Ana gritted her teeth in anger. Why was James twisting everything? Unless… Ana's eyes widened. "You are also with them!"
Before anyone could react, James crossed the distance between Ana and him and held Ana by her neck, lifting her off the ground.
Nora quickly took a step back from Ana. This was the second time today for Ana to be attacked, and Nora didn't want to be a side casualty of a brawl that had nothing to do with her. Well, almost nothing to do with her.
"What did you say?" James squeezed through his teeth while glaring at Ana.
Ana clawed at his hand, trying to pry it free, but it was in vain. How can a sixteen years-old be so strong? Why was no one helping her?
Alpha Edward and Beta Raymond stared at James in disbelief. He moved so quickly that they didn't see it happening. And what was this volatile energy radiating from James? That was not normal.
Ana looked at Alpha Edward tearfully, silently asking to be spared.
"Don't kill her," Alpha Edward said, and James loosened his grip, but he didn't let her go.
"I am the next Alpha of the Red Moon pack, and this lowly Omega accused me of being a traitor," James said icily without removing his glare from Ana. "Traitor of what will be mine? Why are you protecting her? How far can her boldness go? After what I've seen here, I am confident that this Omega is dangerous to our pack. You taught me that it's best to remove dangers as soon as possible."
James turned to look at his father. "What will we do if her nonsense reaches Alpha Damon and his Luna? Don't tell me you believe the story of how Alpha Damon's Luna used to live in the attic of our packhouse and that she was cleaning restrooms during the night while concealing her presence to the point of none of us sensing her. How can someone with the qualities of a Luna go unnoticed? How could she be Alpha Damon's Luna without leaving our pack? If Ana's story is correct, Luna Talia was in this packhouse at the same time when Marcy was here. Did you feel the bond breaking in the last few months?"
Alpha Edward's jaw ticked. He didn't. Sure, a few Omegas found their mates in different packs, and they left, but every bond breaking was accounted for, and none of the Omegas who left resembled Alpha Damon's Luna.
James continued talking.
"And let's assume Ana's story is true and Alpha Damon's Luna was an Omega in our pack. How can that information benefit us now that she is his Luna? Our spies confirmed that her Luna ceremony was complete. She belongs to the Dark Howlers pack, and us bringing up her past will either enrage her because it's a bunch of lies or won't make a difference because we can't touch her." James was tightening his grip on Ana's neck. "I should snap her neck just for daring to lie in your face. She wanted to manipulate you in order to conceal her failure to seduce Commander George."
"Don't!" Alpha Edward exclaimed. "As an Alpha, I will deal with this. Leave us. I want to have a word with Ana."
Beta Raymond hesitated. If Alpha Edward just wanted to talk or kill, there was no need for privacy.
Beta Raymond knew that his Alpha was lecherous and that Ana was attractive and willing, and he feared that she would be able to convince Alpha Edward to change his mind.
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Beta Raymond asked. "Maybe I should stay and…"
"Leave!" Alpha Edward said angrily. Why were Raymond, James, and Nora still in the study? "The guests are here. Welcome them and represent the pack until I join you. All three of you."
With Beta Raymond, Nora, and James leaving the office, it was just Ana and Alpha Edward.
"You believe me, don't you?" Ana asked fearfully while rubbing her aching neck.
"I want to," Alpha Edward said while standing up from his seat and making his way toward Ana. "But… how can I when so many things don't make sense?"
He put his hands at the collar of her shirt, and in one swift move, the fabric was torn. Before Ana could react, all her other clothes were gone, leaving her completely naked.
She inhaled a shaky breath. Alpha Edward would eagerly pounce on her, but he was never this enthusiastic to the point of tearing everything.
Alpha Edward could pick up the scent of her arousal, but he was not in the mood to fool around.
"Turn around," Alpha Edward said, and she obeyed.
Ana made a full circle to see him frown while visually examining her body.
"You said they tortured you," Alpha Edward said. "How come there is not a single bruise?" Other than the one in the shape of James' palm on her neck.
Ana was not sure how to respond to this. "They blindfolded me, and I felt a cooling sensation, and after that, I was fine."
"Did they give you some medicine?"
"I'm not sure. My healing was always better than an average Omega."
'SLAP!'
A harsh slap landed on Ana's face, filled with the strength of an Alpha. Ana lost her balance and fell to the floor.
Ana held her throbbing cheek. "Why did you hit me?"
"To see how good your healing is." Alpha Edward squatted next to Anna and pulled her hand away.
The pink was turning into an angry red, and he knew it would become purple soon. There was also that bruise on Ana's neck, but Alpha Edward didn't know how much force James used, so he couldn't gauge the seriousness of that injury.
"If they tortured you and you ran back here, it can't be more than fifteen minutes before I saw you."
That would put her healing rate to be faster than an Alpha could have. After all, she mentioned broken bones.
While waiting for time to run out, Alpha Edward mind-linked George, who confirmed Nora's story. George said he was doing a final check of security procedures for the event, and when he got into his study, Ana was there. She tried to wiggle out of charges of spying by coming onto him.
'Why didn't you tell me about it?' Alpha Edward asked George. 'You should know that Ana works in the packhouse. If she is a spy working here, it would be dangerous.'
'I would tell you after the party,' George said.
'Why the delay?'
'This is a big event, and it wouldn't be good if you are distracted by this matter. As an Alpha, it's best if you focus on our guests, otherwise, they might suspect we have problems with our pack,' George explained. 'I assigned warriors to keep an eye on Ana, so we make sure she doesn't cause further damage, and we might find out for whom she is working.'
'You think she is working for someone?'
'That's the only conclusion I have. As an Omega, she wouldn't have the courage to pry into secretive information. And what would she do with it? If you, Beta Raymond, or other Commanders wanted to know about security procedures I am working on, you have clearance, and all you need to do is ask. Why send an Omega to spy? But things didn't work out as planned. I caught her, and she told me how she had admired me for a long time. She started undressing, and then I kicked her out…'
