Chapter 33
AUTHOR’S POV.
Dim moonlight filtered through the cobweb–laden window of an old forgotten storage room in the palace casting an eerie glow on Will’s tense features. He paced about restlessly, his frustration mounting with each passing minute. Giselle was supposed to meet him here but she was running late and he began to fear that she wouldn’t show up.
The silence was broken by the soft creak of the door. Will whirled around, his hand reaching for the concealed dagger strapped to his thigh. Relief washed over him as he saw Giselle clothed in a simple brown cloak walk in and close the door behind her.
“Giselle…” he breathed, lowering his hand. “I thought you wouldn’t show up tonight“.
Giselle pulled her cloak tighter around her body as she walked towards him briskly.
“Of course not!” She hissed, her voice laced with urgency. “there isn’t a meeting that I would ever miss”
“What’s wrong? You look so pale like you have seen a ghost” Will asked concerned.
Giselle’s breath hitched and she rubbed her face with her palms desperately.
“Worse” She whispered “The flower is gone”
Will’s heart plummeted. “Gone?, Are you sure of it?” He asked.
“Of course!” Giselle said, her voice rising in panic.” I went back to check on it after the incident in the hall but it wasn’t there! Disappeared from the very spot I kept it behind the mirror”
“Do you think the guards found it?” Will asked, alarm etching lines on his face.
Giselle shook her head vehemently.
“No! They didn’t find it and the maid at the door swore that no one else had entered my room today, Tessa and Adrian were in my room yesterday but the flower was still there this morning so I don’t understand how it disappeared!”
Will ran a hand through his hair, frustration, and fear evident in his features. “Calm down, Giselle. Panicking won’t solve anything”
He placed a firm hand on her shoulder and she shivered slightly at his touch. Taking a deep breath, Giselle forced herself to regain her composure.
“You’re right, I need to get myself together and find the culprit,” Ciselle said, her voice trembling slightly.
As Giselle spoke, a flicker of desire clouded Will’s judgment momentarily. He leaned, cupped her
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face, and stole a quick kiss. Giselle’s face turned a rosy pink but she quickly pulled away
“Will, stop!” She said, nervously glancing towards the doorway. “someone could see us“.
Will chuckled, a dark predatory sound. “Let them,” He said pulling her into his embrace, we’ll just silence them like Thomas. Besides is it bad to want to hold my mate in my arms?“.
Giselle melted into his hands for a moment but her worry quickly resurfaced. “We can’t afford distractions now, Will. First, we need to get rid of Adrian then make you the Alpha, and then….
Her voice trailed off, a suggestive smile playing on her lips.
Will grinned back at her, excitement glinting in his eyes. “Then nothing will stand in our way,” he said huskily completing her sentence.
“Exactly,” Giselle said, a mischievous glint in her eyes. “But first things first, we need to get that flower back”
you
“Agreed, Tessa is currently…critical so I don’t think she is involved in this one. Why don’t question your maid a little bit more and use some force, she must have seen something” Will said stroking his chin.
Giselle gave a low chuckle.
“I will do that and you wouldn’t imagine how happy I was when that bitch took the poison, she won’t survive it. We haven’t heard the news from the med bay and Adrian is silent and brooding so she must be in really bad shape.” Giselle said excitedly.
“Also, Will. I know you told me that Tessa would come back to the pack if she was alive and we would get rid of her once and for all but we never said anything about children, I certainly didn’t expect that she would have triplets. We need to do something about them” Giselle complained.
Will stroked her hair.
“We will, baby. They have to go, we wouldn’t want Adrian to have second thoughts and think about. getting rid of you” he said.
Giselle wrapped her hands around him.
“Adrian said a lot of hurtful things to me today, he said that Tessa is still his Luna and mate. I wast really pissed off.” Giselle’s said pouting.
Will frowned.
“You have to correct that yourself, Giselle. Make him go crazy for you, I’m sure no man would be able to resist you” He muttered/patting her head.
“Everyone except Adrian, he’s a hard nut to crack,” Giselle complained.
Will kissed the top of her head.
Chapter 33
“Baby, I didn’t teach you to give up. This is a battle and it’s one we must win. We had the upper hand from the start so let’s keep it that way” He said encouragingly.
“Yes, darling. I should go back to my chambers and I will not disappoint, I will find the person who took the flower and I’ll settle everything” Giselle assured pulling away.
Will reluctantly let her go.
“Alright, good night. I’ll be waiting for updates” he said.
With newfound urgency, Giselle traced her way back to her chambers, her mind racing for a plan. She stopped at the door where the maid curtsied to her.
“Luna, welcome back,” She said curtseying.
Giselle stared at her furiously.
“Amanda!” She shouted.
The maid flinched.
“Yes, Luna?”
“I need you to tell me right now.” She began, her voice laced with icy venom. “Who entered my room aside from the guards?”
The
young maid trembled under Giselle’s menacing gaze ” I swear to the moon goddess, only the royal guards searched your room” She said, her voice barely above a squeak.
Giselle grabbed the girl’s arm, her grip tightening and her nails threatening to begin digging into the poor girl’s skin.
“Think again, Amanda. You know I hate lies” Giselle growled.
Amanda began to tear up, tears forming in her eyes. “Pl.. please my lady, I’m telling the truth” She pleaded desperately.
Giselle narrowed her eyes at her but a sense of doubt was beginning to form in her mind. Perhaps. the guards hadn’t been as thorough as she thought and maybe the flower was still somewhere in her room. She released the maid’s arm with a sigh.
“Fine but if I find out that you’re lying then I’ll tear you to pieces” Giselle threatened.
The maid curtsied, tears streaming down her face.
“You should retire for the night, You may Leave” Giselle ordered, her voice hard and without emotion. She was confused because she had searched the room herself earlier but found nothing so could it be that she missed it?
The maid scurried away.
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Giselle entered her chambers and banged the door frustrated.
She began to search around her room again leaving no stone unturned but it was futile. The flower wasn’t in the room.
“Damn it!” Giselle cursed flinging a pillow across the room. She almost tore her hair out in
frustration
“Where could it be? Goddamn it, Amanda How gullible can that girl be?” Giselle said under her breath as she stared at her chambers that she had scattered.
She stormed out of the room to the maid’s quarters where she found Giselle huddled with a group of other maids in the corner, fear in their eyes on sighting her. They quickly stood up and curtsied.
“Luna, what brings you by this night?” The head maid asked, curtseying deeply to her, fear in her voice. Giselle knew people around the palace feared her and it gave her a weird sense of satisfaction.
Giselle ignored her and grabbing Amanda forcefully by the arm, she yanked her away from the watchful eyes of the other maids. “Come here” she said through gritted teeth.
Cassandra stumbled along beside her, whimpering softly Giselle forcefully dragged her to a secluded comer, the shadows shielding them from the prying eyes of people.
“Now, tell me the truth: Giselle spat out her eyes blazing with fury.
Amanda’s pale face was streaked with tears as she shook her head vehemently
“There really was no one” She insisted, tears streaming freely down her puffy face.
Giselle’s grip tightened on Amanda’s arm, leaving a red angry mark.
“Think again, Amanda!” She said angrily.
Suddenly. Amanda’s eyes brightened up in memory. “Oh, there was another maid. She came by this morning during the meeting saying you had sent her to clean your room” She said hurriedly trying to defend herself.
Giselle’s blood ran cold. Another maid? A wave of nausea washed over her. She hadn’t Instructed anyone to clean her chambers.
“Who was it?” Giselle asked, her voice hard like chips of ice.
Amanda flinched under Giselle’s scrutiny but she managed to stammer out a name.” Cas….. Cassandra. From the west wing”
Fury contorted Giselle’s face, who the hell was Cassandra? It didn’t matter, she had to find that maid immediately.
The image of someone else in possession of the flower flashed in Giselle’s mind. No, she couldn’t
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allow that. A low rumble emanated from her in anger, the growl more suited to a beast than to at composed Luna.
“Leave! Go to my chambers and get it ready, it’s a mess right now” She growled at Amanda, releasing her with a shove sending the girl stumbling back.
Amanda literally ran away, relief in her expression.
With renewed determination, Giselle stormed towards the west wing, her footsteps echoing in the halls. She barged into the room startling the occupants.
They hurriedly stood up and curtsied.
“Who’s Cassandra?” Giselle demanded, her voice a sharp command.
A few frightened faces stared her back, none daring to speak however Giselle caught one of them turn back slowly to look at the girl by the wall who seemed nervous.
You,” Giselle pointed to the girl, a sneer at her lips. “Come with me”
Cassandra stepped out, her face etched with fear. Giselle roughly grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the room with urgency.
They reached a deserted corridor, illuminated by only a sliver of moonlight coming from a high window. Giselle shoved Cassandra against the wall, her grip tightening on her arm.
“You stole something from my room, didn’t you?” Giselle asked, her voice low and dangerous.
Cassandra’s eyes darted round frantically looking for an escape route. “I..I.. don’t know… what you’re talking about…my…lady” She croaked.
Giselle scoffed openly.
“Don’t you dare play dumb with me, Amanda just told me that pretense of cleaning and you took something” Giselle growled.
you entered
my r
under the
Cassandra sniffled
“Luna, I swear that I didn’t do anything. I only cleaned the room” She said desperately.
Giselle dug her nails into Cassandra’s skin.
“Who sent you, girl?! Something valuable is missing from my room, you were the only one who went into my chambers” Giselle said.
Cassandra kept silent and was sobbing.
“Don’t you understand? Where is what you stole? Do you want to die? I will tear you to bits if you. don’t speak” Giselle warned.
Chapter 33
Cassandra burst into tears.
“I swear, my lady. I didn’t take anything, I swear on my life!” She said vehemently. Tears streamed down her cheeks and she sniffled occasionally
Fury clouded Giselle’s vision. How dare this lowly maid lie to her? She would get the truth out of her, no matter what.
“Hey!..” Giselle shouted, her voice echoing in the deserted corridors while raising her hand to strike Giselle.
Her hand was about to connect to Giselle’s face when a voice, calm but sharp sliced through the atmosphere.
“Stop!”
Giselle’s hand hung in mid–air as she whipped round to look at the owner of the voice. Her eyes narrowed as they landed on the figure standing not far off. It was Tessa, dressed in a simple nightgown, a defiant glint in her eyes as she met Giselle’s gaze head–on.
The sight of Tessa sent Giselle into a wave of panic. Damn it! She didn’t die!.
