety.

She waved me off. “Yes, I am sure. I'll be fine, plus we need to get to the bottom of this one way oranother, and I like having you around; you're not so bad.” Samara smirked playfully.

I smiled at her. “Ok, but if you feel unsafe, get out of there, promise?” I said sternly.

Samara rolled her eyes. “Yes, I promise.” She looked at her watch, and her eyes widened. “Shit! Ihave to go; I am supposed to meet with him in 20 minutes.” She started towards the door, but Istopped her before reaching for the handle. She looked back at me, a bewildered expression on herface. “Thank you for doing this Samara, I truly appreciate it, and I couldnt have asked for a betterfriend,” I said honestly and wholeheartedly.

She smiled. “It's my pleasure, Luna.” Samara then hugged me before leaving the room and leavingme to wonder if this was indeed a good idea. I was worried for Samara's safety and apprehensivethat this whole thing was a mistake, that Gunnar was right. I waited a few moments before leavingthe bedroom, hoping no one would see me, but just as I closed the door and was turning around, Iran straight into what could only be described as a brick wall. However, to my dismay, it was thesame man that had disrupted mine and Cain's fun time earlier.

He stared down at me, and I craned my neck up to glare at him. “Fuck giganto, that felt like runninginto a brick wall,” I said while rubbing my forehead.

He arched a brow. “Are you alright?” He questioned in a deep, baritone voice.

I wrinkled my nose. “Yes, I'm fine,” I admitted, being a little honest. My head hurt a bit, but nothing Icouldn’t handle.

The man nodded his head hesitantly. “Good, pay better attention to your surroundings next time,Luna.” He said firmly, almost as if he was scolding me. What he said and how he had said itreminded me of Gunnar, making me miss him even more. The large man was right though, witheverything going on right now, I needed to be on my toes.

I nodded in agreement. “Your right; I will be more attentive,” I said assuredly.

His brows pulled together slightly before he curtly nodded his head and continued down thehallway towards the staircase. I stood there, thinking about the last good memory I had withGunnar; it was our training session on the day before the final battle. Since coming here, thememory had been my cushion, something I reflected on many times to get through this life-changing reality. This whole situation had been a mind twister; it had been hard on me. Especially inthe beginning and I had felt lost at times, but thinking of my family was what helped me to getthrough it. Now, things are even tougher with the new threat in the air. Yet, somehow, I feelstronger and more confident; I feel like the warrior I was born to be as a woman and a wolf. I knowthings will be alright; Cain and I will get through this and prosper, like the Alpha and Luna that weare.

I headed towards the staircase, and as my foot was about to hit the first step, I stopped, feeling theurge to go into Calyx's room, wondering if I could replace more on him, something that may help me. Iknew he was supposed to be meeting with Samara right now, and this would be my chance tosneak in there and get some answers.

I looked all around me, carefully focusing on the darker areas. I didn't see anyone around or hearanyone close by; I reared back from the stairs and cautiously walked towards Calyx’s bedroom. Igripped the handle of the door, glancing around me once more and turned the knob. I was kind ofsurprised that his door was unlocked; it made me wonder if I would even replace anything if he werethis trusting. I pushed the door open and closed it behind me but left it slightly open so I could hearanyone coming. I slowly observed the normal-looking bedroom

The walls were light blue, hardwood flooring, modern style furniture and a large bed, with whiteblankets that neatly hugged the mattress. Not very many nick nacks throughout the room; it wasplain and simple.

I approached the white dresser and pulled out the top drawer. The clothes were skillfully folded inthe drawer, throwing me off. I didn’t think Calyx was such a well-ordered individual; he didn’t seemlike that type of person. I carefully moved the clothes around and searched for anything but cameup with nothing. I continued to search through all the drawers and came up with nothing. There wasa nightstand next to the bed, and I explored that next, replaceing nothing again. As I closed the table'ssmall drawer, I heard a clunk. I pulled the drawer out again and closed it again, hearing the clunkonce more. Finally, I pulled the drawer all the way out, and a small key landed on the floor in frontof me. I put the drawer back into the table and closed it. I grabbed the key and began to examine it;the key was completely foreign to me, especially when I wasn't familiar with any of the keys for thisplace. However, if I was right, this was for a padlock

I stood from the floor and glanced around the room, trying to replace something to which this key maybelong. I froze, hearing someone in the hallway walking towards the room. I quickly stuffed the keyinto my pocket and bolted towards the door, casually opening it and closing it behind me. I walkedout, acting as casual as I possibly could

"What the fuck were you doing in there?” A thunderous and angry Cain bellowed out, and I knew Iwas fucked.

“Nothing, I was looking for Calyx,” I said casually, trying to hide the fact that I was just in theresnooping around his brother's room because he is trying to us kill both.

Cain stormed up to me and moved me aside before bursting into Calyx's room. Although, of course,it was empty, he glanced around the room and sniffed the air for a moment, then his head whippedtowards me. “Why are you looking for Calyx?" He questioned as he sauntered menacingly towardsme. My breath hitched for a beat, becoming more and more turned on with each taunting step hetook towards me. Cain looked so delicious at this moment, and the urge to have him wasoverwhelming. His chiselled chest peeked out from the few open buttons at the top of his whiteshirt, the soft material hugged his muscular biceps, and his dark locks were tousled, giving him arugged look.

I shook my head quickly and cleared my throat, saying the first thing that came to mind. “I wasgoing to ask Calyx to take me to see Samara.” I lied.

His brows pulled together as he glared down at me. “No, if you want to go somewhere, Ryder or Iwill take you. Calyx will not be accompanying you anymore.” He said in a firm tone.

I was a little unsure of how to answer him. “Oh, why is that?” I fully agreed with him, I didn't want tobe alone with Calyx, but I didn't want Cain to know, not yet. My eyes trailed off from his, roamingdown his beautiful body. Cain chuckled softly. “My eyes are up here, love, and because I said so,don't argue with me on this.” His tone was firm and deep.

I rolled my eyes. “Fine, whatever you say, Alpha,” I said sarcastically.

A low growl rumbled up from his chest, and he took a taunting step towards me, backing me intothe door. He placed a hand on the door next to my head while the other hand came up and lightlygripped my throat.

His eyes flickered between those vivid green orbs and those soul-consuming black holes. The cornerof his mouth pulled back into a grin. “Do you need another lesson in proper behaviour, my love?”Cain questioned mischievously.

My chest heaved, and my legs quivered. The heat was pooling between my legs now, thinking of thethings Cain would do to me.

I released a heavy breath. “Yes, I do,” I said in a whisper.

Cain rubbed the tip of his nose along my neck, leaving small pecks here and there. My legssqueezed together tightly, trying to ease the urge that was screaming for him.

Cain nipped on my ear lobe. “Well, you will just have to wait till tonight then.” He whispered in myear before kissing me passionately and walking away, leaving me a horny mess. I gaped at him as hewalked down the stairs. “Are you fucking kidding me?” I hollered at him, and his response was ahearty chuckle, one I hadn't heard before.

I stood there completely bewildered; I couldn't believe he had just teased me like that and then leftme here unsatisfied. I would get him back for that. I straightened myself and fixed my clothing, thenremembered the key in my pocket. I wanted to go back into his room and look more, but I didn'twant to get caught again.

I looked at the clock on the wall, and I had 3 hours before my date with Cain. I decided to go intothe library and roam around; maybe I could replace something in there that may be helpful. Walkinginto the room, I closed the door behind me. I instantly felt a sense of calm here, a sense ofbelonging.

The room was quiet and not maintained, but it still had a warm atmosphere. I moved about theroom, running my fingers over the dust-coated bookshelves. Then, I noticed at the back of theroom, there was a desk. As I approached the desk, I saw a small lamp, some books, and a pictureframe were sprawled about on the wooden top. A leather chair sat behind the desk; I sat in the chairand glanced at the picture in the frame. The photo was of two little boys and a man; it was evidentthat the man in the photo was Cain, Calyx and their father.

The photograph captured two strong boys and an intense-looking man. I turned my attention tothe books; one was titled “Ryker History,” and the other “Diary.” I picked up the history one first andopened the book; it was a detailed compilation of Cain's entire family, past and present. Page afterpage told stories of former Alphas and Luna's, their families, so on and so forth. I flipped throughthe pages, glancing at some of them and reading the information written down. I finally reachedCain and his family's history page. I read the pages carefully, drinking in every written detail.Everything seemed to be as expected, just like all the other stories I had just flipped through, exceptthe page about Calyx. His picture had been marked on, bright red letters now covered half of theimage and said “DANGEROUS” I wondered what it meant and why. I continued to read his page,looking for any kind of detail that could help me. However, when I turned the page to continuereading, nearly the entire page had been blacked out; anything important was now hidden beneaththe black ink.

Feeling a little defeated and overwhelmed, I turned to Cain's page and began reading. The page wasdetailed, speaking of his achievements and downfalls. As I continued to read, something caught myattention, Cain's age; it said he was only 25. So I went back to Calyx's page, and his age was 28. I satback in the chair, a little confused as to why the younger son was Alpha and not the eldest. As far asI knew, it was always the older son who took the title of Alpha. So why was Cain Alpha and notCalyx? I remembered what Samara had said previously about the two brothers, and it never reallyclicked until now; it was like they were competing for the title, but why?

I put the history book down and picked up the diary; it was old, withered and used. I opened thebook, and the pages crinkled. Page after page had been written on, it was almost complete, exceptthe last few pages. I turned back to the first page and started to read the entry. This diary belongedto Cain's mother, Kasdeya. The first entry spoke of Cain and his training sessions to become Alpha;she wrote that he was thriving, that Cain exceeded their expectations, and that he was everythingthey had hoped for in an heir.

I flipped through the pages, scanning each one, only stopping when I found an entry on Calyx.Kasdeya had written that Calyx was becoming worse, that he was changing into someone she didn'trecognize. Then, finally, she spoke of an incident, and since that day, he was never the same. So nowI was left to wonder what incident?

I spent the day in the library, losing time as I lost myself within the pages of this room. Suddenly, Iheard the library door open. I quickly stuffed the book into the desk drawer and started to walktowards the door. I looked all around, searching for the person that had opened the door, but itseemed as though I was completely alone. I walked out of the room and headed towards mybedroom; looking at the clock on the wall, I realized it was now 6:00 pm, and I needed to get ready.Adela POV:

I was deep in the woods, far from my own territory, leaning against a tree and waiting for Calyx toshow. It's almost time for us to go through with the plan, but I have to acquire something beforeproceeding. Finally, Calyx emerged from the trees; he strolled towards me, showing off and actinglike a big shot. I played along and pretended to drool over him.

He stopped inches from me; his eyes roamed up and down my body. “Adela.” He said in a low tone.A slight grin pulled at my mouth. “Calyx.” I had to admit, he was a good-looking man and skilled inthe sheets, but he was a fool.

His expression became neutral. “Plans have changed; we strike tonight.” He said bluntly.

I raised a questioning brow. “Excuse me? And why have the plans changed?” I asked, a little thrownoff at the sudden announcement.

Calyx groaned. “Because Cain knows that I am up to something. I've noticed a few guards have beenfollowing me, and now a fellow pack member is interested in joining me, even though I caught hersneaking into a room with Freja. So, we follow through with the plan tonight. Have you gotteneverything together?” He asked me.

“I am still waiting on something, but I'll have it before tonight.” I was a little irritated with Calyx andthis sudden change, but I wanted to get this over with anyways.

He nodded. “Good, Lazarus is preparing everything from his side and will be ready for tonight. Also,I've received word that Cain is taking Freja out on a date tonight, and I happen to know where theyare going. So, I think that will be our best chance, to strike them when they are alone andvulnerable. I have one thing to ask you, though.” He said curiously.

My brows pulled together, and a smile tugged at the corner of my lips. “What's that?”

"Why are you doing this?” He asked me in a deep tone

My face fell, and I gave him a neutral expression, “I have my reasons.” I said, not giving him an inch;he didn't need to know my reasoning for doing this.

Calyx took another towards me, and I stood up straight, my back flush with the tree. “And what arethose reasons?” He questioned, with a dark edge to his tone.

I narrowed my eyes, and my wolf stirred in my chest. “None of your business,” I said with hostility,refusing to tell him something that didn’t concern him at all.

His right eye twitched a bit, as did his upper lip, but those expressions quickly faded, and a grinappeared on his face. “Ok, fair enough. Meet me here tonight at 10:00, and we will initiate the plan.”He stepped closer to me, but I didn't move or flinch, not wanting to give in to his teasing tactics.

I straightened myself and smiled. “I'll see you tonight, Calyx,” I said seductively.

Calyx stood there for a moment, examining me; his eyes bore into mine before he smiled andbacked away from me. I took a step forward, and he stepped backwards, still smiling. To be honest, Iwas a little weirded out by him right now, and he gave me this odd vibe. I turned around andheaded back towards home; after I was a few feet from him, I looked behind me, and he was nowgone. As I continued to walk, I began to go over everything that needed to be done to prepare fortonight, and I hoped that I would acquire the most crucial piece to this plan.

Freja POV:

I looked at the clock reading, 7:00 pm, and I was freaking out. I had never been on a date before;the closest thing to a date I ever had was with Erik. It was my birthday, and he asked me to go for awalk with him. We went into the woods, and after walking for a while, we came to a stop. A blanketwas laid out on the ground, and a small basket on top of the blanket. Inside the basket was a smallbirthday cake; that was also the day that Erik and I became more than just friends. It was a fondmemory, but a memory of the past and I had a different future ahead of me now, new memories tomake with my mate.

I decided to wear a white t-shirt, black leggings and a pair of dark brown boots. I did my hair so thathalf was up and half was down. I put on little makeup, just some mascara; I didn't want to wear toomuch and never liked make-up. I checked myself in the mirror again for the millionth time andfinally got the courage to leave the room, mostly because I didn't want to be late. I walked out ofthe bedroom and headed for the stairs.

As I reached the top of the staircase, I saw Cain standing by the door waiting for me. He looked sogood standing there, wearing a fitted black t-shirt and blue jeans. My heart rate spiked at the god-like man standing there, grinning at me. I skipped down the stairs; excitement, curiosity and nowlust all stirring inside of me. I reached the bottom step and walked towards Cain; he didn’t move,just stood there watching me intently, desire gripping him tightly.

After a few steps, I now stood in front of him; his eyes roamed over my body. Cain's arm thenreached out and wrapped around my waist, pulling flush against his chest. A possessive growlvibrated from his chest as his lips locked with mine, devouring my mouth. He finally released meand looked into my eyes. “Are you ready, my love?” He asked in a husky tone.

I smiled brightly, beyond ready for this, to create a memory with him. “Yes, I'm ready,” I said withconfidence.

He stared at me with admiration and satisfaction. A smirk spread across his face. “Then let's go.” Hestepped to the side and opened the door, gesturing for me to walk out. I glanced up at him, smiling,then walked out the door.