Chapter 14 : Alliance of Shadows

Maya

She already understood the importance of being careful when dealing with the man before her, especially after hearing about the terrifying powers he possessed. Although it was hard to believe that such powers could exist, she knew that Nathaniel would never give her false information. She was determined to succeed in her mission to kill Xavier's half-brother, and she had no intention of failing.

"Why do you want to attack me?" she asked in a majestic voice similar to Elena's.

"I asked you first!" was his childish reply.

Then the man holding what looked like a spear with a glowing crescent symbol - she remembered his name, Mike - stepped forward and placed his hand on the shoulder of his friend, who was wearing a red t-shirt and black leather jacket. "No need to be so hostile, Rylan. Maybe she'll find out what this barrier means."

She saw the man wisely ignore his rhetoric and approach her. He bowed slightly before speaking politely, "I apologize for my friend's inconvenience, but we have important business to attend to. However, this barrier stands in our way. We would like to know its origin and why it was built. If you can enlighten us, miss, we will leave immediately."

Maya knew that this man was trying to extract information from her. However, she decided to play this role cleverly by manipulating the situation in her favor.

"If you could order your friends to put down their weapons, I might be more willing to come out of Xavier Westwood's barrier to talk to you," she replied, deliberately using the name Alpha Westwood to provoke a reaction from them. She knew the name must mean something to them and wanted to see how they would react. She also realized that the conflict between the two werewolf brothers had not been resolved.

As expected, the man's friends were surprised and looked at him confused for a few seconds before they all spoke almost simultaneously, demanding an answer from him.

"Xavier, that bastard!" he shouted.

"We have to get to her and save her," complained Samuel, the man next to the straight black-haired girl, still worried about his friend's fate after hearing her shocking confession.

"What does Xavier want with Karenina?" asked Selene.

"Tell us what really happened..." Rylan started to demand as Mike slammed his stick down hard on the floor, clearing his throat loudly to get everyone's attention.

"That's enough," Mike said in a strong, firm voice. "No need to be so disgusting in front of a woman. Rylan and Selene, please put down your weapons."

Selene was a little hesitant to do as the man said, but Rylan flatly refused. However, a blow to his thick head from Selene made him grumble and began to neutralize his aura of power and strength.

Satisfied, Mike turned away from his friends to talk to the she-wolf, trying to salvage the situation, not wanting her to think that providing valuable information was a waste of her time. "I apologize to my friends once again, miss, but we have a friend who is missing. If you will stay, we will try to be more polite. We need to know what you know about the Barrier and what was going on inside."

She made them sweat for a few moments before stepping out quietly, but still close enough to come back in if her plan didn't work.

Mike smiled, relieved at her actions, and motioned for his friends to back off and get some distance between them. Despite the shady night, he could see that she was very beautiful, but he knew that she was very dangerous, so he thought about not approaching her right away.

"Would you like to know the reason for this barrier, sir?" she asked in a calm yet authoritative voice.

Before he could answer, she continued, "Xavier has summoned all she-wolves who are pure-bloods and have reached the age of maturity to fight for the honor of being his mate, if they so desire. He built this barrier so that the battle would not be interrupted."

Short and to the point like any great lady, she did not want them to get suspicious if she acted as if they were already friends. She was sure they would be grateful for her help and follow her instructions.

Surprisingly, none of the man's friends spoke up after she delivered this shocking news. Apparently, the man had several people in this small group.

"Thank you for bringing us this news, but I'm afraid I'm a little confused. You see, we're looking for a half-human, half-wolf hybrid girl, Karenina Mason, whose scent leads beyond this barrier. If only pureblood she-wolves who have reached maturity are allowed to enter, then why did our friend get through?" he asked, his tone full of curiosity.

"A hybrid, you say? I saw such a creature in a strange style of clothing inside the barrier not long ago," she said in a calm voice, trying to give an adequate answer.

She could see the excitement growing in the man and the restlessness of her companions who wanted to speak but remained silent, letting the man be their spokesman.

"Can you tell us about the girl's involvement in what happened here?" asked Mike hopefully.

"I don't know why a hybrid was allowed in. However, if your goal is to get her back, it may be difficult," she told them in a puzzled tone.

"And why is that?" Rylan demanded, unable to remain silent, so worried.

She turned her attention to Rylan, who was Xavier's half brother.

"I witnessed Xavier Westwood take her."

Mike regained control of the conversation before he could interrupt again and asked, "Do you know where he took her?"

"I don't know," she replied briefly and firmly.

She could clearly see the tension rising between his friends as the unknown weighed on them. She grinned inwardly before offering, "I might be able to help, though. If Xavier steps outside for any length of time, the barrier will collapse. It will signal that he has found his mate and brought her to his place. If the barrier collapses, I will help you find her."

"And why would you do that?" demanded Rylan, not trusting the she-wolf's motives.

She raised her nose as she met his gaze before answering. "I also want to know why a hybrid was allowed inside Xavier's artificial barrier. I doubt that he could have forced her way in."

"If you try to hurt her—" Rylan started to threaten, but Mike stopped him firmly. "Enough, Rylan."

Then she grinned at Rylan as she said, "I also doubt that man's sense of smell could find her amidst the stench of blood and death. I will find the girl and get the answer with or without your presence. That is your choice, of course."

"Stop being an idiot and let her help us, Rylan," Samuel shouted, fed up with the childish bickering between Rylan and Maya.

"Shut up, you bastard," Rylan retorted.

"Stop fighting, you two. It's not going to help us find Karen," Selene said, finally breaking the silence.

Turning to Rylan, Mike asked, "It's your choice, Rylan. Whether we need their help or not, but before you let pride answer for you, think of Karen first. We need to find her before he comes for us, if he hasn't already."

He was silent for a moment, fighting his pride. Of course he wanted to say that he didn't need any help, but what if he couldn't pick up her scent? Then he would have to waste his trip hunting down Xavier and demanding answers from that arrogant man. Then he remembered that he didn't know where his brother's stronghold was. He gritted his teeth at his own weakness. If only he were a perfect werewolf like his brother, he wouldn't need anyone's help to find it!

"Well, fine, we'll find her together," he said gruffly, fearing for his friend's safety.

She tried not to laugh at how easy this would be, but instead suggested, "It will probably be dawn before Xavier's barrier comes down. I suggest you get some sleep." Then the woman walked past them and started to walk away.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?! I thought you were going to help," Rylan shouted.

Without turning around or slowing her pace, Maya replied, "I'm going to let you all rest in peace without having to worry about me killing you in your sleep." Then she disappeared.

"As if I'm going to sleep," Rylan growled.

"Do you think she'll be back?" asked Samuel.

"I'm sure she'll be back," Selene said, trying to calm them both.