Chapter 139
Valencia’s POV:
I moved silently and followed Dante into the elevator as he spoke to Tanaka, his voice calm and edged with authority.
“Move whatever is salvageable to the sixth floor. We’ll stay there until our room is fixed up. Find someone to commission a better quality cot for Castor–make sure it’s made of something non–flammable and can be fully enclosed.”
The butler, always efficient, nodded as he listened, his face impassive.
“And send Caius to the thirteenth floor once he arrives. I want to discuss something with him,” Dante added before Tanaka stepped out on the tenth floor, where the pack’s treasury was housed.
The tenth floor was always an enigma to me–filled with all sorts of magical, rare, and downright strange artifacts that I wasn’t allowed to touch without Dante’s permission. Not because they were too precious, but because they might be dangerous.
I never asked what half of them were used for, but now I wondered if any of them could have helped prevent what had happened today.
As the elevator continued its ascent, I kept my eyes locked on Castor, still nestled securely in Dante’s arms.
My fingers twitched with the overwhelming urge to reach out and hold him again, to feel the warmth of his shell against my skin.
You know that irrational feeling of wanting something even more when you’re told you can’t have it? Yeah, that was me right now. It was stupid–I knew that.
I had been fine leaving him alone for short periods before. Maybe this time it felt different, was it because someone else was holding him?
Dante glanced at me and let out a low chuckle, his voice laced with amusement but also something softer–something meant to soothe me.
“I can feel your anxiety, princess. Relax, okay? I’m here.” His brows furrowed slightly, and then, with a teasing smirk, he added, “Unless me being here is what’s making you anxious?”
I rolled my eyes, letting out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding. “What? No! I was literally waiting for you to come back, idiot.” My voice came out more exasperated than I intended, but I couldn’t help it. “I’m just worried. I don’t know what happened–all I did was leave for a little while, and suddenly Castor’s egg is cracked, my entire room was on fire, and now you expect me not to be anxious?”
Dante’s smirk faded, replaced by something more serious. “I get it,” he murmured. “I do.”
I wasn’t sure if he really did, though.
By the time we reached the thirteenth floor and stepped into the library, my mind was still a chaotic mess of thoughts.
The large, sunlit space was lined with towering bookshelves, their aged spines filled with knowledge both ancient and
current.
In the center of the room, on the hexagonal table we had gathered a collection of the most critical books we had found- ones that we still needed to fully translate.
That was the issue, really. Ninety percent of the texts were written in Draconic, an archaic language that, up until now, none of us had needed to learn. The ones written in English were newer, focused only on the last few remaining dragons–barely scratching the surface of what we needed to understand.
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10:58 Tue 25 Feb (9 #
Chapter 139
Thankfully, over the past months, we had learned enough of the language to translate about fifty to sixty percent of the texts on sight. But it was still slow work.
A short while later, Seven arrived, moving quickly as he handed me a small, folded piece of paper. His expression was slightly tense, as if he had rushed here the moment he could.
“Sorry it took so long,” he said, catching his breath. “Alpha Jaxon kept insisting he wouldn’t leave until he was sure you were okay
Dante scowled, his grip tightening slightly around Castor’s egg. “Has he left now?”
Seven nodded. “Yeah. He just wanted to confirm the fire situation. Sir Joseph filled me in. Oh, and Aiden gave me this. He motioned to the piece of paper in my hands.
I unfolded it, my frown deepening as I read the hastily scribbled words.
- D) There’s a mole.
2) Find out what happened twenty–eight years ago.
Dante leaned over my shoulder to read it as well, his expression darkening.
“I already figured the mole part,” he muttered. “That isn’t surprising. If we have people in their pack, they can definitely sneak into ours.” His golden eyes glinted with suspicion. “And it was already strange that Drogo didn’t know about Jaxon’s whereabouts. I have a feeling that was a lie he fed Aiden.”
I nodded, my stomach twisting at the thought. My father had always been cunning–manipulative in ways that made my skin crawl. If he was keeping something from Aiden, it wasn’t out of ignorance. It was calculated.
“But twenty–eight years?” I mused, tapping the note against my palm. “That was before either of us were even born. Who can we even ask about something that long ago? Were the Nina or Tanaka around back then?”
Dante shook his head. “As far as I know, after my mother’s death, there was a massive change in staff. Almost everyone was fired…”
His voice trailed off, and I saw the realization hit him at the same time it hit me.
“Except for one,” we both said in unison.
Sir Joseph.
Seven tilted his head. “Sir Joseph was here almost thirty years ago, wasn’t he? And he’s originally from the Wolfe pack.”
I exhaled slowly, my mind already racing with possibilities.
Before we could dig into that, I turned to Seven and explained what had happened with Castor and the fire. His eyes widened slightly, but after a moment, he nodded, absorbing the information carefully.
“Alpha is right,” he said, glancing at Dante. “We aren’t sure if it was a stroke of luck or if Castor genuinely knew how to control his ability. It’s safer if he stays with him.”
My lips parted in disbelief. “You too?” I asked, crossing my arms. “Are you all really ganging up on me right now?”
Seven had the decency to look apologetic. “I’m sorry, Luna… but we just don’t know enough yet.”
I groaned, rubbing my temples. “Fine. Just… help me figure out what happened, then.”
Seven nodded quickly and grabbed his notepad, flipping through the dictionary we had been using for translations. His efficiency was admirable, but I was still irritated.
25 Feb
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Chapter 139
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I’let out a slow breath and leaned back against the table, feeling the weight of exhaustion settle over me. It wasn’t even noon yet, and I was already drained.
Marcy wouldn’t be back until dinner so I couldn’t blabber off my frustrations to her.
Dante pulled out his phone and called Sir Joseph.“Come to the thirteenth floor…..” He paused, his eyes flitting to mine, “And bring something to eat.”
I couldn’t help but smile. I was feeling quite peckish, figures he’d realize.
After hanging up, he turned to me. “Any ideas what Aiden might be talking about?”
I frowned, running my fingers over the rough edge of the note. “The only thing I can think of is Aiden’s birth year–wasn’t that when Drogo and Lethia got married?”
Dante nodded. “Yeah. It happened that same year because she got pregnant.”
I tilted my head. “Is that really relevant to what’s happening now, though? What does that have to do with our plan? Do you think Aiden just wants to know more about his origins?”
This was a question Dante should have been asking me, since I had been living with him longer. However, I had only started learning about him a couple months ago, alongside Dante and he was definitely better than me at reading people.
Dante hesitated before shaking his head. “I doubt it. He doesn’t seem interested in learning about Joseph. In fact…” His brows furrowed. “He’s almost afraid to.”
Something about this didn’t feel right.
And I had a bad feeling we were about to find out why.
