Page 17 of Demon Valley Marked

“Imposter Goldibitch isn’t at the site yet,”he revealed.“Intriguing nickname for her in your memory banks. Apparently, she’s chasing some doll with a knife or whatever bullshit she sent me in a text. I don’t believe that shit, but I don’t care. Gives us time. Whether our ‘dear’ father is going to be joining this deal is beyond me. The Tainted Time Keeper introduced herself at least. Cunning being of immortality. No wonder why she had the boldness to threaten me.”

You clued in on everything we discovered.

“Between you and me, you’re the one absorbing and stacking this information to dive into it later. I, on the other hand, am just your frantic Alpha trying to get an alliance going which forces me to play along to everyone else’s tune until it’s showtime. That leaves me plenty of time to absorb and process things.”

Do you think you’ll get to see the Astra Lexianne you’ve known all this while?

“Probably have to earn it,”Nathan quietly confessed.“That would take time anyways. We ended on bad terms when you think about it.”

Right…

“I’ll stall for as long as I can. Get to it.”

Being encouraged by you is a mindfuck, especially when I’m once again reminded that we’re the same person.

“Suck it up,”he bitterly muttered but further whispered,“We owe her.”

That was something we could both agree with.

“See you at the meeting site,”he firmly stated to remind me we were once again pressed on time.“This family reunion is going to be hell.”

There’s one thing I need to confirm before you go.

“What?”He sounded irritated at my stalling but it was a genuine question that I needed to clarify and confirm was the right move to make.

What’s the life your Lexianne craves?

I was sure he understood I was referring to Astra Lexianne. I felt like I carried a glimpse of what the true Lexianne wished, but did they align? Nathan and I were two sides of the same coin but it didn’t necessarily mean our goals were the same.

Now that I knew Lexianne carried the same ability to split her Astra into an independent entity, I had to make sure my moves appeased both sides of her—especially when they’re one unit again. At least for now.

“She craves a lifestyle that revolves around pack life,”Nathan revealed with a tender voice.“To have a purpose in a pack. Not just to be used for her healing abilities. She wants a purpose where she’s relied on and respected. Where she gets to run with the pack and aid in the pack’s growth. I’m not sure how we can give all that to her with how our Demon Valley dynamic works, but I’m sure you can figure something out that would appease both sides. She used to do training with the Gaia woman… Fuck, I gotta apologize for killing her.”

I could feel him mentally cringing at the thought but he shook it off to finish.

“Attempt to give her a routine. Obviously, that’s going to be a tad difficult with us dealing with deals and shit, but once the verdict is made with this current deal, I think we may get some wiggle room to recuperate and figure shit out.”

You’re holding something back.

I sensed his apprehension. It was but a pinch, but enough for me to pick up on it.

“You said Monarch Empire earlier.”

Yes.

“I was checking Baker’s recent movements. Just to give us a bit of leverage as to whether he’d show up or stand us up like a typical weak snitch,”he confessed.“I found something.”

Something?

“Rumors going around that Baker wants to find his designated Coven. You know, vampire shit. But that’s not what stood out to me. He was seen with some woman. Looked human to me, but shortly after that woman’s car was found in a ditch and burning to ash after being crushed by a truck. Clearly wasn’t some sort of planned suicide, which means he either tried to get rid of her or was caught doing something illegal.”

Did the woman survive?

“Unsure. I stopped my search to come here.”

Find out if the woman survived, and if she did, where she is.

“Your urgency concerns me.”

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