I decided to go for a short walk, stretch a bit, check the time, then come back and finish.
When I emerged, I was surprised to find it was well into the middle of the night. The waxing crescent moon was already sinking below the trees. I stood for a bit in the chilly spring air, rubbing my arms as they pimpled with gooseflesh.
I sat on a bench next to the wall and leaned back, rubbing my eyes.
My bite was aching a bit. I hated to admit Gideon was correct, but I probably needed to be more careful not to move it too much.
Out here in the night air, by myself, was the first time I’d been able to just sit in nature and enjoy it in a long time.
I listened to the bullfrogs and birds. Not even one day ago, I had been tied up in woods very similar to these. Kidnapped by rogues.
I wondered what Gideon had learned from them that he wanted so badly to question me about. He was catching on that something was out of place, and I hoped that the continuing rogue incursions would keep his attention away from the flaws in my story.
I closed my eyes at the memory of him leaning over me, piercing me with his stare. My mark never seemed to intervene when he was around, which was a damn shame. He had manhandled me into the bath pretty effectively.
But if my mark did flare up around him, he would realize I was taken, and there would be hell to pay.
I yawned. It was so late…
I opened my eyes to the soft tweeting of birds. The horizon was the pale grey and pink of early dawn.
I had fallen asleep!
I guess I had been more tired than I had thought.
I uncurled myself from the bench where I’d nodded off. My body ached, but I did feel better rested.
I headed back to the cellar. I would finish my work and present the finished list to the Old Luna. Maybe she would be pleased that
I was done with it so quickly, and pass along a good word to Gideon.
I rolled my eyes at my own thoughts. Who was I kidding? Gideon didn’t care if I could make a guest list.
I was laughing at my own ridiculousness as I entered the records room.
Then I froze.
The room was trashed.
The papers that I’d stacked into neat piles were scattered across the floor. The desk itself had been overturned.
My mouth hung open as I surveyed the damage.
My careful guest list?
Torn into tiny pieces and placed in the shape of letters on the floor.
The pieces spelled out one word.
“DIE.”
Avery’s POV
Someone was sabotaging me.
I forced myself to take long, slow breaths.
Slowly, I entered the room and found an empty envelope and put all the tiny torn pieces of paper into it. I could try and tape them together maybe?
My hands were shaking. I was angry. Angry at whoever would have had the guts to do this.
Whoever it was, they had known I would be here.
My blood slowed to an icy slurry as I considered that whoever had come had expected to find me alone. When they hadn’t, they had made this mess, but what if that wasn’t their original intention?
Perhaps my recent kidnapping was making me paranoid?
Perhaps not.
Maybe my unplanned nap on the bench had actually saved me from something far worse.
The hair at the back of my neck rose at that thought.
In the middle of the night, down here in the cellar alone, it would have been pretty easy to hurt me.
I needed to be more careful.
I rose carefully and shoveled the remaining papers together as best I could. I would have to re-do most of my work with the files, but maybe the invitation list could be salvaged. I just needed to find some tape.
But first, I needed to investigate the saboteur.
I carefully tucked the boxes into shadowy corner where they would be less visible. Unless my enemies really had a penchant for shredding mildewing records, they would probably be undisturbed.
Then I closed my eyes.
My wolf might be dormant, but I wasn’t as ‘human’ as Zara liked to say.
I let my senses stretch out and fill the room.
I smelled the dust and faint scent of rat droppings. I could smell the stink of stagnant water where it pooled in the corners of the basement. I heard the slow drip drip of water in the walls from a leaky pipe.
I had probably slept for about 4 hours. That was enough time for the person who did this to be long gone, but they had to have left something. Some trace of their passage.
I opened my eyes and lowered myself to the floor. I put my head to the side and stared across the parquet stone, looking around. There were plenty of cobwebs under the shelves, but no clues.
I turned the other way and looked at the other side of the room.
Something glinted in the corner of the doorframe, near the hinge of the door.
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