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The investigator clears his throat. "It would appear so, Mr. Blackwood. They're quite... close."
The world goes crimson. A roar explodes from my chest as I sweep my arm across the desk, sending papers, pens, and a crystal decanter crashing to the floor. Glass shatters. Liquid amber pools on the carpet. I grip the edge of the desk, breathing harshly through my nose.
No. She belongs to me.
To the Blackwood Pack.
We are her alphas, her mates. No other man has the right to touch her.
I glare at the destroyed office, then back to the investigator. He stands very still, trying not to provoke the demon behind my eyes.
"The file, sir. It has all the information. Her address, her daily movements..."
I pull the dossier closer, flipping through the pages. Apartment blueprints, work schedules, known associates. Alexei Petrov's face taunts me from his profile. I want to tear it to confetti with my bare hands.
"Does she know?" I ask quietly, each word a cold razor. "That she's being watched?"
"No, sir. We've been very discreet. She has no idea."
Good. I trace a finger over her photographed cheek, remembering the petal softness of her skin. The jasmine scent of her hair splayed across my pillows.
She ran from us. From her destiny. Now I finally have her in my crosshairs again. This time, I won't let her slip away so easily.
"Should I do anything else?" he asks, awaiting my next command.
I stare at the scattered photographs, a muscle ticking in my jaw. Daria's face peers back at me from a dozen angles, beautiful and unreachable. I want to gather her into my arms, bury my nose in her silken hair, and breathe in the scent of home.
But she made her choice.
She left me. Left the pack.
And I can't just bring her back, no matter how much my soul screams for it.
"No," I say finally, my voice rough as gravel. "Stand down for now. There's another matter I need to resolve first."
Evangeline Beaumont. The debutante my father handpicked to be the Blackwood Pack's new omega mate. As if she could ever fill the void Daria left behind. As if any other woman could compare to my moon and stars.
But I have a duty to fulfill. A legacy to uphold. I can't chase after Daria when my father is forcing us to claim another. It's an impossible situation, a tangle of thorns constricting around my heart.
Even if I showed up at her doorstep and she wanted to come home, how could I bring her back here when we're being forced to take another omega?
No… I have to solve the Evangeline problem first.
Especially now that she's wearing our collar around her neck.
A knock at the door jolts me from my brooding thoughts. Asher pokes his head in, his eyes widening at the state of my office.
"Sorry, am I interrupting?" he asks, stepping inside.
The investigator clears his throat. "No, I was just leaving." He nods to me. "Let me know if you need anything else, Mr. Blackwood."
As soon as the door clicks shut behind him, Asher rounds on me, stepping over broken glass. "What was that about?"
"Nothing," I lie.
But his gaze falls on one of the photographs. He snatches it up, his brows knitting together.
"Really, Damien? You're stalking her now?"
